Coal price fluctuations and the impact on financial risk Evidence from China＇s coal listed companies

With the rise of coal price, the proportion of loss-making enterprises shows an upward trend in China＇s coal industry. This paper uses Altman Z-Score model to measure financial risk of 19 listed companies in the coal industry in A-share market from 1995 to 2007. Empirical results show that Year-Based price index of coal price has a negative correlation with the financial risk but has no significance, and coal chain price has a significant negative correlation with the financial risk. Further research indicates that enterprises increase bad investment, and a lot of debts caused by short-term rise in coal prices. The results also show that the financial risk in the coal industry declines with the rise of GDP growth rate and increases with the rise of inflation rate.     

The Health Inequality between the Rural and Urban Area in China

China＇s accomplishments in health sector over the past decades have been internationally recognized. However, these accomplishments have disguised the deep health inequality between the urban and rural areas. This paper aims to investigate the health inequality from the perspectives of health status, health care utilization and health insurance on the basis of statistic data. Finally, the authors propose some advices of addressing the inequality.     

Characteristics of Organizational Leadership and Motivation as a Factor of Change in the Public Health System

The purpose of this study is to investigate the characteristics of organizational leaders in the health system and the factors that motivate health workers, in order to improve health care. The research was conducted in the public health institutions in Montenegro. The objectives of the research were to investigate whether leaders affect the motivation of employees in order to implement changes in the health system. The study was implemented through the interview method on the representative sample of 603 employees in public health institutions. The factor analysis revealed the latent characteristics of the organizational leader and the factors that motivate employees in public health institutions. The result of study indicates that employees in public health perceive organizational leadership to have a good quality. Result also exposes that the strongest motivation factor is a financial incentive. Financial incentive is the main motivator for employees in the public health sector, while the participation in decision-making was the least important motivational factor. The results obtained indicate that employees are primarily focused on individual goals, which influence the acceptance of change within the health system. The role of organizational leaders in motivating is poor because obtained factor scores are not correlated. The research has shown that organizational leaders do not have a great impact on the motivation of employees in the public health sector. This has effect on the process of accepting changes, where the roles of leaders are very important, especially in providing support to employees.     

Lessons from ＂Audit Storm＂ in China

The phenomenon of ＂Audit Storm＂ in China shows that transparency in government audit has been improved and increasing attention from the public has been paid to it, as government auditing and the mass media in China make joint effort to become a powerful source of supervision of government financial administration. Lessons drawn from Audit Storm show that more need to be done to systematically ensure public accountability in China, including improving the independence of China National Audit Office （CANO）, strengthening the manning of Chinese National People＇s Congress （NPC） and Ministry of Finance （MoF）, improving NPC and MoF joint cooperation with CNAO, insisting on more transparency in public funds allocation and management, the introduction of an effective responsibility system, and so on.     

A Global-Optimal Portfolio Theory beyond the R-σModel

Deviations from the efficient market hypothesis allow us to benefit from risk premium in financial markets.We propose a three-pronged(R,σ,H)theory to generalize the(R,σ)model and present the formulation of a three-pronged(R,σ,H)model and its Pareto-optimal solution.We define the local-optimal weights(wR,wσ,WH)that construct the triangle of the quasi-optimal investing subspace and further define the centroid or incenter of the triangle as the optimal investing weights that optimize the mean return,risk premium,and volatility risk.By numerically investigating the Chinese stock market,we demonstrate the validity of this formulation method.The proposed theory provides investors of different styles(conservative or aggressive)an efficient way to design portfolios in financial markets to maximize the mean return while minimizing the volatility risk.     

Return to Endogenous Financial System via Corporate Bonds

After 35 years＇ reform and development, China has established an ＂exogenous＂ financial system. This type of financial system was created outside of real economy rather than derived from its inherent demand. To improve the role of market mechanism in allocation of financial resources, China＇s financial system must be reformed to be endogenous in real economy, which means, expanding the financial options available to enterprises and households so that they can compete with financial institutions such as commercial banks in financial market. Corporate bonds, with their advantages in matching the supply and demand of funds, can play important role in cultivate the endogenous financial system com- bined with real economy.     

An empirical research of urbanization and urban-rural gap in China： 1952-2005

There are two important problems of urban-rural relationship in China nowadays： the accelerated urbanization process and an enlarged urban-rural gap. The researchers can be divided into two schools according to their emphasis. One emphasizes particularly the urban development, and the other pays attention to the urban-rural income gap. However, there is a very strong association between urbanization rate and urban-rural inequality. As far as it goes, there is a paradox between urbanization and urban-rural inequality in China. This main reason lies＇ in the different temporal and spatial scales chosen by the scholars. Making use of correlative analysis and wavelet method, this paper rethinks and sums up the commonly evolving characteristics and trends between urbanization and urban-rural gap from 1950s to now. There is an intensively positive correlation between urbanization and urban- rural consumption gap. In general, with the acceleration of urbanization, urban-rural gap of China has undergone three stages of cyclical fluctuations. The rapid urbanization results in the increase of urban-rural highly risky. In addition, the special stage of urbanization is the other reason that expands urban-rural gap.     

Eco-economic research and construction of harmonious society in China：a survey of the 7^th Biennial Conference of Chinese Ecological Economics Society,2006

The 7th Biennial Conference of Chinese Ecological Economics Society （CEES） was held from 5th to 7th, Nov.2006 in Qingdao University. The paper summarizes the major viewpoint presented at the conference： eco-economicresearch and construction of a harmonious society in China. The conference put forward that it is an objectivity andinevitability for human being to enter the harmonious society, that eco-economics is one of the theoretical bases for theconstruction of the harmonious society, and that the research of eco-economics in China should reflect new contentsdeveloped in the process of modernization in China and make proper contributions to the construction of the harmonioussociety.     

Construction and harmonious development of urban-rural comparing financial systems based on comparative advantages theory

There exist diferences between urban-rural financial systems,Generally,the development of unban financial industry has absolute advanages compared with rural financial industry.According to the Matthew Effect,the financial resources will flow into cities for higher benefit ,so rural areas are unable to obtain absolute advantages However,relative advantage theory of the comparative advantage theory of the comparative advantage theory provides an lmportant way to observe res[ectove advamtage of both city and country.Therefore,there are comparative advantages for the development of financial industry in both urban and rural areas.The respective comparative advantages of urban-rural financial systems will supply greater efficiency than that in current dual puttern condition.Closely connected with China＇s financial development and reform and the fact of recreation of urban-rural financial system,this paper tries to explain the comparative advantage of the urban-rural financial systems.The anaalysis of the comparative advantage between urban and rural finance is the clue for the bonndary between urban-rural financial systems.This paper analyzes the current situration of urban-rural financial system.Then it proposes some views and suggestions on how to develop and maintain these two systemw as well as how to promote their coordinative development.     

Financial crisis and sustainable development of Chinese manufacturing industry

Sub-prime lending crisis has become an international financial crisis, which is evolving into an economic recession sweeping across the West. Financial crisis leads to the demand reduction in western countries, and as the largest manufacturing country, China must face overproduction. The role of China as ＂world factory＂ determines that financial crisis will severely attack Chinese manufacturing industry. The unsustainable development of Chinese manufacturing industry is mainly reflected in the following aspects： heavy dependence on export, low-level manufacturing link, lack of modern service industry and high-tech industry, weak independent innovative ability, unsustainable exploration of heavy-pollution resources, and lack of international famous brands. How to transform crisis to opportunities is an urgent research topic. Under the circumstance of financial crisis. Chinese manufacturing industry has more external drives to change the current situation. Therefore, financial crisis becomes not only an opportunity for Chinese manufacturing industry to improve itself based on the existing accumulation but also a chance for China to transform from ＂world factory＂ into a powerful nation of manufacturing industry in the world.     

The Impact of Individual Health Account Scheme on Lifetime Income Redistribution: Evidence from China

This paper investigates the effects of a combination of individual health accounts (IHAs) and catastrophic insurance on lifetime income redistribution by examining the variations in end‐of‐life IHA balances and lifetime out‐of‐pocket health expenditures. We exploit longitudinal health expenditure data from 2005 to 2007 in Kunshan City, Jiangsu Province of China. We find a high concentration of low IHA balances at the end of life, with most equal to zero. This finding suggests that most IHA balances are used for health expenditures and that the income redistribution effect through the accumulation of IHA balance is limited. However, the results also show a wide variation in lifetime out‐of‐pocket spending in the form of deductibles and coinsurance, which implies serious inequality in individual financial burden that can lead to a large income redistribution effect.     

Public provision of health insurance and aggregate saving in an overlapping generations model with endogenous health risk: The South Korean case

This paper examines the effect of expanding public health insurance in South Korea on medical expenditures and aggregate saving using an overlapping generations model with endogenous health risk. South Korea had a substantial underinsured population, which is aging rapidly. Higher public health insurance benefits reduce individual medical expenditure and health risks but lead to a modest decline in individual and aggregate saving. Even after the expansion, the medical care coverage remains incomplete, and the elderly face a substantial risk of out-of-pocket medical expenditures.     

Does Population Aging Hinder the Accumulation of Human Capital? Evidence from China

There is no consensus on the impact of population aging on education investment. To explore this question, we first build an overlapping generations (OLG) model to theoretically analyze the effect of population aging on human capital investment in China, and then test our theory by conducting an empirical study based on micro household data. We find the following. (1) Theoretically, the OLG model shows that population aging has a crowding-out effect on education investment. (2) Empirically, the results show that the share of education and training expenditures decreases by 5.27 percentage points as the ratio of old people in the household increases by 100 percentage points, which confirms the crowding-out effect of population aging on human capital investment. (3) The crowding-out effect is far more intense on urban households than on rural households since health care expenditures will be greater in urban areas as population aging increases. (4) A quantile regression indicates that the negative effect of population aging on the share of educational expenditure is concentrated in households with higher shares of education expenditures. We confirm the robustness of our results using regional fixed effect and instrumental variable (IV) regressions.     

医疗保险与城乡反贫困:1989-2006

文章利用中国健康与营养调查(CHNS)数据,估计了1989-2006年医疗保险对中国城乡家庭的反贫困效应。结果发现:发生灾难性卫生支出的城乡家庭比例较高,最穷的群体其医疗费用超过收入的比例增加,医疗保险对减少收入不平等只起到微弱作用。TIP贫困曲线表明,近几年,医疗保险补偿后,城乡患病家庭的贫困并没有减轻,医疗保险在减少贫困上的作用很小。分析贫困特征的多元回归模型显示,家庭成员数量、教育程度、抚养比率、参保人数等都影响了贫困,而条件多元回归模型则显示,医疗保险对贫困的变动没有影响。     

HEALTH CARE ACCOUNTS—A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK AND AN ILLUSTRATIVE EXAMPLE*

Canadian statistics of the health care delivery system are generated under a variety of concepts, methodologies, definitions, and classifications by the numerous individual units, institutions, and organizations involved. This paper presents an overview and a framework for satellite accounts on health care delivery. Its objective is to enable the organization of economic and financial information on health care delivery activities from different sources into a set of consistent statistics detailing current expenditures, current revenues, purposes of spending, and source and application of funds in the health care delivery system. It is recognized that this economic framework is only a first stage in establishing a complete health information framework which could link economic with social and demographic data. A sample set of accounts for the province of Ontario in the fiscal year 1977-78 is presented to demonstrate the feasibility of establishing such satellite accounts.     

Does health insurance matter? Evidence from China’s urban resident basic medical insurance

In 2007, China launched a subsidized voluntary public health insurance program, the Urban Resident Basic Medical Insurance (URBMI), for urban residents without formal employment. We estimate the impact of the URBMI on health care utilization and expenditure by a fixed effects approach with instrumental variable correction, using the 2006 and 2009 waves of the China Health and Nutrition Survey. We explore the time variation of program implementation at the city level as the instrument for individual enrollment. We find that this program has significantly increased the utilization of formal medical services, including both outpatient care and inpatient care, but it has not reduced total out-of-pocket health expense. We also find that this program has improved medical care utilization more for children, members of the low-income families, and the residents in the relatively poor western region.     

医疗卫生基本公共服务的城乡差距及均等化路径

当前,我国城乡之间的医疗卫生服务不均等已成为一个重要的社会问题。本文通过医疗卫生费用和医疗卫生资源的城乡数据分析得出城乡之间的医疗卫生公共服务差距巨大,并通过2000—2008年城乡医疗保健费用的泰尔指数分析,发现城乡组间对城乡医疗卫生公共服务差距的贡献基本上在80%以上,几乎是组内差距贡献的4倍,而从两组的内部差距来看,农村内部的不均等程度要稍高于城市内部的不均等程度,根据分析结果并从财政向农村医疗卫生的投入倾斜、城乡医疗保险制度的整合、医疗体制的深化改革等方面就如何促进医疗卫生公共服务城乡均等化进行探讨。     

Government response to increased demand for public services: The cyclicality of government health expenditures in the OECD

The more that health care expenditures are financed by general taxation, the greater the discretion governments are likely to exercise when timing increases in health care expenditures. Vote-maximising governments time increases in health care expenditures to occur in economic upturns, when voters are not as aware of the required increase in taxation. In recessions, they have an incentive to sustain expenditures on health care by diverting expenditures from other public expenditure programmes that voters perceive as low priority. In this way, government pursuit of a political agenda is likely to exert a systematic influence on the cyclicality of government expenditure. Predictions are tested with reference to the cyclicality of government health expenditures, for a sample of OECD countries from 2000 to 2012.     

The U.S. health care expenditure: evidence from 2001 to 2009

This study utilizes state-level data from 2001 to 2009 to estimate the impact of the 2007 financial crisis upon health care expenditures. Higher death rates are consistently found to have a positive and statistically significant impact on health expenditures. While mental health and COPD are not generally found to impact expenditures, increases in the percentage of the population diagnosed with cholesterol and obesity tend to increase health expenditures. Increases in health expenditures slowed considerably after the financial crisis. Even though recessions (high unemployment rates) are generally found to have a positive impact on health expenditures, the post-financial crisis time period is estimated to have much lower health expenditures than in other time periods. Our results can be used to give insight into the conditions under which the slower rate of increase in health expenditures can be expected to increase. More research will be needed to be able to more completely explore not only the reasons for these changes in health expenditures but also whether they are likely to continue into the future.     

中国居民医疗支出不公平性分析

基于2002年大样本家计调查资料,本文以家庭为单位分析了家庭收入与医疗支出的关系。就中国整体而言,收入相关的居民医疗支出集中指数为48%,而可支配收入的基尼系数是45%,这表明医疗支出具有累退倾向。对其进行分解分析,结果表明这种不公平性根源在于中国城市与农村居民医疗支出严重失衡,城市居民的平均医疗支出几乎是农村的6倍,换句话说,医疗支出方面的公共资金大都集中于发达的城市医疗部门。在中国农村内部和城市内部也存在医疗支出不公平性问题,这种层次的不公平性大多可以归结为中国的东部、中部和西部在平均医疗支出水平上的差异。因此,可以说居民医疗支出的不公平主要是由于地域上的差异造成的。众所周知,中国公共卫生投资缺乏公平性,如果中国政府有意改变这种情况,那么在区域之间重新分配国家补贴就势在必行。在公共卫生预算不变的情况下,应该采取措施引导医疗补贴流向农村地区,特别是西部地区,而流向中国城市地区,特别是东部城市地区的补贴应该减少。