Backpackers in the Northern Territory of Australia—motives,behaviours and satisfactions

This paper reports the findings of a study of 475 backpackers in the Northern Territory of Australia. It finds that backpackers tend to visit many of the same locations as other tourists, and like those tourists, are attracted to the natural sights of the Territory. It is also found that the backpackers can be divided into various groups. For example, of this sample about one‐third had left their previous career to travel, and about 12% had just completed studies. On the other hand about one‐quarter were holidaying during periods of normal paid holiday leave. It is argued that the market is not solely comprised of ‘life change’ or rite de passage holidaymakers. Additionally, differences are found between national groupings. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Effects of Inflation in a Small Open Economy with Durability in Consumption

This paper explores the dynamic effects of inflation in a small open economy when consumption exhibits certain degree of durability. With labor/leisure choice, and money introduced through a cash-in-advance (CIA) constraint on consumption expenditure, it is demonstrated that higher inflation reduces the steady state level of employment, investment, output and consumption. The country runs a current account surplus, despite the fall in output. Consistent with empirical evidence, durable consumption exhibits initial excess volatility. Numerical calibration shows that the steady state real effects of inflation are very significant in this model.     

On the employment, investment and current account effects of inflation

The effects of inflation targets are examined for a small open economy with cash in advance constraints. An increase in the inflation rate, by increasing the price of consumption relative to leisure, reduces consumption and labor supply. The fall in labor reduces the marginal productivity of capital, and a fall in investment. The country runs a current account surplus, despite the fall in output. The dynamics of the model for permanent and temporary policy changes are fully worked out, with the aid of a diagrammatic apparatus. Quantitative analysis of the model reveals substantial impact and steady state effects.     

Devaluation, Fiscal Deficits, and the Real Exchange Rate

This article examines the use of fiscal policies to sustainthe effects of a nominal devaluation on the real exchange rate.It is shown that the magnitude of the change in the real exchangerate depends not only on the size of the devaluation and thedegree of fiscal adjustment but also on the means by which thefiscal deficit is reduced. The change in the nominal exchangerate necessary to maintain the depreciation of the real exchangerate will depend on whether the fiscal deficit is eliminatedby increasing taxes or by reducing government expenditures ontraded and nontraded goods. The required depreciation of thedomestic currency will be larger if the fiscal deficit is reducedby increasing taxes than it will be if the deficit is cut bylowering government expenditures. Further, the depreciationwould be smaller if the cuts in expenditure fell on traded ratherthan nontraded goods. This result implies that the authoritiesmust ensure consistency between exchange rate action and policiesto reduce fiscal imbalances in order to achieve a desired levelof the real exchange rate necessary to attain balance of paymentsequilibrium.     

Oligopolistic Competition and Intra-industry Trade: Evidence From the OECD

This paper develops a general reciprocal-markets model of intra-industry trade in oligopolistic industries. It shows that the effects of industry characteristics on the extent of bilateral intra-industry trade, as measured by the Grubel-Lloyd index, are invariant to whether firms compete over homogeneous or differentiated products. Based on this model, we investigate industry determinants of bilateral intra-industry trade, using internationally comparable industry data for 22 manufacturing industries in 12 OECD countries during 1970–1985. Our estimates indicate that, even after controlling for idiosyncratic industry and country-pair effects, our measures of the industry determinants explain variations in the intensity of bilateral intra-industry trade, for the most part, in accord with what the theory predicts.     

IMF Conditionality and Country Ownership of Adjustment Programs

This article uses finance and agency theory to establish twokey propositions about International Monetary Fund (IMF) conditionalityand country ownership of IMF-supported adjustment programs.First, the authors propose that the conditionality attachedto these programs is justified. Second, the article hypothesizesthat country ownership of these programs is crucial for theirsuccess. Because IMF conditionality and country ownership areboth necessary, the challenge is designing conditionality thatmaximizes ownership while providing adequate safeguards forIMF lending. The article analyzes several recent proposals aimedat enhancing country ownership of policies contained in IMF-supportedprograms. These proposals include encouraging countries to designtheir own adjustment and reform programs, streamlining structuralconditionality, introducing flexibility in the timing of structuralpolicy measures (floating tranche conditionality), and applyingconditionality to outcomes rather than policies (outcomes-basedconditionality).      

On the Effects of Inflation Shocks in a Small Open Economy

The effects of monetary policies remain always an important topic in macroeconomics. In the literature (closed and open economy), there is no theoretical as well as empirical consensus regarding the effects of monetary policies. In this paper we examine the real effects of inflation in an open economy. Australia is a classic example of a small open economy and is known to exercise inflation targeting. Using quarterly data from Australia and employing vector autoregressive (VAR) analysis, we provide evidence that inflation, both in the short and long run, negatively affects durable and non‐durable consumption and investment, and has a positive effect on the current account. Further, we show that consumption of durable goods is more sensitive than the consumption of non‐durables during the initial periods following inflationary shocks.     

Does the interaction between the knowledge management process and sustainable development practices boost corporate green innovation?

Green innovations are being deployed in manufacturing industries to promote organisational sustainability by embracing sustainable development practices (SDPs). However, little is known about how corporate green innovation (CGI) is influenced by the knowledge management process (KMP). To fill this gap, we have developed a multidimensional framework based on the resource-based view (RBV) theory that provides a foundation for sculpturing the process by which KMP was observed to capture and sustain CGI through SDPs. Data were collected from 393 respondents of large- and medium-sized manufacturing corporations in Pakistan and analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling (SEM) and fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA). This study provides several key findings. First, KMP dimensions (acquisition, dissemination and application) significantly improve the SDPs' dimensions (environment, economic and social). Second, SDP dimensions play a significant role in achieving CGI. Third, the implementation of SDPs partially mediates the relationship between the KMP and CGI. Furthermore, the fsQCA results signify the robustness of all integrated constructs. Our results demonstrate that investing in and adopting the latest technologies and sustainable practices are not only valuable for long-term success but the soft concerns such as managing organisational knowledge are also vital in the current knowledge-based economy. Finally, in light of our findings, theoretical and managerial implications, with propositions for future studies, have been provided at the end of the paper.     

A resource orchestration view of supply chain traceability and transparency bundles for competitive advantage

The literature has mostly examined supply chain (SC) traceability and SC transparency separately, ignoring the mutually constitutive relationship of these two related constructs. We draw on the resource orchestration theory and the causal complexity perspective to conceptualize and validate SC traceability and SC transparency as interrelated organizational capabilities that may mutually enhance or compensate each other for competitive advantage. We constructed an original sample from two sources to empirically test this conceptualization using fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA). Our empirical results reveal that the ability of firms to leverage SC traceability for a high financial performance is contingent upon creating a transparency perception of SC with a wide range of stakeholders. Our results also identified the firm size and its international presence, as having a significant bearing on the ability of firms to leverage SC traceability and SC transparency capabilities for a competitive advantage.