Converging scientific fields and new technological paradigms as main drivers of the division of scientific labour in drug discovery process: the effects on strategic management of the R&D corporate change

The thesis of this study is that the convergence of genetics, genomics and proteomics spurs new technological paradigms in medicine, which are generating a R&D corporate change: division of scientific labour of the drug discovery process by strategic alliances among firms in order to reinforce the integrative capabilities in different biomedical research fields and collective and cumulative learning between in-house R&D and external sources of innovation. This study shows, by key a case study of pharmaceutical companies, as scientific and technological paradigms in medicine are main drivers of industrial and R&D corporate change to enhance and accelerate the discovery process of ground-breaking drugs for more and more personalised healthcare.     

On the role of the utility function in the estimation of preference parameters

Modern economic theory summarizes the main characteristics of individual preferences through a definite set of parameters: risk aversion, prudence, and the elasticity of intertemporal substitution. Despite their importance, the results of the literature devoted to the parameters’ estimation are controversial. This paper highlights the neglected role that may have been played by the constraints that the quantitative definition of the parameters and the utility functions employed impose on the estimation. A number of simulation exercises are presented, which show that the same saving behaviour can be associated with quite different values of the parameters depending on the utility function adopted.     

媒体关注与企业创新绩效

媒体关注是会发挥信息功能的正面效应进而促进企业创新，还是会发挥负面效应给管理者形成外部压力从而抑制企业创新？在梳理媒体关注信息功能的基础上，基于2010~2018年A股上市公司数据分析媒体关注与企业创新绩效的关系。研究发现：媒体关注对企业创新绩效起到促进作用，在控制了内生性问题后，这一结论依然成立。通过对报道性质进行区分，发现非负面报道对创新绩效的促进作用更加明显，而负面报道并没有显著降低企业创新绩效。在影响机制分析中发现融资约束在媒体关注与企业创新绩效之间起到中介作用，即媒体关注通过缓解企业融资约束进而提高创新绩效。     

呼伦贝尔草原生态功能区土地利用变化及驱动力分析

[目的]土地利用作为地球表面与人类活动连接的纽带,明确其变化特征及驱动力对于土地利用格局的优化、区域生态环境的改善和土地利用率的提高等具有重要的指导意义。[方法]文章以呼伦贝尔草原生态功能区为例,从土地利用动态度和土地利用转移矩阵来探究研究区在1990—2015年土地利用变化特征。在此基础上,运用主成分分析对研究区土地利用的年际变化进行驱动力分析。[结果]2015年草地面积为329.52万hm~2,占总面积的81.17%,是呼伦贝尔草原生态功能区的主体土地利用类型, 1990—2015年草地总量略有减少,减幅为0.04%;湿地作为研究区第二大土地利用类型,呈现先减后增、整体减少的趋势,整体减幅为0.36%;其他土地面积减少1.39万hm~2,减幅为19.05%;面积增加的土地利用类型中,耕地面积整体上呈现增加趋势,增加8 480hm~2,增幅高达102.60%;人工表面面积增加6 075hm~2,增幅为29.47%;林地面积增加了2 908hm~2,增幅10.48%。草地、湿地和其他土地利用类型表现为净转入特征,耕地、林地和人工表面用地表现为净转出特征。区域经济和农畜因素是研究区土地利用变化的主要驱动力。[结论]草地与其他土地利用类型间的相互转换是呼伦贝尔草原生态功能区土地利用变化的主要特征,区域经济和农畜因素共同影响研究区不同土地利用类型的分布。     

Stability of international environmental agreements under isoelastic utility

There is now a growing consensus that ratifying International Environmental Agreements (IEAs) is the most effective way to tackle transboundary pollution problems. While the social benefit function (SBF) critically affects emission choices as well as decisions to ratify IEAs, the related economic literature has mainly concentrated on scenarios where the marginal SBF is linear. Using climatic data, I find that the linear marginal SBF case does not match data and isoelastic SBFs fit data better. In the more realistic, but not yet explored, context of isoelastic SBFs, I reconsider incentives to ratify IEAs. My analysis gives rise to novel conclusions. For instance, changes in the scale of damages do not affect the level of cooperation. When the scale of damages is small, variations of the SBF parameter reveal that large coalitions including the coalition of all countries are stable, but only when the potential gain from cooperation is sufficiently high.     

土地价格、土地财政与宏观经济波动

本文在一个包含金融加速器的新凯恩斯动态一般均衡模型中引入土地财政和政府隐性担保融资机制,借此考察在土地财政体制下土地价格的波动特征、驱动因素和对宏观经济的影响机制,同时使用2004Q1到2016Q1的中国宏观经济数据对模型进行贝叶斯估计。方差分解的结果表明,在样本期间,土地需求冲击、土地供给冲击和货币政策冲击是驱动中国土地价格变动的主要因素,货币政策冲击和土地供给冲击是引起短期土地价格波动的主要因素,土地需求冲击在长期中驱动了土地价格波动。数值模拟结果发现,土地财政对宏观经济波动具有放大效应,正向的土地需求冲击将推高土地价格,并通过抵押约束机制引起宏观经济波动,地方政府对土地财政的依赖将放大该效应,并进一步对土地价格形成正向反馈,从而引起宏观经济更大的波动;在土地财政体制下,正向的土地供给冲击有助于抑制土地价格上涨,并减少宏观经济波动。     

Ecosystem impacts of pesticide reductions through Bt cotton adoption

This article examines the ecosystem impacts of transgenic Bt cotton technology resulting from reduced chemical pesticide use. Employing unique panel data from smallholder farmers in India, negative environmental and health effects of pesticide use are quantified with the environmental impact quotient (EIQ), with and without Bt technology. An environmentally sensitive dynamic production function is estimated, treating the environmental risk of pesticide toxicity as an undesirable output in the production process. Negative externalities are significantly lower in Bt than in conventional cotton. The reduction in EIQ through Bt technology adoption has increased from 39 per cent during 2002–2004 to 68 per cent during 2006–2008. Bt adoption has also contributed to higher environmental efficiency. Environmental efficiency is influenced by the quality of Bt technology: high‐quality Bt seeds are associated with higher environmental efficiency than lower‐quality seeds.     

The reduction cost of nonperforming loan: evidence from China’s commercial bank

The nonperforming loans (NPLs) are co-generated by creating the profit in a bank, and this article build a joint production model to measure the reduction cost of nonperforming cost. By using a data set of China’s 13 commercial banks, the conclusions show that the reduction cost of NPLs is lower, which suggests that it is not a good choice for China’s commercial bank to hold the NPLs.     

Risk-based capital for credit insurers with business cycles and dynamic leverage

This paper develops a risk-based capital pricing model for credit insurance portfolios held by a vulnerable insurer. The model accounts for business cycles using a two-state Markov switching model, and allows for dynamic leverage adjustment by the insured firms. The new proposed model, which incorporates risk-based capital practice, is better for both the insurer and the insured firms. Based on the risk-adjusted performance metric, we found that the insurer is better off insuring short- and medium-term loans in expansion and steady states, while it is better off backing both short- and long-term loans in recessions. Our results also emphasize that macroeconomic uncertainty significantly impairs the creditworthiness of the insurer and insured firms.     

城镇化视阈中人地挂钩制度创新及保障机制

采用新制度经济学研究方法,针对城镇化视阈中人地挂钩的多种要素、多元主体间的制度创新动因、运行模式、损益及冲突、流程设计和保障机制进行系统研究。结论表明,人地挂钩制度创新动因是城镇化进程中土地城镇化与人口城镇化的脱节、土地粗放利用与经济产值及人口承载力的偏差、土地空间融合与人口身份隔离等人地脱钩,是制度供需矛盾的必然产物。人地挂钩的制度具有协同管理、要素流动、权益保障、宏微观定位等功能,运行模式有城市化率增长匹配模式、地随人走模式以及"有效就业"指向的激励模式。人地挂钩制度创新对城市新市民、城市原市民、迁入地企业、迁入迁出地地方政府、中央政府等不同参与主体具有正和或零和收益,但推行过程面临创新主体利益、进程快慢、地区差异引起的潜在冲突与挑战。实践保障上,人地挂钩制度包括8个环节操作流程和4方面的系统支撑。