Has International Financial Integration Increased?

This paper compares the behavior of real interest rate differentials across the major countries under the Bretton Woods regime and the regime of floating exchanges that replaced it. The primary object is to investigate both the extent of market integration and its changes over time. For all fifteen possible country pairs real interest differentials are mean reverting, and in two-thirds of these cases indistinguishable from zero statistically. For all country pairs on average and for most such pairs individually, moreover, the estimated differentials are not appreciably different in absolute value than the differentials that we estimate for various money-market rates within the United States. Additional evidence points to a narrowing of differentials under floating rates over time and an increase in speeds of convergence.     

Technological interweavement: a means of achieving innovation success

In this paper, results are presented of an empirical study of the Lake Constance region covering a sample of 848 manufacturing companies. Based upon multivariate analyses, the paper documents that the mobilization of external resources and know-how is a critical factor for a firm's technological innovation success which in turn is the main determinant of commercial innovation success. The findings show that there are three kinds of technology-oriented external relationships, which prove to be of special importance: close contacts with customers, linkages to universities and research institutes and R&D-cooperations with other companies.     

Timing,order and durability of new product advantages with imitation

This research examined the effects of timing, order and the durability of first mover advantages by analyzing the stock market reactions to new product introductions and imitations. The major findings are that both timing and order of moves are important and that rival reactions undermine the durability of first mover advantages. More specifically, (1) early and fast movers achieve greater gains than late and slow movers, and (2) first movers suffer at the time of new product imitations. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Knowledge management in technology-focused firms in emerging economies: Caveats on capabilities,networks, and real options

In mature economies, technology-focused industries and the management of knowledge are widely viewed as critical to success. Increasingly, in emerging economies technology-focused industries and the management of knowledge are also viewed as important. To date, however, little is known about such activities in emerging economies. Particularly, it is not understood how knowledge management can impact efforts for corporate renewal in such environments. The literatures of the resource-based view of the firm, social capital/network theory, and real options theory are vital to providing insights for technology-focused industries and the management of knowledge in mature economies. In this paper we focus on the caveats when applying such theoretical foundations to emerging economies. To illustrate these issues we will draw on the largest emergent economy in the world, China.

The evaluation of educational programmes

This paper addresses a problem which is at the forefront of educational debate in the Southern African economy. It attempts to set out the nature and processes of evaluators and the qualities necessary in evaluators if their task is to be accomplished with integrity. The article could be used to draw up basic guidelines that may be regarded as prerequisites for evaluating educational programmes in this country and promotes evaluation as a powerful means of refining educational programmes while they are in operation.     

Basic needs: An assessment of education and nutritional status in two villages of Venda

A basic needs survey was conducted among people living on two agricultural smallholder schemes in Venda. The paper describes the research methodology and assesses the availability of education and the nutritional status of respondents on these two schemes.

Neither the availability of formal schooling nor extension work is satisfactory. The situation regarding primary education has improved over the last few years and almost every child in the survey area goes to school. This seems to be an indication of changing attitudes among parents, increased money available for schooling, as well as greater financial commitments from the Government. However, informal training through extension is carried out only on an irregular basis.

An assessment of the frequency of consumption of various foodstuffs suggests an emphasis on carbohydrates at the expense of proteins, minerals and vitamins. Villagers interviewed indicated that food is in short supply and that allocation of additional land could assist in overcoming these shortages.     

Exports and technology in manufacturing industry

Zusammenfassung Exporte und Technologie der Verarbeitenden Industrie. — Die Verfasser nehmen die Behandlung der Technologie in der modernen Au\enhandelstheorie kritisch unter die Lupe. Unter Anwendung einer dynamischen Perspektive liefern sie einige neue empirische Erkenntnisse über die Beziehung zwischen der technologischen Wettbewerbsf?higkeit eines Landes und seiner Exportleistung. Anhand von fünf Industriel?ndern (Deutschland, Japan, Frankreich, Schweden und den Niederlanden) wird gezeigt, da\ es in dieser Hinsicht betr?chtliche Unterschiede zwischen den L?ndern gibt. Diese Unterschiede k?nnen teilweise auf l?nderspezifische Entwicklungspfade und auf Unterschiede in der Industriestruktur zurückgeführt werden, aber nach Ansicht der Autoren k?nnten sie auch durch eine unterschiedliche nationale Technologiepolitik beeinflu\t worden sein.

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Résumé Les exportations et la technologie des industries manufacturières. Cette étude examine le traitement du facteur de technologie dans la théorie moderne du commerce international. En utilisant une perspective dynamique, les auteurs donnent quelque évidence nouvelle pour la relation entre la compétitivité technologique et la performance dans le commerce international. En considérant cinq pays industriels (R.F.A., le Japon, la France, la Suède, et les Pays Bas), il est évident qu’il y a des différences remarquables entre ces pays. On peut attribuer ces différences aux processus du développement spécifiques de ces pays et aux différences entre la structure industrielle de ces pays examinés. Mais d’après les auteurs, ces différences pourraient être influencées aussi par les différences entre la politique de la technologie de ces pays.

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Resurnen Exportaciones y tecnologia en la industria manufacturera. — Este trabajo estudia el trato del factor tecnologia en la teoria moderna del comercio. Utilizando un enfoque dinámico se presenta evidencia empirica nueva de la relation entre la competitividad technológica y la performance del comercio. Considerando los casos de cinco paises industrials (Alemania, Japon, Francia, Suecia y Holanda) se demuestra que existen notables diferencias entre los países en este aspecto. Si bien estas diferencias se pueden atribuir parcialmente a las trayectorias de desarrollo especificas de cada pais y a diferencias en la estructura industrial, se sugiere que también podrian ser influenciadas por las diferencias entre las politicas tecnológicas nacionales.