Crossing London: Overcoming the Obstacles to CrossRail

London's main transport modes are over-loaded. An important part of the solution is CrossRail, a new east-west underground railway. It was agreed and fully planned all of ten years ago; but the obstacles to its construction are severe and have become worse as time has passed. While the value of CrossRail is clear and generally recognized, a large number of direct interests have both the incentive and the power to object to it as a specific proposal, in an attempt to secure a better outcome for themselves. Many commercial, public and governing institutions will have to be persuaded to make a sacrifice in the interests of the project going ahead.     

Corporate investments and growth options

Real options theory models certain corporate investments as investments in growth options, yet there is little direct evidence on whether firms actually capture growth option value from these investments. In the current paper, we attempt to bridge this empirical gap, and we also examine the conditions under which the growth option value embedded in such investments is enhanced. Results from a sample of manufacturing firms during 1989–2000 reveal that investments in research and development and joint venture (JV) investments contribute to firms' growth option values. We also show that, among JVs of different ownership structures, only minority JVs increase growth option value. Our findings affirm options theory's assertion that real options can help firms capture valuable upside opportunities, they highlight the value of examining contingencies that drive option value, and they also point to the challenges firms face in realizing the unique benefits the theory emphasizes. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Managing in the Middle: Characterizing Singapore's Exchange Rate Policy*

It is by now common knowledge that there can be a significant divergence in the de facto versus de jure exchange rate regimes operated by economies. Although much of the recent published literature in Asia has focused on the crisis-hit economies, Korea and Thailand in particular, scant attention has been paid to Singapore, which officially targets its nominal effective exchange rate (around a band). The present paper examines the degree of exchange rate intervention for Singapore using various methods of assessing de facto exchange rate regimes. In the main, we show that although the Singapore dollar is primarily influenced by the US dollar, in keeping with its de jure classification of a basket pegged regime, other major currencies, such as the yen and the euro, also impact the Singapore dollar. There is also evidence to indicate that Singapore uses the nominal effective exchange rate strategically as a policy instrument to satisfy domestic inflation objectives.     

Economic Democracy: are the trade unions equipped?

Recent policy statements from the TUC and the Labour Party announce an ambitious and radical programme for democratising economic life—but do the trade unions have the organisational competence and the motivation to carry this through?     

The Corn Laws and English wheat prices, 1815–1846

The British Corn Laws of the nineteenth century are the classic example of a trade barrier. This paper evaluates their importance to English society by analyzing the effects of the Corn Laws on wheat markets. Import supply elasticities are estimated for all of England's major grain supply markets, using data on prices, quantities, and freight costs from each country. A partial equilibrium trade arbitrage model is then constructed. In the absence of the Corn Laws, prices would have been 9 percent lower and consumption about 1.5 percent greater. The Corn Laws were, therefore, of great social and economic importance as England moved into the period of industrialization.     

Aboriginal Labour and the Pastoral Industry in the Kimberley Division of Western Australia: 1960–1975

This paper surveys the Kimberley pastoral (or livestock) industry – historically the economic mainstay and largest employer in this remote region of Western Australia – and its relationship with Aboriginal labour, utilizing empirical material, much of which is presented for the first time. Part of the analysis reviews the labour market and employment conditions that existed during the period 1960–1968, when a significant labour shortage occurred. However, in the Kimberley (as elsewhere), beginning in the late 1960s and early 1970s, unemployment grew rapidly. Reasons for the rapid growth in unemployment, of which Aboriginals constituted the greatest proportion, included, among other things, a global downturn in commodity prices for livestock products and especially beef in this case, concentration of ownership and increased capitalization in the livestock industry, and the decision to pay Aboriginal pastoral workers award rates. The period 1960–1975 graphically illustrates the changing nature of the Kimberley pastoral industry, as well as the repercussions of global dynamics for regional economies.