Measuring the size of the shadow economy in 30 provinces of China over 1995–2016: The MIMIC approach

Applying the multiple indicators and multiple causes (MIMIC) approach, the present paper measured the size of the shadow economies in China's provinces over 1995–2016. The results show that the average size of the shadow economy in 30 provinces of China increased from 13.55% in 1995 to 14.39% in 2009, and then decreased to 12.30% in 2016. There are obvious variations in the size of the shadow economies in different districts of China. The average size of the shadow economy is lowest in provinces in the eastern district and highest in the western district. In addition, the causes and consequences of the shadow economies in China's provinces have also been analysed using the MIMIC approach, and the results show that tax burden, complexity of the tax system, intensity of regulation, unemployment, employment in the agricultural sector and economic openness have significant positive effects on China's shadow economy, while the ratio of direct taxes to indirect taxes, fiscal autonomy and income levels have significant negative effects on China's shadow economy. Using the growth rate of energy consumption as the benchmark indicator, the MIMIC analysis shows that the shadow economy has significant positive effects on the development of the official economy and income inequality while having a significant negative effect on the labour participation rate.     

Economies of scale in public education: an econometric analysis

This article investigates the sources of scale economies in the production of public education. The relationship between the average cost of producing educational output and school characteristics including school and district size is estimated using a neoclassical cost function. The empirical analysis used panel data from Utah school districts and estimates the function using the covariance and error component models after making necessary corrections for heteroskedasticity and autocorrelation. The uncorrected fixed effects model generates a significant negative coefficient on district size in both the cost and expenditure functions; the coefficient on number of students has the hypothesized sign but is not significant in either equation. After making various corrections for autocorrelation and heteroskedasticity, the coefficients have the correct signs and are significant in all equations. Thus, it is concluded that scale economies arise from both sources but that the evidence is stronger for district size.     

长株潭区域经济发展中的行政区划调整研究

行政区划与区域经济发展具有内在的联系，行政区划的合理与否直接影响着区域经济的发展。在分析长株潭地区现行行政区划体制与区域经济发展不适应所存在问题的基础上，提出了行政区划调整的建议，使行政区划更好地适应长株潭地区的区域经济发展。     

Bioenergy Innovations: The Case of Wood Pellet Systems in Sweden

In the context of global warming and strong dependence on fossil fuels, modern wood pellet heating systems for space heating of detached houses have emerged as a new technological option in many parts of the world. In Sweden, in recent years, such systems have advantages over oil-fired and electric boiler systems in terms of the expected total lifecycle heating costs to consumers. However, market diffusion of this technology has hitherto been rather slow. By combining an extended configuration cycle model with a dynamic multi-level perspective on system innovation, we study the factors involved in the diffusion of such systems in Sweden. The results indicate that energy policy, abundance of raw material and a wide dissemination of district heating systems have fostered the emergence and growth of the Swedish pellet market. However, other factors, such as a lack of co-ordination between the pellet and equipment suppliers in the early phase of market development, annual operating cost, lack of information, dissatisfaction among earlier adopters and technology lock-in might have contributed to the relatively slow growth of the market for small-scale systems.     

Too hot to handle?: Benefits and costs of stimulating the use of biofuels in the Swedish heating sector

This paper evaluates the impact of changes in current Swedish energy taxation by analyzing a panel of approximately 150 district heating plants in Sweden. We estimate plant-specific production functions and derive the economic repercussions of changing the energy tax system. We also estimate the resulting changes of emissions of Sulfur, NO_x, particulates and CO₂. Our results raise the issue of whether or not the Swedish tax system needs to be complemented with additional environmental taxes, covering, say, emissions of particulates. Because the geographical variation of damages is likely to be substantial, an overall re-assessment of current regulatory schemes seems preferable.     

Monopoly regulation when customers need to make sunk investments: evidence from the Swedish district heating sector

Regulatory agencies routinely seek to promote price stability. A rationale for this practise might be that regulators seek to protect customers’ relationship-specific sunk investments. We develop a simple model which confirms that commitments to future rigid prices may increase welfare when customers need to make such investments. We use data from the Swedish district heating sector during the 1998–2007 period to explore the impact of monopoly pricing decisions on the take-up rate of district heating.     

Inefficient Education Spending in Public School Districts: A Case for Consolidation?

This article estimates scale economies for Arkansas school districts. Large economies of scale exist in teacher salary and supply costs, as well as total costs. The results suggest that districts, especially rural districts, would experience measurable cost savings from consolidation. The authors simulate a hypothetical rural school district consolidation to obtain cost-saving estimates from consolidation. Simulations indicate that districts could save an average of 34% in average variable costs. At the state level, consolidation of rural districts in Arkansas could annually save $40 million. However, consolidation of school districts may increase various implicit costs to students and local communities. (JEL I22 , I28 )     

Total‐Factor Energy and Emission Efficiencies of ASEAN and Other Asian Economies

This research uses the slack‐based measure data envelopment analysis to compute the energy and emission efficiencies of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and other Asian economies during the 2001–2017 period, employs the Malmquist productivity index to check for the main source of efficiency score changes due to technical changes, and then applies panel Tobit regressions to determine the factors explaining the efficiencies. Our empirical results show that the energy efficiency scores of ASEAN economies had been catching up to other Asian economies after the Global Financial Crisis, whereas the emission efficiency scores of various ASEAN economies had been falling behind other Asian economies over the same period. The main source of efficiency score changes over time is efficiency changes and not technical changes. Decreases in the fossil fuel ratio of net electricity generation and the secondary industry ratio within total industry improve both lead to improvements in energy and emission efficiencies.     

Impact of energy infrastructure investments on renewable electricity generation in major Asian developing economies

The prime objective of this research is to empirically investigate the impact of energy infrastructure investments (public-private-partnership) on renewable electricity generation in major Asian developing economies (China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Thailand). In doing so, we use the annual data of variables from 1993 to 2017. To achieve the study objective, the authors employ numerous panel econometric approaches such as the Grouped-Mean and Augmented Mean Group estimators. The overall conclusion of the findings is that investments in energy infrastructure play a significant role in promoting renewable electricity generation in Asian developing economies. The results also reveal that financial development, economic development, and openness further rise renewable electricity generation. Based on the findings, the authors attempted to provide novel implications for the promotion of energy infrastructure investments and sustainable development policies for the Asian developing economies. For instance, the authors suggest that governments and policy makers should realise the significance of greener energy and promote investments via public-private partnerships for renewable energy projects.     

A multivariate time series analysis of energy consumption,real output and pollutant emissions in a developing economy: New evidence from Nepal

Mountain economies will have to play a central role in attaining the global pursuit of green economic growth as crucial bearers of ecosystems goods and services. However, these economies are not adequately represented in the development policy debates in spite of their fundamental importance towards global sustainable development. This study examines the inter relationships between energy consumption, output and carbon emissions in a developing mountainous economy using an augmented Vector Autoregression model. Time-series data over the period 1975–2013 is studied applying a multivariate framework using population and gross fixed capital formation as additional variables for Nepal. Testing for Granger causality between integrated variables based on asymptotic theory reveals a long-run unidirectional Granger causality running from GDP to energy consumption, and a unidirectional Granger causality running from carbon emissions to GDP. We suggest that the government of Nepal can address energy poverty by accelerating the adoption energy conservation policies such as rationing energy consumption and energy efficiency improvements to narrow the energy supply-demand gap. The opportunity to promote the uptake of decentralised off-grid renewable technologies in remote areas and the large scale development of hydropower at the national level also needs to be prioritized. Our results remain robust across different estimators and contributes to an emerging literature on the nexus relationships between energy consumption, income and carbon emissions in mountainous developing economies.     

刍议区域经济核心竞争力理论与实践

区域经济核心竞争力是指某一区域在经济发展过程中形成的不易被其他区域效仿的能带来经济高速发展的独特能力.它是区域经济在一系列发展过程和决策中形成的,具有独特优势的技术、文化或机制所决定的巨大的资本能量和经济实力.区域经济核心竞争力表现在区域经济绩效、政府效率、企业效率和区域内基础设施上,它是区域整体获得长期稳定的竞争优势的基础,是由区域经济发展战略和其实现战略的团队执行力决定的.因此,区域经济核心竞争力需要不断地适应环境变化,进行选择、打造恰当的战略和战略执行力;通过掌握核心技术,整合优势产业和形成特有品牌提升区域经济核心竞争力.     

产业集聚的理论渊源与研究进展

产业集聚是经济活动中最突出的空间特征和一个世界性的经济现象,成为了众多学科研究的主要问题之一。在重点回顾贸易理论、产业区理论、区位理论以及发展经济学对产业集聚问题研究的基础上,对产业集聚的最新研究成果分别予以阐述。通过归纳总结产业集聚理论的演化发展,为产业集聚研究的进一步深化和拓展提供理论基础。     

The Shadow Economy in German Regions: An Empirical Assessment

Despite the increasing number of contributions to the literature, regional variations of the shadow economy have been hardly studied. This article analyses the determinants and derives the size of the shadow economy on the district level in Germany. I find that an inferior local labour market and the burden of taxation significantly contribute to the existence of the shadow economy, while a better enforcement of tax rules and regulations has the potential to deter such activities. Districts in the affluent south of Germany experience on average smaller shadow economies.     

Subjective welfare,isolation, and relative consumption

The recent literature has shown that subjective welfare depends on relative income. Much of the existing evidence comes from developed economies. What remains unclear is whether this is a universal human trait or an artifact of a prosperous, market-oriented lifestyle. Using data from Nepal, a mountainous country where many households still live in relative isolation, we test whether poorer and more isolated households care less about relative consumption. We find that they do not. We investigate possible reasons for this. We reject that it is due to parental concerns regarding the marriage prospects of their children. But we find evidence in support of the reference point hypothesis put forth by psychologists: household heads having migrated out of their birth district still judge the adequacy of their consumption in comparison with households in their district of origin.     

投资清洁能源技术 促进经济绿色增长

当前,全球同时面临两个重大挑战：尽快走出经济危机和应对能源供应和气候变化安全,实现向低碳的过渡。全球向低碳的过渡将催生能源技术革命。为促进经济恢复,世界主要经济体都实施了经济刺激计划。清洁能源技术是刺激计划投资的重点之一。本文在已有公开文献的基础上,总结了能源技术革命的主要内容、清洁能源技术对促进经济绿色增长的作用和主要经济体刺激计划对清洁能源投资的重点。分析了金融和经济危机对清洁能源技术发展的影响,提出实施综合技术政策,以能源技术革命促经济绿色增长。试图回答如何将迎接能源技术革命和促进经济恢复结合起来的问题。     

Agricultural productivity-environmental sustainability nexus through the lens of digitalization and energy intensity in BRICS countries

The agricultural sector holds paramount implications in the economies of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) countries. Nevertheless, the escalating effect of climate change shows a significant and alarming threat to the actual environmental conditions required to sustain agricultural production. This study examines the potential contribution of demographic dividends, digitalization, and energy intensity in facilitating the attainment of environmental sustainability and agricultural productivity by BRICS economies from 1996 to 2020. The study first tested cross-sectional dependence, then unit roots, cointegration, and long-run elasticities using suitable econometric approaches to explore possible links between the study variables. The empirical results from the long-run estimators stated that digitalization improves agricultural production and the environment; contrarily, demographic dividend and energy intensity contribute to environmental degradation. Furthermore, the long-term improvement of agricultural production is supported by demographic dividend, GDP per capita, energy intensity, and digitalization. Also, the study reached a broad inference emphasizing bidirectional causal associations between demographic dividend, energy intensity, GDP per capita, the environment, and agricultural production. In conclusion, the study has identified robust policy options for BRICS economies that can serve as valuable guidance for policymakers in making informed decisions and implementing effective practices.     

Stochastic convergence in per capita energy consumption and its catch-up rate: evidence from 26 African countries

Using annual data from 1971 to 2014, we examine stochastic conditional convergence in per capita energy consumption for 26 low income, lower middle-income and upper-middle-income African countries. To do so, we use panel unit root tests that allow for cross-sectional dependence and structural breaks as well as the recently developed univariate Residual Augmented Least Squares-Lagrange multiplier (RALS-LM) unit root test with structural breaks. Although for most countries our evidence suggests stochastic conditional convergence, we find divergence for four countries including DR Congo, Senegal, Egypt and Botswana. Consistent with the neoclassical growth models we also examine the catch-up rate between energy consumption levels of African economies and that one of China and investigate its convergence properties. As African economies continue to grow, regional energy consumption disparity narrows, African energy consumption levels will catch up to the ones in China.     

能源消耗、二氧化碳排放与APEC地区经济增长——基于SBM-Undesirable和Meta-frontier模型的实证研究

针对以往效率测算方法存在的缺陷以及跨国研究中制度的异质性问题,本文采用SBM-Undesirable模型和Meta-frontier生产函数这一综合分析框架,在能源消耗和二氧化碳排放的双重约束条件下,测算了APEC地区17个成员1980-2007年期间的经济增长效率,并对双重约束下经济增长效率的影响因素进行了计量检验。研究发现,除了发展中国家群组之外,发达国家群组和东亚新兴经济体群组中有部分国家(和地区)在个别年份位于潜在最佳生产技术的共同边界上;各群组的共同技术效率(MTE)和共同技术比率(MTR)平均值从高到低的排序均依次为发达国家、东亚新兴经济体和发展中国家;人均GDP、工业化水平、人口密度、劳均资本以及对外开放程度等因素对双重约束下APEC地区共同技术效率具有显著影响,但对三大群组技术效率的影响方向及程度则呈现出不尽相同的结果。     

Restructuring of the Hungarian Electricity Industry

Restructuring the monopolistic, state-owned, obsolete and polluting utility industries of post-socialist economies poses a challenge for the utility deregulation wave travelling around the world. Utility restructuring in the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) region is unique from several perspectives, including the domination of foreign capital vs. national resources as the only feasible vehicle for a drastic change in the industry and the ambitious goals of harmonisation with the EU liberalisation schedule to accelerate accession. It is also widely expected that deregulation will help bring down world-record high energy intensities in these economies. Hungary has been the pioneer among economies in transition in unbundling, deregulating and privatising the utility industries and taking the first steps towards EU-conforming market liberalisation within less than half a decade. The first stages of privatisation and restructuring have been declared a success story in the Western media. However, what is a success story from a foreign perspective may be seen differently from other viewpoints. The article describes the process of utility restructuring in Hungary and examines its impact from the economic, environmental and policy perspectives. The article also compares the pioneer Hungarian deregulation with other CEE countries' restructuring of their energy sectors. However, the lessons to be learned from the Hungarian electricity industry restructuring are not only vital for other economies in transition but are often universally applicable.     

Carbon mitigation costs for the commercial building sector: Discrete–continuous choice analysis of multifuel energy demand

We estimate a carbon mitigation cost curve for the U.S. commercial sector based on econometric estimation of the responsiveness of fuel demand and equipment choices to energy price changes. The model econometrically estimates fuel demand conditional on fuel choice, which is characterized by a multinomial logit model. Separate estimation of end uses (e.g., heating, cooking) using the U.S. Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey allows for exceptionally detailed estimation of price responsiveness disaggregated by end use and fuel type. We then construct aggregate long-run elasticities, by fuel type, through a series of simulations; own-price elasticities range from −0.9 for district heat services to −2.9 for fuel oil. The simulations form the basis of a marginal cost curve for carbon mitigation, which suggests that a price of $20 per ton of carbon would result in an 8% reduction in commercial carbon emissions, and a price of $100 per ton would result in a 28% reduction.