Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Examining Eurozone Divergence, Charles Noble

Economics Theses

This paper provides a brief history of European integration followed by an examination of the Eurozone financial crisis and the economic divergence among particular economies (Germany compared with Greece, Portugal, Spain, and Ireland) it induced. Afterwards a list of structural and policy reforms meant to achieve economic convergence is provided. The paper concludes that in order for the Eurozone to achieve economic convergence, it would be best if Greece and Portugal exited the monetary union. The smaller, more homogeneous union could then more readily achieve economic convergence to function, both politically and economically, as a sustainable monetary union.

Testing The Marshall-Lerner-Robinson Condition In Ghana Prior To 1983: Was A Devaluation Of The Cedi Justified In Improving The Trade Balance?, Judith Olivia Canipe

Masters Theses

The aim of this paper is to empirically predict the quantitative impact of a devaluation of the Ghanaian Cedi on the trade account for 1960 to 1983. The imperfect substitutes model is employed to test the Marshall-Lerner-Robinson condition. In doing so, conclusions are drawn about the World Bank's implementation of loan conditionalities requiring a devaluation in order to address the trade deficit. Similarities between the economic structure of Ghana and other less developed countries allow for an extension of this study to other countries considering depreciation policies. The effect of a currency devaluation on the cocoa industry is also discussed. …

Essays On International And Environmental Economics, Jacob Wibe

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis consists of three chapters employing quantitative open economy models to study international trade transmission, the economic impacts of climate change, and remittance transfers.

The first chapter examines the role of production sharing and trade in the transmission of the 2008-2009 recession. In the model, production sharing is represented by a tradable sector that produces a composite good exclusively for the foreign market. The results suggest that trade transmission can account for 67% of the fall in output in Canada, 24% of the fall in output in Mexico, and about two-thirds of the fall in trade for both countries. …

The Pros And Cons Of Outsourcing, Angela Smith

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Outsourcing has become increasingly popular to the public since the mid-20th century and has become more controversial in the last decade. The United States economy has been under the microscope for the last 4 years due to an economic recession. Outsourcing has been a subject of interest that has been brought up numerous times by economists. Offshore outsourcing is the main type of outsourcing that is of concern in relation to the United States economy. This topic is highly debated because of the unemployment rate in America.

Power In Networks: Considering Castells’ Network Society In Egypt’S January 25th Movement And America’S Occupy Wall Street Movement, Marina Balleria

International Political Economy Theses

This article interogates Manuel Castell's Network society using the Egyptian Revolution and Occupy Wall Street as case studies. It looks at key shared characteristics: the call for transformational change, using a network structure and creating a self-conscious identity all of which nearly reflect the social theorist Manuel Castells’ definition of a social movement in a network society. Using the Egyptian revolution’s January 25^th movement (the Jan 25 movement) and Occupy Wall Street (OWS) as case studies, I argue that Castells’ theory of a network society successfully describes how social movements are empowered by the network structure to create social …

Foreign Direct Investment And Local Firm Productivity: Evidence From Thailand, Sasima Wongseree

Doctoral Dissertations

Abstract The enormous costs incurred to government for foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows raised question whether its benefits are worthwhile. In this dissertation, I use productivity estimates as outcomes to explore the direct and indirect impacts of FDI inflows on local firms in manufacturing sector of Thailand during 2001 to 2006.

Chapter 1, I introduce the overview of the entire dissertation.

Chapter 2, I briefly reviewed investment climates and FDI conditions in Thailand. Then I constructed a comprehensive firm-level dataset from several data sources for FDI examination. The main dataset offers quantity and capacity outputs along with revenues at product-level. …

Developments In The Global Energy Markets And Constructing The Future Of The Persian Gulf Security, Nihat Cengel

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

This study analyses the global energy projections and regional dynamics in the Persian Gulf. It is shown that the future projections in the world energy markets signify the importance of cooperation between developed and developing countries. It is also suggested that connected to the global economic crises and the regional demand change in the energy market, there is a growing need for international support to the Persian Gulf security.

I argue that the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) could play a crucial role for eliminating political conflicts and maintaining the regional stability. As a result, collective arm transfer to the region, …

Guardians Of The Countryside Public Choice Theory And The Farm Lobby In The Eu's Common Agricultural Policy, Amy J. Costa

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Through various waves of reform, the European Union's Common Agricultural Policy remains inefficient without meeting all of its stated goals. The MacSherry reforms of 1992 resulted in the opposite of what leaders intended: higher spending and a growing bureaucracy. Later in the 1990s, Agenda 2000 slashed its originally planned cutbacks after farmers protested. Though support exists for reducing spending on agriculture, market intervention remains.

This thesis explores the problem through the use of public choice theory. -Consumers make too large a group to organize effectively or inform themselves about the issue, while farmers consist of a smaller group with well-defined …

Un-Obtainium: The Quest For Rare Earth Elements, Brahm Heyman

International Political Economy Theses

The 17 "rare earth elements" are essential for the development of new technologies. Over the last several decades, China has established a virtual monopoly on the rare earth industry, producing over 97% of the world's current demand. This was achieved by effectively undercutting other producers who stopped competing in this market. In 2010, in an effort to bolster its domestic market, China decided to reduce the amount of rare earth elements that it would export. This situation can be used to consider China's relations with the rest of the world from two perspectives. (1) The realist perspective views China's actions …

Globalization, Health And The Nutrition Transition: How Global Tncs Are Changing Local Food Consumption Patterns, Morgan Mccloskey

International Political Economy Theses

Food consumption patterns around the world are changing. In general, individuals around the globe are consuming more edible oils and sugars than they were twenty years ago. What has lead to this nutrition transition? Scholars have identified a range of mechanisms associated with the transition, but nearly all are related to the growing influence of transnational corporations on the global food system. These TNCs are the lead actors in most global food production systems, dictating what is produced, how it is processed, where it is sold and the desirability of food products to global consumers. Looking at these TNCs through …

The Role Of Nonprofit Microfinance Institutions In Alleviating Poverty: From Theory To Practice, Leah Rebecca Oldham

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of Weighting Development Indicators On Countries Eligibility For International Development Funding: The Case Of The Millennium Challenge Corporation (Mcc), Idrissa Noma

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) is a U.S. government agency whose purpose is to promote economic growth and reduce poverty in low and low middle-income countries. It uses indicators to endorse countries eligibilities for international development funding. These indicators are related to economic growth and are developed by independent third parties (e.g., United Nations, World Bank), to evaluate a country's policy performance in three specific areas: (1) Ruling Justly, (2) Investing in People, and (3) Encouraging Economic Freedom (MCC, 2011). The MCC weighs indicators equally regardless of their myopic in-country relevancy to economic development. The goal of this study is …

The Role Of Family Ties In Mitigating Moral Hazard: Firm-Level Evidence From Tamil Nadu, India, Goldie Chow

Master's Theses

Drawing on firm-level data from the district of Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu, India, this study explores the role of family ties as a means to counteract potential moral hazard concerns. It is shown that firms will be more likely to employ family relations when faced with a higher hidden context for moral hazard. Specifically, the analysis finds that the presence of family members within the firm is higher when the firm provides general training and that firms that are more likely to do external business with family relations when it is believed that the legal system is not effective. Additionally, …

Essays On International Trade And Finance, Amat Adarov

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The dissertation consists of three papers exploring the macroeconomic implications of heterogeneity of countries in financial development, economic interconnectedness via trade and financial linkages.

Chapter 1 examines whether countries which are more centrally located in the global trade network have more synchronized stock markets. Global trade data is used to construct a novel measure of random walk betweenness centrality (RWBC), measuring the extent to which a country lies on random pathways in-between other countries and is therefore likely to be a conduit in the transmission of a shock across global markets. Based on a panel dataset of 58 countries over …

Fifa 2014 World Cup: Brazil’S Unending Headache: An Economic Investment That Challenges The Country’S Future, Bruna Almeida Lopes Barreto

Honors Capstone Projects - All

Brazil is soccer. The game is so deeply ingrained in daily life - in Brazilian identity and self-esteem- that they define each other. Soccer is so profoundly intertwined with Brazilian culture that familiarity with the sport begins early, producing a bottomless pool of talent. Year after year, soccer stars seem to roll out of Brazil like cars off a factory assembly line; it’s a natural talent that grows in almost every Brazilian child. Soccer means passion to Brazilians; it is the symbol of their nationality, as they have proven to be very the best at it.

Now, Brazil finally has …

The Effects Of Foreign Direct Investment On Sovereign Debt Sustainability In Latin America, Oriana I. Fuentes

Honors Capstone Projects - All

Sovereign debt has been a central political issue in Latin American nations for many years, especially considering the region’s long history of defaults and restructurings. Finding ways to grow sustainably at manageable levels of indebtedness has certainly been a challenge, especially with the large number of factors that play into how a nation finances itself and its growth. One of these factors, foreign direct investment (FDI), has attracted significant attention after countries became more politically stable and protective of investor interests in the early 1990s. As a result, inflows of FDI have grown at record levels reaching over $112 billion …

The Trans-Pacific Partnership And Japanese Politics, Eliot Francis Watson

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Challenges Of The Cooperative Movement In Addressing Issues Of Human Security In The Context Of A Neoliberal World: The Case Of Argentina, Stefan Ivanovski

Honors Theses

The response of some Argentine workers to the 2001 crisis of neoliberalism gave rise to a movement of worker-recovered enterprises (empresas recuperadas por sus trabajadores or ERTs). The ERTs have emerged as former employees took over the control of generally fraudulently bankrupt factories and enterprises. The analysis of the ERT movement within the neoliberal global capitalist order will draw from William Robinson’s (2004) neo-Gramscian concept of hegemony. The theoretical framework of neo-Gramscian hegemony will be used in exposing the contradictions of capitalism on the global, national, organizational and individual scales and the effects they have on the ERT movement.

The …

Mexico's Quest In The North American Markets, Antonio Diaz Gonzalez Salas

Senior Theses and Projects

Since the 1980s Mexico has implemented various economic policies that have improved its financial system at times. All the policies have ultimately failed. Since the 1990s both Mexico and China have made progress in foreign trade with their respective trade organizations. Mexico entered the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994 and China joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001. In spite of being a part of two different trade organizations, both countries had a significant increase on their GDP and consequently a change of focus and direction towards their internal investments to enhance their production of exports. …

Three Essays On International Banking, Rong Ma

Dissertations

Without question, global financial integration has accelerated in the last two decades. This acceleration is due, in part, to the opening of developing countries' financial markets to foreign banks, prompting many changes to financial systems in developing countries. This dissertation consists of three essays focusing on the impacts and the determinants of international banks' participation in the financial markets of developing countries.

The first essay investigates whether banks with foreign owners are more willing to provide loans in the host country possibly contributing toward greater financial stability for that country. Specifically, I test whether foreign banks' lending behavior is different …

Public And Private Firms In Natural Resource Industry: Comparing The Development Of The Lithium Industry In South America, Mike Knape

International Political Economy Theses

Literature on public and private firms has traditionally focused on the efficiency effects of differing firm ownership, although the literature has been largely dormant since the 1980s. State-led development models in Asia and Latin America warrant continued analysis of this fundamental issue in International Political Economy. This paper attempts to frame debate on natural resource governance by identifying the factors that affect the mix of public and private firms in extractive industry. Historical institutionalism is used as a framework for analyzing policy change, and political economy theory of governance institutions is compared to the traditional economic theory of the firm. …

China To The Rescue? The Implications Of China’S Engagement With Resource-Rich Countries, Sean Rice

International Political Economy Theses

China’s interest in developing countries has exploded in the past decade as it continues to search for resources to fuel high growth rates. This paper examines China’s activity in various resource-rich countries through the lens of the resource curse. What are the implications of China’s involvement in developing countries in terms of the resource curse, and what factors or circumstances determine whether a country will benefit from these strategic relations with China? By viewing the resource curse in terms of specific challenges associated with resource wealth rather than an overarching curse, I analyze how China’s involvement has altered the severity …

What Causes Ministers Of Finance To Get Fired?, Bradley Turner

Honors Theses

This paper seeks to establish the determinants of turnover in finance ministers. Based on an original worldwide data set, political and economic factors are considered for 58 countries. While the same political factors affect Minister of Finance turnover in both advanced and developing economies, the economic variables that matter differ between the sub-samples. Finance minister turnover is higher during years that there is also presidential turnover. Further, emerging economies have a higher Minister of Finance turnover than developed economies during years without presidential turnover. Results largely hold for robustness checks.

Three Essays On The Role Of Extensive And Intensive Margin In International Trade, Rishav Bista

Theses and Dissertations--Economics

This dissertation consists of three essays that examine the impact of various trade policies on the extensive (new trading relationships) and intensive (increase in trade of existing relationships) margins of trade, whereas past studies have been limited to aggregate trade flows. An inquiry into the extensive and intensive margins of trade reveals that total aggregate trade masks the heterogeneous trade creating effect of policy variables. Furthermore, this dissertation also takes into account the econometric issues that have plagued the traditional empirical model that analyzes the impact of these policies on trade.

The first chapter examines the impact of hosting and …

U.S. Cross-Listing, Institutional Investors, And Equity Returns, Yui Law

Theses & Dissertations

Cross-listing refers to firms listing their equities on more than one stock exchange. Cross-listing is an interesting topic of international finance. This is because along with the deeper integration of the global financial market, we should see lesser importance of geographic factors. Thus, the motivations and effects of listing a firm on exchanges of different regions should have essential economic implications. The reputation bonding hypothesis suggests that U.S. cross-listing improves the information environment of a firm because of the higher disclosure standard and more analyst coverage. The legal bonding hypothesis argues that U.S. cross-listing improves the investor protection and corporate …

Water Policy: The World's Most Important Resource Politicized, Ethan Gilbert

CMC Senior Theses

Water is the most important resource on the planet for sustaining life, and many consider access to water as a fundamental human right. However, in light of its necessity, the distribution and allocation of water has become a highly politicized issue. Economic and political conditions have been shown to be influential in shaping a country’s water policy, more so then recognition of water as a basic human right. The reason for this is that many agree that there needs to be a value assigned to water to encourage its conservation and efficient use, and different methods of addressing that issue …

An Economic Analysis Of Foreign Ownership In Professional Sports: Motivation, Success, And Implications For United States Market, Alex F. Wheatley

CMC Senior Theses

An economic analysis of foreign ownership in sports. Focusing on the English Premier League, National Basketball Association, and Major League Baseball.

Comparison Of China And Japan’S Economic Development In The Semiconductor Industry, Rundong Ke

Senior Projects Spring 2012

While Japan marked its success in surpassing the U.S. to dominate the semiconductor industry in 1986, the Chinese semiconductor industry transformed from a small sector into a global competitor. This thesis tracks and compares the developmental histories of this industry between China and Japan and analyzes the differences in government policy, economic systems, comparative advantage and trade policy in both countries, in order to ascertain the two countries’ industrial development strategies and governments’ impacts on the semiconductor industry. This analysis finds that Japan’s development strategy targeted a knowledge- and capitalintensive industry (semiconductor industry, in this case) by providing preferential assistances …

The Origins Of The Italian Sovereign Debt Crisis, David M. Henningsen

CMC Senior Theses

Over the past decade, the European Union has been characterized by an explosion of expenditure, insufficient revenue, high deficits and a lack of budget discipline. Financial markets in Europe are currently dealing with enormous government debts, poor government balance sheets and a weakening banking system. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the origins of the current Euro-crisis and specifically identify the extent to which it will affect the nation of Italy going forward. To understand Italy's stance amid the Euro-crisis, we proceed as follows: First, a historical background section will develop the fundamental issues that have developed in …

The Effectiveness Of Capital Controls On Capital Inflows In Emerging Markets, Kathleen A. Davis

Honors Theses

Capital flows have become increasingly more volatile over the past

decade, causing growing concern in emerging markets over the potential damages

large sudden capital inflows and outflows can cause those economies. Capital

controls have been used since World War I as a way to try to control these flows.

After being abolished nearly everywhere, they have recently been reintroduced in

a number of countries. The main analysis of this paper looks at the effect of the

capital controls on capital inflows from 2000 through 2010 in an 8 country sample

of emerging markets who have recently implemented changes in their …