Welfare effects on the United States of a significant multilateral tariff reduction

This paper summarizes an estimate of the impact of a 50 percent multilateral tariff reduction on U.S. trade, employment, capital utilization, and economic welfare. In addition to calculating conventional measures of consumer surplus and revenue effects, the paper quantifies the economic adjustment costs faced by labor and capital-owners who are displaced by trade liberalization. Account is taken of both direct and indirect effects through utilization of the 367- sector U.S. input-output table. Some of the more interesting and important welfare dislocation estimates are highlighted on an industry-by-industry basis. In the aggregate, the calculated gains from trade liberalization dwarf the measured adjustment costs by a ratio of almost 20 to 1.     

The process by which product availability triggers purchase

Both product availability and lack of availability have the potential to trigger the intention to buy. The present research aims to identify the specific processes by which the latter situation of lack of availability drives purchase intention. The research demonstrates that, when lack of product availability is perceived positively, it influences purchase intentions via consumer involvement. However, when lack of product availability is perceived negatively, it influences purchase intentions via perceived feasibility, irrespective of consumer involvement. Two studies confirm the dual indirect effect of product availability on purchase intentions and its underlying processes.     

THE SHORT-TERM EFFECT OF DOMESTIC OIL PRICE INCREASES ON THE AUSTRALIAN ECONOMY WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR

The rise in the domestic price of oil products implied by the new import parity pricing policy for domestic crude oil is likely to pose some problems for macroeconomic management. In this paper an attempt has been made to quantify the short-run adjustment problems involved, using the ORANI 78 model of the Australian economy. Results are presented for a range of variables of interest, including macroeconomic variables, industrial and workforce composition and farm incomes. With fixed real wages, farm incomes are projected to decline by between 6 and 8 per cent.     

Monetary policy rules with PID control features: evidence from the UK,USA and EU

ABSTRACT

This paper considers the extent to which the monetary policy operations of three major central banks can be regarded as an application of Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) control rules. The paper outlines the general PID framework and estimates a series of dynamic models to identify how interest rate policy adjustments are affected by the rate of inflation and the level of macroeconomic activity. The paper examines data for the UK, the USA and the Eurozone. The results suggest that the PID rules can provide a useful theoretical and empirical framework for estimating central bank responses to the inflation and macroeconomic activity variables by improving the explanatory power of the Taylor rule model and determining the effect of the parameters.     

‘Quest for quality’ was the theme of the 7th annual Caribbean tourism conference held in Montego Bay, Jamaica, 14–17 June, 1983. David Edgell of the US travel and tourism administration reports.

The growth of inbound international tourism to the USA has been great in recent years yet recognition of its economic and other importance has not always grown at the same rate. David Edgell, Director of the Office of Policy and Planning of the US Travel and Tourism Administration, here argues the need for more coordinated policies towards tourism at the local and national level, for concomitant improved funding and for increasing efforts at all levels to attract the international traveller to the USA. This viewpoint is the substance of a speech made to the National Association of Regional Council's in Kansas City, Missouri, in May 1983. Since that date some moves have been made at the national level to increase federal funding for tourism.     

Did Australian Firms Choose to Switch to Reporting Operating Cash Flows Using the Indirect Method?

In 2007 Australian accounting standards were amended to allow a choice of presenting operating cash flows using either the direct or indirect method. This study investigates the number of ASX‐listed entities that switched to the indirect format. Our results indicate that between 2007 and 2009 nine companies changed their reporting format. The firms adopting the indirect method have similar leverage, liquidity and performance to industry and size‐matched controls. Given that previous research indicates that the direct method provides superior information for predicting cash flows and performance, our results will be welcomed by financial statement users and the Australian Accounting Standards Board.     

Daily mutual fund flows and redemption policies

We examine how redemption policies affect daily fund flows in open-end mutual funds. Since short-term trading of fund shares, as manifested in daily fund flows, can have an adverse impact on returns to the fund’s shareholders, mutual funds might find it desirable to discourage short-term trading through the use of redemption fees. However, if daily fund flows are due to fund shareholders’ legitimate liquidity demands, the redemption fee would have little effect on daily fund flows and possibly adversely affect fund shareholders by imposing a liquidity cost on them. We find that the likelihood of a fund charging a redemption fee is largely a function of its overall fee structure. We also use a sample of funds that imposed redemption fees to examine whether the distribution of daily fund flows changes after the initiation of the redemption fee. We find that the redemption fee is an effective tool in controlling the volatility of fund flows.