International Economics Commons^™

Economic Impacts Of The 2004 Services Directive, Henk Lm Kox

Henk LM Kox

#1; About CPB #1; Our research on Services Directive #1; Policy differences as market-entry barrier #1; Effects of Services Directive on trade and FDI #1; Macroeconomic effects #1; Role country-of-origin principle #1; The way ahead

Privatizing Public Enterprises In The European Union 1960-2002: Ideological, Pragmatic, Inevitable?, Judith Clifton, Daniel Díaz-Fuentes, Francisco Comín

Judith Clifton

Privatization, recognized as one of the most important economic policy reforms from the 1970s, has attracted significant attention from scholars, and the literature on the topic is now vast. Yet there is little agreement on the reasons why governments privatized. Three dominant paradigms explaining European Union (EU) privatization put forward distinct motivations. The ‘British paradigm’ assumed that market-friendly ideology played a significant role in a path towards a global programme inspired by the UK experience. The ‘multiple logics’ approach observed that the UK was an anomaly, not a leader, and that EU privatization was so diverse that there were few, …

A Short-Run Johansen Industry Model For Common-Pool Resources: Planning A Fishery's Industrial Capacity To Curb Overfishing, Kristiaan Kerstens, Niels Vestergaard, Dale Squires

Niels Vestergaard

Current methods for assessing capacity and its utilisation in fisheries operate at the firm-level, but neglect industry capacity. Here, we introduce the Johansen-Färe measure of plant capacity of the firm into a multi-output, frontier-based version of the short-run Johansen industry model. The model determines firm capacity utilisation such that current industry outputs are maintained, while minimising the use of fixed inputs at industry level and assuming abundant variable inputs. Policy extensions relevant to combating overfishing include tightening quotas, seasonal closures, linking economic and plant capacity, decommissioning schemes and area closures, implementation issues and equity considerations. The application to the Danish …

The Trade-Induced Effects Of The Services Directive And The Country-Of-Origin Principle, Roland De Bruijn, Henk Lm Kox, Arjan Lejour

Henk LM Kox

Illegal Landings: An Aggregate Catch Self-Reporting Mechanism, Lars Gårn Hansen, Frank Jensen, Niels Vestergaard, Urs Steiner Brandt

Niels Vestergaard

To solve the problem of illegal landings this article proposes a new tax mechanism based on the regulator's own aggregate catch estimates and ex ante self-reports of planned catch by fishermen. We show that the mechanism avoids illegal landings while ensuring (nearly) optimal exploitation and generating (nearly) correct entry and exit incentives. Finally we simulate the mechanism for the Danish cod fishery in Kattegat to obtain a rough indicator of the size of the tax. It turns out that the average tax payment as a percentage of profit is surprisingly low.

Liberalisation Of The European Services Market And Its Impact On Switzerland: Assessing The Potential Impacts Of Following The Eu's 2004 Services Directive, Henk Lm Kox, Arjan Lejour

Henk LM Kox

On Measuring The Efficiency Of The Social Security System Reforms. The Case Of Poland, Joanna Tyrowicz, Piotr Mularczyk

Joanna Tyrowicz

As other European countries, transition economies face the reform of the social security system. As one of the first, Poland has introduced a pension reform in 1999, which changed a standard pay-as-you-go system into a one constructed of three pillars and based on addressed contributions. The five years from the reform allow to take a first look at the reform, both in terms of assessing the legal implementation as well as the realization of main assumptions and aims. In this paper we consider the effectiveness of the reform. We find that in many aspects this reform should not be considered …

‘Empowering Europe’S Citizens’? Towards A Charter For Services Of General Interest, Judith Clifton, Daniel Díaz-Fuentes, Francisco Comín

Judith Clifton

This article analyses the development of the European Union (EU) project of a Charter for Services of General Interest (SGI) from the mid-1990s to the publication of the White Paper on Services of General Interest and the draft European Constitution in 2004. Though service charters are often associated with New Public Management (NPM) reforms related to privatization, they are also an integral part of the process of EU institution building, and need to be understood alongside developments such as the Charter of Fundamental Rights. Using a four-stage model of international NPM convergence analysis four phases of the Charter for SGI …

Methodological Reflections On The Short-Run Johansen Industry Model In Relation To Capacity Management, Kristriaan Kerstens, Dale Squires, Niels Vestergaard

Niels Vestergaard

The specification of a convex production technology is a potential issue in estimating firm-level Johansen plant capacity utilisation rates and their subsequent use in the short-run Johansen industry capacity model of the fishery. There are different plant capacity utilisation estimates with convex and nonconvex technologies. When entered as parameters in the short-run Johansen industry model, this leads to different distributions in the activity vectors. With non-convex technology, more vessels remain active in the fleet, and there is no longer an overestimation of the number of decommissioned vessels compared to the use of a convex technology. A second methodological reflection involves …

Fishing Capacity In Europe: Special Issue Introduction, Niels Vestergaard

Niels Vestergaard

No abstract provided.

Sunk Cost And Entry-Exit Decisions Under Individual Transferable Quotas: Why Industry Restructuring Is Delayed, Niels Vestergaard, Frank Jensen, Henning P. Jørgensen

Niels Vestergaard

The paper shows that explicit modelling of sunk cost and a firm's entry-exit decision in a traditional deterministic investment model may give an explanation of the slow transition to the optimal fleet structure following the introduction of individual transferable quotas (ITQs). The analysis shows that the annual lease unit price of quota may be in a range where the long-run fieet structure will not be attainable at once. Over time, firms with zero gross investment as optimal behavior may leave the industry as the capital decays and over the transition period the optimal fieet structure prevails.

Agents Cooperation And Network Sustainability: A Note On Social Capital, Massimiliano Mazzanti

Massimiliano Mazzanti

No abstract provided.

The Contribution Of Business Services To Aggregate Productivity Growth, Henk Lm Kox

Henk LM Kox

Iraq Contracts Policy Bolsters Terrorist Agenda, Thierry Warin

Thierry Warin

Paul Wolfowitz, the US deputy secretary of defence, announced on December 9 a list of 63 countries allowed to bid on Iraq reconstruction contracts. A backlash is now in evidence: Germany, France and Russia will be excluded.

Determinantes Explícitos E Implícitos De La Deuda Externa Pública Peruana, José Manuel Martin Coronado

José-Manuel Martin Coronado

This research aims to prove that sound economic policies are nothing more that basic conditions for the foreign public debt problem. In fact, by studying the factors of public debt issues in Peru, Latin America and the emerging economies it’s clear that some implicit economic and non-economic factors have to be considered because of the social complexity and variable characteristics in emerging economies. This causes failures in economic policies assumptions, inefficiencies, distorted causality and nonrational behavior. This paper proposes, first, to perform a deep and comparative analysis of the foreign debt determinants in emerging economies, then, to allocate financial resources, …

Discrete Choice Models And Valuation Experiments, Massimiliano Mazzanti

Massimiliano Mazzanti

No abstract provided.

Technical Efficiency Of The Danish Trawl Fleet: Are The Industrial Vessels Better Than Others?, Niels Vestergaard, Dale Squires, Frank Jensen, Jesper Levring Andersen

Niels Vestergaard

Technical efficiency in the Danish trawl fishery in the North Sea is estimated for 1997-1998 with a stochastic production frontier model. This model allows for both technical efficiency and a stochastic environment. The results show that the production frontier can be modelled by a translog function with time effects and a technical inefficiency function. The type of fishery (industrial or consumption) and size of vessel give a good explanation for the inefficiency of the fleet. The average technical efficiency is estimated to be 0.80. On avrage, industrial vessels have a higher technical efficiency than human consumption vessels, and smaller industrial …

A Principal-Agent Analysis Of Fisheries, Frank Jensen, Niels Vestergaard

Niels Vestergaard

Very little principal-agent analysis has been done within the fisheries economic literature. This paper conducts a principal-agent analysis of fisheries. Within a standard principal-agent model, the low-cost agent must be allowed the same level of effort as under complete information. This conclusion does not hold for fisheries, because of a resource restriction and the fact that maximisation takes place over two variables. By means of comparative-static analysis, this paper argues that the low-cost agent must be allowed a larger effort than under complete information.

Management Of Fisheries In Eu: A Principal-Agent Analysis, Frank Jensen, Niels Vestergaard

Niels Vestergaard

In this paper, an EU tax on fishing effort is studied as an alternative to the system of Total Allowable Catches (TACs). The analysis is conducted under imperfect information, and the hypothesis adopted is that the EU lacks information about the costs of individual fishermen. In light of this imperfection, there are at least two reasons for considering an EU tax. First, it can be used to correct part of the market failure associated with fisheries. Second, it can be used to secure correct revelation of fishermen types in light of asymmetric information.

Les 35 Heures, Tout N'Est Pas Noir, Thierry Warin

Thierry Warin

Si l’on n’y prend pas garde, la réduction du temps de travail légal entraînera des effets non anticipés par le gouvernement. L’un d’entre eux est celui de l’augmentation du « travail au noir ». Aujourd’hui, les salariés sont contraints à ne pas dépasser 39 heures. S’ils le désirent, ils peuvent travailler moins en utilisant les contrats à temps partiel, mais en aucun cas, ils ne peuvent dépasser cette durée légale. Pourtant, certains d’entre eux utilisent leur temps libre pour arrondir les fins de mois. Des métiers sont plus propices à ces activités illégales : qui n’a jamais utilisé les services …

Institutional Changes And Discretionary Value For Property Rights In Drylands’ Farming Of The Sudan, Professor Issam A.W. Mohamed

Professor Issam A.W. Mohamed

Research on land tenure and use control and the socioeconomic sets of regulations in the agricultural rainfed sub sector of Sudan, come to focus for many reasons. Anthropogenic pressure, expanding animal population and migration led to accelerated impacts on both the ecological systems and land yields. Conflicts between governmental regulations and indigenous rules contribute to generate inconsistencies on who have the right to till the land and hence own it. With such transformation logically, more intensive commercial farming took place and land intake exponentially increased. Private or collective property rights of land are procured through traditional tenure, prescription, settlement or …

Measures Of Welfare Effects In Multiproduct Industries: The Case Of Multispecies Individual Quota Fisheries, Niels Vestergaard

Niels Vestergaard

A framework is developed to measure the welfare effects of individual quota reforms in multiproduct industries using the multimarket welfare measure techniques suggested by Just, Hueth, and Schmitz (1982) and the concept of virtual price in the production theory literature (Neary 1995; Squires and Kirkley 1996). Under joint in input production it shown that quasirent under a single quota can be measured by the producer surplus either in the output market for quota output or in the quota market. Under multiple quotas the welfare effects of quota policies can be measured in one of the quota markets using inverse derived …

People Adrift: Migration And Development (In Dutch), Free University, Amsterdam, Henk Lm Kox, Ko Heins

Henk LM Kox

People adrift is an edited volume that offers a rich perspective on migration and development. The introductory chapter by both editors provides an analytic survey of the major issues and their relations. The ten next chapters deal with migration motives, economic mechanisms, environmental issues, social and economic impacts on regions, relation with refugee flows and immigration barriers.

Bæredygtig Udnyttelse Af Fornybare Ressourcer: Torskefiskeriet Ved Færøerne, Niels Vestergaard

Niels Vestergaard

The Faroe Islands cod fishery is analyzed for the period 1985-1992. It is shown that an approximately optimal and implementable fishery policy based on sustainability have increased the gross national income in the fishery by about 20%. This loss is due to an inoptimal organization of the fishery during that period combined with a very low cod stock at the end of 1992, which means reduced future catch possibilities. that the fishing capacity could have been reduced by about 1/3. The policy of sustainability is applied to the current situation in the fishery, and it is shown that the current …