Housing price fluctuations and financial risk transmission: a spatial economic model

Financial risk derived from housing price fluctuations in China garnered much public concern recently. Based on the theoretical analyses of the transmission of financial risk from housing price fluctuations, this paper establishes panel spatial Durbin models to empirically analyse housing price fluctuations and financial risks transmission from a spatial economic perspective. Employing the panel provincial data from 1999–2015, we conduct an analysis on the 30 provinces in China as well as a comparison among the Eastern, Middle and Western regions of China. The results indicate that: (1) The soaring housing prices driven by bank credit, real estate developers’ heavy investment, local governments’ land revenue and individuals and households demands leads to financial risk in various sectors; (2) due to the ‘substitution effect’, the capital agglomeration in metropolis from bank credits, real estate developers, and individuals and households furthers the amassment of financial risks; (3) housing prices have a significant spatial contagion effect throughout the country, and financial risk could directly transmit across provinces through housing price fluctuations; (4) financial risks could indirectly transmit across provinces via the ‘imitative behaviour’ or ‘driving effect’ of different sectors for different regions of China.     

Public infrastructure,production organization,and economic development

We develop a political economy model of growth to examine economic development led by the interactions between an economic decision concerning a firm’s production technology (CRS vs. IRS technology) and a political decision concerning public infrastructure. We show that multiple equilibrium growth paths occur due to differences in expectations regarding the quality of public infrastructure. These multiple paths illustrate why economies with poor initial conditions can catch up to and, furthermore, overtake economies with better initial conditions. Our result could explain the experiences of some East Asian countries where the co-evolution of public infrastructure and industrial transformation spurred economic development.     

Repetition and attitudinal discrepancy effects on the affective response to television advertising

Significant, favorable attitudinal response toward both the brand and ad were observed at the first exposure in a laboratory experiment on the effects of repeated exposure to television advertisements. At higher levels of repetition, lower, although still positive, ratings were obtained. Response was significantly mediated by prior brand attitude. Mean differences in attitude toward the brand and ad were only partially accounted for by changes in brand perception.     

Accessibility improvement,territorial cohesion and spillovers: a multidimensional evaluation of two motorway sections in Poland

The aim of this paper is to contribute to previous methodological studies of the approach to potential accessibility used in the evaluation of development of the road network. This is done by making a threefold analysis, which combines the overall improvement in the level of accessibility, territorial cohesion, and spatial spillovers. Moreover, we use different spatial dimensions (namely national and international) and different distance decay parameters to estimate both the short trips (e.g. commuting) and the long trips (e.g. business trips or tourism). The results are presented at a very detailed spatial scale (i.e. municipalities – LAU-2 units).The paper provides empirical evidence of improvement in accessibility, changes in the degree of territorial cohesion, and spatial spillovers resulting from the recent completion of two sections of motorway in Poland. The selected case studies differ according to their location (i.e. national and European, peripheral vs. central location), population density, and the settlement structure around the investment.The validity of the proposed multidimensional approach to the evaluation of road investments is verified as the combination of different accessibility dimensions and leads to results which differ respecting efficiency, equity and spillover effects. This paper provides arguments to strengthen the need for the tailor-made parameters of potential accessibility indicator and spatial dimension of analysis. They should be adjusted to the main aim of the particular evaluation.     

An Analysis of Tax Incentives to Attract FDI in Bangladesh： An Empirical Study

The purpose of the study is to understand whether it is still viable to use tax incentives to attract foreign direct investment （FDI） considering their effectiveness and costs to the country, and if not, what should be the alternative, effective, and viable means of promoting the vital FDI inflow. The study investigated various incentives provided by BOI, and other relevant sources available as secondary sources. However, the multinational enterprises （MNEs） are not attracting for investment in Bangladesh always with tax incentives and there are alternative means of attracting FDI such as direct financial grants, subsidies loan guarantees, etc. This paper focuses on tax incentives and the debate against the effectiveness and efficiency in attracting FDI.     

Barriers Inhibiting Export Performance of Small and Medium-Sized Manufacturing Firms

Abstract

This study uses a step-wise discriminant analysis to address two related questions. First, to identify those inhibiting factors perceived to be both important and difficult to counter when a firm is initiating an export program. Second, to address the criticism that the current export research has failed to differentiate between degree of importance and the level of difficulty that firm may encounter when entering foreign markets. Two-hundred and forty-two small and medium-sized Wisconsin manufacturing firms were surveyed. The findings identified three barriers perceived to be both important and difficult to overcome. However, they did not support the criticism that we must differentiate between the degree of importance and the level of difficulty.     

Financial social innovation to engage the economically marginalized: insights from an Indian case study

Abstract

New sources of finance within the label of ‘impact investing’ have emerged as mechanisms to promote entrepreneurship within marginalized communities. Different vehicles for impact investment have emerged over the years; however, our understanding around their emergence, configuration and adoption is limited. Hence, the main purpose in this research is to study the role of the contextual drivers and conditions that gave rise to a unique form of impact investment in India, a financial social innovation – developmental venture capital (DVC). Through the lens of capital theories, insights from the case of India’s largest and oldest DVC firm along with three of its most prominent investees are presented. Findings highlight that the social entrepreneurs behind the case DVC wholly re-conceptualized silicon valley-style venture capital financing to suit small brick and mortar investments in rural India, developed mechanisms for deploying funding frugally, and created partnerships of equals between themselves and their investees. Investee founders leveraged human and social capital throughout the social innovation process via deep immersion in the socio-cultural milieu of India.