Identifying influential energy stocks based on spillover network

This study investigates the influential energy stocks in the China stock market between 2005.1.4 and 2018.4.3. The influential energy stock is defined as a stock whose fluctuations could lead to the rises and falls of many other stocks in the energy sector, which have attracted much attention from investors and policymakers. To achieve this objective, the BEKK-GARCH model is used to capture the volatility spillover among energy stocks, the more spillover correlations a stock has the more influential it is. Furthermore, complex network theory is introduced to give more specific and precise quantifications of the stock influence. Validity testing of the methods shows that the PageRank algorithm is the most suitable method for identifying influential energy stocks. The results reveal the time-varying features of influential energy stocks, which indicate the weak momentum effect and strong reversal effect of the China stock market. Furthermore, most of the top-10 influential energy stocks are belong to the industry of power and utilities, and the investors are suggested to make reverse trading strategies around the influential electricity stocks. Moreover, petroleum exploitation and petroleum processing are the most two influential subindustries, and the policymakers are suggested to pay much attention to prevent the aggregate risks of the oil stocks which belong to these two subindustries.     

Development of a conflict management model as a tool for improved project outcomes in community based tourism

Community based tourism (CBT) offers many opportunities, however, conflict frequently occurs while developing CBT in communities around the world. Despite conflict limiting the potential of CBT, conflict management in CBT has not previously been systematically studied. To investigate conflict and conflict management during CBT, a linear model of conflict management was developed and subsequently tested through a three phase qualitative process: analysis of CBT literature, online international survey of 29 CBT stakeholders, and in-depth interviews of 23 CBT stakeholders. Results endorse the proposed linear model of ‘conflict themes’: an ‘instance’ of conflict, followed by a ‘response’, which results in an ‘impact’. The rich data highlights the complexity involved, which was incorporated into the expanded model with three additional scenarios: ‘new conflict develops’, ‘interrelated conflict themes’, and ‘simultaneous conflict themes’. The complete Conflict Management Model provides stakeholders with a tool to address conflict, thereby improving the outcomes of CBT.     

The impact of teacher credentials on student achievement in China

Teacher quality is an important factor in improving student achievement. As such, policymakers have constructed a number of different credentials to identify high quality teachers. Unfortunately, few of the credentials used in developing countries have been validated (in terms of whether teachers holding such credentials actually improve student achievement). In this study, we employ a student-fixed effects model to estimate the impact of teacher credentials on student achievement in the context of the biggest education system in the world: China. We find that having a teacher with the highest rank (a credential based on annual assessments by local administrators) has positive impacts on student achievement relative to having a teacher who has not achieved the highest rank. We further find that teacher rank has heterogeneous impacts, benefiting economically poor students more than non-poor students. However, whether a teacher attends college or holds teaching awards does not appear to provide additional information on teacher quality (in terms of improving student achievement).     

The bittersweet fruits of industrialization in rural China: The cost of environment and the benefit from off-farm employment

While it is widely accepted that industrialization has brought both environmental pollution and economic growth in rural areas of China, very little is known about whether the negative effects of industrial pollution on rural residents have been proportionally offset by positive effects due to improvements in off-farm income. This paper improves our understanding of these tradeoffs by conducting an empirical analysis based on a set of nationwide panel data collected in 2008 and 2012 and covering five provinces, 101 villages, and 2020 households. Evidence is found to suggest that it is not always the case that rural households that are affected by pollution reap the off-farm employment benefits associated with industrialization. Specifically, although industrial pollution incidence is found to be positively related with the level of local off-farm employment, this relationship is statistically insignificant when migrant labor is included. It can be explained as areas that less economically benefited from industrialization tent to have more labors migrated out and the average annual wage income of one migrant labor is much higher than that of local off-farm labor.     

Time-varying inter-urban housing price spillovers in China: Causes and consequences

The spatial spillovers of housing prices across regions are well documented by a large body of previous studies. This paper tries to investigate the dynamic (time-varying) evolution of spatial interactions and their underlying driving factors intensively. Using a recently developed Generalized Autoregressive Score (GAS) model, this paper examines the time-varying spatial spillovers of housing prices in 70 major and median cities of China from 2006 to 2019. We find that the GAS model can well capture the impact of time-varying critical events of Chinese real estate market on the whole. However, different regions display heterogeneous variation patterns over time. Further investigation shows that inter-regional labor mobility and trades are two major channels, accounting for 1.25% and 2.58% of the monthly standard deviations of spatial spillover effects from one city to another, respectively. We also characterize and distinguish between three time-varying patterns of spatial spillovers within different regions of China. Our results shed lights on the understanding of spatial spillovers across regional real estate markets across different city network structures within China.     

When technology shapes community in the Cultural and Craft Industries: Understanding virtual entrepreneurship in online ecosystems

With the aim of providing greater insight into the nature and dynamics of the online entrepreneurial ecosystem in the Cultural and Craft Industries (CCIs), this study investigated the novel interactions taking place among virtual entrepreneurial firms operating in a relatively new technological context i.e. cybermediary platforms. It is argued that the technologically enabled connectivity offered by these platforms helps foster a distinctive sense of virtual community. Connectivity with users and peer-firms allows a greater sense of identity, shared values, and membership that may not exist routinely. This sense of virtual community may give rise to mutually beneficial firm behaviors whereby support of other businesses becomes the norm. The literatures on sense of virtual community, e-word of mouth, online social capital and e-community are integrated to examine the entrepreneurial dynamics in a context epitomizing collaboration, cooperation and creativity. Results from 732 virtual entrepreneurial firms support the hypotheses that (i) a sense of virtual community is positively related to supporting and promoting peers in the CCIs; (ii) promoting other entrepreneurial ventures increases online social capital and (iii) this in turn creates beneficial outcomes for virtual entrepreneurial firms in the CCIs. Future research may delve even deeper into how technologies may influence the community, collaborative or competitive nature of firm behavior.     

Land use regulation and urban land value: Evidence from China

Land use regulation has always been regarded as one of the most crucial means of macro-control of urban growth, which can affect a city’s land values directly and further determine related urban economic well-being. Since the New Type Urbanization Strategy proposed by the government in 2014, China’s mode of urban growth has been transformed from addressing “quantity” to “quality" in the urbanization process. In this case, the regulation of land use by the Chinese government plays a more important role in urban growth. With their planned land regulatory scheme, the various instruments employed by Chinese governments have quite different mechanisms influencing land prices. However, there are no rigorous studies focusing on the land use regulation system and its impact on land values to date, particular in China. This study seeks to explore how land use regulation affects urban land values through the systematic lens. We summarize the main land use regulatory instruments based on the analysis of China’s planned land use system and urban land banking system, including the construction land quota, constraints on the allowed floor area ratio (FAR) of each land transaction parcel, and land supply restrictions. A new dataset based on land transaction data from 2007 to 2016 that covers 286 prefectural cities from the country’s coastal, central, and western regions is used in the empirical analysis. The results show that the effects of the floor area ratio (FAR) on land values are significant and positive, with the residential and commercial land supply ratio being a key factor. Moreover, the results imply that the effects of constraints on FAR and commercial land supply vary between regions. These findings indicate that the Chinese land market is considerably distorted by excessive administrative interventions by local governments, in the stage of urban transition guided, the capable regulatory instruments could play an important role in adjusting urban land prices and hence impact on urban growth.     

The impact of reverse logistics process coordination on third party relationship quality: A moderated mediation model for multichannel retailers in the fashion industry

Multichannel retailing is a widely adopted strategy in the fashion industry. Companies in this industry find it a source of competitive advantage to invest in reverse logistics infrastructure. However, limited empirical studies investigate the enablers of the relationship quality between the retailers and their reverse logistics service providers. This study quantifies the impact of reverse logistics process coordination between retailers and logistics service providers on relationship quality. Moreover, it tests the mediating role of reverse logistics service quality and the moderating role of conflict frequency in this relationship. Data were collected through a survey using a purposive sample of 241 retail store managers from the fashion retail industry of Pakistan. For this purpose, a self-administered questionnaire was developed using a five-point Likert Scale to gauge the responses. Conditional process analysis was used to evaluate the moderated mediation model. The findings showed a significant positive impact of reverse logistics process coordination on the relationship quality with a logistics service provider, a significant positive mediation effect of reverse logistics service quality, and a significant moderation effect of conflict frequency on the indirect relationship. However, conflict frequency, contrary to the hypothesis in the study, strengthened the indirect relationship. Furthermore, the moderation effect of conflict frequency on the direct relationship was insignificant. This study will help managers better understand the best practices leading to effective management of reverse logistics processes, particularly product returns.     

基于DEA方法的内外资星级酒店效率评价与差异分析——以东部省份14个城市为例

近年来,酒店投资规模不断扩大,但整体收益却不尽如人意,内外资星级酒店利润率差距明显。应用DEA方法对2011~2016年我国东部省份14个主要城市的内外资星级酒店效率进行评价,研究发现:从综合效率来看,虽然内外资酒店存在差异,但两者总体水平均较高,且两者波动趋势一致;从技术效率来看,外资酒店略高于内资酒店,两者差距不明显,且差距有缩小的趋势;从规模效率来看,内外资酒店均处于较高水平,但两者差距明显;从效率分类来看,不同效率水平下的内外资酒店技术效率和规模效率表现不同。据此,对内外资星级酒店综合效率与影响因素之间的关系进行了进一步研究。     

Dependent relationships between Chinese commodity markets and the international financial market: Evidence from quantile time-frequency analysis

In this article, the quantile time–frequency method is utilized to study the dependence of Chinese commodities on the international financial market. The impacts of risk management and diversification benefits of different portfolios are examined by calculating the reduction in downside risk. Moreover, we estimate and compare Sharpe Ratios (SRs) and Generalized Sharpe Ratios (GSRs) based on the frequencies of the investigated portfolios. Our empirical results reveal a strong asymmetric response from Chinese commodity markets. Specifically, we find that gold is a safe-haven asset, and due to negative correlations found at lower quantiles in medium and long term, an increase in the USD index damages bull commodity markets but boosts bear conditions under long-term investments, and negative (positive) tail correlations with interest rates (IRs) in bull (bear) markets are observed. It is proven that WTI can decrease short-run risks while USD and GOLD are more efficient in the diversification of downside risk. Adding international commodities may not improve the returns of Chinese commodities at given risk levels in the short and medium term through SRs and GSRs. In brief, investors should consider these dependence structures and modes of risk management in terms of time and frequency.