Asian Studies Commons^™

Commodity Super Cycles: A Reality Check, Maureen Derooij

Asian Management Insights

Do commodity super cycles exist, or are we simply seeing patterns in randomness? More importantly, are we in the middle of one that is showing signs of going bust?

The Fundamental Law Of Highway Congestion Revisited: Evidence From National Expressways In Japan, Wen-Tai Hsu, Hongliang Zhang

Research Collection School Of Economics

The fundamental law of highway congestion states that when congested, the travel speed on an expanded expressway reverts to its previous level before the capacity expansion. In this paper, we propose a theory that generalizes this statement and finds that if there exists a coverage effect, that is, the effect of longer road length on traffic conditional on capacity, then the new equilibrium travel speed could be lower than its previous level. Given the fundamental law, the theory predicts that the elasticity of traffic to road capacity is at least 1. We estimate this elasticity for national expressways in Japan …

Wealth Management In Singapore, Francis Koh

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

As early as 2015, Singapore may oust Switzerland as the world’s top finance hub. But the path forward requires adjustments in the strategic direction of individual firms. Wealth management in Singapore is vibrant, growing, challenging.

Long-Term Health Effects Of Malaria Exposure Around Birth: Evidence From Colonial Taiwan, Simon Chang, Belton Fleisher, Seonghoon Kim, Shi-Yung Liu

Research Collection School Of Economics

In the early 20th century, the Japanese colonial government initiated an island-wide malaria eradication campaign in Taiwan, resulting in not only a rapid decline in malaria across time but also elimination of disparity across regions. Exploiting variations in malaria deaths caused by the campaign, we estimate causal effects of malaria exposure around birth on the health of elderly born in the colonial period. To mitigate potential biases caused by measurement errors and omitted confounders, we employ climatic factors to instrument for malaria deaths. Our findings suggest that people who were exposed to a high malaria risk around birth tend to …

Improving Money's Worth Ratio Calculations: The Case Of Singapore's Pension Annuities, Joelle H. Y. Fong, Jean Lemaire, Yiu Kuen Tse

Research Collection School Of Economics

This article contributes to a better understanding of the risks involved in a life annuity investment. We examine the distribution of weighted annuity benefits and assess various measures of dispersion such as the coefficient of variance. In particular, we quantify the standard deviation about the expected value, thereby extending the usefulness of the popular money’s worth framework for annuity valuation. The effort toward a more detailed and more accurate risk picture of investing in annuities enables retirees to differentiate among products that may appear seemingly uniform in terms of money’s worth, but vary widely in terms of their risk attributes.

Dynamic Poverty Decomposition Analysis: An Application To The Philippines, Tomoki Fujii

Research Collection School Of Economics

In this paper, we propose a new method of poverty decomposition. Our method remedies the shortcomings of existing methods and has some desirable properties such as time reversion consistency and subperiod additivity. It integrates the existing methods of growth redistribution decomposition and sector-based decomposition, because it allows us to decompose the change in poverty into growth and redistribution components for each group (e.g., regions or sectors) in the economy. We extend our method to include six components and provide an empirical application to the Philippines for the period 1985–2009.

The Lasting Impact Of Parental Early Life Malnutrition On Their Offspring: Evidence From The China Great Leap Forward Famine, Seonghoon Kim, Quheng Deng, Belton M. Fleisher, Shi Li

Research Collection School Of Economics

We investigate whether the effects of parents’ in utero malnutrition extend to the second generation (their children). Specifically, we explore whether the second generation’s level of schooling is negatively impacted by their parents’ malnutrition in utero, using the China Famine as a natural experiment. We find that, the impact of mother’s in utero malnutrition due to the Famine reduced second generation male and female entrance into junior secondary school by about 5–7 percentage points. We measure famine severity with provincial excess death rates instrumented by measures of adverse climate conditions, which corrects for possible biases induced by measurement errors and …

Monetary Regime Choice In Singapore: Would A Taylor Rule Outperform Exchange-Rate Management?, Hwee Kwan Chow, G. C. Lim, Paul D. Mcnelis

Research Collection School Of Economics

This paper adopts a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium-vector autorgressive (DSGE-VAR) approach to examine the managed exchange-rate system at work in Singapore. We examine if the country has any reason to fear floating the exchange rate and adopting a Taylor rule. Our results show that, in terms of overall inflation volatility, the exchange rate rule has a comparative advantage over the Taylor rule when export price shocks are the major sources of real volatility, while a Taylor rule dominates when domestic productivity shocks drive real volatility. The exchange-rate rule also dominates the Taylor rule for reducing inflation persistence.

Budget 2014 Is About Doing The Right Thing, Tan K. B. Eugene

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In a commentary, SMU Associate Professor of Law and NMP Eugene Tan opined that the Budget’s move for the Pioneer Generation Package (PGP) was important and the right thing to do, as it mattered politically, and provided benefits and assurance to the pioneers. He said it was wise to set aside the $8b cost of the package, so future generations would not bear the cost of financing it. The Budget had acknowledged its role in caring for the elderly as well as preparing for the future and promoting social mobility through education assistance schemes for the children of lower earners, …

The Makings Of A Social Investment State, Tan K. B. Eugene

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In a commentary, SMU Associate Professor of Law and NMP Eugene Tan opined that the Budget was an economic, political and social instrument, and not just a fiscal policy instrument. He said that key economic themes persisted in Budget 2014: productivity, restructuring, reducing reliance on foreign labour and long-term planning. He highlighted that the Budget was dominated by social themes, as it exuded inclusiveness, equity and gratitude. The Government’s expansion of schemes to reduce the income gap and improve social mobility was actually a move to make up for its lack of investments in the social sector in past years, …

An Analysis Of The Appreciation Of The Chinese Currency And Influences On China's Economy, Lina Ma

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, China's economy development has had more and more impact on the global economy. The Chinese currency continued to appreciate since 2005, which has had both positive and negative results on Chinese's economy. The Chinese government uses the monetary policy to control the inflation pressure, which could work counter to Chinese exchange rate policy. RMB appreciation also has some effects on the Chinese banking system. Through the Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP), a global computable general equilibrium model, we analyze how, when there is RMB appreciation, the Chinese exports and imports, and Chinese employment and income inequality react. …

Transnational Marriage: Modern Imaginings, Relational Realignments, And Persistent Inequalities, Coralynn V. Davis

Faculty Journal Articles

In the context of shifting cultural anchors as well as unstable global economic conditions, new practices of intimacy and sexuality may become tactics in an individual’s negotiation of conflicting desires and potentials. This article offers reflection on the interface between global forces, powerful transcultural narratives, and state policies, on the one hand, and local, even individual, constructions and tactics in regard to sexuality, marriage, migration, and work, on the other. The article focuses on the life trajectory of Gudiya, an ambitious young Hindu woman who started out life with little social capital and few economic resources in a dusty corner …

Reversing The Flood Of Forced Displacement: Shedding Light On Important Determinants Of Return Migration, Prakash Adhikari Ph.D., Wendy L. Hansen Ph.D.

Himalayan Research Papers Archive

Most current research on forced migration focuses on explaining patterns of displacement during armed conflicts and the role that social networks play in pulling people away from conflict torn areas. But what happens to displaced persons after a conflict ends? While many of these individuals are able to resettle in the place to which they fled during conflict, some individuals return to their places of origin while others remain in limbo. This research seeks to better understand behavior after flight. Using a rational choice framework, we theorize that people are strategic in their calculations of the costs and benefits of …

South-South Relations And The English School Of International Relations: Chinese And Brazilian Ideas And Involvement In Sub-Saharan Africa, Joseph Marques, Anthony Spanakos

Department of Political Science and Law Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The rise of large developing countries has led to considerable discussions of re-balancing global relations and giving greater priority to understanding South-South relations. This paper, in exploring the central ideas of Chinese and Brazilian foreign policy and the behavior of these two rising Southern countries toward Sub-Saharan Africa, argues that the English School of International Relations is well suited to understanding the intentions and actions that characterize South-South relations.

Singapore's Housing Policies: 1960-2013, Sock Yong Phang, Kyunghwan Kim

Research Collection School Of Economics

The focus of this case study is on the important role of real estate and housing policies in Singapore’s economic development. In the sphere of housing policy, Singapore is known for its high homeownership rates, the very significant role played by the government in housing supply and housing finance, and the wealth that has been created and distributed in the process.

Relook Link Between Low Wages And Foreign Workers, Hian Teck Hoon

Research Collection School Of Economics

He felt that the commonplace idea that the huge inflow of foreign workers in the past decade caused a stagnation and even decline in real wage earnings of Singaporean workers in the bottom half of the income distribution was flawed. He argued that real wage earnings of the median worker actually increased when the number of inflows of foreign workers was reaching its peak. Prof Hoon thus felt that Singapore must now find a means to gear its political and economic institutions to continue to embrace economic openness in the next half-century, in order to be able to deliver good …

An Exploratory Study On The Adoption And Use Of Ict In Myanmar, Sim Kim Lau, Graham K. Winley, Sim Yee Lau, Kim Song Tan

Research Collection School Of Economics

This exploratory study investigates the adoption and use of information and communication technologies in Myanmar by examining the nature and structure of the information technology profession. The investigation is based on a theoretical framework consisting of three components: domains of information technology professional expertise; the scope of the information technology professional’s knowledge, skills and experience; and specific knowledge and skills associated with the domains of professional expertise. The findings show that specialist skills in systems development, database, network and communications are important. This paper also provides insights that are not found in current literature which investigates information technology skills in …

Detecting Bubbles In Hong Kong Residential Property Market, Matthew S. Yiu, Jun Yu, Lu Jin

Research Collection School Of Economics

This study uses a newly developed bubble detection method (Phillips, Shi, and Yu, 2011) to identify real estate bubbles in the Hong Kong residential property market. Our empirical results reveal several positive bubbles in the Hong Kong residential property market, including one in 1995, a stronger one in 1997, yet another one in 2004, and a more recent one in 2008. In addition, the method identifies two negative bubbles in the data, one in 2000 and the other one in 2001. These empirical results continue to be valid for the mass segment and the luxury segment. However, this method has …

Overcoming Fear Of The ‘Other’, Tan K. B. Eugene

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In a commentary about the political and economic changes in Myanmar, SMU Associate Professor of Law and NMP Eugene Tan opined that deep-seated sectarian conflict could prove to be the Achilles heel of Myanmar’s reforms. He noted that the mere introduction of democracy anywhere will not miraculously transform voters into fair-minded citizens and that democracy requires the rule of law, a minimal level of education and political maturity, or it would degenerate into the tyranny of majority rule where might is right. Associate Prof Tan said that Myanmar must guard against this tendency and embrace the rich diversity in its …

Minimum Wage In A Deflationary Economy: The Japanese Experience, 1994-2003, Ryo Kambayashi, Daiji Kawaguchi, Ken Yamada

Research Collection School Of Economics

The statutory minimum wage in Japan has increased continuously for a few decades until the early 2000s even during a period of deflation. This paper examines the impact of the minimum wage on wage and employment outcomes under this unusual circumstance. We find that the minimum-wage increase resulted in the compression of the lower tail of the wage distribution among women and that the wage compression is only partially attributable to the loss of employment. The continuous increase in the minimum wage accounts for one half of the reduction in lower-tail inequality that occurred among women during the period between …

Affordable Fares, Sustainable Public Transport: The Fare Review Mechanism Committee Report, Sock Yong Phang

Research Collection School Of Economics

The public transport system in Singapore is the main mode of transport for the majority of the population. It is important that public transport remains generally affordable and accessible, with measures to help various commuter groups through fare assistance schemes. Household surveys show that public transport has become more affordable as a proportion of monthly household income over the years. Public transport fares have increased, but at a much lower rate than increases in income. At the same time, increasing fuel costs and other changes in the public transport landscape since 2005 mean that the public transport industry faces declining …

Geographic Decomposition Of Inequality In Health And Wealth: Evidence From Cambodia, Tomoki Fujii

Research Collection School Of Economics

Applying the small-area estimation methods to Cambodia data, we decompose the total inequality in wealth (consumption) and health (child undernutrition) indicators into within-location and between-location components. Because the knowledge of the pattern of spatial disparity in poverty and undernutrition is important for the geographic targeting of resources, we conduct a geographic decomposition of the variance of the Foster-Greere-Thorbecke index in addition to the standard decomposition exercise based on the generalized entropy measures. We find that a sizable proportion of wealth inequality is due to between-location inequality, whereas health inequality is mainly due to within-location inequality.

Housing Policies In Singapore: Evaluation Of Recent Proposals And Recommendations For Reform, Sock Yong Phang, David Kuo Chuen Lee, Alan Cheong, Kok Fai Phoon, Karol Wee

Research Collection School Of Economics

The Singapore housing market is unusual in its high homeownership rate, the dominance of HDB housing, and the extensive intervention of the government in regulating housing supply and demand in both the HDB and private housing sectors. Recent rapid population increases in a low interest rate and high global liquidity environment has resulted in accelerated house prices increases in Singapore. Earlier this year, the government launched “Our Singapore Conversation” of which discussion on housing policies constitutes one major component. This “conversation” comes in the wake of several consecutive rounds of measures to stabilize housing prices using various instruments. This paper …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Cooling Measures On Property Prices: An Exploration Of Alternative Econometric Techniques, Kuo Chuen Lee, Sock Yong Phang, Kok Fai Phoon, Karol Wee

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

No abstract provided.

Improving Housing Status Quo, Sock Yong Phang, David K. C. Lee

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

On home ownership and upgrading, PM Lee Hsien Loong has reaffirmed the Government's objective to make home ownership more affordable for all first-time buyers, especially low-income earners, through increasing the amounts of targeted housing grant subsidies. He spelt out the desired outcomes of housing affordability policy through his detailed matching of Housing Board flat type with household incomes.

Is The Renminbi East Asia’S Dominant Reference Currency? A Reconsideration, Hwee Kwan Chow

Research Collection School Of Economics

Recent empirical studies show that the Chinese currency renminbi is either becoming or has become a dominant reference currency in East Asia. This paper reviews the evidence with daily exchange rate data from seven East Asian economies namely, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Taiwan. We consider the likely problems and pitfalls associated with the application of Frankel-Wei regressions to determine the weights of the US dollar and the renminbi in the implicit currency baskets. We show empirically the estimation of currency weights using non-orthogonalised renminbi movements could suffer from imprecision and/or inconsistency. To circumvent the simultaneity bias …

Policy Responses In An Unstable Globalized Economy: Multi-Stressed Low-Earning Families In Singapore, Irene Y. H. Ng, Kong Weng Ho

Research Collection School Of Economics

The Singapore government responded swiftly to the 2008 global recession, doling out a range of policies in aid of all levels of wage earners. This paper explores the impacts of economic trends and government policies on low-wage earners. Using a theoretical model and empirical data from a pilot study of recipients of a government Work Support Program, it demonstrates the effects of socioeconomic factors on multi-stressed low-earning families. It discusses the adequacy of current policies in addressing the multiple stressors experienced by low-wage earners.

Blue Growth In The Middle Kingdom: An Analysis Of China’S Ocean Economy, Rui Zhao, Stephen Hynes, Guang Shun He

Working Papers

This paper builds on the work carried out by OEAS in China, which established the framework of ocean economy accounting in China. It also demonstrates how it is possible to compile ocean economy data, from the existing government databases in China. The Chinese ocean economy was divided into two separate parts for the purpose of the analysis presented; the ocean industry and ocean-related industry. Data was collected for 12 major ocean industries. Using a similar methodology to that developed in previous international studies, it was found that the major ocean industries produced US$239.09 billion in value added output in 2010 …

How Does Childbirth Alter Intrahousehold Resource Allocation?: Evidence From Japan, Tomoki Fujii, Ryuichiro Ishikawa

Research Collection School Of Economics

Exploiting unique panel data that include direct measurements of resource allocation within households, we investigated the impact of childbirth on intrahousehold allocation for married Japanese couples. Based on a collective model of the household, we developed reduced-form and structural-form estimation equations that allow us to focus on private goods to track the changes in intrahousehold resource allocation. We found one additional child is associated with a reduction in the wife's private expenditure share by at least two percentage points. This may be because she substitutes more say in decisions on the children for her own private expenditure share.

China's 80后 And 90后: The Next Generation Of Leaders In The World's Next Superpower, A Students-Teaching-Students Course, Patrick Slavin

Senior Honors Projects

In light of China’s recent reemergence as a global superpower, it is becoming increasingly important for westerners to understand its history and culture. For current college students, the culture of China’s youth is particularly pertinent.

In this project, a course, HPR 107: Chinese Youth Culture, was designed and taught through the Students-Teaching-Students program, which provides senior Honor’s Program students the opportunity to design and teach their own Honor’s Program course. The HPR 107 course focuses on China’s 80后 and 90后 generations, those born in the 1980s and 1990s, respectively.

This multi-faceted project includes: subject matter research, course development, pedagogy development, …