INNOVATION MANAGEMENT IN THE GERMAN TRANSPORTATION INDUSTRY

This article develops a conceptual framework for innovation management in logistics service providers, taking both a macro‐sectoral and a micro‐firm level perspective. Empirical data pertaining to the German transportation industry is applied in order to illustrate the current situation. In the analysis, the author distinguishes between various types of innovation: (1) product/service and process innovation, (2) market novelties, product‐range novelties and product imitations, and (3) ad hoc and planned innovation. The results indicate that despite the importance of innovation for the competitiveness of logistics service providers, innovation activities of firms in this industry and the share of innovators are at a low level compared to other industries. Only 30% of the LSP's are innovators. LSP innovation rests less on structured innovation, new product development and new product commercialization processes, instead, becomes often visible in form of technological advanced infrastructure and equipment investments. It is recommended that in the future LSP's should make more use of one or all forms of innovation activity discussed in this article.     

Configurations of low-contact services

This study uses a cluster analysis procedure to develop a classification model of low-contact services based on seven operations objectives. The effectiveness of the classification scheme is tested by demonstrating the link between the objectives, competitive priorities, and performance. This study also identifies eight underlying factors of competitive priorities in low-contact services. Furthermore, discriminant analysis on competitive priority dimensions shows that low-contact services consist of multiple groups and therefore should not be lumped into one group in any analysis scheme.     

中国金融机构贷款长期化的实证研究

本文对中国金融机构贷款长期化的原因与影响进行了实证分析。研究表明,资金密集型产业的发展、工业化、城镇化以及商业银行改革进程都是推动中国金融机构信贷长期化的重要原因。信贷长期化既是经济发展的客观需要和经济结构影响的结果,也是金融机构对长期贷款偏好、主动进行资产配置的结果。为避免中长期贷款的过快扩张对金融机构的经营和宏观经济的运行产生负面影响,适当控制中长期贷款的增长是必要的。     

What effect does the size of the state-owned sector have on regional growth in China?

This paper examines the effects state-owned enterprises (SOEs) have on China's economic growth. We present a simple and intuitive model of the political process, which predicts a larger state-owned sector will lead to lower growth rates. We then estimate regressions with various measures of and proxies for real output growth using a variety of other factors, including measures of the size of the state-owned sector, as regressors.We find a robust negative relation between the size of state-owned enterprises and the provincial growth rate. The estimates indicate that a decrease in the SOE share of industrial production by 10 percentage points increases real GDP growth the following year by between 0.7% and 1.2%. The average impact of a reduction in the SOE share in employment by 10 percentage points is between 1.6% and 2.3%.     

香港回归后港商投资内地的区位布局与决策因素分析

香港回归10年来,港商对内地投资总体上呈现显著的空间分异格局,同时也出现了北上西进的空间扩散趋势。本文采用主成分因子分析和多元回归分析方法,解释了港资空间分异与空间转移模式的成因,并预测了港商未来在祖国内地的投资走向。     

Supply-chain partnership performance

We model the strategic as well as the operational dimension of performance of supplier–retailer partnerships in terms of five factors: (1) information exchange; (2) trust; (3) joint partnership management; (4) relationship-specific assets; and (5) partner asymmetry. Our paired data are from 74 supplier–retailer partnerships in the consumer-packaged goods industry. As a result we found that the factors that best model strategic performance are different from those that best model operational performance. All companies are in Korea and the retailers include international companies like Carrefour, Tesco, and Wal-Mart while suppliers include Coca-Cola, Kimberley-Clark, and Nestlé.     

安徽省地级市区域竞争力实证研究

从发展角度构建了一套包括4个发展能力模块共30个指标的区域竞争力评价指标体系,采用多元统计分析中的主成分分析法,对安徽省17个地级市综合发展水平进行研究。利用统计分析软件SPSS13.0对数据处理,选择主成分并计算各主成分分值及综合分值,对17个地级市经济发展能力得分排名,并据此对各地级市综合发展水平做出评价。     

Mining the past to determine the future: Problems and possibilities

Technological advances mean that vast data sets are increasingly common. Such data sets provide us with unparallelled opportunities for modelling and predicting the likely outcome of future events. However, such data sets may also bring with them new challenges and difficulties. An awareness of these, and of the weaknesses as well as the possibilities of these large data sets, is necessary if useful forecasts are to be made. This paper looks at some of these difficulties, using illustrations with applications from various areas.     

Where Are We Now On Cultural Economics

A survey of progress in cultural economics since its virtual birth in 1966 with the publication of Baumol and Bowen, Performing Arts: The Economic Dilemma , distinguishing between 'theoretical progress' and 'empirical progress'. Following in the footsteps of Towse's recent anthology of classic papers in cultural economics, I address nine topics that between them cover the subject, namely, (1) taste and taste formation, (2) demand and supply studies, (3) the media industries, (4) the art market, (5) the economic history of the arts, (6) the labour market for artists, (7) Baumol's cost disease, (8) non‐profit arts organisations, and (9) public subsidies to the arts. I conclude that there has been some theoretical and empirical progress in the treatment of almost all these topics.