Value relevance of blog visibility

This study empirically examines the effect of a non-traditional information source, namely a firm's blog visibility on the capital market valuation of firms. After controlling for earnings, book value of equity and other value relevant variables, such as traditional media exposure, R&D spending, and advertising expense, we find a positive association between a firm's blog visibility and its capital market valuation. In addition, we find blog visibility Grange causes trading, not vice versa. Our findings indicate that non-traditional information sources such as blogs help disseminate information and influence consumers' investment decisions by capturing their attention.     

本土保卫战的六大秘笈

根据《经济学人智库》预测，到2010年，新兴市场将占到全球GDP的45％，以及GDP增长的60％。中国、印度、东盟等市场都变得愈发重要，但这并不意味着这些市场将自然地归属本土企业，他们必须面对跨国公司来势汹汹的挑战。跨国公司无论在实力还是经验上，通常都更胜本土企业一筹，但也并不总是大获成功。Yahoo!和eBay在中国市场上就因百度与淘宝的抵抗而止步。许多西方汽车制造商在印度试图建立业务，也步履艰难。NEC和松下退出中国的手机市场。日本零售商八佰伴放弃了其在中国的运营。     

Decomposing Revenue Effects of Tax Evasion and Tax Structure Changes

This paper proposes a method for evaluating the impact of tax structure changes on tax revenue. The technique consists of decomposing the gap between actual revenue and potential revenue into components attributable to changes in (i) the tax rate structure (ii) deductions and (iii) tax evasion. Our results indicate that, for the Indian reform episode we examine, there were initial gains which could not be sustained over time. The magnitude of the gains from the reform were limited and failed to significantly curtail losses from tax evasion.     

The new urban landscape: Developers and edge cities

In this paper we model the decisions of an edge city developer who chooses business district capacity and location strategically to maximize profits. The developer competes against a core city with historically given downtown capacity for employment and, implicitly, residential population. Moving nearer the core city enhances production efficiency by increasing the efficiency of the exchange of information between businesses in the core and edge city. On the other hand, it increases typical residential rents and commuting costs (and hence wages demanded by employees) and weakens the developer's local monopsony power. The developer's choice of location and capacity play out in a complex but fascinating fashion, depending on the historical capacity of the downtown.     

A Note on How and Why Growth and Unemployment Go Hand in Hand in Developing Economies

This paper develops a simple model to explain the phenomenon of persistent unemployment, even in an economy experiencing high output growth. In the model, unemployment grows at a rate identical with the growth rate of input factors and sectors. The result is primarily triggered by a pre-fixed minimum wage for unskilled workers. To corroborate our claim, we have empirically tested our model hypothesis using data for 12 developing countries and found empirical results consistent with the theory. To mitigate or reduce unemployment, history becomes crucial in deciding on the desired rate of growth in different sectors.     

The catharsis of male consumption: Reimagining masculinity in India

Research on alternate masculinity from India that emphasize consumption and consequent subjective well-being (SWB) is primarily about gay men. However, our research points to different marginal masculinity, alternate consumption, and consecutive SWB. The present study uses in-depth interview methods to uncover the “marginal” masculinity of a group of urban, upper-middle-class, heterosexual Indian men. We probe their consumption as a part of their identity project referred to as cathartic. Such consumption leads to a sense of high subjective consumer well-being amidst an otherwise patriarchally defined Indian consumptionscape. This almost fledgling group of men relates itself to the shifting world order of normative masculinity, denounces the patriarchal norms, betrays the cause of male privilege, empathetically responds to the paradigms of femininity, accepts the fall of hegemonic forms of masculinity, and is sensitive toward “others” and ecological/sustainability issues. We further argue that this “cathartic masculinity,” as evident through their consumption, may impact the fledging gender-fluid marketplace of tomorrow.     

Transnational remittances and state protection of human rights: A case for caution

This paper explores the impact of transnational remittance receipts on state respect for human rights, identifying the latter with the CIRI Index of Physical Integrity Rights which aggregates information on disappearances, extrajudicial killings, political imprisonment, and torture. Based on sample of 106 developing economies considered over the period 1981–2011, we find that remittances have a strong negative impact on state respect for physical integrity rights, the results being robust to alternate specifications and estimation methods. Our results underline the need for caution in evaluating the developmental consequences of remittance inflows, especially on institutional quality.