How do telecommunications reforms affect labour market arrangements? Evidence from Central and Western Europe

This paper exploits variations in the timing of telecommunications reforms across Europe to investigate the relationship between the rise of alternative work arrangements and the emergence of the Internet. We evaluate whether sectors that are technologically more dependent on information and communication technologies (ICT) experienced disproportionately larger changes in their employment outcomes after telecommunications reforms were introduced. Our main results point to a disproportionate increase in total employment, part‐time work and home‐based work among ICT‐dependent sectors after the implementation of telecommunications reforms. These results suggest that telecommunications reforms affected labour market arrangements by fostering the adoption of ICT. The results are robust to several specifications.     

Groβe Summe – groβes Problem? Warum die Debatte um die Target-Salden so hitzig ist

The rise of the Bundesbank’s target balance to about one billion euro has revived the debate among German economists about the interpretation and the risks associated with these balances for the German taxpayer and Germany as a whole. This paper explains why this debate is so heated by revealing that the opponents have sharply different views a) about the riskiness of assets purchased by the ECB when acting as a lender of last resort and by engaging in quantitative easing and b) about the risks for the German taxpayer and the economy if the ECB had not engaged in these activities.     

DEFAULT RISK PREMIA IN THE NEAR-CASH INVESTMENT MARKET: THE CASE OF AUCTION RATE PREFERRED STOCK VERSUS COMMERCIAL PAPER

Auction rate preferred stock (ARPS) is often regarded as an alternative to other near-cash instruments such as commercial paper while the dividend exclusion for ARPS offers tax advantages to corporate purchasers. The mean default risk premium for ARPS, relative to commercial paper, is estimated at 83 basis points during stable financial markets. This default premium appears to surge during unstable equity markets, having jumped by 192 basis points in November 1987. Lower-rated ARPS shows even larger changes, with yields 40–50 basis points above yields on high-rated ARPS, adjusted for the normal risk premium differential. The perceived risk change of ARPS underscores how quickly market participants re-evaluate default risk, and even the importance of the priority order among debt and equity claimants. Findings suggest ARPS and commercial paper are not an acceptable substitute for commercial paper during times of unsettled equity markets.     

Einzelbesprechungen

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Entwicklung von Supply Chain Strategien für eine Virtuelle Supply Chain Organisation (VISCO)

Zusammenfassung Mit dem Aufbau und dem Betrieb einer Virtuellen Supply Chain Organisation (VISCO) ist es m?glich, das Supply Chain Management erfolgreich zu realisieren. Zur Realisierung gemeinschaftlicher Wettbewerbsvorteile mit einer VISCO muss zwingend eine konsistente Supply Chain Strategie entwickelt werden. Mit der Supply Chain Strategie wird die strategische Sto?richtung der VISCO festgelegt. Zur Umsetzung der Supply Chain Strategie ist eine Abstimmung mit den jeweiligen Unternehmensstrategien vorzunehmen.

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Summary Although supply chain management has been discussed in both science and business for a long time a unified definition does not exist. That causes that the realization of supply chain management in business is very differential. A good approach to realize integrated supply chain management is to build a strategic supply chain network with a high degree of integration. With help of a strategic and operative coordination of all activities and an intense collaboration it is possible to create a special organisation within the supply chain—the “Virtual Supply Chain Organization (VISCO)”. Building and using a VISCO for supply chain management leads to more effectiveness and efficiency concerning the cooperation of companies. With a VISCO it is possible to get more power to compete successful in business and gain more profitability. Therefore special supply chain strategies have to be planned and coordinated with the members of the VISCO.