微格在东南亚、南亚语种师资培训中的应用

本文分析了当前东南亚、南亚语种师资培训存在的普遍问题,并结合微格教学的基本原理与特点,提出了微格教学在东南亚、南亚语种师资培训中的可行性及相应的对策,为培养国际化复合型的东南亚、南亚语种师资队伍提供有效途径。     

Mortgagor Motivations in Prepayments for Adjustable Rate Mortgages

This paper provides the first rigorous analysis of residential adjustable mortgage prepayment using individual ARM mortgage data in Singapore. The prepayment rate for residential mortgages is low and is dominated more by macroeconomic factors than mortgage–specific factors. Specifically, the prepayment rate is increasing in residential property prices, but decreasing in income as proxied by GDP and volatility in mortgage rates. There is weak evidence to suggest that prepayment is increasing in the borrower's age, mortgage rate hikes, cash–availability variables and sentiments of the stock market, and decreasing in the price premium over valuation, payment–to–income ratio, loan–to–value ratio, loan term and floor level of the property.     

Instrument Choice: The Demand for Mortgages in Canada

This paper is directed at understanding the factors which caused mortgage demand to fluctuate to the degree witnessed in the 1980s. We model the mortgage choice decision as involving simultaneous options on both the term and the amortization choice, by cost minimizing risk averse borrowers. The model is estimated using a bivariate ordered probit methodology. An extensive database containing details on the financial and demographic characteristics of households is used. We find that, contrary to the dominant model of mortgage demand, borrowers react to market conditions in a risk averse and cost minimizing manner.     

中国银行业的规模经济和范围经济--基于广义超越对数成本函数的检验

本文利用广义超越对数成本函数估计了我国国有商业银行及股份制商业银行1994—2001年的成本函数,并计算出各自的规模经济和范围经济。结果表明：国有商业银行存在规模经济而股份制商业银行存在轻微的规模不经济;国有商业银行在其传统业务(存款、贷款)上具有规模经济,在投资上具有规模不经济,股份制商业银行则相反;国有商业银行及股份制商业银行都存在总体范围经济;国有商业银行在贷款和存款上的范围经济大于在投资上的范围经济,股份制商业银行在贷款上不具有范围经济,而在投资和存款上具有显著的范围经济;国有商业银行和股份制商业银行在贷款和投资组合上都不具有成本互补性,而在贷款和存款及存款和投资组合上都具有轻微的成本互补性。针对上述检验结果,提出了相应的政策建议。     

韩国港口东亚战略的探析

近年来,随着中国沿海集装箱港口群的迅速崛起和日本超级中枢港计划的实施,对韩国港口的生存和发展空间带来了前所未有的压力。韩国政府基于物流立国战略,为巩固本国港口群的国际竞争力,顺利实现东亚物流中心的宏伟目标,展开了一系列重大举措。文中从港口经营管理和基础设施投资建设两个侧面探讨韩国集装箱港口的发展对东亚港口的影响。     

Economies of scale in advertising

In this article a flexible quadratic model is used to generate sales elasticity estimates for own advertising, competitor advertising and media concentration. On the basis of these estimates, moderate and declining economies of scale in advertising are indicated for firms at the highest end of the advertising per firm distribution. No advertising economies, however, are obvious for the levels of advertising common across the broad spectrum of US industry. Thus, any competitive harm due to economies of scale in advertising would seem quite minor.     

Economies of scale in networks

A network's capacity can typically be increased in a variety of ways. For example, in a highway network, existing roads can be made wider or new roads added. This paper is concerned with the determination of the degree of local economies of scale in the cost function for the outputs of a congestible network when there are multiple margins for making adjustments to capacity. The main result is that under the provision of a cost-minimizing network—one for which the sum of user and capacity costs for the network's outputs is at a minimum—the degree of local economies of scale in the cost function for the network's outputs is the same along all margins for adjusting capacity. This includes what routes to establish.     

Determinants of industrial development: a panel analysis of South Asian economies

Quality & Quantity - A well performing industrial sector plays an important role in poverty mitigation, unemployment reduction, trade promotion, exchange of goods and services, increased per...     

Manufacturing and Rural Economies in the United States: The Role of Nondurable Producers, Labor Costs and State Taxes

This paper investigates the preferences of manufacturers in deciding whether to locate in metropolitan or nonmetropolitan (rural) areas. Using 1997 state-level data and OLS regression estimation, it was determined that nondurable goods manufacturers prefer rural areas, while durable goods manufacturers are indifferent as to area. However, both sets of manufacturers prefer to locate in larger states. Wage rates are not significant in the regressions, while durable manufacturers appear sensitive to state taxes. Some policy conclusions for local economic developers are derived from these findings.     

On Markets and Pseudo-Markets in Socialist Economies

Liberalisation of East European economies is desirable. But, as Professor Jan Winiecki of Warsaw University points out, there are reforms and psuedo-reforms.     

Purchasing Power Parity in Three Transition Economies

This paper uses cointegration analysis on monthly data over April 1994-December 2000 to test the relevance theory of Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) for two advanced transition economies (Poland and the Czech Republic) and one lagging transition economy (Romania). PPP is not rejected between the lagging reformer and developed market economies, but is rejected between the advanced reformers and the developed economies. However, PPP is not rejected between the two advanced transition economies, though it is rejected between the lagging and advanced transition economies. The evolution of the real exchange rates over 1994-2000 suggest that a significant explanation for these findings is the central role of the exchange rate in the disinflation strategies of Poland and the Czech Republic in the early part of this period, in contrast to the managed float followed by Romania throughout the period.     

The Dynamics of Capital Structure in Transition Economies

This paper uses a dynamic unrestricted capital structure model to examine the determinants of the private companies' target financial leverage and the speed of adjustment to it in two transition economies, the Czech Republic and Bulgaria. We explicitly model the adjustment of companies' leverage to a target leverage, and this target leverage is itself explained by a set of factors. The panel data methodology combines cross-section and time-series information. The results indicate that the Bulgarian corporate credit markets were less supply -constrained than those of the Czech Republic during the period under investigation. Bulgariancompanies adjusted much faster to the target leverage than Czech firms. The speed ofadjustment related positively to the distance between target and observed ratio for Bulgarian companies while the relationship was neutral for Czech companies. The conservative policies of Czech banks and the exposure control were likely responsible for the slower adjustment among the larger companies while the opposite were true for Bulgarian banks and companies.     

Economies of scale in the Mexican automotive sector

Recent growth of the Mexican motor vehicle industry has sparked a great deal of controversy on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border regarding the potential effects of the North American Free Trade Agreement. One of the key factors affecting the future competitiveness of the Mexican motor vehicle industry relative to U.S. producers is whether the Mexican firms can exploit economies of scale as their output expands. This article investigates that possibility as well as the direct and cross-price elasticities of demand for the inputs by estimating translog cost functions for the Mexican motor vehicle and autoparts industries. The results are consistent with the hypotheses that substantial economies of scale remain to be exploited by the Mexican motor vehicle industry, but that the autoparts industry is operating with diseconomies of scale. However, the lack of investment in new technology and X-inefficiency on the part of the autoparts firms may have been partially responsible for the latter finding.     

美国反向抵押贷款发展历程及对我国的启迪

随着我国老龄化问题的日趋严重,引进国外已经开办的反向抵押贷款产品以缓解整个社会的养老压力,目前已经纳入议事日程.但这一产品应当如何运作,借鉴美国开办反向抵押贷款业务的现成经验,并给予本土化改造就很有必要.本文对美国反向抵押贷款的发展历程做了较为深入、全面的分析,以对我国反向抵押贷款业务的开办及相关政策制定、产品研发等有所启迪.     

The take-up of business support by minority ethnic enterprises: The experience of South Asian businesses in England

This research contributes to a greater understanding of minority ethnic business (MEB) needs and practices and helps identify the support needs of minority ethnic firms in relation to existing support provision. The aims are, therefore, to examine the take-up of support by minority ethnic enterprises focusing mainly on the South Asian community with some representation from the African-Caribbean and Korean communities. Fifty minority ethnic businesses across South West London were contacted and semi-structured interviews took place with the owner/owner managers. The findings suggest that policy makers need to appreciate the diversity of MEBs and policies aimed at these businesses should reflect that diversity.