Vietnam's Accession to the Asean Free Trade Area: Effects on Trade and Industrial Competitiveness

MOCT-MOST: Economic Policy in Transitional Economies -     

The neglect of spatial mobility in contemporary studies of work: the case of telework

Whilst many teleworkers are increasingly working beyond home and office, these mobile teleworkers are neglected in the telework literature. This neglect is addressed through reviewing relevant literature, developing a conceptual locational framework that accounts for mobile teleworkers and the presentation of an illustrative example which links to the theme of work–life balance in the telework literature.     

Management compensation and earnings-based covenants as signaling devices in credit markets

A firm seeks to raise capital in credit markets to fund risky operating activities. The firm has private information about the future cash flows from such activities. Firm owners delegate operating decisions to a manager who privately learns further information about the distribution of those cash flows subsequent to contracting, but before taking actions. Those actions include the selection of which operating activities to pursue and how much hidden effort to exert. At issue initially after introducing the problem is the efficient design of the manager's compensation as a device for signaling private information to lenders as well as for inducing operating decisions. Our results provide conditions under which a Bayesian Nash separating equilibrium satisfying the Cho–Kreps intuitive criterion exists. Broadly speaking, these results suggest that contracts that resolve internal adverse selection and moral hazard problems may serve as signaling devices in efficiently resolving information asymmetries with external parties. Next, we show how earnings-based debt covenants and the selection of conservative accounting methods may eliminate signaling costs altogether.     

NOT REPORTING A PROFIT: CONSTRUCTING A NON‐PROFIT ORGANISATION

Public sector reformers advocate contracting‐out as a means of improving cost‐effectiveness. In the health sector, market‐based contracts with for‐profit organisations can reduce equity of access and divert public funds to private gain. Such issues have prompted policy makers to seek alternative contracting strategies. This paper examines a primary health care policy whereby government contracts with private non‐profit organisations to increase efficiency and meet World Health Organisation ideals. The study found that the policy's implementation has not achieved these aims when for‐profit providers masquerade as non‐profit organisations. The implication is that governments may find it more effective to manage for structural diversity than mandate homogenisation.     

Auditors' Predisposition to Provide Fair Judgments: Australian Evidence of Auditors' Level of Moral Reasoning

Auditors have a responsibility to provide fair and independent opinions about managemenfs preparation of company financial statements. This study examines auditors' predisposition to provide just and fair judgments, using Kohlberg's theory of developmental moral reasoning, one of the most widely accepted theories in justice psychology. The results indicate that a majority of auditors have the predisposition to act fairly, particularly when faced with an ethical crisis. A smaller number are likely to act in their own self-interest and do the right thing only to avoid punishment. These auditors have the ability to "do deals" and, when faced with an ethical crisis, may tend to focus on their own needs at the expense of others.     

Buyer seller relationships in the UK insurance market: Is this the key competitive advantage?

In services marketing much of the recent literature recommends the use of relationship marketing frameworks rather than the extended marketing mix which adds people, process and physical evidence to the traditional four Ps of product, price, promotion and place. In the UK permanent health insurance sector some suppliers sell through intermediaries, making this an ideal environment for testing the value of relationship marketing. Using the Industrial Marketing and Purchasing (IMP) group framework, interviews were conducted with 100 intermediaries. Respondents were asked to rate their top two suppliers against five relationship marketing variables: commercial skills, technical skills, commitment, adaptability and conflict management.The data showed the top supplier was rated more highly than the second supplier in three of the criteria:— commercial skills— technical skills— adaptability.Two of the criteria, commercial skills and technical skills, showed significant differences. The results of this research provide support for the importance of relationship marketing within this sector of the insurance market. For suppliers in the insurance industry, developing competencies in adaptability and conflict management may be the best method both to differentiate the firm and to develop competitive advantage.     

AGRICULTURAL TRADE LIBERALISATION AND THE URUGUAY ROUND*

With the Punta del Este Declaration, agriculture was accorded prominence in the GATT negotiations and, for the first time, national support policies were on the agenda. In this paper, the progress of the negotiations on agriculture is reviewed in an attempt to understand the factors which shaped the final outcome and to assess the likely impact of the round on liberalising agricultural trade. Although the immediate impact is likely to be modest, the round will provide longer term benefits to agricultural trade through the extension of the GATT rules-based system to agriculture. The framework which has been laid should provide a sound basis for future negotiations. Within the multilateral framework, the pace of change is a function of the willingness of all parties to compromise and this is evident in the Uruguay Round's outcome which reflects the European Union's agricultural reform agenda.