Network concentration and airport congestion in a post de-regulation context: A case study of Brazil 2000–2010

This paper empirically investigates the main drivers of airline network concentration in an air transport market subject to rapid growth. We consider the Brazilian air transport industry of the 2000s, in which network concentration rapidly increased and was followed by a period of massive flight delays and cancelations, which resulted in the “big blackout” of 2006–2007. We develop an econometric model of network concentration, accounting for demand, cost and competition variables that may affect the propensity of carriers to concentrate flights and passenger connections on a few airports of a network. The main focus of the paper is on the relation between networks leading to the problems of the blackout episode. We investigate the dynamic pattern of the evolution of concentration before and after the abnormal period of operations and find that concentration began to rise at least six quarters before, and persisted at a high level until two quarters after the blackout – and then plunged steeply toward the end of the decade. We believe that our analysis contributes to an improved understanding of the behavior of air transport systems subject to network concentration and congestion. With respect to methodology, we suggest and employ the use of alternative measures of network concentration to check the robustness and validity of our results.     

Intergenerational appeal in advertising: impacts of brand–gender extension and brand history

An intergenerational (IG) appeal in an advertising campaign usually presents a nostalgic image with family portraits, emphasizing the traditions that have been passed on from generation to generation or harkening back to the ‘good old days’ between father and son, or mother and daughter. The IG appeal can effectively enhance a brand's image and induce that all-important consumer purchase. This paper takes gender differences (father/son or mother/daughter) into consideration while examining two moderators related to branding: (in)congruent brand–gender extension and brand history. Results indicate that a well-established brand history enhances the effects of the IG appeal. In addition, a congruent brand–gender extension increases the effects of the IG appeal. More interestingly, IG appeals can be effective in presenting a less established brand which has an incongruent brand–gender extension.     

(De)Politicization Dynamics in Public–Private Partnerships (PPPs): Lessons from a comparison between UK and Flemish PPP policy

This article analyses the (de)politicization dynamics in complex and technical matters like public–private partnerships, which is necessary given its social impact and budgetary consequences for the years and generations to come. The global financial crisis provides an excellent window of opportunity to present this argument, because PPP policy needs to reinvent itself. We argue that PPP policy needs to be (re)politicized at the broader societal and discursive levels, which means that their public nature is recognized and that policy alternatives are debated in the public forums. The ‘Private Finance Initiative’ reassessment process in the UK may serve as an example.     

Assessing the competition in Angola’s banking industry

This article analyses the level of competition in Angola’s banking industry using the Panzar–Rosse model with data from 2005 to 2014. Competition is a vital aspect of the banking market and therefore it is central to policy-making. The results reveal that Angola banking competition is monopolist and therefore lower competition is found in Angola banks. Policy implication is derived.     

Forecasting economic activity from yield curve factors

This paper provides clear-cut evidence that the slope and curvature factors of the term structure of interest rates (yield curve) contain more information about future changes in economic activity than the term spread itself, often used in the literature as a predictive regressor of economic activity. These two factors reflect different information about future economic activity, which is smoothed out by the term spread. The paper shows that the slope factor has predictive power on future economic activity over longer horizons ahead, and thus may be interpreted as reflecting future business cycle conditions. On the other hand, the curvature factor, which enters the term spread with opposite sign than the slope factor, has predictive power on shorter movements of future economic activity which may be associated with changes in the current stance of monetary policy. These results hold for a number of world developed economies.     

Leading national brands facing store brands competition: Is price competitiveness the only thing that matters?

Store Brands (SBs) have experienced a strong increase in both value and unit sales internationally during the last decades; thus their market share has been constantly growing. Starting from these considerations, the present work aims at deepening the topic of inter-brand competition within the FMCG market and, in particular, the market share trade-off between Leading National Brands (LNBs) and Store Brands. Our empirical analysis is based on panel data about 322 product categories sold within the Modern Grocery Distribution stores in the 2010–2013 period. Results obtained show: (i) the existence of a relationship between the increase in the LNB-SB price gap and the switching of market share from the former towards the latter; (ii) the consolidation of a change in consumers' purchasing preference in favor of SBs; (iii) the existence of an inverse relationship between the inter-brand competition intensity and the retail branding life cycle evolutionary stage, which is different for each product category.     

Analyzing the spatial–temporal evolution of a gateway’s hinterland: A case study of Shanghai,China

This paper analyzes the spatial–temporal evolution of the attractiveness of a country’s gateway for its international trade, using Shanghai as an example. The attractiveness is regressed on the transportation facilities and geographical conditions. Seaport development is found to have a major positive impact, followed by inland waterway, highway, and airport development. These positive impacts decrease with the need for highway haulage and with the distance from Shanghai—showing an inverse U-shape distribution. Rail appears to have a U-shape distribution, implying a low application of multimodal transportation. A geographical pattern for the impacts of different transportation modes is delineated.     

Estimation of interregional input–output table using hybrid algorithm of the RAS method and real-coded genetic algorithm

In this paper, we propose a method for improving the accuracy of the estimation of interregional input–output tables, by combining the RAS method and the real-coded Genetic Algorithm (GA); these are simple representative methods for the estimation of an interregional input–output table. By comparing the performance evaluation results obtained using the proposed method, the RAS method, and Simulated Annealing, we verified that the combination of the genetic algorithm and the RAS method can enhance the estimation accuracy of an interregional input–output table. In addition, performance is further enhanced by adjusting GA parameters.     

Optimal transit fare and service frequency of a nonlinear origin-destination based fare structure

This paper proposes a new nonlinear distance-based transit fare structure, which is measured by a function of the Euclidean distance between the origin and destination stations, termed as Origin-Destination (OD)-based fare. The novel fare structure encourages passengers to freely choose the most efficient trip plan. An optimization model is formulated based on a three-party game (involving the transport authority, transit company, and passenger) to determine the optimal fare function and frequency. An artificial bee colony algorithm is adopted to solve the model. Finally, a numerical example is provided to verify the proposed method.     

The emergence of home-based accommodations in Iran: A study of self-organization

This paper examines the Iranian home-based accommodation sector using the theory of self-organization. With the aim of identifying the sector's organizing principles, interviews were conducted with the accommodation operators, providing 117 statements which were linked based on their key ideas and/or words. Using UCINET6, a network diagram of five organizing principles were identified: collective identity, balanced legitimacy, local embeddedness, mindful market, and networked finance. While the combination of these organizing principles is interpreted within the Iranian context, broad assumptions can be inferred. It is speculated that a collective aiming to organize itself needs to be considerate of its interactions with members of the collective, the authoritative body, the local community, the market, and capital. Additionally, each separate organizing principle might have relevance for small businesses in various industries. The study contributes to the commercial home and home-based accommodation literature while also providing insights into tourism development in Iran. Furthermore, the method used to identify organizing principles is considered novel and can be used with other collectives.