Competitiveness of Firm Behavior and Public Policy for New Technology Adoption in an Oligopoly

Economic growth requires that firms adopt new technologies. However, it may be insufficient or excessive in less competitive industries from the social welfare point of view. In this case, a government subsidy or tax is necessary. We analyze the optimum subsidy or tax policy for new technology adoption by firms when firms maximize the weighted average of absolute and relative profits. We do not consider that firms really maximize the weighted average, but the weight on the relative profit is used as a parameter indicating competitiveness of firm behavior. We show that the optimum policy is likely to be subsidization (or taxation) when the set-up cost for new technology adoption is large (or small). It is likely to be subsidization (or taxation) when competitiveness is large (or small), that is, it is near to perfect competition (or joint profit maximization).     

A direct solution method for pricing options in regime‐switching models

Pricing financial or real options with arbitrary payoffs in regime‐switching models is an important problem in finance. Mathematically, it is to solve, under certain standard assumptions, a general form of optimal stopping problems in regime‐switching models. In this article, we reduce an optimal stopping problem with an arbitrary value function in a two‐regime environment to a pair of optimal stopping problems without regime switching. We then propose a method for finding optimal stopping rules using the techniques available for nonswitching problems. In contrast to other methods, our systematic solution procedure is more direct as we first obtain the explicit form of the value functions. In the end, we discuss an option pricing problem, which may not be dealt with by the conventional methods, demonstrating the simplicity of our approach.     

Cross-country evidence on determinants of fiscal policy effectiveness: the role of trade and capital flows

This article studies the determinants of size differentials between fiscal multipliers in countries around the world, both advanced and developing economies. We introduce variables not considered before for explaining multiplier size differentials, such as capital flows and the openness of capital markets, while controlling for domestic conditions and exchange rate regimes. We also disaggregate GDP into its main components in order to identify the channels through which external and internal factors can influence GDP after a change in fiscal policy. Our results point to the existence of a new channel through which fiscal policy effectiveness is affected. Capital flows, especially FDI flows, play an important role in determining the sizes of fiscal multipliers, and a country’s external conditions largely explain GDP changes after fiscal expenditure shocks. Our results also point towards a strong link between a country’s international position and its real economy.     

Individual Stock Returns and Monetary Policy: Evidence from Japanese Data

The present paper uses Japanese firm‐level data to investigate the effects of monetary policy on stock. The main purpose of this paper is to examine whether monetary policy has heterogeneous effects on stock returns and whether such heterogeneity can be explained by existing theories of monetary transmission mechanisms. We find little evidence that the demand sides of the interest rate and balance sheet channels explain the heterogeneous effects of monetary policy. However, there is evidence that the supply sides of the interest rate and balance sheet channels, when measured by capital intensity, financial leverage and interest payment burden, can explain its heterogeneous effects.     

Book reviews

Natural hazards have become increasingly frequent in the Philippines, making the determination of risks associated with large-scale natural hazards and disasters in this area increasingly important. This study developed a method for estimating the risk of disasters from multiple hazards in this country at the province level. The locational probability and consequences of five natural hazards were analyzed over a 30-year period (1982–2011), and the disaster-risk potential of provinces was estimated based on the combined damage cost per capita from five hazards over that period. Information from the Center for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters Emergency Disasters Database (CRED-EMDAT) was used to analyze the areas and populations affected, damage costs, and frequency and duration of five hazards (i.e. meteorological, climatological, hydrological, geophysical, and biological). The estimated values were then presented spatially using a geographic information system. The results suggested that meteorological hazards were the most common hazards affecting most provinces in the Philippines, whereas hydrological hazards produced the most damage. Small island provinces and coastal zones were among the areas with the highest disaster-risk potential. This assessment can aid in decision making with regard to financing disaster prevention schemes and in planning for the increasing occurrences of natural hazard-related disasters.     

Understanding Douglass North in game-theoretic language

By using game-theoretic language, this paper attempts to interpret the North's recent framework for institutional studies. Particularly relying on a foundational study of knowledge and culture in epistemic game theory, it clarifies three subtly different meanings of the beliefs used by North – behavioral, cultural, and elites’ subjective – in the evolutions of institutions. It also suggests the ways to respond to the North's call for interdisciplinary approach by applying analytical tools of strategic complementarities and linked games.     

An Evolving Diversity of Organizational Mode and Its Implications for Transitional Economies

The paper constructs a theoretical framework for analyzing the comparative informational efficiency of five organizational modes, each modeled after an evolving diversity of a firm′s internal organization in market economies. It then discusses analytical implications for the organizational reform which may emerge within the ex-state-owned enterprise under evolutionary constraints of the transition, particularly under the tendency toward insider control. It is maintained that possible organizational reform hinges upon the coevolution of complementary ownership structure and financial monitoring mechanism. J. Japan. Int. Econ., December 1995, 9(4), pp. 330–353. Department of Economics, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305.     

A Taxi Zoning Analysis Using Large-Scale Probe Data: A Case Study for Metropolitan Bangkok

Taxis are considered one of the most convenient means of transportation, especially when people have to travel off-route, where public transportation is not a feasible option, and also when they need to reach a destination according to what is most convenient for them. However, many issues exist about taxi services, such as the problems of passengers who are unable to get taxi service at the location of their choice, or problems concerning when they need the taxi service to arrive. These problems may be due to the unavailability of the taxi at that particular location or due to the taxi driver not wanting to provide service. A taxi driver may not want to provide service to a potential passenger, because they may have preferences on the direction and areas they want to go or because of the different types of service zoning. Understanding the behaviors of taxi drivers and the characteristics of the trip/travel might be helpful to solving such issues. In this study, we conducted an analysis from a questionnaire survey and large-scale taxi probe data to understand taxi service behavior, travel characteristics, and to discover taxi service zoning characteristics. As a result, four types of taxi service zones including isolated zones, interactive zones, special service zones, and target zones were encountered. Travel characteristics were calculated and analyzed at different criteria, such as weekdays, weekends, and various time windows in a single day. The result of these characteristics was explained according to their similarities and dissimilarities in each type of zone. The discovery of the different zones and their respective definitions might be a good initiative for further development of a policy for taxi drivers to provide better service for passengers.     

Implementation of HACCP in the risk management of medical waste generated from endoscopy

Medical waste poses health hazards, increases the environmental load and is costly to dispose of. To solve the above problems, we applied the hazard analysis and critical control point system (HACCP) to the management of wastes generated from endoscopy. First, the wastes in three hospitals were quantified. The number and weight of waste per case differed significantly among the three hospitals. Second, HACCP was applied to the endoscopy unit of Hospital X for a year. Wastes were segregated into five types and weighed. We found that 25.8% of ‘infectious waste’ was in fact ‘non‐infectious waste’ and ‘non‐infectious plastic waste’. The numbers of needles and needle caps did not correspond in two occasions (needle‐loss rate: 0.42%). Bacterial counts of the waste container were determined to investigate infection hazard. The counts were 0 cfu/cm² in all examinations except one occasion. The waste control manifests were reviewed, and all entries were consistent with the waste sent for disposal. In Hospital X where implementation of HACCP was attempted, reduction of environmental load and cutting of disposal cost are anticipated by changing the categories of waste segregation. The results suggest that hospital wastes should be managed more safely by HACCP.     

A direct solution method for pricing options involving the maximum process

One often encounters options involving not only the stock price, but also its running maximum. We provide, in a fairly general setting, explicit solutions for optimal stopping problems concerned with a diffusion process and its running maximum. Our approach is to use excursion theory for Markov processes and rewrite the original two-dimensional problem as an infinite number of one-dimensional ones. Our method is rather direct without presupposing the existence of an optimal threshold or imposing a smooth-fit condition. We present a systematic solution method by illustrating it through classical and new examples.