Is the GSP antiquated?

The second decade of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) ends in 1980. Should it be continued for another, third decade and if so, what changes sould be made? Can the present Uruguay Round of GATT negotiations be used to effect improvements in the GSP?     

Praktische Erfahrungen mit der Verbraucherverbandsklage in Deutschland

Zusammenfassung Ein erster Bericht über eine empirische Untersuchung der Praxis der Verbraucherverbände in der BRD bei der Bearbeitung von Reklamationen und der Erhebung von Verbandsklagen.Das materielle Wettbewerbsrecht reicht im wesentlichen aus. Unbefriedigend ist die Beurteilung der Haustürgeschäfte im weitesten Sinn. Schutzlücken behindern die Aufhebung der Folgeverträge. Probleme und Reformaufgaben bestehen im Bereich der Rechtsdurchsetzung. »Durchschnittliche« Unlauterkeit kann befriedigend verfolgt werden. Die festgestellten brachenweit üblichen Verstöße und eine gezielt unlautere Geschäftspolitik werden nicht ausreichend unterbunden. Gesetzliche Risikominderungen sind unzureichend. Innerhalb dieser Grenzen leisten die Verbraucherverbände erfolgreiche Arbeit. Das Haftungsrisiko ist im allgemeinen noch gering. Die Verbände werden zunehmend durch Schiedsstellen der gewerblichen Wirtschaft und der Industrie- und Handelskammern entlastet. Wettbewerbsvereine verfolgen überwiegend Interessen des Einzelhandels.

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Collective legal actions of German consumer organizations: Some experiences

A first report about an empirical research concerning the activity of consumer organizations in the F.R.G. in bringing collective actions against unfair trade practices and in handling consumer complaints.The substantive competition law is generally adequate, although the treatment of door-to-door sales in the broadest sense is unsatisfactory: Protection gaps prevent the cancellation of contracts.Problems and reform needs exist in the area of law enforcement. Sproadic unfair practices by usually blameless firms can be satisfactorily prosecuted, but industrywide offenses as well as repeated, intentional unfair business practices of individual firms are not adequately pursued. The costs of taking cases to court are often prohibitive.Within these constraints, the consumer associations accomplish succesful work. The ability risk is in general still modest. The associations are increasingly relieved by arbitration boards established by industry and the Chambers of Commerce. Trade associations (Wettbewerbsvereine) mainly pursue the interests of the retail business.

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Roland von Falckenstein ist Assessor und wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter am Max-Planck-Institut für Ausländisches und Internationales Patent-, Urheber- und Wettbewerbsrecht in D-8000 München 80, Siebertstraße 3.     

Zur Methodik des vergleichenden Warentests

Zusammenfassung Die Stiftung Warentest hat in den 12 Jahren ihres Bestehens Arbeitsmethoden zur Durchführung vergleichender Warentests erarbeitet, die auch von der Industrie anerkannt und von Verbraucherinstitutionen in anderen Ländern als vorbildlich bezeichnet werden. Das Warentest-II-Urteil des Bundesgerichtshofes stützt sich auf diese Arbeitsmethodik. Anhand einer Übersicht der verschiedenen Bearbeitungsstufen eines vergleichenden Warentests wird dargestellt, welche Probleme bei der Marktauswahl, bei der Aufstellung des Prüfprogramms und bei der Auswertung der Untersuchungsergebnisse bestehen und welche Lösungen die Stiftung jeweils gefunden hat.

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The methodology of comparative product testing

Stiftung Warentest was founded in 1964 by the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany with the aim of informing the public of the quality of goods and services. During the last twelve years Stiftung Warentest has developed operational methods to run comparative tests. Nowadays these methods are appreciated even by the manufacturers and have been the basis for a very important judgement of the highest German court. These methods apply to market research, technical testing instructions and evaluation problems. A graph shows the sequence of the steps which must be completed during a comparative test. Remarks are included on the problems which can appear at each step and the solutions which would be considered.

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Roland Hüttenrauch ist Vorstand der Stiftung Warentest, D-1000 Berlin 30, Lützowplatz 11/13.     

The end of silence? Qualitative findings on corporate auditory identity from the UK

Sensory dimensions of corporate identity such as auditory identity are nearly absent in academic literature so far. This paper addresses this shortage by presenting qualitative findings from interviews with brand consultants and managers on the nascent topic of auditory identity. Findings include, inter alia, strong support for the construct definition of auditory identity as proposed in this paper. Moreover, factors driving corporate auditory identity management at an organisation are examined. Furthermore, based on the conceptual similarity between visual and auditory identity consequences as perceived by managers are discussed. Moreover, findings addressing type of company, type of business and industry sector are presented. Finally, findings advocating corporate auditory identity as a valid ingredient of corporate identity management are presented and academic and managerial implications are given.     

Der Investitionsaufschwung blieb aus: das Prognosejahr 2015 im Rückblick

When publishing short term forecasts, economists have to reveal their beliefs, e.g. on the duration, shape, and driving forces of business cycles. Against this background, this article analyses the forecasts for 2015 provided by 15 national and international institutions for Germany. In all forecasts, expected GDP growth did not deviate very much from the provisional figure published in January 2016. In a short period in autumn 2014, forecasts were revised downward, owing in particular to a considerable downward revision of investment in equipment. The GDP forecasts thereafter returned to their initial value, now driven by private consumption which benefitted from the decline of oil prices. As expected, GDP was driven by domestic demand, but net exports unexpectedly also contributes positively to growth. Interestingly, forecasts of export growth remained quite robust with respect to changes in world trade forecasts. Another interesting feature is that investment in equipment did not play the expected role as a driver of the business cycle. Finally, private consumption grew almost as expected, but more than likely for other reasons than assumed in the first forecasts.     

Deutsche Wirtschaft gut ausgelastet — Wirtschaftspolitik neu ausrichten

The German economy is experiencing a moderate recovery: GDP is expected to grow by 1.9 percent this year, 1.4 percent next year, and 1.6 percent in 2018. Over the course of the forecast period, capacity utilisation will be somewhat higher than in the longterm average. Nevertheless, the contribution of corporate investment to the current upswing is minimal. The global economy is generating only minor stimulating effects, which means that exports are increasing only moderately. The extremely low long-term interest rates are likely to reflect not only the current monetary policy, but also low growth expectations. All of these factors are inhibiting investment into equipment, and thus, consumption continues to be the main growth driver. Private consumption is benefiting from the sustained increase in employment; the high expenditures for accommodating and integrating the refugees is still having a strong impact on public spending. Residential construction is getting a boost from the low interest rates.     

Antecedents and effects of free riding in the franchisor–franchisee relationship

This field study investigated contextual antecedents of free riding by franchisees on franchisor brand reputation and effects of free riding on performance in a multinational corporation's franchising network. Structural elements (increased formalization, decentralized decision-making), interactions between franchisor representatives and franchisee dealers, and market-related factors (external competition) were associated with lower levels of franchisee free riding. The findings also indicated that free riding has deleterious effects on franchisee performance. The results support theoretical arguments that both economic and social exchange perspectives are valuable in examining free riding and provide important practical guidance in designing and managing franchise systems.     

The value of shorting

This paper assesses the effects of short-sale constraints on asset prices. The analysis focuses on a particular period in Sweden during which shorting stocks was impossible but stock options were traded. Firstly, the effect on both stock options and the underlying stock was investigated jointly by considering deviations from put-call-parity. Secondly, the effects on only the derivatives were investigated by considering their implied volatilites. The main findings are: (i) the impact on pricing are consistent with a short-sale constraint, (ii) these effects are much more pronounced when shorting is not possible, (iii) these effects are not solely attributable to the mispricing of the stock, as previous research indicates, and (iv) access to international shorting markets can alleviate local short-sale constraints.