International currency speculation,market stability and efficiency in the 1920s: A time series approach

Vector autoregressive time-series modelling methodology is applied to the 1920s exchange-rate data for France, Germany, the U.S.A., Belgium, and Holland. A Wald test is found to conclusively reject the hypothesis that the forward rate is an unbiased predictor of the future spot rate for all five currencies. Details are given of various external shocks that may have influenced the exchange rates and these are dealt with by a set of dummy variables. The data series exhibit some rapid depreciations and nonstationarities of interest to econometricians and time series analysts.     

A note on customs unions vs. non-preferential tariffs

It has been shown by Cooper and Massell [1965] that making a non-preferential tariff reduction is always superior to joining a customs union. The purpose of this paper is to show that if the country concerned is a large country, then joining a customs union is not necessarily inferior to making a non-preferential tariff reduction.     

Relating management practices to job characteristics of R&D: The case of Taiwan

Based on a study of researchers in three major R&D industries in Taiwan, this article found that while both supportive and directive styles of management are important in the supervision of R&D processes, the supportive behavior seems to be more effective than the directive strategy in motivating research professionals at work. Data also indicated that the job characteristics of R&D may be significantly influenced by industrial conditions. The management differences between industries are explained in the features peculiar to each particular industry. Implications of the findings for enhancing the management effect are also discussed.The author is an Associate Professor, Department of Business Administration, National Cheng-Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan, R.O.C. All correspondence should be sent to this address.     

Stackelberg price leadership in spatial competition

This paper examines Stackelberg price leadership in a spatially competitive model with infinitely many stores on an infinite line. A Stackelberg price leader charges significantly more than the pure Nash equilibrium price, induces its neighbors to charge somewhat more than the pure Nash equilibrium price, and increases its profits. Under Nash equilibrium, collusion of two stores makes a difference to prices only if the colluding stores are nearest neighbors. Under Stackelberg price leadership, collusion makes a difference to prices even if the stores are not nearest neighbors.     

A Comparative Evaluation of Yield Risk Reductions with Alternative Crop Insurance Programs in Manitoba

Three crop insurance programs are evaluated in terms of their effectiveness of yield risk reductions for 371 Manitoba farms. The examination is first conducted with a proposed index method, with which the relative yield risk reduction magnitude is calculated and compared for each farm under each alternative program. The generalized stochastic dominance (GSD) methodology is also used to provide an alternative analytical framework in analyzing producers’relative preferences among those alternatives by comparing the net yield distributions generated by each program for each farm. The results suggest that, given an actuarially sound basis, the filly individualized crop insurance (FI) program is the most favorable choice for risk-averse producers. The area coverage and individual indemnity program (IA) is generally the second best option. The full area crop insurance program (FA) is least preferred by risk-averse farmers.     

Barriers to use of policy-relevant information by decision makers

This paper identifies the major barriers which hinder or prevent the application of policy-relevant information, derived from analytical techniques, to practical decisions by actual decision makers. The focus of the report is on Technology Assessment (TA), as an analytical technique which has not yet received the level of utilization which its practitioners have hoped for. However, TA borrows from the older analytic disciplines of technological forecasting and systems analysis, and is related to others such as cost-benefit analysis. Because of the similarities with these other disciplines, many of the barriers which hinder the application of these older techniques also act as barriers to the greater