Geometrical Interpretation of the Mean and the Constant in a Box-Jenkins Time Series Model

Certain manuals and computer programs mistakenly identify the mean with the constant in Box-Jenkins time series models. In this paper, it will be shown that (a) the mean and the constant have different values in autoregressive models, and (b) they have an algebraic and graphical relationship.     

Carbon taxes and the double dividend hypothesis in a recursive-dynamic CGE model for Spain

A carbon tax is potentially a policy that can reduce CO₂ emissions and mitigate climate risks, at lowest economy-wide costs. We develop a dynamic CGE model for Spain to assess the economic and environmental effects of a carbon tax, and test the double dividend (DD) hypothesis. We simulate the impact of three carbon taxes: €10, €20 and €30 per ton of CO₂. For each tax, four ‘revenue recycling’ scenarios are examined: a reduction of taxes on capital, on labor, on value-added tax, and a scenario in which revenues are not recycled. We find a DD for taxes of €10/ton and lower, within five to seven years of implementation. We estimate an annual CO₂ emissions reduction of around 10% with this tax. Under some circumstances, the DD can be achieved for a tax of €20/ton. In any case, recycling revenues to cut pre-existing taxes reduces costs of imposing carbon taxes.     

UNCTAD’s Technical Cooperation Programme on Consumer Protection for Latin America: COMPAL

Journal of Consumer Policy - UNCTAD’s mandate is threefold. It facilitates consensus building, provides research and analysis and offers technical assistance and capacity building to...     

Constitutions as self-enforcing redistributive schemes

We present a model of a fiscal constitution (i.e., a transfer scheme between income classes) that is self-enforcing against a background in which predatory activities (‘revolutions’) are feasible. In this environment, a constitution self-enforces by structuring society’s interests in such a way that non- compliance necessarily results in a revolution which society would rather avoid.      

Bubbles and capital flows

This paper presents a stylized model of international trade and asset price bubbles. Its central insight is that bubbles tend to appear and expand in countries where productivity is low relative to the rest of the world. These bubbles absorb local savings, eliminating inefficient investments and liberating resources that are in part used to invest in high-productivity countries. Through this channel, bubbles act as a substitute for international capital flows, improving the international allocation of investment and reducing rate-of-return differentials across countries. This view of asset price bubbles could eventually provide a simple account of some real world phenomena that have been difficult to model before, such as the recurrence and depth of financial crises or their puzzling tendency to propagate across countries.     

Environmental Management Systems and Local Community Perceptions: the Case of Petrochemical Complexes Located in Ports

Most oil refineries and factories producing basic chemical products are located in port areas, with the result that industrial complexes potentially have a strong environmental impact on their area of influence. These externalities result in a loss of welfare for citizens residing in neighbouring areas. In a context of sustainable development, companies must integrate concerns about the natural environment in their business strategy. External stakeholders, as residents, find it difficult to visualize the actions firms take to reduce their environmental impact, and the adoption of voluntary certified environmental management systems (EMSs) acts as a signal indicating the adequate environmental behaviour of these companies. These certifications enable companies to achieve the social legitimacy they need for long‐term survival and competitiveness. In the context of a petrochemical industrial complex located in the port of Castellón (Spain), this paper primarily discusses whether such certifications – which act as signals of firms’ desirable environmental conduct – translate into higher trust in firms and lower risk perception by residents. Contrary to what might be expected, despite the widespread use by companies of voluntary and certified EMSs, the research findings confirm a relatively high citizen perception of risk regarding the industrial complex and a low trust in companies. On the other hand, the findings also show a low trust in the public institutions responsible for authorizing and monitoring firms’ activities and for enforcing possible sanctions in non‐compliance cases. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment     

How wide is the gap? An investigation of gender wage differences using quantile regression

In this paper we re-examine the link between subjective perceptions and objective measures of wage discrimination by estimating the mean and several quantiles in the conditional wage distribution of men and women in order to decompose the gender wage gap into the part attributed to different characteristics and the part attributable to differential returns to these characteristics at points other than the conditional expectation. In the process we take into account the endogeneity of educational choice and the participation decision of women. The results suggest that the absolute wage gap and the component of the latter that can be attributed to different returns to characteristics increase over the wage scale.     

Heritage tourism clusters along the borders of Mexico

This article seeks to find potential heritage tourism clusters in border areas. Literature about tourism destinations is essentially focused on administrative-bound areas, while little attention has been paid to functional regions. The research is based on a methodological exercise to contribute to this debate by analyzing the case of three border regions between Mexico, the USA, Guatemala and Belize, respectively. These borders have never been static but have changed throughout history, to the present day situation. It is argued that these changes have implications for the potential development of heritage tourism. The results identify a number of cross-border clusters and corridors in these areas with different levels of tourism underdevelopment, mainly because of political or legal restrictions. The results of this study contribute to an improved understanding of borderland heritages and cross-border regional clusters in the context of tourism.