56,151 research outputs found
Recent Publication Productivity of Czech Economists
No full textThe author presents individual and institutional rankings based on the publications of Czech economists in impact-factor journals during 1998 to 2005 with the purpose of measuring the international competitiveness of Czech economists. His accounting methodology is egalitarian by international socio-metric standards, accounting also for publications in journals with low impact factor.impact factor; journal publications; Czech Republic; research
"Put your own house in order first": local perceptions of EU influence on Romani integration policies in the Czech Republic
No full textThis article examines the influence of the European Union (EU) on the development and implementation of Romani integration policy in the Czech Republic from the perspective of those responsible for policy delivery. Based on analysis of key policy documents and research conducted in the Czech Republic, this article first examines how Romani integration became a more important issue during membership negotiations and then discusses how the criticism of the European Commission's Regular Reports was received by those responsible for implementing pro-Romani policies. Finally, the paper assesses how the status of full EU membership has impacted on integration policy. The article concludes that while funding for Romani integration projects has benefitted some groups, the overall impression of the EU is of a remote institution, quick to criticise and unwilling to practise what it preaches
Voucher funds in transitional economies : the Czech and Slovak experience
No full textVoucher funds have arisen in the transitional economies of Eastern and Central Europe that have used voucher privatization. These funds collect vouchers from citizens and use them to buy shares in enterprises. In the Czech and Slovak Republics, voucher funds are typically organized as corporations owned by the citizens who contributed their vouchers. Recently, they have also been organized as unit trusts (either open-ended or closed). A management company manages the funds under a contract that specifies the management fee. The management company is typically owned by the initial sponsor of the fund - for example, a bank. Voucher funds can give owners a diversified and professionally managed portfolio. More important, the funds select who sits on an enterprise's governance boards (which oversee management and profitability). Although experience is limited, the funds in these two countries have probably stopped most fraud and self-serving by enterprise mangers and are beginning to encourage the restructuring needed for profitability. A few funds have replaced poorly performing or dishonest managers; more often, because qualified replacements are few, they encourage managers to improve performance. There have been complaints about funds'performance. Some have made unrealistic promises to voucher holders and have appointed poorly qualified members to management boards. There is concern about conflicts of interest in the bank-sponsored funds and excessive control of enterprises. Funds typically lack capital or expertise to undertake restructuring - but few other potential owners are likely to be better qualified. The author examines 27 regulations that have been proposed for funds. Regulations in transitional economies, unlike regulations in most western countries, should encourage funds to play a strong role in corporate governance, he contends, as few potential owners have this ability. Most important, regulations should require that funds disclose information about their operations so their owners can monitor and control fund managers. The regulatory regime, the author says, should discourage monopolies and anticompetitive behavior; create incentives for fund managers to improve fund performance; discourage self-serving or fraudulent behavior by fund managers, and conflicts of interest; and eliminate high-risk investments unacceptable to fund owners. Because there is so little experience with these funds, the regulatory regime should not be unduly restrictive. As problems arise, regulations to deal with them can be added.International Terrorism&Counterterrorism,Economic Adjustment and Lending,Economic Theory&Research,Agricultural Knowledge&Information Systems,Payment Systems&Infrastructure
An Analysis of the Cost of the Supporting and Guarantee Agricultural and Forestry Fund (SGAFF) in the Czech Republic
No full textThe paper analyzes the cost to the Czech state budget of the Supporting and Guarantee Agricultural and Forestry Fund (SGAFF). In the empirical part of the paper, the author shows that the SGAFF portfolio has sufficient value to cover the expected costs of the credit guarantees and subsidies offered by the fund. The theoretical model looks at government interventions designed to decrease the credit rationing of farmers with high probability of success. The theoretical model shows that, with uniform non-targeted supports, the Czech government unambiguously prefers lump-sum guarantees to interest-rate subsidies. With support targeted wholly to disadvantaged farmers, the cost of lump-sum guarantees, proportional guarantees, and interest-rates subsidies are all equal.credit; guarantees; subsidies; transition
R and D and technology spillovers via FDI: Innovation and absorptive capacity.
No full textTwo faces of R and D (innovation and learning) and technology spillovers from FDI (foreign direct investment) on a firm's productivity growth are examined in this paper. There were using firm-level panel data on Czech manufacturing firms between 1995 and 1998,anf it was found that: the learning effect of R and D is far more important than the innovative effect in explaining the productivity growth of a firm; there is no evidence of technology spillovers to local firms from having a foreign joint venture partner; positive spillovers from FDI are found in electrical machinery and radio and TV sectors, which are also active investors in innovative R and D.Available from STL Prague, CZ / NTK - National Technical LibrarySIGLECZCzech Republi
Profitability development of milk production on the Czech Republic in 2002-2010
No full textThis paper examines development of the Czech agriculture through profitability of the dairy - milk in time horizon 2002-2010. The analyse base of the methodology and the database published by Institute of Agricultural Economics and Information in Prague. The aim of the paper is to give an objective information about influence of agrarian policy on the development of milk production, especially with reference to comparison of changes in the pre-accession (period I = 2002-2003) and in the after-accession of CR to the EU with consistent producer prices of milk (period II = 2004-2008) and with reduced producer prices of milk (prediction of period III = 2009-2010). This deals with the economic position of Czech producers related to the most considerable livestock commodity of the Czech agriculture through 2 indicators, profitability without supports (R-S) and profitability with supports (R+S). There was proved that profitability R+S in the period I was negative for dairy sector. In connection with the membership of CR in EU agricultural supports significantly increased for dairy sector as the consequence of applying of Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) on the Czech agriculture. Therefore there were monitored in the period II important positive changes of the indicator R+S for milk commodity. In the connection with the decrease of producer prices in the period III there was found important downgrade of this indicator. For the Czech Republic there were obtained following milk production values of R+S in the period I, resp. II and III 2,1 %, resp. 10,8 and –7,4 %.Common Agricultural Policy, milk profitability, supports, Livestock Production/Industries,
FDI spillovers in the Czech Republic: takeovers vs. greenfields
No full textThis paper analyzes the effects of foreign direct investment on the sales growth rate of domestic companies in the Czech Republic. This paper analyzes the effects of foreign direct investment on the sales growth rate of domestic companies in the Czech Republic. Using firm-level panel data from 1995 to 2005, it studies both horizontal and vertical spillovers with respect to two kinds of foreign investment - takeovers and greenfields. This is the first paper applying this framework on firm level. The study allows also for the lagged nature of these spillovers. The results suggest that the sales growth rates of domestic companies mostly decrease in the presence of foreign companies, especially in upstream sectors. The impact through horizontal spillovers is mixed - positive from foreign takeovers, negative from greenfields. Positive forward spillovers are present mainly in recent years. Time sensitivity is revealed for horizontal as well as vertical spillovers.productivity, sales growth, spillovers, FDI, ownership, FDI Spillovers in the Czech Republic: Takeovers vs. Greenfields, Economic Papers
Designing Stress Tests for the Czech Banking System
No full textThe note discusses key issues involved in designing a suitable set of stress tests for the Czech banking system. The aim of the note is to propose stress tests that could be used by the Czech National Bank on a regular basis to assess the soundness of domestic banks, both for purposes of macroprudential surveillance and for banking supervision. The author suggests that the exercise be broadly based on the stress tests conducted during the 2001 IMF-World Bank Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP) mission to the Czech Republic. He summarizes the FSAP stress tests, and proposes a number of extensions and modifications. The key recommendations are presented in a table that covers also data requirements and a suggested timeframe for implementation. The note includes results of a replication of the Czech FSAP stress tests for mid-2003 data.Banking system, stress tests.
Equilibrium Exchange Rate in the Czech Republic: How Good is the Czech BEER?
No full textThe paper investigates the equilibrium exchange rate of the Czech koruna using the reduced-form equation of the stock-flow approach advocated by, for example, Faruqee (1995) and Alberola et al. (1999). We investigate whether the observed real exchange rate of the Czech koruna is close to its equilibrium value over the period from 1993 to 2004. Our empirical approach is tantamount to the behavioral equilibrium exchange rate (BEER), popularized by MacDonald (1997) and Clark and MacDonald (1998), in that the Czech real exchange rate vis-a`-vis the euro is regressed on the dual productivity differential; and the net foreign assets position, based on which actual and total misalignment figures, are derived in a time-series context. In other words, we check the quality of the Czech BEER. We also study the impact of a possible initial undervaluation on the estimated equilibrium exchange rate. Employing monthly time series from 1993, and applying several alternative cointegration techniques, we identify a period of an overvaluation in 1997 and in 1999, an increasing overvaluation afterwards, an undervaluation in 2003, and a correction toward equilibrium in the second half of 2004.behavioral equilibrium exchange rate, Czech koruna, equilibrium exchange rate, productivity, real exchange rate, stock-flow approach, transition economies
The Determinants of the Interest Rate Margins of Czech Banks
No full textThe author examines the determinants of the interest rate margins of Czech banks by employing a bank-level dataset at quarterly frequency in 2000–2006. His main results are as follows. He finds that more efficient banks exhibit lower margins and there is no evidence that banks with lower margins compensate themselves with higher fees. Price stability contributes to lower margins. Higher capital adequacy is associated with lower margins, contributing to banking stability. Overall, the results indicate that the determinants of the interest rate margins of Czech banks are largely similar to those reported in other studies for developed countries.commercial banks, interest rate margins, bank efficiency
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