Equity, Efficiency and Financial Viability: Public-Utility Pricing with Special Reference to Water Supply

The pricing and investment policies of a public enterprise should be designed to achieve efficiency since equity is better pursued by general policy regarding income distribution. Short-run marginal-cost pricing does not generally lead to long-term deficit, but may involve price and surplus/deficit cycles for the case with lumpy investments and growing demand, where the price increases with demand but is reduced with capacity expansion. Taking account of the extra costs of government revenue collection and the likely average price/cost ratio in the economy, the third-best pricing policy is likely to result in long-term surplus, making the objectives of equity, efficiency and financial viability much more consistent with each other than is generally believed. This is particularly true for water with historically increasing costs of additional sources of supply.     

金融支农水平与农民增收互动关系研究

改革开放以来,我国农民收入水平有了大幅提高。为探讨我国金融支农水平和农民增收之间的关系,本文在文献综述的基础上,构建了农民收入影响因素的基本模型,运用我国1980-2009年的时间序列数据,对我国金融支农水平与农民收入之间的关系进行了实证研究。结果表明：金融支农水平与农民收入之间存在长期稳定的均衡关系,且前者是后者的双向格兰杰原因。并且从短期来看,金融支农水平的变化会引起农民收入的下降,而长期来看,则会促进农民收入的增加,且金融支农水平对农民收入增长的贡献率基本稳定在13%左右。因此,为切实提高农民收入、缩小城乡居民收入差距,需要继续强化我国的金融支农水平。既需要提高我国的总体金融支农规模,增加农村金融的普适性和可获得性。同时也要优化金融支农结构,促进农村产业结构的优化与升级,切实提高农村经济实力。     

The Chinese Stock Market Does not React to the Japanese Market: Using Intraday Data to Analyse Return and Volatility Spillover Effects

In this paper, we use high‐frequency data to explore the effects of return and volatility spillover during periods in which trading hours in China and Japan overlap. Specifically, we utilize 5‐min returns to estimate fractionally integrated asymmetric power autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity and fractionally integrated exponential generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity models, then use the models' standardized residuals to employ a cross‐correlation function approach that tests for the degree to which the Chinese and Japanese markets affect each other. Results indicate a unidirectional influence of the Chinese stock market on Japanese markets in terms of return. This result is likely attributable to restrictions on foreign investment in the Chinese market and the lack of diversified international portfolios among individual Chinese investors.     

From Peg to Float: Exchange Market Pressure and Monetary Policy in the Czech Republic

Exchange market pressure (EMP) in the Czech Republic is calculated for 1995–2006, when the Czech National Bank transitioned to inflation targeting (IT). EMP is a useful indicator of incipient foreign exchange market pressures, a signal of the need for policy adjustments and a clear delineator of monetary policy regime change. VAR estimates clearly identify quite different policy responses during the two regimes. During 1995–98, interest rate and domestic credit responses to EMP were statistically significant and in accord with traditional theory, i.e. domestic credit creation and interest rates were managed to maintain the exchange rate target as if policymakers were explicitly responding to changes in EMP. During the 1998–2006 IT regime there is a link between domestic credit creation and EMP, with no interest rate effects. Exchange market interventions were incidental and supportive of IT goals. Impulse response functions mirror the VAR and Granger causality results.     

Firm–Specific Assets and the Link between Exchange Rates and Japanese Foreign Direct Investment in the United States: A Re–examination

Blonigen has studied Japanese foreign direct investment (FDI) in the USA using panel count models and data for 1975–92. He reports that appreciation of Japanese yen had a positive impact on Japanese FDI in the USA. We re–examine the robustness of this conclusion using Blonigen’s data and a family of econometric models—finite mixture panel count models—that are more flexible and appear to provide an improved fit to his data. Although our results broadly support Blonigen’s conclusions regarding the link between the exchange rate and Japanese FDI in the USA, our approach highlights the considerable diversity in the response of FDI to exchange rate variations. JEL Classification Number: C25.     

Microcredit in the North: An Institutional, Impact and Dependence Analysis Applied to the Spanish Case

Abstract ** : Microcredit programmes have been recently started in Spain, sparked by successful experiences in developing countries. The paper reviews the outstanding features of these programmes and their differences with developing countries models. It also moves forward the impact evaluation on unemployment and finds the subsidy dependence of Spanish microcredit institutions accurate because of the good results obtained by impact measures .     

代际支持、女性劳动供给与中国性别工资差异收敛−基于性别分工的视角

我国"男主外、女主内"的性别分工观念年深日久,但相比世界很多国家,女性劳动参与率反而很高、性别工资差异也较低,中国文化中长期承袭着父辈对子女代际支持的传统可能是缓解女性劳动供给约束的重要动因.文章构建考虑父辈代际支持的家庭劳动供给模型,利用中国家庭追踪调查数据(CFPS),分析了父辈时间支持和经济支持对子女,特别是女性劳动力的劳动供给和工资收入的影响与机制.研究发现,父辈的时间支持明显缓解女性劳动参与的时间约束,提高其劳动供给和工资收入,但没有发现对男性有显著影响,故有利于性别工资差异收敛;而父辈的经济支持均未发现对子女的劳动参与和工资收入有显著影响.此外,对城乡进行区分后发现,父辈时间支持对城镇女性的作用比农村女性更强.文章的研究有助于加深对我国劳动力市场中女性劳动供给行为和性别工资收敛性的理解,对进一步完善劳动就业制度也有一定启示.     

股权激励为何在中国实施维艰:代理成本理论解释与上市公司数据验证

股权激励为何在中国实施维艰?基于代理成本理论和上市公司的数据,本文研究表明,第一类和第二类股权代理成本显著高的公司,愿意选择股权激励计划缓解股东与经理人的冲突,但债务约束的广泛存在,限制了其对该项制度的选择,特别是对股权激励计划具有强烈需求和实施意愿的民营企业而言,债务的约束力更强。本文的研究体现了债务代理成本在我国企业治理中的主导作用并对我国股权激励实施现状具有较强的解释力。     

Introduction to "Exchange Rates in Europe and Australasia: Fundamental Determinants, Adjustments and Policy Implications"

The papers in this issue are concerned with the behaviour of exchange rates — their fundamental determinants, adjustment processes and policy implications. The authors combine theory with empirical evidence, test hypotheses as well as show the relevance of their analysis for policy. This Introduction addresses several questions. What are the contributions of the articles to the economics of exchange rates? Are they significant in increasing our understanding of the current issues and in addressing questions of policy? How can one explain the movements in the European and the Asian currencies? What can we expect to happen to the euro with the enlargement of the euro area? Do the papers provide frameworks to guide empirical research? In this Introduction, we highlight aspects of each paper that addresses these issues.     

Supply and Demand in the Theory of Long-run Growth: Introduction to a symposium on demand-led growth

Recent developments in growth theory have encouraged a revisionist interpretation of the field. According to this interpretation long-run growth should be, and always has been, interpreted as a supply-side process. The focus of this symposium is the macro-economics of demand-led growth. As a precursor to the contributions that follow, two central insights of demand-led growth theory are highlighted. First, chronic effective demand problems create a role for aggregate demand in determining the utilization rates of productive resources, even in the long run. Second, the demand-led actual rate of growth influences both the accumulation and productivity of factor inputs, and hence the economy's potential rate of growth.     

Trade, Exchange Rate, and Energy Pricing Reform in Iran: Potentially Large Efficiency Effects and Gains to the Poor

Iran is committed to substantial trade and market reform in its Third Five Year Development Plan. It started, however, with nontariff barriers on all products, a dual exchange rate regime with the market rate more than four times the official rate, and domestic energy product subsidies of about 90%. The authors develop a multisector computable general‐equilibrium model with ten rural and ten urban households to analyze the various reforms, separately and together. Reflecting the large initial distortions, they find that the combined reforms could generate large welfare gains equal to about 50% of aggregate consumer income. Moreover, the results show that well‐intentioned policies of commodity subsidies for the poor can have perverse effects. Even nontargeted direct income payments to all households (not just the poor) would enormously and progressively increase the incomes of the poor compared to the status quo.     

Exchange rate bands of inaction and play-hysteresis in Greek exports to the Euro Area,the US and Turkey: sectoral evidence

In this paper a non-linear model is applied, where suddenly strong spurts of exports occur when changes of the exchange rate go beyond a zone of inaction, which we call “play” area—analogous to mechanical play. We implement an algorithm describing path-dependent play-hysteresis into a regression framework. The hysteretic impact of real exchange rates on Greek exports is estimated based on the period from 1995Q1 to 2014Q4. Looking at some of the main export partners of Greece, the euro area, Turkey and the US, and some of its most important tradeable sectors we identify significant hysteretic effects for a part of the Greek exports. We find that Greek export activity is characterized by “bands of inaction” with respect to changes in the real exchange rate and calculate the further real depreciation needed to trigger a spurt in Greek exports. To check for robustness we (a) estimate Greek export equations for a limited sample excluding the recent financial crisis, (b) use export weight instead of deflated nominal exports as the dependent variable, (c) employ a political uncertainty variable as a determinant of the width of the area of weak reaction. Overall, we find that those specifications which take uncertainty into account display the best goodness of fit. In other words: the option value of waiting dominates the real exchange rate effect on Greek exports.     

货币投机中的稳定汇率承诺与政府救助——基于序贯博弈模型的多重均衡分析与模拟

中国目前的稳定汇率政策是对金融危机前的稳定汇率承诺的兑现,它可以有效稳定市场汇率预期,抵制随时可能到来的货币投机行为.本文在Mundaca模型的基础上构建一个具有稳定汇率承诺特征的序贯博弈模型,通过博弈均衡理论与数值模拟相结合的方法,分析货币投机冲击下的政府救助和汇率承诺的作用机制,提出一种结合政府事前汇率承诺的政府救助机制,详细分析"自实现"的稳定汇率承诺的作用机理,进而提出政策建议.     

公共财政、金融支农与农村金融改革--基于贵州省及其样本县的调查分析

本文通过对贵州省及其样本县农户和金融机构的问卷调查和分析,得出了一些实证性的结论。一方面,贫困地区公共财政未能发挥其应有的作用,健全的农村金融体系无法建立;另一方面,将农村金融机构作为支农的工具,进一步扭曲了农村的金融体制。分析表明,只有让公共财政发挥应有的作用,才能进一步改革农村金融体系,形成商业可持续的农村金融体制。     

国际产业转移、实际有效汇率与进口贸易——基于我国1982-2007年数据的实证研究

文章基于1982-2007年我国承接国际产业转移、人民币实际有效汇率和进口贸易的时间序列数据,运用协整和因果检验等计量方法,对它们的关系进行了实证检验.结果表明,国际产业转移和进口贸易之间存在长期均衡的互补关系,但两者之间没有显著的因果关系,短期替代关系并不强烈.人民币实际有效汇率波动对进口贸易的影响说明,贸易的J曲线效应存在.短期来看,人民币升值可能会加剧贸易不平衡,给中国经济乃至世界经济带来众多不稳定因素.     

Capabilities and Personal Identity: Using Sen to explain personal identity in Folbre's 'structures of constraint' analysis

Folbre's 'structures of constraint' analysis treats women as socially embedded in 'multiple, often contradictory positions, because they belong to multiple groups'. This paper addresses the problem of women's multiple collective identities by arguing that Sen's capability framework offers a means of explaining how women can maintain coherent personal identities. Using Sen's real opportunities sense of capabilities, the paper argues that women can acquire personal identities apart from their multiple collective identities if they acquire the specific capability of being able, freely and successfully, to negotiate their multiple group involvements. Folbre's list of policies for a more egalitarian family is reconsidered from this perspective.     

货币、货币化与萧条时期的货币供给——20世纪30年代中国经济走出困局回顾

近代中国货币供应结构的改变(存款比例增大)解决了现金货币供应不足的问题.文章测算了20世纪30年代中国经济的货币化程度,认为它是稳步增长的.在世界经济危机波及中国的情况下,主要依靠中国、交通两银行等核心金融机构力挺工商业的带头示范和同业合作,以及政府对中交两行接管初期的某种督促,保持了货币供给的增加,使中国市场较快走出困境;但政府统制金融的另一面则是扼杀了市场的活力,缺乏制约政府行为的配套改革,因此在取得成果的同时也埋下了非常不利的伏笔.     

The Japanese information economy: Its quantification and analysis in a macroeconomic framework (with comparisons to the U.S.)

Japan is one of the leading information societies and there is official policy promotion of its information economy image. In this study the information sector of Japan is measured and analysed within a macroeconomic framework, using input-output techniques. Important benchmark statistics on both the primary and secondary information sectors are derived and compared to those obtained in an earlier study of the U.S. The analysis reveals the high growth potential of both information sectors in the two economies. However, important inter-country differences also emerge, in particular in regard to the amount of resources devoted to the information task at the disaggregated sector level. This leads to a discussion of the relationship between investment in the information sector, organisational design, informational efficiency and productivity growth, which is seen to be of crucial importance for the future success or failure of the two economies. Limitations of the approach adopted in this study and areas for further research are indicated.     

Using empowerment to build trust and respect in the workplace: a strategy for addressing the nursing shortage

In this study of 273 staff nurses, higher levels of structural empowerment were found to positively influence perceptions of interactional justice, respect, and trust in management, which, ultimately, increased perceptions of job satisfaction and organizational commitment.     

The Role of Regulatory Focus and Information in Investment Choice: Some Evidence Using Visual Cues to Frame Regulatory Focus

This study examines the role of regulatory focus and additional information on risk preferences in investment choice using an experimental approach. The findings reveal that situational regulatory focus plays an important role in influencing investment choice. In particular, a congruent promotion-focused image and related message increases risk-taking behavior in terms of choice for stocks rather than fixed deposits, whereas the reverse is true for a congruent prevention-focused image and related message. However, this relationship depends on the amount of information available during the decision-making process, and regulatory focus has a stronger impact on investment choice under the condition without additional financial information.