Enlargement and the EU Periphery: The Impact of Changing Market Potential

We study the impact of changing relative market access in an enlarged EU on the economies of incumbent Objective 1 regions. First, we track the impact of external opening on internal spatial configurations in a three‐region economic geography model. External opening gives rise to potentially offsetting economic forces, but for most parameter configurations it is found to raise the locational attractiveness of the region that is close to the external market. Then, we explore the relation between market access and economic activity empirically. We simulate the impact of enlargement on EU Objective 1 regions. Predicted market‐access‐induced gains in regional GDP and manufacturing employment are up to seven times larger in regions proximate to the new accession countries than in ‘interior’ EU regions. We also find that a future Balkans enlargement could be particularly effective in reducing economic inequalities among the EU periphery, due to the positive impact on relative market access of Greek regions.     

Uncertainty and pollution: The role of indirect taxation

This paper explores the potential usefulness of indirect taxation as a supplement to effluent charges. It is argued that effluent charges should typically be accompanied by taxes on privately traded commodities linked to the pollutant in consumption or production. The performance of such combinations of taxes and charges is then compared to that of an effluent standard.     

Agglomeration and the export decisions of French firms

This paper asks whether export spillovers influence the export behavior of French manufacturers. I use a database containing export flows by firm and importing country between 1986 and 1992. The decision to start exporting to a particular country is estimated using a logit model, controlling for the specific characteristics of firms, locations, countries and years. The export spillovers identified are industry- and/or destination-specific, and are computed at a very disaggregated geographical level. The results indicate that the pool of local exporters positively affects the decision to start exporting to a country. These effects are clearly destination-specific, and are larger for firms that export to remote markets.     

Tourism demand patterns in turbulent times: analysing Welsh accommodation occupancy data for 1998–2001

Different events in 2001, most notably an outbreak of foot and mouth disease and the 11 September terrorist attacks in the USA, caused many tourist businesses in the UK to experience significant changes in demand volumes. This paper examines the occupancy performance of serviced accommodation establishments in Wales from 1998 to 2001 and focuses especially on the changes in demand patterns in 2001. The approach is based on a combination of principal components and cluster analysis. The results are used to group establishments with similar performance profiles. Detailed conclusions are drawn about the temporal and spatial shifts in demand in 2001. ‘Winners’ and ‘losers’ are identified and several concrete implications for marketing and development policies are discussed. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

When you go to war with Medicare, bring some heavy artillery

Underpaid and uninformed by a bumbling carrier, a rural FP fought back with the help of her senator and congressman.     

Models of the Significance of Interlocking Corporate Directorates

A bstract . Four different models explaining the significance of the patterns of interlocking directorates in the American economy are delineated and examined to discover a few of the behavioral predictions inherent in each. Empirical tests are employed to examine the general pattern of replacement of interlocking relationships between the largest American firms when ended through the death of an outside director. Another test employed is to examine the stability of interlock patterns over time. From the results it is concluded that interlocking directorates do not generally represent evidence of close interconnections between specific corporations but do connect some stable, city-based groups.