Der deutsche Leistungsbilanzüberschuss

Persistent and significant current account imbalances are often seen as one of the greatest threats to the global economy and a catalyst for protectionist tendencies. Germany is often criticised for running a high surplus. However, economists disagree about whether and to what extent the German current-account surplus is excessive and which policy measures could help to rebalance the current account. The authors argue that the German current-account surplus is a global phenomenon and hence requires in addition to economic policies that could stimulate investment activity in Germany an internationally coordinated approach. Taking into account the specific circumstances of a country, the WTO could act as an institutional framework to deal with global imbalances. In particular the WTO’s Trade Policy Review Mechanism could be further developed into a forum for coordinating members’ trade policy and for agreeing on reciprocal measures among members. The concrete design could be based on other established international mechanisms, such as the European Semester.     

Divisional performance measurement and transfer pricing for intangible assets

This paper examines the effectiveness of three transfer pricing methodologies for an intangible asset that is developed through bilateral, sequential investment. In general, a royalty-based transfer price that can be renegotiated provides better investment incentives than either a non-negotiable royalty-based transfer price or a purely negotiated transfer price, and in some cases induces first-best investment. This result contrasts with previous research that finds that the inability to limit renegotiation of initial contracts reduces investment efficiency. Further, I examine how tax transfer pricing rules inform optimal internal transfer prices when the firm decouples internal and external transfer prices.     

Feeder Cattle Options: Where’s the Beef?

Feeder cattle is one of the most important commodities in the livestock industry worldwide. Nonetheless, beef production is subject to many uncertainties; therefore, the risk management tools that agents use must be efficient. This article discusses the financial options available in the Brazilian futures market to feeder cattle producers and describes the best risk pricing model to determine the option premium. Our results consider several option pricing models and different types of volatility. The best pricing is obtained with the model of Bjerksund and Stensland with the implied volatility.     

A simple analytical model of the adverse real effects of inflation

Abstract

The essential insight advanced in this paper is that the claim that inflation can impair growth makes most sense in the context of a monetary production economy, wherein a role for money in the determination of real activity is posited from the very start. We construct a model of inflation and growth that distinguishes between the properties of various qualitatively different inflation regimes. It is then shown how some of these regimes, by undermining confidence in various nominal contracts that are central to the process of accumulation in a monetary production economy, can adversely affect growth.     

A project management research framework integrating multiple theoretical perspectives and influencing factors

The increasing projectification of the business world corresponds with a high diversity of theoretical perspectives used in project management research. This diversity is reflected by a variety of influencing factors, which have been the subject of empirical studies. This article aims to systemize the different streams of research on the basis of a literature review and at developing a research framework by integrating multiple theoretical perspectives and influencing factors. We elaborate on the crosslinks between the perspectives and identify fundamental elements of a project management theory. The framework consists of three dimensions: design, context, and goal. Its purpose is to support the combination of different perspectives and the development of strategies for further research.     

Natural concentration in industrial research collaboration

Empirical work shows that networks of research and development alliances are asymmetric, with a small number of firms involved in the majority of partnerships. This article investigates the welfare‐relevant effects of such concentrated networks in a model of network formation in an oligopolistic market. We find that concentration is a typical characteristic of a socially efficient network when the costs of collaborative activity are significant. Moreover, expanding on prior work relating to strategically stable interfirm networks, we compare the stable and the efficient structures. Our findings suggest that real‐world networks might even exhibit too little concentration.