Global Fiscal Adjustment and Trade Rebalancing

The emergence of substantial fiscal deficits and a large build up of government debt in major advanced economies will inevitably lead to a period of fiscal consolidation in coming years. In an earlier paper, Asian Economic Papers, 9, 2010 and 54, explored the effects of this fiscal adjustment in advanced economies on the global economic outlook. This paper focuses on the differences between the impacts of fiscal policy in advanced versus emerging economies. In particular, the need for more fiscal spending on infrastructure in emerging economies and the need for fiscal consolidation in advanced economies leads naturally to the question of what this asymmetric fiscal adjustment might do to global trade balances as well as global economic growth over the coming decades. The adjustment needed in both regions is substantial, and the asymmetry of the adjustment implies important consequences for trade and capital flows between regions as well as asset price adjustments within and between regions.     

Global Implications of Monetary and Fiscal Policy Rules in the EMU

In order to analyze successful strategies for economic policy in a global environment both international interdependencies and the strategic behavior of global players must be considered. We use a global model of the world economy (the MSG2 Model) to show the effects of dynamic policy optimization in the presence of various supply and demand shocks to different world regions. We show that fixed rules are generally superior for supply shocks, while demand shocks call for more active or discretionary policies.     

Keeping secrets? Or what government performance auditors might not need to know

This paper examines the claims made in a recent paper in Critical Perspectives on Accounting by Vaughan Radcliffe about the way in which public sector auditors report their findings. Drawing upon the work of Taussig, he argues that while public sector auditors may know the truth, as may others, they choose not always to tell the truth in their reports and instead to treat what may be publicly unpalatable as a public secret. They modify their findings to ensure that these will be more acceptable to governments and, thereby, enhance their opportunity to influence government. These claims are shown in this paper to overstate the public sector auditor's response to difficult issues. Rather than keeping secrets, the contents of the auditor's reports may instead reflect the constitutional and institutional limitations in which they must work. Most importantly in most jurisdictions they are not to comment on matters of policy which are the domain of the government.     

中国入世对国际经济影响的量化分析

中国工业品出口引起的竞争加剧会不会导致东南亚国家非工业化 ,使它们回到作为初级产品出口国的地位 ?或者 ,制造业产业链中是否存在东南亚国家可以专业化的有利空间 ?通过G Cubed亚太模型的模拟表明 ,中国大量劳动力全面进入国际劳动分工只有在满足以下两个条件的情况下才会导致东南亚国家的非工业化 :流向东南亚国家的国外直接投资大量地转向中国 ,并且东南亚国家放任FDI流入的下降从而降低由此带来的技术扩散。如果东南亚国家能够通过其它方式很快吸收国外新技术及提高本土技术创新能力阻止技术下降 ,那么它们就能在国际制造业产业链中找到有利空间。本文的政策含义是 :东南亚国家要通过向它们的科学家和管理者加速扩散新知识以及为那些下岗工人提供合适的再培训 ,从而将人力资本的深化与广化作为首要考虑的目标。     

A fine balancing act: Freedom and accountability

The recent Funding Options Review identified a minimum additional funding requirement of 900 million per annum for higher education by 2004/05 and also considered more specific needs, such as correcting for past under-investment in infrastructure. At the same time, it contributed to the debate about the'key choice'of funding by government or by the'beneficiaries of higher education.'Government will need to match its aspirations for higher education with adequate funding and the universities will have to be'even more sensitive and responsive to the needs of students.'     

Are Financial Reports Useful? The Views of New Zealand Public Versus Private Users

This study reports on surveys conducted with users of financial reports in New Zealand. We compare findings for users of reports of two types of for‐profit entities, namely those with public accountability (public entities) and those with no public accountability (private entities). The findings indicate that both types of users have similar perceptions regarding the usefulness of financial statements, with the income statement and balance sheet rated as the most useful components. Furthermore, both types of users, especially private users, perceive financial statements as the most important information source for decision making. Public users have a greater interest in supplementary information than private users. The findings of this study contribute to the debate around differential reporting for private companies and have policy implications with regard to the user‐needs approach to accounting standard setting.     

How green was my festival: Exploring challenges and opportunities associated with staging green events

Organisers of events are increasingly looking to highlight their green credentials. This is occurring against the background of an increasingly sophisticated market that is suspicious of claims that cannot be substantiated. This conceptual paper explores some of the issues encompassing the management and staging of a green event. It examines the importance of engaging a range of key stakeholders and considers various ways in which events are greening their operations. This paper then considers some of the challenges involved in incorporating green messages into an event theme. It concludes with an analysis of future research needs associated with green events.