Financial Liberalization and the Industrial Response: Concentration and Entry in Malawi

It has been suggested that financial liberalization may be a key policy to promote industrialization as it removes the credit access constraint on firms, especially small and medium ones. We investigate the effect of credit expansion in the wake of liberalization on the structure of the industrial sectors in Malawi and find that, in contrast to the hypothesis above, it resulted in an increase in industrial concentration and a decrease in net firm entry, especially in sectors that are more finance dependent. The case of Malawi is interesting because financial liberalization has been justified precisely as a means for industrial development and because the implementation of the policy has been regarded as relatively successful.     

Beyond the Information Technology Agreement: Harmonisation of Standards and Trade in Electronics

Product standards can have a dual impact on costs and, thus, on trade. They can impose costs on exporters as it may be necessary to adapt products for specific markets (cost effect). In contrast, standards can reduce exporters’ information costs as they convey information on product characteristics (informational effect). Using a new World Bank database of European standards for electronic products, we examine the net impact of internationally harmonised European standards on European Union imports. We find that European Union standards for electronic products that are harmonised to international standards have a significant and a positive net effect on trade. The results suggest that efforts to promote trade in electronic products could be complemented by steps to promote standards harmonisation. This might include, for example, restarting talks to extend the WTO’s Information Technology Agreement to commitments to harmonise national standards in electronic products.     

The effects of integrated manufacturing on job characteristics

From a sample of 203 Spanish plants in all manufacturing sectors empirical results show that integrated manufacturing (IM) has a positive effect on job variety, job autonomy and job interdependence for production workers. It is also found that IM is associated with greater job complexity, this effect being mainly mediated by the three abovementioned job characteristics.     

Sudden stops: Determinants and output effects in the first era of globalization, 1880-1913

We study the determinants and output effects of sudden stops in capital inflows during an era of intensified globalization from 1880 to 1913. Higher levels of exposure to foreign currency debt and large current account deficits associated with reliance on foreign capital greatly increased the likelihood of experiencing a sudden stop. Trade openness and strong reserve positions had the opposite effect. Sudden stops accompanied by financial crises are associated with drops in output per capita below trend equal to three to four percent. Frictions in the international capital markets of the day are a likely candidate for these output losses. Sudden stops connected with crises do not seem to bring trend growth downwards. Sudden stops not connected with crises appear to be associated with significant declines in trend growth.     

House prices and immovable property tax: Evidence from OECD countries

This paper studies the impact of changes in immovable property tax revenues on the growth rate of house prices by analysing a panel of 34 OECD countries over the period 1970–2014. Starting from the annual series of immovable property tax revenues, we isolate years of significant shifts in the property tax regime and study their impact on house prices. We find a strong negative relationship between increases in immovable property tax revenues and house prices. This relationship is robust to the inclusion of cyclical determinants of house prices, country and year fixed effects, and country‐specific linear trends. We also propose an instrumental variable strategy based on countries’ legal origins that confirms a statistically significant negative impact of such taxes in the short run.     

Inferring market power under the threat of entry: the case of the Brazilian cement industry

Consider a setting where threatened rather than actual import competition restrains a domestic oligopoly's prices. I show that not modelling the entry threat may underestimate the true degree of market power, as incumbents' blunted price responses to demand shocks resemble perfectly competitive behavior. Evidence from Brazilian cement markets points to an important role for imports in determining domestic cement prices, despite the near absence of imports. On assuming autarky, models with market power are rejected in favor of competition among incumbents. However, allowing a role for imports rejects the autarky assumption and precludes one from rejecting the presence of market power.     

Patent thickets,courts, and the market for innovation

We study how fragmentation of patent rights and the formation of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) affected the duration of patent disputes, and thus the speed of technology diffusion through licensing. We develop a model of patent litigation which predicts faster settlement when patent rights are fragmented and when there is less uncertainty about court outcomes, as was associated with the “pro‐patent shift” of the CAFC. We confirm these predictions empirically using a data set that covers patent suits in U.S. district courts during the period 1975–2000. Finally, we analyze how fragmentation affects total settlement delay, considering both the reduction in dispute duration and the increase in the number of patent negotiations.     

Exploring the acceptance of technology for mobile shopping: an empirical investigation among Smartphone users

In this work, we evaluate the phenomenon of asymmetric perception of some nonverbal stimuli located in an aisle of a virtual store. In a stimulus detection experiment, with a number of potentially confounding variables held under control, it was found that the nonverbal stimuli utilized (belonging to the color, size, and shape families) were perceived more rapidly when placed on shelves on the left rather than on the right of the observer. This response pattern was constant regardless the nature of stimulus and the gender of observer. The experiment also showed the following sequence, in descending order of perception rapidity: color–shape–size. Our results appear consistent with the predictions of the brain laterality theory. Overall, our article provides an initial contribution to extend the results of Rettie and Brewer (Journal of Product and Brand Management 2000; 9, no. 1: 56–70) pioneering work obtained by reference to specific problems of package design to the positioning of items with respect to in-store traffic flow. Limitations and managerial implications of our work are discussed.     

Industry Interactions in Innovation Systems: A Bibliometric Study

Assorted interactions among the agents in a territory are considered as key elements for its scientific, technological, and innovation development, thus fostering the competitiveness of its business fabric and enhancing the quality of life of its residents. In this context, this article analyses this phenomenon, specifically industry relations with innovation system players (academic, scientific, technological, financing, and facilitating agents) through a bibliometric analysis. The methodology used progresses in three stages: construction of the scientific papers search strategy (published in the ISI Web of Knowledge reference database between 2001 and 2014); its implementation; and the corresponding bibliometric analysis, using the Vantage Point® software as a support tool. Among other aspects, the findings present progress achieved in the research field, together with leading authors, organizations, and countries, as well as with cooperative efforts among them, highlighting the status of this topic in Latin America. Finally, the article concludes that industry relations in innovation systems is a topic that is steadily expanding worldwide, with large numbers of cooperative projects among countries. However, it also shows that this study theme is still incipient in Latin America, not just Brazil.     

Culture As A Moderator Of The Relationship Between Service Quality And The Tourist'S Satisfaction With Different Distribution Channels

The present research analyzes the influence of culture on the relationship between each of the dimensions of service quality and tourists' satisfaction with the distribution channel, differentiating between travel agencies and the Internet. More specifically, the research seeks to understand the influence of the cultural dimensions of uncertainty avoidance and individualism/collectivism on the relationship between each of the dimensions of service quality and satisfaction, depending on the medium through which the service is purchased. The sample was made up of 600 tourists. Of these, 300 tourists (150 Spanish and 150 English) had purchased hotel accommodation for their last holiday via a travel agency, and the other 300 (150 Spanish and 150 English) had purchased hotel accommodation for their last holiday via the Internet. The findings indicate that there are variations in the relationships between each of the dimensions of service quality and satisfaction, and that these variations are shaped by the cultural dimensions of uncertainty avoidance and individualism/collectivism.