Situating the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank in the context of global economic governance

The creation of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB)was welcomed by the World Bank but opposed by the Obamaadministration. The paper explains China’s positive relationshipwith the Bank and the Organization for Economic Cooperation andDevelopment (OECD) in terms of the mission of the Bank, sharedby the OECD, to develop and deepen the global economy. The AIIBand the related Belt and Road initiative promise to do this throughinvestment in infrastructure and connectivity in and around thepoorly integrated Eurasian landmass. But while the current Chineseleadership has supported an inclusive global economy based uponfree trade and supported by multilateral institutions, China’s controlof resources outside the multilateral framework and adherence topractices that challenge liberal principles prompt suspicions thatthese commitments are either disingenuous or anyway subjectto reversal. In itself, therefore, the AIIB provides no conclusiveevidence either way on China’s future course.     

中国农药施用与农业经济增长脱钩状态：时空特征与影响因素

[目的]明确农药施用与农业经济增长关联状态及其影响因素,为实现"控药减害增收"的目标提供借鉴。[方法]基于2005—2015年数据利用脱钩理论和对数平均分解指数法分解进行分析。[结果]中国农业经济增长伴生大量农药施用,仅少数省域表现出农药施用和农业经济增长扩张绝对脱钩的理想状态,东北西北部分省域农业经济增长则以更大幅度的农药投入增长为代价。中西部地区劳动力规模和技术进步效应是推动农药施用与农业经济增长脱钩的因素;东部地区种植规模变化、劳动力规模和技术进步因素均是推动农药施用和农业经济增长脱钩的因素;东北地区仅劳动力规模效应成为推动脱钩的力量。[结论]推动农药施用与农业经济增长脱钩需要强化农业科技的创新与普及,完善农业生产过程中的技术支撑,推动农业病虫害监测预警,加大对环境友好型低污染农药和肥料的推广度;构建农户施药的多重约束机制,完善农业病虫灾害保险减少农户对生产过程的风险感知,发挥农业合作社对农户施药行为的规制作用,完善产品分级认证和安全准入制度;通过农地合理流转和农业机械化等方式集约利用农业生产资源;因地制宜推动农药施用与农业经济增长脱钩,结合区域资源优势和农业发展阶段有针对性地设计对策措施。     

Measuring Farm and Market Level Economic Impacts of Improved Maize Production Technologies in Ethiopia: Evidence from Panel Data

While it is often recognised that agricultural technology adoption decisions are intertwined and best characterised by multivariate models, typical approaches to examining adoption and impacts of agricultural technology have focused on single technology adoption choice and ignored interdependence among technologies. We examine farm‐ and market‐level impacts of multiple technology adoption choices using comprehensive household survey data collected in 2010/11 and 2012/13 in Ethiopia. Economic surplus analysis combined with panel data switching endogenous regression models are used to compute the supply shift parameter (K‐shift parameter), while at the same time controlling for the endogeneity inherent in agricultural technology adoption among farmers. We find that our improved technology set choices have significant impacts on farm‐level maize yield and maize production costs, where the greatest effect appears to be generated when various technologies are combined. The change in maize yield and production costs results in an average 26.4% cost reduction per kilogram of maize output (the K‐shift parameter). This increases the producer and consumer surpluses by US$ 140 and US$ 105 million per annum, respectively. These changes in economic surplus help to reduce the number of poor people by an estimated 788 thousand per year. We conclude that deliberate extension efforts and other policies that encourage integration of technologies are important for maize technologies to yield their full potential at both farm and market levels.     

中小型侦察监视特种飞机系统的设计技术

分析了当前国内外典型中小型特种飞机的特点和应用方向，阐述了中小型特种飞机系统的技术发展趋势。通过分析典型的特种通用飞机的性能和平台构型特点，详细描述了基于典型中小型特种飞机平台的机载侦察监视应用系统的组成、原理、主要性能及技术难点，并结合实际工程应用，介绍了系统的应用成果。应用分析表明，基于中小型特种飞机平台的机载平台的应用系统有较大的应用范围和市场前景。     

CISG视角下争议解决费用的分摊

在国际货物销售合同纠纷中,争议解决费用往往是不可忽视的内容。在此基础之上,探讨CISG视角下的争议解决费用分摊问题兼具理论和实际意义。理论和实践中就CISG能否成为分摊争议解决费用的依据存在不同做法。差异背后的深层次原因在于有关方对CISG的立法精神和解释规则存在理解上的不同。本文支持依CISG分摊争议解决费用的观点,因为这不仅更契合于公约的精神,也更能实现公约适用的统一。域外的相关公约实践对我国同样具有借鉴意义。对于我国的有关实践,本文有4点建议:通过合同条款对争议解决费用的分摊加以明确;明确争议解决费用分摊的请求权基础;裁判主体应克服国内法思维,恪守公约精神进行条款的解释与适用;进一步明确争议解决费用分摊的国内法规则,从而实现国际法与国内法适用的统一。     

Domestic political connections and international expansion: It's not only ‘who you know’ that matters

Former politicians on the board of directors bring to the firm domestic political connections and political knowledge. Previous research has mainly highlighted the role of contacts, without fully recognizing the role of political knowledge accumulated at home. By focusing on the effect of domestic political connections on foreign direct investment, we show that domestic political knowledge also shapes foreign expansion. We argue that contacts provided by former politicians may not be useful for foreign expansion whilst their political knowledge can be of help in countries with discretionary governments and with similar institutional environments to the one of the home country.     

In the Bear’s Shadow? Russia’s International Image and Its Influence on Investments of Russian Companies in Post-Socialist Europe

The paper examines Russia’s international image and its influence on investment by Russian companies in post-socialist Europe. Findings are based on the cases of Gazprom’s South Stream Pipeline project, and Sberbank’s acquisition of Volksbank’s Central and Eastern European assets in Hungary and Serbia. The paper demonstrates that international positions and economic interests of two countries determinate decisions regarding investments of Russian companies, while Russia’s image to some extent accelerates these decisions in Serbia. The paper is based on the results of interviews with representatives of business communities conducted in Hungary and Serbia in 2012–2017, professional reports, and official documents.     

China and international market integration: Evidence from the law of one price in the Middle East and Africa

We model market integration in the Middle East and Africa by analyzing price dispersion and testing the law of one price (LOP) on highly-comparable actual local retail prices of 135 goods and services across 23 countries in the region over the period of 1990–2016. Second-generation panel estimators are applied to four price benchmarks: Regional average, South Africa, China, and US prices. Cross-regional price dispersion diminishes considerably over time up to 2008, particularly for non-tradeables around China price. The test of LOP indicates the percentage of convergent prices is highest in China price benchmark, followed by US, South Africa, and regional average benchmarks. Direct estimation of the convergence speed confirms this order. Overall, the results show evidence of increasing market integration in Middle East and Africa but it appears to be driven by global forces and, especially, the rise of China as a new economic power. The results show that some emerging market economies, such as China, can step up and promote integration while traditional economic powerhouses, such as the USA and UK, disengage from international economic relations.     

考虑声誉效应的科技服务业与制造企业合作创新行为策略分析

采用博弈论的方法，考虑声誉效应对博弈双方效用、策略的影响，建立信号博弈模型，并分析精炼贝叶斯均衡，证明声誉水平、对声誉的态度以及技术市场价值的高低是影响建立合作关系的重要因素。探讨双方建立合作关系的行为策略，提出实现合作达成双赢的建议。     

西藏城乡居民家庭养老现状与趋向分析

在西藏,家庭曾是老年人养老的基本依赖。然而,随着经济社会条件的变化和人口流动,老年人的生存状况与过去大不相同。传统的家庭养老功能面临着新的挑战,主要表现如家庭结构逐渐趋向小型化、子女数量减少而使家庭供养负担加重、老龄化导致家庭养老功能弱化。面对这些新的挑战,西藏城乡居民的养老出现新趋向,如自我养老观念提高、女儿养老地位加强以及社会化养老等。