Three Triggers? Negative Equity,Income Shocks and Institutions as Determinants of Mortgage Default

The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics - In understanding the determinants of mortgage default, the consensus has moved from an ‘option theory’ model to the ‘double...     

The effects of fuel prices and vehicle sales on fuel‐saving technology adoption in passenger vehicles

Although economic theory suggests that both sales and fuel costs affect technology adoption by vehicle manufacturers, there is very little empirical evidence on either effect. We document a strong connection between a vehicle's sales and its energy efficiency. Using a demographics‐driven demand shifter to isolate demand‐side changes in sales, we find that a one standard deviation increase in sales raises efficiency by 0.2%, compared with a mean improvement rate of 1.4% per year between 1997 and 2013. Higher fuel prices also increase technology adoption directly by increasing willingness to pay for fuel cost savings. The results have two implications: manufacturers will continue to focus technological improvements on top selling vehicles; and fuel taxes will have larger effects on technology adoption than fuel economy standards and feebates.     

日本路边站式“地产地消”农产品流通方式及其启示

"路边站"农产品销售网点,是日本利用公路停车加油与休憩场所设立的农产品营销场所,是一种较为典型的"地产地消"组织形式,截止2015年,日本登记在册的路边站已达1 079所。文章深入剖析了日本路边站式"地产地消"流通方式发展背景、功能、类型,认为路边站在实现新鲜农产品与消费者的对接、增加就业与提高农民收入、推进农业产业化经营与激发农村经济活力、培育地方农产品品牌与保障农产品安全等方面发挥了重要作用。在此基础上,提出我国现代农业发展的建议:发挥我国路网优势,大力发展路边站式农产品经营网点;鼓励特色农产品生产,打造地理标志性农产品;以旅游业推动农业一、二、三产业融合;发展多元化农产品流通方式,加强农产品质量管控。     

New‐vehicle characteristics and the cost of the Corporate Average Fuel Economy standard

By 2016, the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standard will increase by 40%. This article focuses on the medium‐run effects of fuel economy regulation. We estimate consumers' willingness to pay for vehicle characteristics. We employ a novel empirical strategy that accounts for the characteristics' endogeneity by using variation of engine models used in vehicle models. The results imply that consumers value an increase in power more than an increase in fuel economy. Simulations of the effects of an increase in the CAFE standard suggest that regulatory costs are significantly smaller in the medium run than in the short run.     

Bush v. Gore and the Effect of New Source Review on Power Plant Emissions

New Source Review (NSR) is a Clean Air Act regulation that requires electric utilities to meet emission standards when making modifications to existing power plants. The regulation increases the cost of replacing worn out parts, and limits the firm’s scope of potential capital investments. Such restrictions may lead to greater retirements and lower utilization, adversely affecting profits. Prior to the 2000 presidential election, investors expected Bush to have a narrower interpretation of NSR than Gore. Therefore, we use changes in stock prices to estimate the effect on profits of differences in NSR policy. Our results indicate that investors expected the average boiler to be $38 million more valuable under the Bush administration. Over the boilers’ lifetimes, the additional utilization will have increased emissions by 19 million tons of sulfur dioxide, 5.9 million tons of nitrogen oxides and 980 million tons of carbon dioxide, relative to natural gas generation.      

黄土丘陵沟壑区城乡协调发展研究

目的 受区域条件和城乡二元体制的制约，黄土丘陵沟壑区城乡发展滞后。新时期，亟待厘清区域城乡关系现状，为乡村振兴和区域协调发展战略的实施提供依据。方法 文章以黄土丘陵沟壑区57个区县为研究对象，分别构建县域城镇化和乡村发展水平评价指标体系，利用耦合协调模型探讨2000—2015年区域城乡发展的协调状况，结合相关分析探析“城”和“乡”对城乡协调发展的影响。结果 （1）区域城乡发展失衡，“城进村衰”问题加重。乡村人口系统、经济系统、社会系统和资源系统虽略有发展，但环境系统有一定程度衰退，而城镇化水平在各方面均取得较大发展。（2）区域城乡互动关系已趋稳定，城乡耦合模式以“中—中—高”、“中—低—高”为主。城乡发展协调水平总体较低，以勉强协调、初级协调为主。2000—2015年，区域城乡发展协调度空间差异明显缩小。（3）城镇化对区域城乡协调发展起主导作用，而乡村的作用较弱。结论 乡村发展滞后是制约区域城乡协调发展的主要原因，发挥乡村资源优势、加强乡村环境治理、激发乡村内生动力将有助于提高乡村发展水平、促进城乡协调发展。该研究有助于理解区域城乡关系现状，为区域协调发展和乡村振兴相关决策提供参考。     

农业产业准入负面清单制度研究

[目的]旨在依据区域农业资源禀赋、生态环境容量、产业基础和功能定位,按照"生态红线"和"底线约束"的要求,明确种植业、养殖业发展方向和开发强度,强化农业产业准入门槛,加强区域资源管护和生态治理。[方法]以农业产业准入负面清单为研究对象,在综合考虑农业资源承载力、区域主体功能定位基础上,剖析建立农业产业准入负面清单制度的背景、意义及其内涵,基于"减规模、转方式、控规模、退出生产"要求探讨负面清单编制原则以及禁止类、限制类农业产业目录与管控条件的编制方法,重点分析农业资源超载、生态环境退化典型区域的农业产业发展管控对策。[结果](1)在华北平原地下水漏斗区,实施节水保水型耕作方式,限制冬小麦种植面积;(2)在中—重度重金属污染区实施3～5年休耕,在轻微—轻度重金属污染区域,实施清洁去污型休耕模式,优先种植生物量高、吸收积累作用强的富集型植物;(3)在长江中下游传统双季稻主产区,适度调减双季稻田,实施"双改单",控制水网密集区生猪、奶牛养殖规模;(4)在生态严重退化区,实行生态修复型休耕,种植防风固沙、涵养水分、保护耕作层的植物;(5)在东北黑土区,适度调减水稻种植面积,增加食用大豆生产,推进种养结合;(6)在生态保护发展区,推行禁牧休牧轮牧和舍饲半舍饲。[结论]采取开展农业产业准入负面清单编制试点、完善法律法规、建立生态补偿机制、加强制度建设等措施保障农业产业准入负面清单制度的建立。     

Product development in the chemical industry: A description of a maturing business

To help us understand the massive complexity of the chemical industry, Robert A. Linn breaks it down into product/market sectors that show differing business requirements, and hence, differing new product development requirements. This is an important industry that has struggled through the 1970s with sharp changes in external pressures and very little technological excitement. Where are the new product opportunities in an industry such as this? How do you pursue them? On the basis of his years of experience in the industry, Linn offers some suggestions and some challenges for managers.     

The role of emotions in decision-making on employer brands: insights from functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)

Branding is a key concept in marketing for which extensive research has provided valuable insights into how to attract and retain customers. However, far less is known about how to use branding to attract and retain employees. The work presented here aims to narrow this research gap by drawing on dual-process theories from research on decision-making. First, using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we show that decision-making for employer first-choice brands (as compared to less attractive employer brands) is associated with increased activation in brain areas linked to emotions and with decreased activation in areas linked to working memory and reasoning. Second, our region-of-interest (ROI) analyses reveal that neural processing of employer brands differs from the processing of consumer brands. Results support our theorizing on dual-processing regarding the role of emotions in decision-making on employer brands and, further, they indicate that decision processes differ between employer and consumer brands.     

Recession and civil service pay: International examples

This country is not alone in putting the squeeze on civil servants’ pay in times of pressure on public spending. A look at the United States, Canada and Australia shows, besides some similarities of approach, a remarkable coincidence of timing: when the going gets rough, government employees everywhere seem to suffer a similar fate.