Ad valorem tariff and spatial equilibrium models

The objectives of this article are to illustrate theoretically and empirically how to incorporate an ad valorem tariff in spatial equilibrium models and show the equivalence of three approaches (primal, dual and MCP) of spatial equilibrium trade modelling. The article lays out in detail the theory, empirical applications and the results for all three approaches so that trade modellers can easily follow and apply them in their work. The primal approach is commonly used by spatial equilibrium modellers, though the dual approach corresponds to the textbook depiction of consumer surplus, producer surplus and gains from trade. The Mixed Complementarity Problem (MCP) is not commonly used by spatial equilibrium modellers, though it is relatively simpler if the modeller knows the equilibrium conditions. This article also presents advantages and disadvantages of each approach.     

Simulated economic impacts in applied trade modelling: A comparison of tariff aggregation approaches

This paper assesses the performance of two recently developed tariff aggregators in reducing tariff aggregation bias by analysing Swiss beef market liberalisation scenarios. Specific relevant sources of bias are addressed: substitution effects on import demand, Tariff Rate Quotas and overprotection in tariffs. The aggregators are linked to a global large-scale partial equilibrium model and benchmarked against a standard aggregator. The choice of the aggregation method shows considerable effects on simulated economic impacts, specifically if the dispersion in tariffs or tariff cuts is large. A large bias is revealed in simulated gains from trade liberalisation using the standard aggregator. The impacts on traded quantities are found to be overestimated, while price and welfare effects can be higher or lower by switching to alternative aggregation methods. By reducing aggregation bias and depicting negotiated tariff schedules more directly, the proposed aggregators enhance the contribution of trade modelling to evidence-based policy making.     

Testing tariff endogeneity in Japan: A comparison of pre- and post-war periods

This paper tests an endogenous tariff model for Japan (1890–1970). Using a vector autoregression (VAR), I find that tariff changes are endogenous in the post-war period. Rather than being designed to promote economic activity, this suggests that tariffs respond to macroeconomic disturbances.     

均衡价格--动态市场价格的形成与变化趋势

本介绍了用来模拟动态市场价格的微分方程模型，此模型反映了价格对需求与供给的影响，而需求与供给反过来又影响价格确定的过程，并说明了均衡价格是市场价格的最终变化趋势，并用蛛网理论对产量和价格的波动进行了分析。     

管子轻重理论的均衡思想

<管子>后16篇,也称轻重篇,着重阐述了轻重理论,是中国古代特有的一种经济管理思想.前人学者大多从供求规律与货币数量论等角度对商品之间的轻重规律进行阐释.文章则重点阐述了轻重规律所蕴含的均衡思想,并且在阐述管子轻重理论中蕴含的局部均衡、动态均衡、一般均衡思想后,借用现代经济学的分析工具,试图重建管子轻重规律的均衡分析.西方经济学直到1769年以后才在经济学中引入均衡的概念,此研究将进一步丰富中国经济思想的研究.     

Uniqueness and comparative statics of Nash equilibrium in a tariff retaliation model

This paper considers uniqueness and comparative statics of Nash equilibrium of a tariff retaliation model. The approach to the problem is geometrical and reminiscent of the analysis for the free trade competitive equilibrium. If the countries have constant elasticity of substitution utility functions, some simple conditions can be used to prove uniqueness of the Nash equilibrium of the tariff retaliation game. The welfare effects of endowment changes are analyzed in terms of the standard terms of trade and volume of trade effects. If the elasticity of substitution of one of the countries is sufficiently high, immiserizing growth will not occur.      

Energy efficiency and economic growth of China： 1953-2006

Energy plays an important role in the economic life. With the rapid development of economy, the constraint of energy on the sustainable development of economy is becoming more and more obvious. This paper just Studies the factors influencing energy efficiency of China and the relationship between energy efficiency and China＇s economic： growth. By using time series multivariable linear regression methods with China＇s relevant data from 1953 to 2006, this paper constructs the regression model to analyze the factors that would impact energy, efficiency. After that, a regression model of China＇s real output to capital, labor and energy e lficiency is conducted to estimate the marginal contribution of every factor to the real output to prove the fundamental influence of energy efficiency to the economic growth. In the end, some policies and recommendations are also put forward in order to improve the energy efficiency; of China.     

当前房地产价格走势与宏观调控策略选择

房地产价格形成的基础具有其他商品所没有的特殊性。面对房地产价格快速上涨的态势，为了既不伤害房地产业的健康发展，又能有效满足广大城市居民对住宅的需求，应当把宏观调控的切入点放在直接调近代房地产供求。稳定房地产价格的关键在于实现有效供求平衡。     

Economists,social reformers,and prophets: a feminist critique of economic efficiency

This article examines the concept of Pareto optimality, bringing to light some of its implicit assumptions about the nature of human agency, work, and gender. It explores the androcentric character of the economic agent and the gendered nature of neoclassical models in relation to the historical development of the concept of economic efficiency during the late 1930s. The thrust toward the development of Pareto optimality as a scientific criterion of economic welfare was a response to the methodological tensions between the clearly political nature of economics and the scientific aspirations of economists. An examination of the debates from this period illuminates some of the values that became embedded in neoclassical economics, and which are now hidden by the masks of mathematics and abstraction.     

Scale economies with regard to price adjustment costs and the speed of price adjustment in Australian manufacturing

This paper aims to examine the impact of firm size, industry concentration and the length of production on industry speed of price adjustment. To motivate the paper, an industry pricing model in error correction form is derived from firm pricing behaviour. As a new development, firms are assumed to have price adjustment costs that are a function of their size. The empirical model is estimated using two‐digit Australian manufacturing industry data for the period 1994:3 to 2006:1. The results suggest that the industry speed of price adjustment is positively related to firm size and negatively related to industry concentration and the production lag. Implied values for industry speeds of price adjustment are generally small when compared to other country industry studies. However, the industry average median lag of 7.1 quarters indicates a slightly faster speed of price adjustment than the estimate for the Australian consumer price index by Dwyer and Leong (2001 Dwyer, J. and Leong, K. 2001. Changes in the determination of inflation in Australia 1–44. Reserve Bank of Australia Research Discussion Paper 2001‐02 [Google Scholar]).     

Incentives for investment in energy efficiency: an econometric evaluation and policy implications

Technical studies suggest that there exist many opportunities to improve energy efficiency, and that a substantial proportion is profitable by current business standards. This study deals with the question why so many of these profitable opportunities are not used. Reasons for not implementing profitable opportunities are idetified, and their effect is estimated on the basis ofa survey among Dutch firms, designed specifically for this study. The reasons that prevail indicate what policy measures may accompany energy taxes in the pursuit of energy efficiency improvement. In addition, energy efficiency elasticities are estimated, as well as the factors that determine the elasticities. These too indicate opportunities for government policy, if it wants to improve the effectiveness of energy taxes.     

The impact of trade openness on technical efficiency in the agricultural sector of the European Union

The aim of this study is to analyse the impact of trade openness on technical efficiency of the European Union’s (EU) agricultural sector. There are no systematic theories linking trade policy to technical efficiency; hence, the relation between trade liberalization and technical efficiency is fundamentally ambiguous. Stochastic frontier analysis is used to model the relationship between EU’s production resources and agricultural output, as well as the importance of trade openness on technical efficiency of a country. The data for 16 of the 28 EU members were available for the period 1980–2007 including land, capital, fertilizer, labour, agricultural GDP, foreign direct investments (FDI), exports and import data. Results indicate that trade openness has an immediate, negative impact on efficiency in the EU agricultural sector. Over time, however, trade openness does increase efficiency. The FDI outflows increase efficiency. This suggests that an initial reduction in capital supply forces EU nations to utilize other factor inputs more efficiently. However, there is the unexamined potential that over time the depletion of capital results in a decrease in efficiency. Finally, formerly communist member-countries of the EU are found to have the lowest technical efficiency scores whereas Southern European nations have the highest efficiency.     

中国苏北进出口贸易水平实证分析

苏北外贸发展面临的约束和阻力是多方面的,既有制度建设、贸易条件方面的,也有贸易方式、商品结构和认识偏差等方面的。破除约束的关键在于外贸发展取向的选择与转变,要致力于系统的制度安排、立足于贸易条件的改善和发展取向的转变;在外贸出口稳定增长的主体思路、主要政策选择、主要产业导向、主要支撑体系等方面,探索新的发展模式。基于此,以苏北、苏南、苏中和沿海2000—2010年的进出口贸易数据为基础,通过聚类、回归分析来认识中国苏北进出口贸易总体水平,综合分析多重约束下苏北进出口贸易的发展。     

Network topology and the efficiency of equilibrium

Different kinds of networks, such as transportation, communication, computer, and supply networks, are susceptible to similar kinds of inefficiencies. These arise when congestion externalities make the cost for each user depend on the other users' choice of routes. If each user chooses the least expensive (e.g., the fastest) route from the users' common point of origin to the common destination, the result may be Pareto inefficient in that an alternative choice of routes would reduce the costs for all users. Braess's paradox represents an extreme kind of inefficiency, in which the equilibrium costs may be reduced by raising the cost curves. As this paper shows, this paradox occurs in an (undirected) two-terminal network if and only if it is not series-parallel. More generally, Pareto inefficient equilibria occur in a network if and only if one of three simple networks is embedded in it.     

Oil consumption and economic efficiency: A comparative analysis of advanced, developing and emerging economies

This paper investigates the economic efficiency-oil consumption relationship in 42 countries during the period 1986-2006. In a first stage by using DEA window analysis countries' economic efficiencies are obtained. In a second stage an econometric analysis based on robust GMM estimators reveals an inverted ‘U’-shape relationship between oil consumption and economic efficiency. In order to capture heterogeneities among countries' development stages the analysis has been separated into two groups (advanced economies and developing/emerging economies). The results show that advanced economies have much higher turning points compared to emerging and developing economies. It appears that oil consumption increases countries' economic efficiency. In addition the consumption patterns of oil products and its derivatives have changed through years and among countries. The different turning points from the econometric analysis indicate the dependence of oil consumption in advanced economies (higher turning points) is driven mainly by household purchasing activities and their standards of living (transport, housing and water, food, etc.). Finally, it appears that oil consumption is the main driver behind the progress of industrialization and urbanization regardless of the country's development stage.     

Rational expectations,difference of opinions and asset pricing

This article applies the concept of relative overconfidence (the measure of how heavily investors depend on others’ information) to combine the rational expectations equilibrium (REE) and difference of opinions (DO) models. And we discuss the effects of relative overconfidence on asset price efficiency and trading volume. We find that when investors hold assets to maturity, relative overconfidence has no effect on price efficiency and trading volume; however, when investors speculate, relative overconfidence reduces price informativeness and trading volume, because investors will reckon asset prices as more noisy and find it meaningless to speculate on capital gains based on their private information. Our results highlight the role of speculation in differentiating REE and DO models and influencing the effects of overconfidence.     

Export and import composition as determinants of bilateral trade in goods: evidence from Russia

Conventional theory and several empirical studies state that incomes and exchange rates are the key determinants of the trade balance. Here, we argue that export and import composition are also key explanatory variables because some goods are inelastic and/or with a high added value, directly and indirectly affecting income and price elasticities and trade balance. Thus, if exports and/or imports significantly consist of price inelastic products, then, a positive and a negative effect, respectively, should be expected on the trade balance. Using bilateral trade data and dynamic panel models, we found that the ratio of exports of crude petroleum and natural gas (price inelastic goods) to total exports is significantly and positively associated with the Russian trade balance in goods. For its part, Russian imports of high-tech goods (income elastic and price inelastic with a high added value) show a negative association. The goods balance of Russia also responded to changes in relative income, but there is only weak evidence of reactions to changes in the exchange rate. These findings partially explain the persistent surplus in the Russian trade balance and current account.     

The intrinsic fallacy of market mechanism and private property rights in alleviating the tragedy of the commons

ABSTRACT

Economists’ solution to the tragedy of the commons relies on well-defined property rights and competitive market mechanism for limiting individuals’ self-serving, short-sighted actions that result in a dramatic depletion of the common resources. However, this solution implicates a serious threat in terms of sustainability. Recently, deterioration of genetic diversity reached alarming levels, mainly attributed to escalating economic pressure that obliges farmers to shift from local breeds towards more profitable and more productive industrial breeds. This study empirically examines the efficiency of the free market mechanism as a solution to the tragedy of the commons through a unique natural experiment in which a huge demand shock arises regarding sheep. Results robustly show that the free market mechanism can cope with even a very challenging demand shock through the adjustment of prices without any shortage of the commodity. However, this finding does not guarantee that such an outcome is sustainable over the very long term. Analysis of the growth rate of the local sheep breeds population and cross-breed sheep population shows that the trend is overwhelmingly in favour of cross-breeds, thus supporting concerns for a free market mechanism, intrinsically driving the extinction of local sheep breeds, an invaluable genetic resource.     

Endogenous trade policy in general equilibrium: An interaction of redistribution rule,trade openness,and labor market condition

Using a general equilibrium framework, the paper derives trade policy endogenously for a small country. It shows that, contrary to the existing literature, a lobbying industry is not guaranteed trade protection; it may even face trade taxes. Besides lobbying, trade policy depends on other factors such as the trade revenue distribution rule, income distribution across groups, trade openness, factor substitutability in production, industry employment size, and labor market flexibility. The paper also shows that the observed phenomenon of government preference for import tariffs over export subsidies—a long overdue puzzle—is an inherent outcome of lobbying equilibrium. It also shows that trade policies such as import tariffs and export taxes that have the same impact on economic market—Lerner symmetry (1936)—are driven by the same forces in the political market.     

加快经济结构调整的障碍和路径分析

经济结构调整是经济发展阶段性的必然要求,而加快推进则是当前中国经济面临内忧外患的明智选择。为掌握加快结构调整的主动权,必须考察阻碍四大结构调整的深层次因素,这可以概括为四个方面:消费动能不足束缚需求结构调整,传统价值思维妨碍产业结构调整,旧有利润来源格局阻挠投入结构调整,地方本位主义干扰空间结构调整。加快推进经济结构调整,应该认清路径依赖对经济结构调整的制约,增强市场化改革的决心,降低经济结构调整的推进成本,降低经济结构调整的内在成本。