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China's Belt and Road Initiative revisited
No full textThe Belt and Road initiative (BRI), introduced by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013, is an economic and geopolitical mega-project that has become a centrepiece of China's foreign and economic policy. The original goal was to better connect the Asian economies with Europe. However, over time the BRI has changed fundamentally. This Policy Brief will provide an overview of these changes, starting with a rapid extension of the BRI to Africa and Latin America, followed by a certain slowing down of China's engagement. After the COVID-19 pandemic, a significant change of the pattern of projects can be observed, with a pivot away from large-scale infrastructure projects, a certain 'multilateralisation' of projects, and a focus on investments in 'green energy' and 'green technologies', e.g. batteries. However, securing critical minerals, strategically important transport infrastructure for trade and China's position in the 'Global South' remain important. Therefore, some geopolitical aspects and challenges for Europe and the U.S. as well as possible answers (such as Global Gateway and the Partnership for Global Infrastructure Investment, PGII) are discussed. We will conclude with some remarks on policy options for Europe respectively European and, in particular, Austrian companies.Die Seidenstraßen Initiative (Belt and Road Initiative, BRI) steht für ein wirtschaftliches und geopolitisches Megaprojekt das, vom chinesischen Präsidenten Xi Jinping im Jahre 2013 initiiert, seither ein zentrales Element der Außen- und Wirtschaftspolitik des Landes darstellt. Das ursprüngliche Ziel, einer besseren Konnektivität zwischen Asien und Europa, hat sie sich im Laufe der Zeit stark verändert. Dieser Policy Brief gibt einen Überblick über die Entwicklung der Initiative, über ihre Ausdehnung auf Afrika und Lateinamerika, gefolgt von einer gewissen Redimensionierung und einer signifikanten Veränderung der Art der Projekte nach COVID-19: Weg von großen Infrastrukturprojekten, mehr Kooperation mit ausländischen Investoren sowie ein Fokus auf 'grüne' Energieprojekte und Investitionen in 'grüne' Technologien (z.B. Batterien). Dies allerdings ohne für China wesentliche strategische Aspekte, wie wichtige Transport-Infrastruktur für den Außenhandel, die Versorgung mit kritischen Mineralien und die Sicherung seiner Position im 'Globalen Süden' außer Acht zu lassen. Der Policy Brief geht daher auch auf geopolitische Aspekte und die Herausforderungen die sich daraus für Europa bzw. die USA ergeben (Global Gateway, Partnerschaft für globale Infrastrukturinvestitionen) ein. Abschließend werden Schlussfolgerungen gezogen, wie Europa bzw. europäische Unternehmen auf die neue Situation reagieren und möglicherweise Vorteile daraus ziehen könnten
Development strategies for the green hydrogen economy in emerging economies
No full textGreen hydrogen is widely recognized as a promising solution for reconciling economic growth with environmental sustainability. It holds significant potential for decarbonizing hard-to-abate sectors, such as steel and chemicals, and for fostering industrial development, job creation, and technological learning. However, the pathways through which emerging economies can effectively seize these opportunities remain underexplored. This paper addresses this gap by analyzing the green hydrogen strategies of Brazil, Chile, China, and South Africa. Drawing on extensive data, including stakeholder interviews, governmental documents, and academic sources, it uncovers marked contrasts in how these countries approach this window of opportunity. While Chile and South Africa prioritize green hydrogen, and Chile adopts an export-oriented agenda, Brazil and China adopt more technology-agnostic approaches that emphasize domestic markets. These variations reflect differences in natural resource endowments, energy infrastructure, and market dynamics. The analysis reveals that industrial policies across these countries focus predominantly on supply-side measures, with demand-side incentives lagging behind. Moreover, private sector responses often diverge from national strategies, illustrating the challenges of aligning policies with market realities. The findings emphasize the need for tailored, context-sensitive approaches to green hydrogen development, challenging the notion of a universal blueprint. For policymakers in the Global South, this study offers critical insights for leveraging green hydrogen for industrial transformation
Elicitation bias in multiple price lists: A field experiment
No full textMultiple Price Lists (MPLs) or Choice Lists (CLs) are widely used to elicit risk and time preferences, yet are prone to cognitive biases, particularly among respondents with limited numeracy skills. This paper compares three elicitation approaches; row-by-row from the top, from the bottom, and a Rapid Elicitation (RE) method using random starting points; in a field experiment with 906 rural Malawian farmers. With 20 MPLs per subject, we estimate starting point and order biases in switch points using nonparametric and parametric methods. Row-by-row elicitation from the top or bottom introduces significant bias in preference elicitation, with effect sizes of up to 0.4 standard deviations. In contrast, the RE approach yields significantly lower starting point bias (Cohen's d of 0.08 or less). Order effects were present but smaller in magnitude. RE also reduced cognitive load and shortened response time. These findings underscore the importance of the elicitation method in experimental design, particularly in low-literacy settings. The RE method offers a more reliable and scalable tool for eliciting behavioral preferences in development economics
A Paradox of Inclusion in Cities: Homemaking of Refugees and Natives in Urban Space
No full textIn this research, we aimed to explore a paradox of inclusion that emerges in the homemaking activities of refugees and natives. On one side, natives perceive threat from refugees and tend to preserve their home by excluding them from urban spaces. On the other side, refugees strive to make a new home and seek to regain homely feelings. Therefore, we examined inclusion both as an outcome variable (willingness for inclusion in the native context) and as a predictor (perceived inclusion in the refugee context). One distinctive aspect of this study is that both natives and refugees have comparably similar ethnocultural backgrounds (either Kurds or Arabs) re-encountered after the Syrian proxy war. A total of 421 natives (Study 1, Mage = 37.1, SD = 14.3; 50% women), and 889 refugees (Study 2, Mage = 36.59; SD = 12.51; 62% women) living in Mardin (a city in Turkey bordering Syria) were surveyed. Both groups of participants were asked about their daily life activities across places (dwelling, neighborhood, city center) as related to homemaking. In addition, natives were asked about the extent they perceived threat from, and ascribed social reputation to refugees, whereas refugees were asked about the extent they were satisfied with the urban life and spaces they felt homely. Our results highlight the importance of focusing on the inclusion paradox in the context of mobility (including forced migration), which generates a new disadvantaged layer in society even among people with similar ethnocultural backgrounds when one group is regarded as refugees and the other natives
Profit-share auctions in procurement
No full textWe investigate profit-share auctions in a procurement context,comparing them with traditional cash auctions to identify which mechanism yields lower expenses for buyers. We also explore whether specifying a high project value in profit-share auction contracts influences supplier bidding behavior. Using theoretical analysis and experimental methods, we observe that profit-share auctions lead to lower buyer expenses compared to traditional cash auctions. Furthermore, we find that the buyer benefits from specifying a high project value in the contract, as this commitment induces more aggressive bidding from the suppliers. While profit-share auctions result in significantly lower buyer expenses than cash auctions, the observed differences are smaller than predicted. This discrepancy is due to (i) more pronounced underbidding in cash auctions and (ii) lower efficiency in profit-share auctions caused by noisy bidding. Our findings suggest that managers can reduce procurement costs by adopting profit-share auctions and strategically committing to a high project value in contracts. However,they should be aware that real-world savings may be smaller than theoretically predicted due to supplier bidding behavior
Expenditure responses to adverse health shocks: Evidence from a panel of Colombian households
No full textWe analyze the effect of adverse health shocks on households' expenditure shares in different good categories using a fixed-effects approach and a structural approach based on microeconomic theory. We find that, on average, households substitute health and food expenditure in response to adverse health shocks. Our estimates unveil substantial heterogeneity in this trade-off mediated by access to social protection, job contract type, and urban or rural location. Households from rural areas - where household heads are more likely to hold informal jobs and lack access to safety nets - engage in more substitution of food expenditure for health expenditure than others. Our findings suggest that access to formal employment and a higher quality of local institutions can help mitigate the negative consequences of health shocks for household
On the collection of MiFIR transparency data: An application to the ECB eligible marketable assets
No full textOne of the main goals of launching the EU's second Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II) and the respective Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation (MiFIR) was to increase the transparency of transactions in financial markets. Prior to MiFID II, transparency requirements in financial markets were limited mostly to equities traded in regulated markets. Following MiFID II, transactions now need to be publicly reported for a broader range of financial assets. Furthermore, disclosures on financial transactions are not restricted to those transactions executed in regulated markets but apply also to those executed over the counter. Importantly, this information should be made available free of charge, ensuring non-discriminatory access, within the 15 minutes following the transaction. The published information should also be machine-readable. The purpose of this paper is to show how a relatively simple IT tool may be devised that gathers data on market prices and transacted volumes published in compliance with MiFID II. We steer our simple IT tool towards retrieving data on those financial assets that are eligible for use as collateral in Eurosystem credit operations. This includes those assets eligible for outright purchase under the various monetary policy programmes launched by the Eurosystem. In view of the importance of UK financial markets when it comes to trading in Eurosystem eligible marketable assets, our tool also covers transactions and quotes reported by UK trading venues and investment firms in compliance with UK MiFIR. Apart from the merits and potential of our IT tool, this paper documents some of the tool's shortcomings related to processing the posted MiFID II and UK MiFIR raw data. It also covers some of the deficiencies associated with the data. Increased market transparency contributes to deeper and more integrated financial markets, potentially supporting economic growth. ECB access to these rich financial market data is very important for the conduct of its monetary policy. This is the case not only from the perspective of gathering all information relevant for monitoring financing conditions in euro area financial markets. It is also the case that the availability of pre-trade and post-trade data published in compliance with MiFIR could be a useful day-to-day tool for central bank monetary implementation and risk mitigation. The data collected provide a rich description of the price, liquidity and depth of various types of ECB eligible marketable assets
Unmasking privacy apprehension: A bibliometric review of mobile sharing economy applications
No full textThe emergence of mobile applications (apps) that utilize sharing economy concepts has revolutionized multiple industries, including transportation, accommodation, healthcare, and other sectors. With the nature of massive data collection and sharing policies, these platforms create serious privacy concerns for their users, even though they enhance existing services and enable new economic potential. This research identifies the key contributors and knowledge concerning privacy apprehensions and mobile sharing economy apps. We analyze downloaded bibliographic data from 201 papers from the Scopus database and present the main contributors in the field based on criteria such as journal, article, author, institution, and country. We further employ keyword co-occurrence and thematic mapping techniques to create a scientific map that reveals three distinct groups (clusters) and pinpoints the prominent papers for each cluster. This paper offers valuable insights into the literature's current progress and points out potential directions for future research in terms of privacy concerns in mobile sharing economy apps
Investor overreactions to transnational peer firm earnings: The role of accounting standards
No full textThis study finds that accounting standards play an important role in cross‐border investor reactions to peer firm earnings. Specifically, we document that when international peer firms report under the same accounting standards, investors overreact to peer firms' earnings announcements. Using a sample of 35,116 firm‐pair‐years from 51 countries between 2000 and 2010, we show that heightened information transfers for international same‐standard firms are followed by predictable price reversals when investors observe own‐firm earnings. However, overreactions are not present for international firm‐pairs that follow different accounting standards. While we find that institutional investors learn over time, overreactions do not decline among retail investors. Additional tests suggest that overreactions cause significant excess volatility, which results in economically significant costs. Collectively, our findings document an unintended consequence of financial reporting harmonization in the form of increased investor overreactions
Social preferences and environmental externalities
No full textStandard economic theory assumes that consumers ignore the externalities they create, such as emissions from burning fossil fuels and generating waste. In an incentivized study (N = 3, 718), we find that most people forgo substantial gains to avoid imposing negative externalities on others. Using administrative data on household waste, we show a clear link between such prosociality and waste behavior: prosociality predicts lower residual waste generation and higher waste sorting. Prosociality also predicts survey-reported pro-environmental behaviors such as lowering indoor temperature, limiting air travel, and consuming eco-friendly products. These findings highlight the importance of considering social preferences in environmental policy