Statistical indicators used to analyze international specialization are manifold. However, most of them do not measure exactly the intensity of revealed comparative advantages and do not distinguish it from other aspects such as trade performance. This paper surveys the available indicators, discriminating between trade specialization and productive specialization (the gap between domestic supply and demand). It is asserted that in order to describe the international specialization pattern of a country, it is enough to consider the product distribution of the elementary trade balances, normalized with respect to trade (trade specialization) or to internal demand (production specialization). Indeed, while the individual, normalized trade balances are only performance indicators, deviations from their average correctly measure the intensity of specialization. (JEL F10; Int'l Advances in Econ. Res., 7(1): pp. 173-183, May 01. ©All Rights Reserved)

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Central levels of government in European Union member countries are different regarding their basic institutions, powers, fiscal systems, accountability, public performance management, financial control bodies, and the like. In spite of this, the economic operation of such levels of government should be analyzed, evaluated, and compared from an efficiency viewpoint. This paper presents general indicators to systematically assess the burden and benefit visibility of public budgets of the International Monetary Fund member countries and specific estimates for the central subsystems of public revenue and expenditure now in force in such European countries. An important policy implication of these estimates seems straightforwardly perceived: significant allocation improvements could be obtained by implementing changes and reforms, aiming to raise their current visibility values. (JEL E62; Int'l Advances in Econ. Res., 7(1): pp. 184-198, May 01. ©All Rights Reserved)

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This paper analyzes the impact of public research and development (R&D) on private sector output. It is argued that giving away public R&D will increase the input supply of private R&D and, accordingly, will enlarge business sector output. A model based on panel data for all five Nordic countries is estimated by a maximum likelihood procedure allowing for nonlinear relationships. The hypothesis is also tested within a cointegration methodology framework. Evidence is present concerning national spillovers from public R&D to private R&D in Denmark, Finland, and Iceland. For Norway and Sweden, international spillover effects seem to be more dominant. (O3, H5, D24; Int'l Advances in Econ. Res., 7(1): pp. 199-212, May 01. ©All Rights Reserved)

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This paper analyzes a two-stage model of bilateral bargaining where one of the agents has the option to delegate. A first approach is to assume that the contract between the agent and his representative is perfectly observable and can be renegotiated. Commitment effects arise although renegotiation is possible. Then, perfect observability of the contract is weakened to observe it with certain probability. Commitment effects as pure-strategy equilibria exist if this probability is sufficiently close to 1, in contrast to Bagwell's [1995] findings that imperfect observability undermines commitment. Considering the realistic case of the actual agreement between two parties being private information, the commitment value as equilibrium outcome disappears since having closed a renegotiation-proof contract offers costless self-insurance against strategic misunderstandings. (JEL C78, L12, L14; Int'l Advances in Econ. Res., 7(1): pp. 213-230, May 01. ©All Rights Reserved)

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Using logistic regression, this paper studies the relationship between the high and nonhigh income countries and a set of indicators of human progress and economic growth. The results show that expenditure on education is the single most relevant factor helping economies to move in the direction of high income countries. (JEL C25; Int'l Advances in Econ. Res., 7(1): pp. 231-242, May 01. ©All Rights Reserved)

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Suppose the marginal cost of a bundle is less than the sum of the marginal costs of the two products that make up the bundle. In this case, even when demands are completely uncorrelated, bundling is profitable but usually reduces total sales. The primary assumption of this paper is that firms are reluctant to bundle because they resist the loss in sales. Three optimization problems are analyzed: no bundling, mixed bundling, and bundling with profits and sales objectives, in which the firm has an objective function with a penalty for lost sales. This paper will show that firms benefit by bundling even if they modify their prices in such a way to reduce (or reverse) any loss in sales. (JEL D2; Int'l Advances in Econ. Res., 7(1): pp. 243-252, May 01. ©All Rights Reserved)

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This study investigates the direction of causality between the money supply and reserve money for some selected Caribbean countries using recently developed techniques of causality tests. The findings suggest that neither money endogeneity nor money exogeneity can be generalized to all small, open economies. The causal patterns may differ according to whether the monetary arrangements of the countries follow either a fixed or flexible exchange rate regime. Moreover, this study highlights the fact that a mixed bag of policies must be implemented by respective central banks to maintain macroeconomic stability. (JEL E50; Int'l Advances in Econ. Res., 7(1): pp. 253-258, May 01. ©All Rights Reserved)

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Brown and Reid [1997] employed an introspective approach to their examination of consumers' shopping experiences. The authors focused on the negative aspects or feelings associated with shopping. The principal aim of this current paper is to replicate the Brown and Reid research at an international level to discover whether their findings were relevant regarding shoppers' behavior across different national markets. With this in mind, some international master's of business administration students were asked to write their own introspective essays on shopping. The essay was to reflect the student's opinions, experiences, likes, and dislikes on shopping. (JEL M31; Int'l Advances in Econ. Res., 7(1): pp. 259-266, May 01. ©All Rights Reserved)

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Copyright © International Atlantic Economic Society, May 2001

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Publication does not necessarily represent approval, concurrence, or official endorsement of the statements and opinions herein by the International Atlantic Economic Society. Publication number: ISSN 1083-0898.

Suggested Citation
International Advances in Economic Research, Volume 7, Number 2, May 2001