Who should own it? An agency‐based explanation for multi‐outlet ownership and co‐location in plural form franchising

Plural forms exist when managers use two owners to perform one activity. Franchising is a plural form explained by agency theory, however, the theory is unable to explain two franchisor actions: 1) allowing franchisees to own multiple outlets and 2) co‐locating company‐owned and franchised outlets. We use research that describes a symbiosis between company‐owned and franchised outlets to extend agency theory and explain these actions. Our investigation of ownership patterns among 4,339 outlets of 16 plural form franchisors is consistent with our theory that multi‐outlet franchising is cost efficient and that co‐location occurs when franchisors fill market gaps left by franchisees. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

狮子洋断裂精确定位及活动性初步研究

狮子洋断裂位于珠江入海口的东侧,为北西向的隐伏断裂。为了更深入研究狮子洋断裂,通过地面追索(野外地震地质调查)、浅层人工地震横波/纵波反射勘探、排钻对比、第四纪地层年代学方法,对狮子洋断裂进行精确定位,并研究其活动性。得到如下结论：断裂由F1～F4四条正断裂组成,形成狮子洋断裂束,断层总体走向约330°,倾向SW,F4断裂倾向NE,倾角为60°～80°;狮子洋断裂(东支F1、F2、F3)在中更新世晚期以来没有活动,为早-中更新世断层。     

京津冀地区农产品集聚及时空演变特征

［目的］基于1980—2015分5年1期的京津冀地区各县市播种总面积,以及14类农产品播种面积、产量等数据。研究京津冀地区各农产品的集聚程度、集聚结构稳定性以及集聚的空间分布与转移,为政府因地制宜地制定农业政策,农产品加工企业的选址提供数据支持与参考。［方法］综合运用区位商、基尼系数、产业集中率以及重心分析法,分析京津冀地区农业生产的地理集聚和时空演变特征。［结果］（1）稻谷、大豆、薯类、棉花、果园、水产和禽蛋的集聚度在不断地增强; 小麦、玉米、油料、肉类和林业的集聚度保持相对稳定; 蔬菜和牛奶的集聚度在不断地降低。（2）SQ与Q>1两者总体呈反向变化,即Q>1的值减小,农作物SQ值增加,集聚程度增强;Q>1的值增加,农作物SQ值减小,集聚程度降低。（3）不同行业农产品的集聚度高低为：水产业>林业>畜牧业>经济作物（含蔬菜和果园）>粮食作物,且经济作物和粮食作物的集聚度在不断的增强。（4）各农产品的生产结构稳定性大小排列：玉米>水产>小麦>蔬菜>果园>稻谷>牛奶>大豆>肉类>薯类>油料>林产品>棉花>禽蛋。［结论］京津冀地区农产品集聚度总体在提高,少数农产品的集聚度在降低; 各农产品生产重心总体朝着京津冀外围转移。     

Spatial determinants of productivity growth on agri‐food Spanish firms: a comparison between cooperatives and investor‐owned firms

This study analyses the effect of the spatial factor, location, and interaction effects among peer companies, on the productivity growth of agri‐food companies in Spain. With this aim, we build a productivity growth index and apply a multiequational Seemingly Unrelated Regression on a sample of 344 Spanish cooperatives and investor‐owned firms for the period 2010–2012. Our findings show that agri‐food firms are influenced by spatial factors finding interesting differences between cooperatives and investor‐owned firms. With regard to the geographical location, cooperatives in the western of Spain show higher productivity growth rates, whereas investor‐owned firms in the northeast of Spain present better results. The interaction effect among closer peer companies is also a relevant factor to determine the productivity growth in agri‐food companies. This factor is more relevant for cooperatives than for investor‐owned firms.     

Urban planning in office markets: A methodological approach

This article stresses the importance of urban planning interventions on real estate office markets in an environment increasingly characterized by globalization processes and progress of information and communication technologies, leaving behind the traditional influence of more market-related variables spread abroad vast literature. It contends that a better indirect control exerted by municipal authorities may launch the performance and characteristics of these markets. Within this scope, an innovative methodology and model are proposed, aimed at assisting municipal decisions in the definition of strategic policies concerning location or relocation of offices, and respective influences over rents. This methodology and this model have a flexible ongoing character that fits the anytime concrete features of local office markets. They are applied, as a case study, to the office market of Oporto city (Portugal). Implications for urban policy are inferred and generalized from this analysis.     

生产性服务业区域集聚测度及其适宜性研究——基于我国22个省市面板数据的分析

生产性服务业在一定区域范围内的集聚是区域服务业发展水平和竞争力的集中体现。选取国内22个省、市2005～2009年间生产性服务业增加值的面板数据,运用区位熵法和Theil指数模型计算出生产性服务业的区域集聚度及差异度,然后运用生态位评估模型进一步测算出生产性服务业区域集聚的适宜性。结果表明:(1)我国生产性服务业的区域集聚效应具有地域不均衡性;(2)我国生产性服务业整体集聚差异在2005～2009年间呈波动型变化,集聚差异总体较大;(3)除北京市外,其余各省、市生产性服务业集聚适宜性较低。     

International Competition for Multinational Investment

We examine the economic justification for providing investment subsidies to foreign-owned multinationals. These provide employment opportunities and generate demand for domestic intermediate inputs, produced by domestic workers with increasing returns to scale. Offering subsidies to multinationals may be in the national interest if the investment raises the net value of domestic production. When agglomerative forces are sufficiently strong, a subsidy that attracts the first foreign firm may induce several to enter, establishing a thriving modern sector. With a limited number of foreign enterprises, countries may compete to attract investment. This subsidy competition transfers much of the rents to the multinationals.
JEL classification: F 12; F 23     

Regional concentration of FDI in post-reform India: A district-level analysis

We analyze the concentration of foreign direct investment (FDI) in India at the district level, based on project-specific location choices since the reform program in the early 1990s. The decomposition property of the Theil index allows us to trace changes over time in the overall concentration of FDI to changes in concentration between and within subgroups of districts. We also differentiate between major types and sources of FDI. We find that FDI concentrated in a persistently decreasing number of districts. Concentration across those districts that received at least one FDI project within a given time interval also increased, but this increase leveled off in the more recent past. These trends hold for essentially all types and sources of FDI, while the average level of concentration varies considerably between these types and sources.     

经济地理与外资企业的区位选择

本文利用2004～2008年我国546类制造行业的省级面板数据,从新经济地理学的视角,研究了外资企业进入中国各省市区的决定因素。结果表明,各地的市场潜力、贸易成本、地理位置等新经济地理的因素对现阶段外资企业的区位选择有显著的影响,而传统FDI理论所关注的因素如工资成本、优惠政策等对外资企业的区位选择影响不显著。另外,本文还发现了各地区间还普遍存在着不同程度的市场分割现象,这会阻碍外资企业和FDI在省际的自由流动。这些结论对我国各地区今后有针对性地实施吸引外资企业和FDI的政策有一定借鉴意义。