Disentangling Market Access Effects of Preferential Trading Arrangements with an Application for ASEAN Members under an ASEAN–EU FTA

The paper develops two synthetic measures at the HS‐10 level to depict effective market access for a country receiving preferential access and applies these to the market access ASEAN members would receive following the implementation of an FTA with the EU. First, the measures show that current effective market access for ASEAN EBA members is cut in half by the preferences granted by the EU to countries that compete with these countries in the EU markets. Second, the measures show that about one‐quarter of the preferential margin under the proposed FTA for EBA members would be lost as a result of preferential access granted to ASEAN GSP members. Third, disaggregated estimates of the restrictiveness of rules of origin confirm that rules are more restrictive for products with higher preferential margins and that ASEAN countries usually face tougher rules of origin in the EU because of the composition of their exports.     

Human and spatial dimensions of retail density: Revisiting the role of perceived control

Previous research in environmental psychology and consumer behavior has demonstrated mostly negative effects of human density on consumer experience in retail settings. The effects of spatial density, however, have received scant attention. Results from previous studies show that retail density affects shoppers' emotional and behavioral responses through perceived control.Work in social psychology, however, indicates that there are differences in the extent to which people strive for control, suggesting that having control in retail settings may be more important to some consumers than to others. In the experimental study reported in this paper, the effects of both forms of retail density were studied as a function of consumers' desire for control. Results indicate that the effects of human and spatial density vary with consumers' desire for control. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Harmonizing External Quotas in an FTA: A Step Backward?

This paper explores how political–economy forces shape quantitative barriers against the rest of the world in an FTA. We show that whereas the dilution of lobbying power in an FTA typically leads to a relaxation of external quotas, this result is likely to be overturned as integration deepens. In particular, we show that cooperation among member countries on the level of their external quotas, cross–border lobbying by import–competing interests in the free–trade area, and the consolidation of national external quotas into a single one, all lead to stiffer restrictions against imports from the rest of the world. We also show that, unlike tariffs, endogenous quotas are not crucially affected by the presence of rules of origin.     

Power in the Firm and Managerial Career Concerns

More powerful managers make more important decisions. Therefore, firm performance is more informative about the abilities of such managers, who, realizing that they are more visible, are more eager to improve performance. If this reputation effect exists, how should firms allocate power? I analyze the optimal allocation of power and derive implications for several issues that often arise in management practice: the choice of departmentation criteria, the importance given to seniority, and the width of job definitions. Finally, I show that the model is consistent with the empirical evidence on managerial succession.     

Export mix adjustment to the imposition of VERs: Alternative license allocation schemes

Zusammenfassung Die Anpassung des Exportsortiments an die Einführung von Selbstbeschr?nkungsabkommen im Export: Alternative Verfahren der Lizenzvergabe. — Bei Produkten, die beim Export Selbstbeschr?nkungsabkommen unterworfen sind, ist eine Qualit?tsverbesserung im Zuge einer Sortiments?nderung beobachtet worden. Die theoretische Begründung für diese Beobachtung basiert auf einer Reihe von Annahmen, u.a. darauf, da\ Lizenzen für Exportquoten zwischen den Firmen frei transferierbar sind und/oder da\ die Sortiments?nderung keine Kosten verursacht. In diesem Aufsatz werden alternative Konstellationen (z.B. nichtübertragbare Lizenzen, kostentr?chtige Sortiments?nderung) und alternative Ziele (z.B. Maximierung der Exporterl?se) betrachtet und in jedem Fall die Bedingungen für eine Sortiments?nderung abgeleitet. Dabei ergibt sich unter anderem, da\ sich die beobachtete Qualit?tssteigerung auf andere als die in der Literatur genannten Umst?nde zurückführen l?\t.

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Résumé Ajustement d’assortiment exportatrice à l’imposition des RVE: Schèmes alternatif d’allocation de licence. — On a observé une amélioration de qualité par suite d’un changement de l’assortiment pour des produits qui sont soumis aux RVE. La justification théorique de cette observation base sur un nombre des suppositions qui inclurent des licences de quota exportatrice librement transferables parmi des entreprises et/ou un changement de l’assortiment des produits sans frais. Dans cet article les auteurs revoient des cadres alternatifs (p.e. pas de transfert des licences, le changement de l’assortiment est co?teux) et objectives alternatives (p.e. maximisation des revenus exportatrices) et dans chaque cas ils dérivent des conditions pour le changement de l’assortiment. Parmi les résultats ils démontrent que l’amélioration de qualité observée peut être causée par d’ autres circonstances que celles reconnues dans la littérature.

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Resumen Ajuste en la composición de las exportaciones frente a la imposición de restricciones voluntarias a las exportaciones (RVE): esquemas alternativos para la asignación de licencias. — En productos sujetos a RVE se han observado transformaciones en la escala de calidades en respuesta a cambios en la composición de productos. La justificación teórica para esta observación parte de una serie de supuestos, incluyendo la transferencia libre de cuotas de exportation entre las empresas y/o cambios libres de costo en la composición de productos. En este trabajo se pasa revista a casos alternativos (sin transferencia de cuotas, cambios en la composición de productos no libres de costo) derivando en cada caso las condiciones para el cambio en la composición de productos. En los resultados obtenidos se establece que el cambio en la composición de productos observado se puede deber a factures que no son reconocidos en la literatura.

     

The Forewarning Effect of Critical Audit Matter Disclosures Involving Measurement Uncertainty*

We present experimental evidence suggesting that critical audit matter (CAM) disclosures in the auditor's report involving areas of high measurement uncertainty forewarn users of misstatement risk. Specifically, in our first study with MBA students, financial analysts, and attorneys, we find that CAMs (i) lower premisstatement assessments of confidence in the financial statement area disclosed as a CAM, and (ii) lower assessments of auditor responsibility for a subsequently revealed misstatement in a CAM-related area. In our second study with student participants proxying as mock jurors, we find that the responsibility-mitigating effect of CAM disclosure is driven by CAM disclosures involving measurement uncertainty, as opposed to CAM disclosures involving categorical determinations. Combined, our findings help reconcile mixed evidence from prior research, supporting the view that the forewarning effect of CAM disclosures involving measurement uncertainty could mitigate perceived auditor responsibility for CAM-related material misstatements.     

Industry Interactions in Innovation Systems: A Bibliometric Study

Assorted interactions among the agents in a territory are considered as key elements for its scientific, technological, and innovation development, thus fostering the competitiveness of its business fabric and enhancing the quality of life of its residents. In this context, this article analyses this phenomenon, specifically industry relations with innovation system players (academic, scientific, technological, financing, and facilitating agents) through a bibliometric analysis. The methodology used progresses in three stages: construction of the scientific papers search strategy (published in the ISI Web of Knowledge reference database between 2001 and 2014); its implementation; and the corresponding bibliometric analysis, using the Vantage Point® software as a support tool. Among other aspects, the findings present progress achieved in the research field, together with leading authors, organizations, and countries, as well as with cooperative efforts among them, highlighting the status of this topic in Latin America. Finally, the article concludes that industry relations in innovation systems is a topic that is steadily expanding worldwide, with large numbers of cooperative projects among countries. However, it also shows that this study theme is still incipient in Latin America, not just Brazil.     

Knowledge management,relational learning,and the effectiveness of innovation outcomes

This paper proposes a conceptual model to test the moderating effect of relational learning on the link between knowledge strategies and innovation. To accomplish this, this study is carried out on healthcare organizations. It has been generally accepted that both explicit and tacit knowledge play a basic role in organizational innovation. However, although there are plenty of research works that study the existing relationship between knowledge management (KM) and the effectiveness of the innovation process, there are certain peculiarities with regard to this link, which have yielded some inconclusive results. This paper revisits this research topic with data on KM, relational learning and innovation outcomes from a sample of Spanish hospitals. The results show that a deep and broad knowledge base leads to better innovation outcomes. In addition, this study found that hospitals and/or units that invest and involve themselves in relational learning mechanisms are more likely to foster innovations.     

When Do Ineffective Audit Committee Members Experience Turnover?

We use information extracted from a major proxy advisory service to test predictions from institutional theory regarding when and why audit committee (AC) members experience turnover because of evidence of ineffective governance. First, we broadly categorize AC ineffectiveness concerns as either (i) financial reporting failures or (ii) characteristics of individual AC members. Institutional theory suggests that the visible nature of the first category is more likely to threaten perceptions of AC legitimacy and hence prompt turnover, which is what we find. We then enrich the analysis by interacting the AC‐member ineffectiveness indicators with the extent of shareholder protest votes, finding that shareholder dissent elevates the turnover effects of both categories of ineffectiveness, as institutional theory would predict. Finally, we find that otherwise effective AC members face an increased likelihood of turnover if they serve on the AC when financial reporting failures are discovered, even if they were not on the AC when the events precipitating the failures occurred. Overall, our findings support the institutional theoretic premise that boards take remedial actions when necessary to restore perceived legitimacy.     

The delicate balance for jointly pursuing economic growth in Latin America and China

This paper examines the sources of economic growth for a group of Latin American countries in relation to their export performance in China. The analytical framework is based on an extended normalized quadratic profit function. The ensuing econometric results confirm that a favorable export record with China represents a positive source of growth for Latin America. However, it also creates long-run dependability conditions in terms of reduced prices and thinner profits that weaken its growth capacity. Latin American countries must seek product diversification away from their current commodity base and aggressively climb up the value chain to remain competitive worldwide.

Managerial Relevance: identify the sources of economic growth for a group of Latin American countries in relation to their export performance in China; the weakness of this economic growth model; how to seek product diversification away from their current commodity base with emphasis on value chain.