Foreign Manufacturing Multinationals and the Transformation of the Chinese Economy

I.The argument in brief China became the world's largest destination for foreign direct investment (FDI),almost all of which is FDI in manufacturing and assembly,in 2003,before falling back into a solid second place.These FDI flows have revolutionized China's industrial base and shifted the composition of Chinese exports     

Applying Multiattribute-Based Group Decision Making Techniques in Complex Equipment Selection Tasks

A practicing industrial engineer, even an experienced decision maker, needs help in the sense that there is a necessity to use more logical or analytical decision support tools, especially when dealing with control and instrumentation projects which are often worth millions of dollars. In this article we propose an algorithm which can support the process of group decision making relating to industrial automation, especially involving the selection of control and instrumentation equipment. The aim of this article is to look only at the algorithm's application and how it is applied. To this end, two test cases are used as examples: (1) selecting a local area network for installation in an academic environment; and (2) selecting an integrated control system for a real-world pulp and paper mill. Obtained results show that the algorithm leads to a satisfactory solution. A software form of the algorithm is being programmed for use as a decision support tool.     

Evolutionary game-theoretic model for dynamic congestion pricing in multi-class traffic networks

This paper describes an evolutionary game-theoretic learning model for dynamic congestion pricing in urban road networks, taking into account route choice stochasticity and reliability considerations, and the heterogeneity of users, in terms of their value of travel time and real-time information acquisition. The learning model represents the dynamic adjustments of users to travel cost changes which may take place in the day-to-day as well as the within-day timescales. The implementation into a simplified and a real urban road network signifies the important implications of modeling the dynamic and stochastic learning components of users’ behavior for accommodating the efficient deployment of congestion pricing schemes.     

On the macroeconomic determinants of the housing market in Greece: a VECM approach

This study examines the role of the housing market in the Greek economy. We review the literature and assess the interdependence between the housing price index and its macroeconomic determinants within a VECM framework. An equilibrium relationship exists and in the long run the retail sector and mortgage loans emerge as the most important variables for housing. The dynamic analysis shows that the mortgage loans followed by retail trade are the variables with the most explanatory power for the variation of the houses price index.     

Why Austrian socialism?

Socialist objectives can be achieved in a market context with the rule of law if market socialism were to take the form of competitive worker-owned and self-managed enterprises, supplemented by universally available welfare redistributions, which could include a basic income, universal capital grants, or education and health insurance vouchers.      

Optimal vendor selection in a multiproduct supply chain with truckload discounts

When products are sold by multiple vendors in various locations, the purchaser must decide what to order from each vendor and where to send it. To solve this decision problem, a novel optimization model is developed and applied to a situation involving the nationwide wholesale distribution of grocery products. Comparing the model’s solution with the actual record of shipments reveals instances in which the model selected higher-priced vendors in order to capitalize on truckload cost savings, which are seen to be an important factor in vendor selection. Additional models are developed to reduce computation time and assign shipments to vehicles.