Assessing the regional digital divide across the European Union-27

Despite the efforts devoted to the analysis of the digital divide over the last years, the regional evidence on this issue is still scarce. Within this context, the goals of this paper are twofold: (1) measuring the digital divide across the regions of the 27 Member States and within each country and (2) explaining the observed regional disparities. The analysis leads to identify Dutch regions as the Top-10 in ICT, while Greece and Bulgaria occupy the Bottom-10. Therefore, results show that the regional digital divide reflects to some extent the income gap. However, regional policy seems to be having some positive implications for technology adoption. In particular, the rural-versus-urban dimension of the digital gap appears to be less important than it is usually claimed to. Likewise, some evidence is found of the role of cultural and institutional factors in ICT adoption, an issue that has not been previously analyzed at the regional level.     

出口欧盟食品接触材料风险分析

以2011年上半年欧盟食品和饲料快速预警系统（RASFF）对我国出口欧盟食品接触材料的通报情况为依据,总结通报涉及的产品种类、进口国家的风险特征和水平,分析风险来源,探讨应对措施,旨在发挥风险预警作用。     

“一带一路”背景下中国与欧亚经济联盟贸易效率及贸易潜力研究

以中国对EEU成员国出口贸易为视角,运用SFGM模型,选取2009—2018年的中国与欧亚经济联盟的数据对贸易效率及贸易潜力进行了测度。研究结果表明,欧亚经济联盟各成员国的经济规模、双边政府廉洁、贸易自由度、物流绩效、OFDI、共同边界等对中国出口具有显著的促进作用,通货膨胀也对出口起到促进作用,但作用不显著。双边的地理距离、是否内陆国、关税税率、汇率等对中国出口欧亚经济联盟具有明显的抑制作用,汇率也具有抑制作用,但不显著。根据研究结论提出针对性的政策建议,即加强双边合作,提升清关效率,完善基础设施质量,便利贸易和运输效率,提高物流服务质量;进一步降低关税和非关税壁垒,提高商品运输的效率,清除双方隐性贸易壁垒;加强政府对金融机构的监管力度,加大信贷资金配置规模;积极推动中国与EEU成员国建立自贸区;实现双边资本、信息等资源的共享,从而提高贸易效率,减少贸易阻力。最终着眼于命运共同体及全球价值链视域,推动双边贸易发展。     

多边关税谈判与关税减让--关税同盟的缔结一定会提高成员国的谈判地位吗?

利用一个古诺竞争模型，本文研究了关税同盟的缔结对多边关税谈判与关税减让的影响。文章认为，关税同盟的缔结并不一定可以迫使非成员国在关税谈判中作出更大幅度的关税减让。关税同盟的缔结虽然可以提高成员国的福利水平，但却不会提高成员国在福利分配博弈中讨价还价的能力，在对来自自由贸易的净福利进行分配时，关税同盟作为一个整体与非成员国平均分配得自自由贸易的净福利。     

How Much Tax Coordination in the European Union?

This paper examines the trade-offs between tax autonomy and fiscal neutrality that the Member States of the European Union face in coordinating their taxes on consumption, labor and capital. One of the main messages is that in many cases tax reform should precede tax harmonization, mainly because the costs of distortions within Member States may be greater than the gains from reducing intergovernmental tax competition.     

云南与东盟经贸现状分析及对策研究

第二次大湄公河次区域经济合作第二次领导人会议于2005年7月6日在昆明召开,会议对进一步推动和加强次区域之间的合作与可持续发展进行了深入务实的探讨,并形成了一致认识。作为东盟近邻的云南省应紧紧抓住中国———东盟自有贸易区建设这一历史性难得机遇,积极推进云南与东盟的经贸合作。文章论述了云南与东盟经贸合作的现状,进而分析了发展双边经贸合作的制约因素和前景,最后提出了若干相关保障的对策措施。     

Monetary Union, institutions and financial market integration: Italy, 1862–1905

Years into the single currency, EMU financial markets are not fully integrated. We argue that the phenomenon can be better understood by looking at financial markets’ behavior in the wake of Italy’s monetary unification (1862). Variables such as the spread of the telegraph, trade volumes, and the diffusion of the ‘single currency’ fail to explain why it took 25 years for prices across regional stock exchanges to converge. A single Italian financial market appeared only when the State prevailed upon local vested interests by enforcing nation-wide financial market legislation.     

Exchange rate volatility and regime change: A Visegrad comparison

We analyze exchange rate volatility in the Visegrad Four countries during the period in which they abandoned tight regimes for more flexible ones. We account for path dependency, asymmetric shocks, and movements in interest rates. In addition, we allow for a generalized error distribution. The overall findings are that path-dependent volatility has a limited effect on exchange rate developments and that the introduction of floating regimes tends to increase exchange rate volatility. During the period of flexible regimes, volatility was mainly driven by surprises. Asymmetric effects of news tend to decrease volatility under the floating regime. Interest differentials impact exchange rate volatility contemporaneously under either regime, although we find no intertemporal effect of interest differentials. Journal of Comparative Economics 34 (4) (2006) 727–753.     

The changing nature of the ITU Plenipotentiary

The Plenipotentiary Conference is the supreme organ of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). Since the Nairobi Plenipotentiary in 1982, there has been much debate about the role of the Plenipotentiary and even the future of the ITU in the continuing telecommunications revolution. This article explores the major attributes of the Plenipotentiary by comparing the Nairobi Conference with the five post-second world war Plenipotentiaries that preceded it. Criticisms are evaluated and suggestions for improvement are made.     

Social protection and regional convergence in a European Monetary Union

This paper addresses convergence in social protection and GDP in a European Economic and Monetary Union. We evaluate the impact of recently proposed EC social minimum requirements on regional convergence within the EC. Subsequently, we analyze a system of differentiated social norms as a means of raising social protection in countries with lower social standards.