International Economics Commons^™

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 11, Spring 2019

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

Blockchain Technology - China's Bid To High Long-Run Growth, Tyler J. Mann

Gettysburg Economic Review

Despite having the second largest economy at $13 trillion, China has only recently surpassed the World Bank’s definition of the ‘middle-income range’ which is a gross national income per capita between $1,000 to $12,000 (constant 2011 international $). This is a noteworthy accomplishment since many other developing nations have fallen victim to economic stagnation within this range leading to the term “middle-income trap”. This paper will argue that one of the ways in which China escaped the middle-income trap and will continue to grow its economic influence is through the support of blockchain technology. Research and development, early technological adoption …

The Impact Of Aid On The Economic Growth Of Developing Countries (Ldcs) In Sub-Saharan Africa, Maurice W. Phiri

Gettysburg Economic Review

Least Developed Countries (LDCs) of Sub-Saharan African have been recipients of official development assistance for more than 5 decades; however they are still characterized by chronic problems of poverty, low living standards and weak economic growth. The hot question is: Is aid effective in promoting economic growth? Thus, this paper investigates the impact of aid on the economic growth of 12 least developed countries in Sub-Saharan Africa over a period of 20 years. I take a fixed effects instrumental variable approach and the results imply that aid has a statistically insignificant negative impact on economic growth. I therefore conclude that …

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 10, Spring 2017

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

Is There A Path For Green Growth? Evidence From India, Thuc Anh Thi Trinh

Gettysburg Economic Review

This paper uses historical temperature fluctuations in India to identify its effects on economic growth rates. Using a climate-adjusted form of the Solow growth model, I find that one degree Celsius increase in temperature decreases GDP per capita growth by 0.71%. This finding informs debates over the role of climate on economic development and suggests the possibility of a green path for economic growth, a policy agenda that is both sustainable and pro-growth.

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 9, Spring 2016

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

Restructuring The Eurozone, Anthony M. Juliano

Gettysburg Economic Review

This paper suggests that there should be a realignment of the current Eurozone. There has been research to argue that the Eurozone does not fit the Optimum Currency Area (OCA) criteria. This might be a contributing factor to the current economic crisis in Europe. I propose, based on results from k-means data clustering, that the Eurozone be divided into three separate regions under the European Central Bank (ECB). The division would allow for enhanced stabilization and efficiency due to better fitting of the OCA criteria and policy implications.

Global Climate Change, Fair Trade, And Coffee Price Volatility, Thomas M. Segerstrom

Gettysburg Economic Review

Fair Trade coffee sales have grown exponentially over the past fifteen years amidst a volatile and shaky coffee commodity market. This paper incorporates the prior research that global climate change will lead to more climate shocks with research on the coffee market’s volatility and farmer welfare. In accordance with prior research on commodity volatility, I develop an OLS estimator of the volatility of prices received by growers and evaluate the effect of climate shocks on it. I find that, when control variables are introduced, the volatility of the coffee price does increase at a statistically significant level with a climate …

Economic Development And Female Labor Force Participation In The Middle East And North Africa: A Test Of The U-Shape Hypothesis, Kelsey A. Chapman

Gettysburg Economic Review

This paper investigates the relationship between economic development and female labor force participation in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Using a panel data set of 20 countries in the region for the period of 1990-2012, I develop an econometric model that tests the U-shape hypothesis. This study builds upon previous literature examining the U-shape hypothesis in time series studies for developing countries, and cross-country studies. The results of this paper suggest that there is a U-shaped relationship between economic growth and female labor force participation rates. The MENA region’s low female labor force participation rates can be explained …

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 8, Spring 2015

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

Do Living Wages Alter The Effect Of The Minimum Wage On Income Inequality?, Benjamin S. Litwin

Gettysburg Economic Review

Anker (2006) proposed a new methodology for calculating the living wage in countries around the world. By looking at OECD nations between 2000-2010, we look to see if countries with a national minimum wage higher than this living wage value see a notable difference in the effect of the minimum wage on income inequality. Our results show that countries with the minimum wage higher than the living wage value do see lower inequality, although there is a key value of the minimum wage, at which countries start to see disemployment effects that increase inequality.

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 7, Spring 2013

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

China’S Local Government Debt And Economic Growth, Jia Qi Zhou

Gettysburg Economic Review

This paper explores the impact of China’s local government debt on economic growth. This analysis, based on a panel of 31 provinces over 14 years, takes into account a broad range of economic growth determinants as well as various estimation issues including heteroskedascity and omitted variable. The empirical results suggest an inverse relationship between China’s local government debt and economic growth, controlling for other determinants of growth: on average, a 10 percentage point increase in the debt-to-GDP ratio is associated with a slowdown in annual real per capita GDP growth of around 0.27 percentage points per year.

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 6, Spring 2012

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

Japan As A Clean Energy Leader, Stefan N. Norbom

Gettysburg Economic Review

Over the past several decades, Japan’s energy strategy had positioned it as the world’s leader in clean and efficient electricity production and usage. This strategy, heavily dependent on nuclear energy, was essentially destroyed by one of history’s largest earthquakes, followed by a tsunami which overwhelmed five nuclear reactors on March 11, 2011. As of April 2012, all of Japan’s 54 nuclear reactors have been shut down and it is uncertain when and how many may be restarted. This paper examines Japan’s options for crafting a new way forward with an energy policy to power the world’s third largest economy while …

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 5, 2011

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

Friedrich Von Hayek: The Socialist-Calculation Debate, Knowledge Arguments, And Modern Economic Development, Cara A. Elliott

Gettysburg Economic Review

At the close of the nineteenth and the commencement of the twentieth century, socialism began to gain momentum as a large-scale movement in Europe and the United States. This popularity was supported by an increased influence of the working class in society, which put pressure for representation upon European parliaments and began to secure concrete improvements in labor protection laws. Moreover, socialist proponents looked hopefully towards the living example of the Soviet Union, which began its socialist experiment in 1917 following the success of the Bolshevik Revolution. Socialism, which found its economic grounding in the legacies of such men as …

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 4, Spring 2010

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

Globalization And Economic Growth In Sub-Saharan Africa, Hadiatou Barry

Gettysburg Economic Review

This study analyzes Sub-Saharan Africa through the framework of globalization. The study‘s objective is to determine whether globalization is a significant factor when associated with economic growth in the region. Using panel data from 1995-2005 for 41 countries and the KOF globalization index, an Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) model was employed to examine the relationship between globalization and other traditional factors of economic growth such as trade, foreign direct investment, loans, aid, natural resources, corruption, and rule of law. The study shows that globalization has a positive, though statistically insignificant impact on the economic growth of Sub-Saharan Africa. However, globalization …

International Graduate Students And U.S. Innovation, Svetoslav I. Semov

Gettysburg Economic Review

This paper attempts to empirically evaluate the contribution of international graduate students to U.S. innovation. The main framework used is a simplified version of the ―national ideas production function‖. Two econometric specification are estimated – one in which a time trend is incorporated to observe the short-term relationship between the variables and one in which no time trend is included with the goal of capturing the variables‘ long term equilibrium relationship. The results suggest that in the long-term the number of international graduate students significantly (at the 10% level) affects innovative activity. However, when the short-term relationship of the variables …

A Comprehensive Economic Stimulus For Our Failing Economy, Sarah R. Anderson, Steven T. Ferraro, Jeffrey D. Greenlaw, Justin E. Holz, David H. Krisch, Jonathan M. Koury, Jamee L. Kuznicki, Stephen M. Mcnamee, Jeffrey D. Ryckbost, Kristi L. Saeger, Andrew L. Smith, Daniel B. Sprague, Ryan Willaurer, Timothy D. Wills, Benjamin B. Wood

Gettysburg Economic Review

This paper presents a comprehensive plan to fix the ailing American economy, through a five-step approach. First, the Federal Reserve must continue to broaden the scope of monetary policy, by purchasing and selling long-term securities. Manipulating expectations through FOMC statements is another tool at the Federal Reserve’s disposal. Secondly, the government must enact fiscal stimulus to stabilize the economy in the short and medium runs, through investment in infrastructure projects, green technology, fusion technology, and science education. Additionally, the new fiscal policy must tackle the mortgage meltdown, which is weighing down the entire economy. Third, the regulatory system must be …

The Economic Decline Of Zimbabwe, Chidochashe L. Munangagwa

Gettysburg Economic Review

For the past decade, Zimbabwe has been experiencing an economic decline that has resulted in an inflation rate of 231 million percent and an unemployment rate of over 90 percent. Past research has concluded that the economic decline of Zimbabwe has mainly been caused by poor monetary policies and failure of fiscal policies to control the budget deficit. This research aimed to closely examine some of these policies that the Zimbabwean government implemented, the effects of these policies on economic activity, employment and inflation levels in the country. By interviewing many economic analysts in Zimbabwe, I managed to gather the …

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 3, Spring 2009

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 2, Spring 2008

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

Industry Structure Similarities, Trade Agreements, And Business Cycle Synchronization, Samuel D. Marll

Gettysburg Economic Review

This paper analyzes the effects of industry structure similarities, free trade agreements, and geographic borders on regional business cycle correlation, using fifty US states, 10 Canadian provinces, and 1 Canadian territory as a case study. Using two cross-sectional OLS regressions and one panel data OLS regression, this study finds that pair-wise gross territorial product growth correlation decreased significantly after NAFTA ratification for state-state, province-province, and state-province territorial pairs, contrary to previous literature’s results. NAFTA effectively decoupled intra-national business cycles in the US and Canada while also desynchronizing cross-border pair-wise GSP growth correlation, but cross-border pair-wise GSP growth correlation was much …

Have Cafe Standards Reduced The Effect Of Gasoline Prices On Domestic Automobile Manufacturers’ Market Share Of The Us Market?, Abdelwahed Tazi

Gettysburg Economic Review

One of macroeconomists’ major concerns is GDP volatility, and understanding what causes this volatility is essential when attempting to reduce it. For decades, the automotive industry has been a major component of US GDP. Therefore, understanding the driving forces behind this industry indirectly contributes to the study of GDP volatility. This paper focuses on CAFE standards and how they change the effect of oil prices on US automobile sales.

What motivates this paper is the fact that during the mid-to-late 80s, fluctuations in the market share of domestic automobile manufacturers diminished substantially. Figure 1 presents the sales of domestic automakers’ …

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 1, Spring 2006

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.