Economic analysis of development prospects for air transport in Russia’s sparsely populated regions

This article analyzes the prospects for the development of air transport in remote and inaccessible regions of Russia with a low population density. The influence of the economic and geographical specificity of such regions on the duration and cost of air travel is studied. A complex of organizational and technological solutions and government support measures aimed at improving the quality and accessibility of air carriages for the population of sparsely populated regions is suggested.     

Interregional exchange as a development factor of the cluster structure of a regional economy

This article considers theoretical, methodological and practical aspects of the formation of the cluster structure of a regional economy, shows the role of interregional exchange in this process and presents parameter estimates of interregional exchange on the basis of a gravity model (on the example of the Republic of Bashkortostan).     

Role of large companies in Russia’s oil and gas complex

The purpose of this article is to reconsider the interaction between major oil and gas companies and the state, which is especially important for modern Russia given its current conditions. General theoretical approaches are presented, as well as calculations of price and financial indicators reflecting the performance of these companies.     

Scientific and technological interactions between Russia and Ukraine: Forecasting opportunities and mechanisms for their implementation

The paper presents the research results of an investigation into the state of scientific, technological, trade and economic interactions between Russia and Ukraine in terms of their potential, prospects, and problems impeding their cooperation. It is shown that there is a considerable scientific and technological potential both in Russia and Ukraine. Opportunities and conditions for the modernization of both countries’ economies are shown to depend on the coordinated use of their potentials.     

Foreign Investors in The Netherlands: Heterogeneous Employment and Productivity Effects

Recent academic research suggests that the effects of inward foreign direct investment for productivity and employment may vary across foreign investors with different characteristics. Using a newly created dataset that integrates micro-level information from The Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency and Statistics Netherlands, this paper explores the role of several of these characteristics, including e.g. the country of origin, activities and tasks, age and strategic role of foreign affiliates in The Netherlands in the 2000–2007 period. Our analysis shows that important employment and productivity differences exist for nearly all these dimensions.     

Financial Reform after the Crisis: An Early Assessment

Financial reform has been a core dimension of the initial global policy response to the financial turmoil of 2007-08.At the first G-20 summit of heads of state and government in November 2008,more than four-fifths of the action points in the final declaration were about financial regulation.Obviously,the crisis is not over at the time of writing,and the cycle of financial reform it triggered is very far from complete.But it can be said confidently that the crisis has been transformational for financial regulatory policy,at least in the United States and Europe.     

Inflation und Schuldenabbau

The European Central Bank (ECB) recently announced its willingness to do whatever is needed to save the euro. This has raised the question whether such a role of the ECB must lead to higher rates of infl ation. Under current recessive macroeconomic conditions in the eurozone, the ECB’s expansionary monetary policy will not lead to higher infl ation. On the contrary, there is a serious danger of defl ation. Higher infl ation would likely occur only if a permanent stabilisation function were assigned to the ECB. Yet historical examples show that mistakes can be made. During the stagnation in Japan, US economists heavily criticised the Bank of Japan’s timid monetary policy response. But in some sense, current Fed policy seems to be a direct copy of that strategy, caused by uncertainty about the proper communication channel. An infl ation tax could help to bring down the mounting public debt in the wake of the fi nancial crisis, but higher wealth taxes have more transparent distributional effects.