Causality patterns for Brent,WTI, and Argus oil prices

Causality patterns are analysed for daily Brent, West Texas Intermediate (WTI), and Argus Sour Crude Index (Argus) oil prices, Argus is the reference price for exports from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iraq. Nonparametric Granger causality testing uncovers bi-directional causal links between Brent and WTI prices at multiple lags. Unidirectional causality from both Brent to Argus and WTI to Argus is also documented. If the current Saudi Arabia attempt to increase market share is successful, variations in Argus prices may start preceding movements in Brent and WTI, also.     

Economic impact of expanded use of biologic therapy for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn’s disease in Argentina,Brazil, Colombia,and Mexico

Objectives: To estimate economic impact resulting from increased biologics use for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and Crohn’s disease (CD) in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico.

Methods: The influence of increasing biologics use for treatment of RA during 2012–2022 and for treatment of CD during 2013–2023 was modeled from a societal perspective. The economic model incorporated current and projected medical, indirect, and drug costs and epidemiologic and economic factors. Costs associated with expanded biologics use for RA were compared with non-expanded use in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico. A similar analysis was conducted for CD in Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico.

Results: Accounting for additional costs of biologics and medical and indirect cost offsets, the model predicts that expanded use of biologics for patients with RA from 2012 to 2022 will result in cumulative net cost savings of ARS$2.351 billion in Argentina, R$9.004 billion in Brazil, COP$728.577 billion in Colombia, and MXN$18.02 billion in Mexico; expanded use of biologics for patients with CD from 2013 to 2023 will result in cumulative net cost savings for patients with CD of R$0.082 billion in Brazil, COP$502.74 billion in Colombia, and MXN$1.80 billion in Mexico. Indirect cost offsets associated with expanded biologics use were a key driver in reducing annual per-patient net costs for RA and CD.

Limitations: Future economic projections are limited by the potential variance between projected and actual future values of biologic prices, wages, medical costs, and gross national product for each country.

Conclusions: Increasing biologics use to treat RA and CD may limit cost growth over time by reducing medical and indirect costs. These findings may inform policy decisions regarding biologics use in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico.     

中国生物燃料需求与巴西乙醇

中国gdp快速增长的同时带来严重的大气污染,因此中国政府正在寻求一种更加环保的可再生绿色燃料来满足国内的运输需求。生物燃料是一种从生长过程中吸收co2的植物中提取出来的新型燃料,尽管中国国内并没有足够的农用土地来生产满足其未来消费需求的生物燃料,但是选择生物燃料仍然不失为污染问题的部分解决方法。由于巴西从甘蔗中提取的乙醇比其他国家从谷物中提取的乙醇便宜且排放更少的温室气体,因此从巴西进口乙醇可以说是中国政府最好的选择。加上巴西不但在乙醇工业部门有着其特殊的技术,而且拥有大量的劳动力,丰富的水源和闲置的农业用地,这些条件足以为中国额外生产85亿升的乙醇来满足中国到2020年对乙醇的需求量。     

Re‐Thinking Territorial Cohesion in the European Planning Context

The socio‐economic dimensions of cohesion have long been considered an integral part of Europeanization. However, recently a third dimension has been added to the Europe 2020 cohesion policy debate: territorial cohesion. Consequently this term is as yet undeveloped, resulting in a lack of consensus on how to define and interpret it. Such ambiguity represents a theoretical and empirical challenge to regional actors needing to respond to European Union (EU) directives while operationalizing the concept within their national and/or regional agendas. This article uses Portugal as a case study to examine how the concept of territorial cohesion is being interpreted and transposed from EU‐based to territorial‐based instruments and policy documents. First, we conducted a qualitative content analysis (QCA) of a selection of European and regional publications to compare their intrinsic discourses. This was followed by around 60 structured qualitative interviews, conducted with leading actors who had been instrumental in writing or implementing regional policy documents. On the basis of this dual analysis we conclude that, as a whole, the writers of the Portuguese strategic documents successfully transposed this concept, although perceptible differences exist between regions, as local actors have selectively redefined it to better suit their strategic priorities. These differences are debated with the aim of contributing to the design of effective public policies that facilitate inclusion, cohesion and Europeanization.     

Effect of Production Process and Attitudes on the Intent to Buy Sustainable Beef

Abstract

Previous studies on food consumption explore limited dimensions of the sustainable food production process. A model of consumer concern over the agricultural production process was developed to assess the influence of environmental attitudes, product involvement, and brand equity on the intent to buy sustainable beef. Interviews with experts, two focus groups, and a literature review were used to propose a scale for production process concerns. A survey of 725 beef consumers was conducted to test eight hypotheses. Results suggest that product involvement and concerns over the production process are related to attitude towards the environment and intent to buy sustainable beef. Moreover, as a result, the consumer bears a positive attitude towards sustainable consumption and is more likely to buy a sustainable product. Meanwhile, the rejected hypothesis refers to the relationship between brand equity and purchase intention. This new conceptual model may be validated with other food commodities.     

Age at marriage,social norms,and female education in Nepal

We study the impact of age at marriage on female education. We hypothesize that in cultures where women marry young, parents discount the pecuniary benefits of educating girls; the earlier the anticipated age at marriage the greater this discount. We empirically test this effect using household data from Nepal. We control for potential endogeneity of age at marriage by exploiting variations in cultural norms regarding dowry and differences in the average age of female marriage among ethnicities and regions as instrumental variables. The econometric results support the hypothesis that female education is negatively affected by cultural norms that favor early marriage.     

Consumption Responses to a Large Shock to Financial Wealth: Evidence from Italy

We estimate marginal propensities to consume from wealth shocks. We exploit large asset-price shocks in 2007–2008 and household-level panel data to implement instrumental variables. A fall of one euro in risky financial wealth resulted in cuts to annual total (non-durable) consumption of 8.5–9 (5.5–5.7) cents, with small effects on food spending. Effects seem stronger for lower-wealth or indebted households, but significant responses from wealthier households and those without mortgages are important for our baseline results. Counterfactuals indicate financial-wealth effects were relatively important for consumption falls in Italy in 2007–2008. The estimated effects are consistent with a simulated life-cycle model capturing the wealth shock.     

CEOs' reputation,quality management and environmental innovation: The roles of stakeholder pressure and resource commitment

In this paper, we examine how and when chief executive officers' (CEOs') reputation enhances environmental innovation by considering quality management as a mediating mechanism of this relationship. In addition, we introduce stakeholder pressures (primary and secondary stakeholder pressures) as important contingencies of the relationship between CEOs' reputation and quality management. Moreover, we test the moderating role of resource commitment on the quality management‐environmental innovation relationship. We test our research model using data from a manufacturing industry sample of 217 firms from Ghana. We find that quality management mediates the relationship between reputation and environmental innovation. Moreover, the relationship between CEOs' reputation and quality management is amplified when levels of both primary and secondary stakeholder pressures are greater. Finally, our findings show that the effect of quality management on environmental innovation is enhanced when resource commitment is greater. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.     

Perceived Differences: Chinese and Russian Farmers on Business,Law, Management,and Environment

The People's Republic of China has been following a strategy for several decades to encourage its enterprises to invest overseas. Since the liberalization of the Sino-Soviet border in the 1990s, Chinese farmers have been actively engaged in the economy of the Russian Far East (RFE). This article examines Chinese and Russian public relations messages broadcast by media about Chinese-Russian agricultural cooperation that use different arguments, methods of reasoning, and points of view. There is a clash of different national management methods. Legislation applying to Chinese working in Russia has been erratic and unstable, and that makes cooperation more challenging. The concepts of environmental protection and obedience to the law are understood differently by Russians and by Chinese. Cross-cultural management differences affect the way people on both sides interpret institutions, interactions, and the ability to trust third parties. There are different values and priorities expressed by Russians and by Chinese when it comes to development of rural areas in the RFE.     

The structural asymmetry of the international gold standard in Hawtrey’s works

Ralph G. Hawtrey was the British Treasury’s only economist during the interwar period. He developed a monetary theory of the cycle by which the inherent instability of credit under the gold standard caused fluctuations in output, incomes, and prices. Hawtrey was a monetary specialist who influenced the inner process of policymaking through his capacity as advisor to Blackett, Niemeyer, and Norman. An extensive analysis of his monetary theory in an open economy provides insight into why in the 1920s he advocated the general adoption of the gold exchange standard coupled with cooperation among central banks.