Search

This study investigates the diffusion and network structure of hydrogen technology from 1980 to 2022. Hydrogen fuel cell technology has the shortest diffusion cycle and high global acceptance. Production technology shows significant global demand, particularly within regional patent families. In contrast, hydrogen storage and fuel cell technologies have more concentrated diffusion, indicating higher adaptation thresholds. Japanese firms are crucial in spreading storage and production technologies, while U.S. enhances diffusion through licensing and transfer. Hydrogen refrigeration technology exhibits a more dispersed bidirectional network. Hydrogen production and fuel cell technologies demonstrate notable activity and network scale in the global market. This research provides valuable insights into the global development of hydrogen technology. [Display omitted] • The evolution of hydrogen technology diffusion was evaluated from 1980 to 2022 using patent data. • Hydrogen fuel cell technology shows the shortest diffusion cycle, hydrogen storage and fuel cell technologies have concentrated diffusion in core countries. • Hydrogen production technology and hydrogen refrigeration technology exhibits broader diffusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Postbiotics are recognized as the most innovative, multidisciplinary biotechnological approach. Each year, the quantity of research results and patents grows. According to PubMed, around 250 research papers in the field of postbiotics were cited in 2023, followed by approximately 74 publications in early 2024. Concurrently, the global postbiotic market has grown significantly, becoming one of the most formidable markets in the biotic sector. Yet, there is no thorough analysis of the current progress of the postbiotics market or how research studies and discoveries can impact the quantity and quality of postbiotics. This review provides an insightful perspective on current consumer brands and highlights the latest therapeutic and non- therapeutic applications in the postbiotics market. In comparison to other therapeutic agents such as antibiotics, probiotics, and growth boosters, this review suggests that postbiotics are an effective and eco-friendly alternative therapy. Furthermore, postbiotics, an industrially sustainable technology, are highlighted, shedding light on the development of biotic markets. [Display omitted] • Postbiotics are a promising trend in both therapeutic and non-therapeutic markets. • Postbiotics enhance the immune system and strengthen defensive mechanisms against various disorders. • Postbiotics are an eco-friendly alternative to antibiotics and growth promoter therapies. • Postbiotic research enriches biotic markets by developing new detergents, biofuels, and artificial intelligence-based research tools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Commodity investments promote sustainable markets. • Climate-transition strategies have bi-directional causality with sustainable markets. • Long-only commodity strategies mitigate market risk for regenerative markets. • Global sustainability leaders connect with climate-transition strategies in commodities. • Integrating climate-transition strategies fosters sustainable investment practices. By allocating investments towards commodities that align with climate-transition goals, environmentally conscious commodity investment strategies serve to promote and support sustainable markets, channeling capital towards sectors that prioritize environmental sustainability. Through the application of a quantile causality test, which examines the relationship between commodity-based strategies with a climate-transition focus and eco-friendly markets, over the period spanning from May 1, 2013, to May 25, 2023, our findings reveal a bi-directional causality relationship between different themes of sustainable markets and long-only climate-transition strategies in the commodity market across various market conditions. Furthermore, employing a quantile time-frequency connectedness approach allows us to discern that long-only climate-transition strategies in the commodity market exhibit lower long-run total connectedness with responsible and conscious markets compared to the short term. Consequently, these results suggest that transition-oriented strategies for commodities in a climate-conscious world not only mitigate market risk for regenerative markets in the long run but also indicate that different types of global sustainability leaders demonstrate a stronger connectedness with climate-transition strategies in commodities when compared to the Islamic sustainable market across a majority of quantiles and time horizons. In light of these findings, policymakers are urged to prioritize the long-term dimensions of climate-transition strategies in commodity markets by implementing new emission standards and environmental benchmarks. Additionally, the design and implementation of similar long-only climate-transition strategies in other markets would further enhance the long-term effectiveness of climate-conscious markets and foster stronger connections with responsible markets. our study underscores the significance of integrating climate-transition strategies into commodity markets and highlights their role in promoting sustainable and environmentally conscious investment practices. By directing investments towards climate-aligned commodities, policymakers and market participants can contribute to the long-term sustainability of global markets while fostering stronger connections between sustainable markets and climate-transition strategies in commodities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study uses the quantile connectedness model to study the transmission mechanism between China and the international natural gas market from August 2017 to February 2024. The time-varying spillover effects under extreme market conditions. The empirical results emphasize the following key points: (a) China mainly acts as an information receiver in the overall market. (b) The spillover effect of the European natural gas market is significantly stronger during the extreme downturn, indicating that the spillover effect is asymmetric. (c) The natural gas futures market plays a central role in market dynamics that affect upward return shocks. (d) System connectivity is highly sensitive to market conditions and increases significantly under extreme market conditions. According to the research results, we should make more efforts to promote the liberalization and marketization of the domestic natural gas market, and strive to improve the bargaining power in the international market to reduce the import premium level. Improve energy efficiency and reduce China 's dependence on natural gas imports; from the perspective of the global natural gas market, risk contagion between markets should be alleviated under different market conditions and a differentiated risk early warning mechanism should be established. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The energy transition is initiating long-term oil market trends that look likely to undermine the strategic importance of oil-producing countries for the US government. The trends suggest US voters and future US administrations will be less exposed to price swings and other risks in the global oil market. Diminishing risk exposure, in turn, reduces imperatives for US policymakers to spend so heavily on security provision in the Persian Gulf, or to resolve diplomatic rifts with major producers such as Saudi Arabia. Saudi policy changes since 2016, and the reduced willingness to use spare production capacity in ways that benefit Washington, may have amplified a pre-existing appetite for such a downgrade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently retail and institutional investors have begun to include Bitcoin in their portfolios, creating a transmission channel for Bitcoin volatility and therefore increasing regulatory concerns. Using intraday data from 2013 to 2022, I propose a dynamic econometric model to examine the extent to which Bitcoin volatility is transmitted to stock markets in North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific at different frequencies: contemporaneous and long-run. My findings challenge previous literature which has found Bitcoin volatility risk minimal and not long-lasting. I provide evidence that, since March 2020, there was a substantial increase in contemporaneous volatility transmission in all regions. However, the long-term effect of Bitcoin on North American and three European markets diminished, while it remained significant in most Asia-Pacific markets. Hence, policymakers should coordinate actions at the regional level to mitigate financial stability risks. Likewise, Bitcoin volatility is relevant for investors when deciding on the sizes and timing of their investments. • I employ a HARDL-RV to assess volatility spillovers from Bitcoin to stock markets. • Volatility spillovers are structurally unstable and higher during 2020-2022. • Contemporaneous contagion is positive in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific. • Long-run contagion tends to remain in Asia-Pacific, not in other regions. • Country and regional effects inform policymakers and investors for decision making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This paper investigates the predictive ability of oil shocks for international stock market volatility based on a data-rich environment. • We further investigate the predictive ability of the best-performing oil shock by comparing its performance with that of traditional macroeconomic variables and uncertainty. • The LASSO method and regime-switching model can jointly deliver incremental improvement in forecasting accuracy. • This paper tries to provide new evidence for international stock market volatility prediction. This paper investigates the predictive ability of oil shocks for international stock market volatility based on a data-rich environment. Our empirical analysis shows that multiple oil shock measures contain valuable information for predicting stock market volatility, in addition to traditional economic variables and uncertainty indices. Moreover, based on the group 7 countries, the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator method and regime-switching model jointly deliver incremental improvement in forecasting accuracy from both statistical and economic perspectives. These results are confirmed by robustness checks under different business cycles and market conditions, including the COVID-19 pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose a two-country model in which preferences change endogenously as a function of the popularity of traded goods. In equilibrium, expected returns and return volatility vary over time, agents prefer popular goods, and their portfolios are biased toward the country that produces the preferred goods. A home bias arises because home equity offers a better investment opportunity for hedging against changes in preference. The dependence of state prices on time-varying popularity reduces the cross-country correlation of consumption growth. These results do not hold when the preferences are constant. The comparison between empirical impulse response functions and those implied by the model supports our theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We outline a model of endogenous choices of market entry and product scope in a partial-equilibrium model of heterogeneous firms with arbitrary productivity. Firms' choices of interest depend on market characteristics including variable trade and fixed market-entry costs. Conditional on fixed costs, the extent to which firms respond to shocks depends on their (potentially nonparametric) density around the zero-profit threshold. Accordingly, identical changes in, e.g., variable trade costs per product and market can lead to vastly different responses across not only markets and products but also firms. We shed light on the heterogeneity of these responses by estimating parameters and otherwise calibrating the model to firm-and-product-level bilateral trade data for China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the nonlinear relationships between oil and inflation for twelve major global economies in the presence of important macroeconomic variables. Using the nonparametric quantile causality approach, we show strong evidence of causality-in-variance from inflation to changes in oil prices for all economies across different quantiles with the exception of Australia. On the other hand, evidence of a causality-in-mean from oil to inflation is identified for Australia, Canada, Greece, the UK, and the US and a causality-in-variance in the same direction for almost all economies, exhibiting a hump-shaped pattern across the quantiles. Results for partial and multivariate wavelet approaches show that the macroeconomic factors drive and accentuate the oil-inflation co-movements under all frequencies and over time. These results have significant implications for investors and policy makers. • We examine nonlinear relationships between oil and inflation for twelve major global economies. • Our work also considers important macroeconomic variables. • Evidence of causality-in-variance from inflation to changes in oil prices for all economies except Australia. • Evidence of a causality-in-mean and variance from oil to inflation for Australia, Canada, Greece, the UK, and the US. • Macroeconomic factors drive the oil-inflation co-movements across frequencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Saudi Arabia's turn to regionalism during the past three years, principally in partnership with Egypt, is an expression of both its weakness and its power. Its role as the world's swing producer in the global oil markets makes it an international power. This economic power, in turn, has allowed the Kingdom to help stabilize weaker economies in the region, like Egypt, that have been hard hit by global recession, inflation, and food insecurity. On the other hand, its military failure in Yemen and the US's attenuating security commitment have forced it to build regional and inter-regional partnerships for protection and defense. Under the leadership of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS), Saudi Arabia would prefer to impose its will on the region without having to build a regional consensus for its initiatives. But its lack of independent military power has constrained the Kingdom. The Saudi-Egyptian partnership therefore represents a mutual recognition of the limits of their respective power. It also raises the question not merely about who leads whom, but whether the carefully cultivated interdependency between them will hold. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the internationalization of State-owned Enterprises (SOEs) in the 21st century and its underlying firm-level and country-level drivers. Using a global database of more than 110,000 M&A (10% having a state-owned acquirer), we empirically investigate differences between private enterprises, traditional SOEs and contemporary reformed SOEs. We show that the intensity of government control is associated with diverging targeting strategies and internationalization patterns. Compared to traditional SOEs, reformed SOEs are more outward-oriented, tend to purchase better performing targets, concentrate their investments towards less risky countries that are geographically and culturally closer, with better institutional quality and a more central position in the trade network. Our findings are consistent with the view that reformed SOEs are increasingly adopting market-oriented strategies thus diverging from traditional SOEs (and converging towards the private model) in their objective functions. • Different internationalization patterns between traditional and reformed SOEs. • Reformed SOEs more likely to internationalize and acquire better performing targets. • Reformed SOEs tend to adopt market-oriented strategies in key trade network markets. • Traditional SOEs pursue political goals seeking strategic resources in riskier markets. • Cultural and geographical proximity matter more for reformed than for traditional SOEs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the future challenges is to satisfy a manufacturing market in which the raw material and its storage are increasingly limited, while the need for product diversification is growing. In this context, the global market, especially in the biomedical sectors, sees a growing interest in the miniaturization of products and features for which micro injection moulding (µIM) seems to be ready. Improvement in mould flexibility in terms of reconfigurability of the cavity mould and features is requested to µIM. A tailored insert approach for the micro mould has been adopted to study different materials and micro manufacturing technologies to produce the inserts with such extreme features. Novel high temperature resins for additive manufacturing, able to withstand temperatures up to 250°C, are used to realize inserts for µIM prototyping and small batches. A numerical simulation of the process to produce a 400µm thick thin plates of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), a typical benchmark and polymer for microfluidic applications, has been conducted to evaluate the thermal behavior of the resin insert on the molten polymer with respect to the steel one. The results evidenced an isolating behavior of the resin which reduces the thermal dissipation with consequent lower viscosity also during the packing pressure. To validate the results an experimental campaign, was made using both a steel insert and a high-temperature resistance resin insert. The part produced with the resin insert presented diffused flash, a defect usually correlated to high melt temperature and high injection pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With a global market of around $55 billion (in US dollars; i.e. around the 57% of the global cheese market), pasta filata cheeses sales are rising approximately 2% per year worldwide and are expected to further increase to $65.01 billion by 2028. Among these groups of cheeses, fresh pasta filata cheeses, such as mozzarella and fior di latte, are the most consumed. Herein, we provide an overview of fresh pasta filata cheeses, their commodity-related and technological aspects, focusing on the composition, the role, and evolution of their microbiota along the dairy chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a method for detecting bubble phases and the timing of bursts in global stock markets. The study identifies 27 bubbles in 29 global stock market indices over the last century. Using transformations and change-point detection on index returns, we discover that every major bubble has the same two-phase pattern indeed. Although the mechanisms or causes of each bubble are complex and unique, they all follow the same pattern. Thus, our findings suggest that history has a tendency to repeat itself. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The contribution of the present article is to explicitly consider the role of supply and demand shocks in the global oil market when analyzing the nexus between oil price fluctuations and macroeconomic activities – growth, inflation, and exchange rate – in an emerging economy, specifically Indonesia. For doing this, a structural vector autoregressive (SVAR) methodology is applied to monthly observations for 1998 through 2019. We show that the timing, magnitude, and even direction of the response of Indonesia's macroeconomy are likely to vary depending on the type of shock. We believe that this discovery provides important implications for empirical modeling and policy analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research empirically examines whether the emergence of China and its monetary policy have caused cross-border influences upon the main global stock markets, including the markets in advanced and emerging economies. We argue that since the stock market fluctuates constantly with structural breaks, the cointegration test should be able to characterize this feature when testing the effect from monetary policy to the stock market. The empirical literature using the traditional cointegration approach often presents mixed conclusions on the relationship between stock markets and monetary policy. To justify this argument, we propose a residual-based single-equation cointegration approach in which variables are cointegrated with smoothing regime shifts in order to characterize the presence of structural breaks for stock market. As it is difficult to precisely estimate the number and magnitudes of multiple breaks by the dummy variables approach, the new cointegration approach utilizes a flexible Fourier function to take into account smoothing breaks. By adopting the new approach, we are able to offer evidence for the long-run cointegration between China's monetary policy and each of the selected global stock market. We find that, by adopting the new approach, China's monetary policy delivers international policy transmission to the stock markets of newly developed and emerging economies (NDEE) yet not to the stock markets of the main advanced economies. In addition, the empirical results are robust across policy variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The first analysis of chrysanthemum medical products from the global market. • A clear need to separate two Chrysanthemum species recorded in Pharmacopoeias, based on well-defined chemical differences. • Biological and chemical complexity of Chrysanthemum x morifolium (Ramat.) Hemsl. cultivars. Chrysanthemum flowers [ Ch. x morifolium (Ramat.) Hemsl. and Ch. indicum L.] are a globally used and pharmacologically interesting botanical drug, however, with variable product quality. We aim at understanding the chemical variability of primary material available commercially based on different origins and associated quality problems like contamination with heavy metals. This needs to be assessed in the context of the current regulations for this botanical drug and associated problems. 15 C. indicum L. and 50 C. x morifolium (Ramat.) Hemsl., including a range of geographical cultivars recognized in China, samples from the USA, Europe and China were analyzed using High Performance Thin Layer Chromatography (HPTLC) to compare their general chemical profile. Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) was used to quantify heavy metal contamination. The: HPTLC fingerprints of C. indicum samples are clearly distinguishable from C. x morifolium. Fingerprints of samples from the same cultivars collected from markets in different countries (USA and China) show different patterns. Large variance of fingerprints within each cultivar group was observed. The heavy metal analysis showed excessive amounts of some harmful heavy metal in some commercial products with excessive cadmium being the most frequent problem. The Chinese medicinal cultivars vary. Differences between samples sourced from the USA and China might be ascribable to geographical factors (e.g. soil composition), degradation during transport/storage or adulteration, but geographical differences should also be taken into account. Importantly, a much more detailed definition of the drug are needed for better quality control. In addition, with continuous contamination problem observed, a more widespread regulation is an essential requirement for better quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the home bias in the international equity market using 1) the country-level behavioral factor and 2) the home-foreign return correlation. Specifically, we use responses to the question regarding the level of trust toward strangers as a measure for the behavioral factor that we call country-specific unfamiliarity. The empirical results based on the data from eleven developed countries suggest that country-specific unfamiliarity has a significant and positive correlation with the equity home bias. On the other hand, we find that the home-foreign return correlation is negatively correlated with the equity home bias, which goes against our hypothesis. We check for the robustness of our empirical analysis by fitting alternative specifications and using a log-transformed measure of the equity home bias. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Brazilian & French production chains require ongoing improvement to stay competitive. • Implementation of MSA in Brazil would enable reliable predictions of beef quality. • Such an implementation would be similar to what has already been done in France. • Cutting edge non-destructive technologies can make such an implementation possible. • Successful implementations of these would benefit both industry and consumers. Brazil and France, which are two major beef players, continue to consolidate and strengthen their respective positions on international beef markets. This review summarizes Brazil's and France's recent technological developments in this sector, tracing the recent evolution of their beef markets with attention to indicators of quality, meeting consumer expectations, as well as to future trends in new techniques for predicting beef sensory quality. In addition, this review will focus on the feasibility of implementing the Meat Standards Australia (MSA) grading protocols (known internationally as the Guaranteed Global Grading (3G protocols) by the International Meat Research 3G Foundation. Implementations of the MSA/3G grading scheme as recommended by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) are particularly attractive because of MSA's proven record of increasing the reliability and accuracy of predictions of the sensory quality of beef through the use of pre- and post-slaughter factors. Additionally, the feasibility of new technologies for assessing the eating quality of beef has been evaluated by comparing the marbling scores of beef given by accredited graders for the MSA/3G method with those obtained using portable devices based on these new technologies. In this way, it is expected that implementation of the MSA/3G methodology and nondestructive techniques to evaluate the quality and safety of beef in Brazil and France will more reliably predict and further improve sensory quality, similar to what has already been implemented elsewhere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the LNG trade in 2040, focusing on the role of Europe as an LNG importer. The conducted analysis reveals the complexities of Europe's strategy of simultaneously achieving decarbonization objectives and resolving energy security concerns regarding LNG. The study proposes an optimization model to determine the optimal global LNG trade between exporters and importers. As an alternative for Europe to solely rely on imports, the potential substitution of imports with domestic natural gas production equipped with carbon capture and storage is considered. Herein, two scenarios (low and high LNG demand) are examined. The findings indicate that Europe plays a pivotal role in the global LNG market solely in the ambitious sustainable scenario, whereas its significance diminishes in the high-demand scenario. Examining the volumes of LNG sent to Europe, African exporters appear to be notably significant in meeting the demand. However, as global LNG demand rises, the discernibility of genuinely stable trends or patterns in trade declines. The value of long-term contracts may experience a resurgence in the future. Future work should include long-term contracts, allowing for fixed volumes of LNG to be traded. Furthermore, our obtained LNG supply costs for Europe can be seen as valuable inputs for large-scale energy system models aiming to optimize the sustainable transition of Europe's energy infrastructure. • Global LNG trade dynamics in 2040 with a focus on European supply. • Geopolitical tensions' influence on LNG imports and costs to Europe in 2040. • Substituting LNG imports with domestically produced gas equipped with CCS studied. • African exporters emerge notably significant for Europe's LNG supply. • Resurgence expected in the value of long-term contracts in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transmission of commodities prices from international to local markets is an interesting and deeply investigated topic. A fast and strong link between the two levels of the market is seen by economists as a sign of local market efficiency, allowing actors to respond fast to signals coming from the international market. However, empirical evidence on the topic is mixed, ranging from a very weak linkage between prices in the two markets to a high-speed and almost complete transmission. The present paper aims to advance the knowledge on the topic by focusing on the price transmission of four main cereals – maize, rice, sorghum, and wheat – in 23 developing and fragile economies. Employing a recent World Bank dataset with prices for several local markets in select countries, we estimate panel vector autoregressions (PVAR) to analyze the pass-through effects of international price shocks on local food prices. We find evidence for a relatively strong price transmission elasticity for all commodities except sorghum. Furthermore, the observed transmission of shocks is almost immediate. We present the policy implications of these findings. • We investigate the transmission of commodities prices from international to local markets. • The price of rice, wheat, sorghum and maize in the local markets of 23 least developed countries is analyzed through Panel VAR. • We find a transmission price elasticity of shocks generally higher than in previous studies. • The speed of convergence is also relatively high with shocks being completely absorbed after 2–3 months. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global market for bone-conduction headphones is expected to continue to grow, as the COVID-19 pandemic has increased opportunities for telecommunicating, or working from home, as opposed to going to the office every day. Increased teleworking opportunities have led to more online conferencing, and as a result, the market for bone-conduction headphones is growing even more rapidly. Early adopters are very important in today's marketing. They are very sensitive to public trends and tend to adopt new products quickly. Many early adopters gather information on their own, make their own decisions based on the information they gather, and purchase products. And they tend to spread the word about how good the product is and what makes it different from others from a consumer perspective. During a period of market expansion, the diffusion of the word-of-mouth they transmit is key to the diffusion of the product. In this study, we use online word-of-mouth data to study early adopeters' knowledge of new products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores how advanced AR/VR technologies can be used in Industry 4.0. to integrate smart glasses and mobile device users into the augmented reality industry to accelerate work and data transfers in manufacturing, warehousing, and transportation companies in the United States. The aim of the article was to illustrate the potential of AR/VR technologies and modern IT systems that are increasingly being applied in the global market in the different sectors of the TSL sector. The introduction of such solutions raises the question: Will AR/VR technologies and IT systems introduced in companies be useful for every company in the US? Studies show a differentiated approach by US entrepreneurs to the opportunities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to examine the effect of global market orientation strategy on the performance of Indonesian Higher Education Institutions. Furthermore, it investigates whether this relationship is mediated by intellectual capital readiness and open innovation. This is a quantitative study employing a multi-mediation research model conceptualizing the relationship among the five constructs. This study employs a resource-based view to explain the relationships among constructs and partial least squares-structural equation modeling to test the hypotheses studied. A sample of 119 schools/faculties, derived from the 50 best state and private institutions in Indonesia and based on the Webometrics 2021, was used. This research reveals the following main results. First, intellectual capital readiness fully mediates the influence of global market orientation strategy on the institutions' performances. Second, open innovation does not mediate the effect of global market orientation strategy on institutions' performances. This study is the first attempt to understand how global market orientation strategy enhances institutions' performances via intellectual capital readiness and open innovation. This study reveals the insignificant effect of open innovation on performance. Thus, the main implication of these findings is that institutions need to downstream their innovations to the community for future performance and communities' benefits. The applied execution does matter in the open innovation–institution performance relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on the study of Spanish ceramic tile exporters' port choice criteria, an industry that is characterized by a low unit value index. Thus, transport costs highly influence the competitiveness of their products in international markets, representing a relatively high percentage of the value of the shipment. It is therefore critical for this type of industry to have access to efficient door-to-door maritime chains. Determinants of port choice are analysed through a latent class model allowing to link class membership to specific characteristics of the shippers and their shipments such as the size of the company, the value of the shipment, the destination market and the frequency of shipments. The results obtained show differences in the valuation of the attributes frequency, delays and closing time depending on the type of destination market. While companies exporting to deep-sea markets value specially the attributes frequency and delays, those exporting to the regional corridor are the only ones where the closing time is statistically significant. Policies designed show that when there is a strong competition between two ports to attract cargo from an overlapped hinterland, the ultimate effectiveness of the measures would depend on its competitor's strategic movement and the measures implemented there. • The paper focuses on the study of port choice criteria from shippers' perspective • An application to exporters belonging to Spanish ceramic tile industry • We use latent class model to better capture heterogeneity in shippers' preferences • Results show differences in attributes depending on the type of destination market. • The specialization of the port in each type of traffic is a relative advantage [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Jade is reputed to be the second most valuable gemstone in the world, and its most valuable form, jadeite, is mined in the Kachin State of northern Myanmar. Lauded for its great beauty and cultural significance in neighbouring China, most of the jadeite mined in Myanmar is destined for the Chinese or overseas Chinese markets, where it is made into decorative artefacts. Yet today, the jadeite mines have gained notoriety as sites of environmental and social devastation. The development of large scale mining (LSM) has taken place over the last two decades, largely in the context of attempts to develop political settlements at national and local level to end longstanding conflict. However, the outcomes have exacerbated conflict and seen worsening development outcomes for local people. This paper examines the longer historical tradition of artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) in the region and considers how, in reassessing the degree to which mining can be brought into the sustainable development agenda, ASM may provide many insights that have previously been overlooked. • A focus on EITI has inhibited understanding of the importance of ASM in northern Myanmar. • We should reconsider how ASM may contribute to local development and the SDGs. • Inadequate data inhibits understanding how LSM impacts local communities but the recent census may provide baseline evidence. • Discussions about mining and development need to focus on local contexts of mining to limit environmental and social harms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The representations of international trade and global market integration play central roles in long-term global agricultural economic modeling. However, the conventional use of the gravity models (i.e., the Armington approach) of trade may not adequately account for the dynamic process of market integration. In this paper, we generalize a logit-based Armington approach by permitting home preference bias erosion to account for a trend of global market integration. We build a simple agricultural economic equilibrium model and conduct hindcast experiments to examine the historical trend of market integration. The results show a significant integrating trend of the global agricultural market implied by converging Armington preference distributions (i.e., home bias erosion) in 1995–2015. We demonstrate important implications of allowing the dynamic trend of market integration implied by bias erosion on estimating trade elasticities. By testing the future market integration trend implied by historical home bias integration in the Global Change Analysis Model (GCAM), we show a high sensitivity of long-term agroeconomic projections to future trade and market integration scenarios. • Armington models may not account for the dynamic process of market integration. • We generalize a logit-based Armington model to permit home bias erosion. • We use hindcast experiments to validate the generalized model. • Agricultural market integration intensified as implied by historical bias erosion. • Global market integration plays a critical role in projecting agroeconomic future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research first examines the link connectivity of major Northeast Asian carriers at country levels, and then uses a dynamic network DEA model to assess these carriers' efficiency performance. The connectivity measure suggests that although China, Japan and Korea differ in the size of domestic markets, the major carriers of the three countries do not differ much in terms of their connectivity performance in their key international markets. Chinese and Japanese carriers are quite similar in technical efficiency while Korea's two carriers take the lead in this measure. We thus present an argument that most of the carriers in this region are operating at a near-level playing field and it is time to push forward the aviation market integration agenda in Northeast Asia. • Link connectivity of major Northeast Asian carriers. • Assess these carriers' efficiency performance using a dynamic network DEA model. • Most of the carriers in this region operate at a near-level playing field. • Time to push forward the aviation market integration agenda in Northeast Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This article investigates market formation in a global health transition. • Market formation activities are interlinked with other innovation system functions. • Structural couplings link innovation systems components along geographical scales and locations. • We learn lessons from the market formation of a new generation of antimalarial therapies. • Lessons are important for future drug transitions under the pressure of drug resistance. Transition studies have started to focus on market formation in innovation systems. This article investigates market formation in a global health transition that was instigated by drug-resistant malaria. We explore how markets for Artemisinin-based Combination Therapies (ACT) in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) were formed at multiple geographical scales and locations. The study reveals the role of public institutes, academia and partnerships in early innovation system development. It demonstrates how transnational organizations created a supportive global landscape for ACT development and deployment. It then reveals how these advancements led to the formation of public-sector and private-sector ACT markets in the GMS. We illustrate how market formation activities took place on global, national and local scales and how structural couplings enabled the functioning of this global innovation system. The lessons learned are particularly relevant now that drug-resistant malaria has once more emerged in the GMS, urgently calling for new therapies and associated end-user markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a new approach to estimating investor sentiments and their implications for the global financial markets. Contextualising the COVID-19 pandemic, we draw on the six behavioural indicators (media coverage, fake news, panic, sentiment, media hype and infodemic) of the 17 largest economies and data from 1 st January 2020 to 3 rd February 2021. Our key findings, obtained using a time-varying parameter-vector auto-regression (TVP-VAR) model, indicate the total and net connectedness for the new index, entitled 'feverish sentiment'. This index provides us insight into economies that send or receive the sentiment shocks. The construction of the network structures indicates that the United Kingdom, China, the United States and Germany became the epicentres of the sentimental shocks that were transmitted to other economies. Furthermore, we also explore the predictive power of the newly constructed index on stock returns and volatility. It turns out that investor sentiment positively (negatively) predicts the stock volatility (return) at the onset of COVID-19. This is the first study of its kind to assess international feverish sentiments by proposing a novel approach and its impacts on the equity market. Based on empirical findings, the study also offers some policy directions to mitigate the fear and panic during the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• EU's roadmap for NBS theorisation and implementation. • The leading role of the EU in NBS operationalization. • NBS implementation is underpinned by a feedback loop of science-practice-policy. • NBS institutionalisation is a step forward. The present paper traces a chronological history, or roadmap, of the documentation produced by the European Union (EU) to promote and implement nature-based solutions (NBS) as an innovation action aiming to establish a socially inclusive, economically vibrant and ecologically resilient society. The EU's ambition is to position Europe as the world leader in NBS Research (via scientific research aiming at generating knowledge and theories) and Innovation (NBS implementation via identifying innovative approaches and best practices), as well as in a global market (for sharing, communicating, collaborating and promoting NBS). Considerable efforts have been made by the European Commission (the executive branch of the EU) as featured in a number of documents, funding programmes and Horizon 2020 (Research and Innovation) projects that span the period from 2012 to 2020. While the European Commission's commitment to promoting NBS within its Member States and beyond is still an ongoing process, we aim to review the efforts undertaken, knowledge gained, and practices accomplished. This roadmap intends to provide interested practitioners, policymakers, researchers, as well as civil organisations with an updated understanding of the leading role of the EU in NBS conceptualisation and operationalisation. This can inform future directions of NBS Research and Innovation actions, which in turn address environmental and societal challenges prompted by urbanisation/re-urbanisation, globalisation/de-globalisation, climate change and, more recently, the COVID-19 pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The most common mycotoxins found in rice are aflatoxins (AF), fumonisin (FB), ochratoxin (OTA), and deoxynivalenol (DON). Rice is particularly susceptible to mycotoxins contamination due to its high starch content and the fact that it is often stored in warm, humid conditions, which are ideal for fungal growth. Mycotoxins contamination causes health problems in consumers, food safety, food quality issues, and economic losses. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to estimate the prevalence and concentration of mycotoxins in rice from the markets globally. A systematic search was conducted using the Web of Science, and Scopus databases between 1st January 2000 and 31st October 2023. This study showed that the overall prevalence of mycotoxins in rice from the markets was 15% (95% CI: 12–17%). The most prevalent mycotoxins were total aflatoxin (AFT) (56%), beauvericin (37%), aflatoxin B1 (34%), enniatin (27%), and FB (23%). The global overall mycotoxins concentration in rice was 18.70 μg/kg (CI: 10.86–26.54 μg/kg), respectively. The highest mean concentrations were observed for nivalenol (170.13 μg/kg), DON (56.13 μg/kg), fumonisin B1 (50.29 μg/kg), zearalenone (38.55 μg/kg), FB (35.69 μg/kg) and OTA (18.64 μg/kg). The highest prevalence of mycotoxins in rice was observed in Europe (44%), followed by Africa (32%), but the estimated pooled concentration in Europe was relatively low. Overall, the meta-regression results suggested that the prevalence of mycotoxins in rice had decreased over time, but the decrease was not significant for AFT, DON and sterigmatocystin. The results of this study highlight the importance of pre- and post-harvest management practices and improved food safety regulations throughout the food chain to reduce the risk of mycotoxins contamination in rice. [Display omitted] • The manuscript discusses the global prevalence and concentrations of mycotoxins in rice. • Analysis of 61 articles with 408 studies showed a 15% (95% CI: 12–17%) global prevalence of mycotoxins in rice. • AFT and NIV, respectively, ranked first for the highest prevalence and pooled concentration of mycotoxins in rice. • Europe (44%) had the highest prevalence of mycotoxins in rice, followed by Africa (32%). • The highest concentration of mycotoxins is observed in Africa (32.14 μg/kg), followed by Asia (17.01 μg/kg). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Condom lubricants and personal hygiene products may be relevant in forensic cases. • Population of condoms and personal hygiene products from 3 international markets analysed. • 90% Accuracy was observed for discrimination of spectral profiles. • Two-step approach was developed to reach 100% discrimination accuracy. • Model robustness was confirmed by blind validation. Condom residues may be encountered in forensic investigations as traces in sexual assault or rape cases. Casework studies have shown the value of distinguishing condom residues from other types of personal products used by women. However, up to now, there has been no investigation of their chemical variability within an international context. This work employed attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy with chemometrics to provide objective characterisation of condom lubricants and personal hygiene products from the international market. 166 samples were obtained covering five major classes of products likely to be used by women. Principal component analysis distinguished most major classes based on their spectral profiles, with subsequent support vector machine models yielding discrimination accuracies over 90%. A two-step approach was subsequently developed and enabled both classification and a discrimination accuracy of 100%. This could provide greater confidence in chemical discrimination of residues from these products when conducting investigations and help assess the origin of the chemical profile obtained. Further testing using three validation sets produced an identification accuracy of 100% for generic classes, which may allow investigative leads to be more readily obtained from recovered evidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The conferral of Permanent Normal Trade Relations by the United States eliminated policy uncertainty in US tariffs on Chinese exports and stimulated the exports of incumbent Chinese firms to the US market. We exploit the granting of the PNTR to examine the effect of the preference of export destinations for high-quality products on the skill utilization of firms and regional skill migration in China. Estimates show that local exports to rich markets result in substantially higher employment of skilled workers by firms and a larger inflow of skilled workers into the prefectures. We examine mechanisms and find a more substantial increase in education premium in regions with larger export expansions to rich markets from 2000 to 2005. We conclude with the importance of South-North trade in interpreting the skill upgrading of firms and interregional skill migration in developing countries. (JEL F14, F16, J24, J61, O15, O19). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modern financial markets are characterized by a rapid flow of information, a vast number of participants having diversified investment horizons, and multiple feedback mechanisms, which collectively lead to the emergence of complex phenomena, for example speculative bubbles or crashes. As such, they are considered as one of the most complex systems known. Numerous studies have illuminated stylized facts, also called complexity characteristics, which are observed across the vast majority of financial markets. These include the so-called "fat tails" of the returns distribution, volatility clustering, the "long memory", strong stochasticity alongside non-linear correlations, persistence, and the effects resembling fractality and even multifractality. The striking development of the cryptocurrency market over the last few years – from being entirely peripheral to capitalizing at the level of an intermediate-size stock exchange – provides a unique opportunity to observe its evolution in a short period. The availability of high-frequency data allows conducting advanced statistical analysis of fluctuations on cryptocurrency exchanges right from their birth up to the present day. This opens a window that allows quantifying the evolutionary changes in the complexity characteristics which accompany market emergence and maturation. The purpose of the present review, then, is to examine the properties of the cryptocurrency market and the associated phenomena. The aim is to clarify to what extent, after such an impetuous development, the characteristics of the complexity of exchange rates on the cryptocurrency market have become similar to traditional and mature markets, such as stocks, bonds, commodities or currencies. The review introduces the history of cryptocurrencies, offering a description of the blockchain technology behind them. Differences between cryptocurrencies and the exchanges on which they are traded have been consistently shown. The central part of the review surveys the analysis of cryptocurrency price changes on various platforms. The statistical properties of the fluctuations in the cryptocurrency market have been compared to the traditional markets. With the help of the latest statistical physics methods, namely, the multifractal cross-correlation analysis and the q -dependent detrended cross-correlation coefficient, the non-linear correlations and multiscale characteristics of the cryptocurrency market are analyzed. In the last part of this paper, through applying matrix and network formalisms, the co-evolution of the correlation structure among the 100 cryptocurrencies having the largest capitalization is retraced. The detailed topology of cryptocurrency network on the Binance platform from bitcoin perspective is also considered. Finally, an interesting observation on the Covid-19 pandemic impact on the cryptocurrency market is presented and discussed: recently we have witnessed a "phase transition" of the cryptocurrencies from being a hedge opportunity for the investors fleeing the traditional markets to become a part of the global market that is substantially coupled to the traditional financial instruments like the currencies, stocks, and commodities. The main contribution is an extensive demonstration that, fueled by the increased transaction frequency, turnover, and the number of participants, structural self-organization in the cryptocurrency markets has caused the same to attain complexity characteristics that are nearly indistinguishable from the Forex market at the level of individual time-series. However, the cross-correlations between the exchange rates on cryptocurrency platforms differ from it. The cryptocurrency market is less synchronized and the information flows more slowly, which results in more frequent arbitrage opportunities. The methodology used in the review allows the latter to be detected, and lead–lag relationships to be discovered. Hypothetically, the methods for describing correlations and hierarchical relationships between exchange rates presented in this review could be used to construct investment portfolios and reduce exposure to risk. A new investment asset class appears to be dawning, wherein the bitcoin assumes the role of the natural base currency to trade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to determine how is the future being prepared by Portuguese healthcare software industry to access the eHealth global market, which might be relevant to define a successful strategy for this sector in Portugal. A questionnaire was prepared to identify and characterize the Portuguese healthcare software industry. Relevant aspects of this sector were compared with common characteristics of the Portuguese industrial sectors that are successful in the global market. According to the results, Portuguese healthcare software industry exports for countries culturally closed to Portugal, so there is low preparation for the globalization that the eHealth market requires. Moreover, it seems that there is no consistent model of clustering on eHealth products, contrary to what is a common a characteristic of the Portuguese industrial sectors with strong impact in terms of exportation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article proposes the directions of adaptation of the educational process in Russian universities to the requirements of the global educational market through the modernization of their IT-component. The results achieved in the digitalization of the educational process and ensuring its competitiveness are considered. Reserves of the use of digitalization tools have been identified as part of the adaptation of the educational process in Russia to the requirements of the global educational market. Based on the results of five-year time-lapse observations of the authors, the directions of adaptation of the digitalization tools of the educational process are proposed taking into account the current economic needs of Russian education. In this study both traditional technologies for Russian universities and technologies used mainly by foreign educational organizations were considered as tools that can be used to improve the competitiveness of domestic education in the global education market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Global economic water scarcity risks were assessed for quantity and quality. • Water quality-driven local and cascading economic risks comprised 20–30 %. • China emerged as the foremost exporter/importer of water scarcity risks globally. • Improving water efficiency and quality are equally vital for economic resilience. Pollution from untreated wastewater discharges depletes clean water supply for humans and the environment. It poses adverse economic impacts by determining agricultural yields, manufacturing productivity, and ecosystem functionality. Current studies mainly focus on quantity-related water scarcity assessment. It is unknown how low water quality amplifies local water stress and induces cascading economic risks globally. In this study, we estimated both quality and quantity-related water scarcity index (WSI), local economic water scarcity risk (WSR), and cascading virtual WSR evident in global trade markets across 40 major economies from 1995 to 2010. We find developing countries, e.g., India and China, witnessed fast growth in both quantity and quality-related WSI. Major developed economies, e.g., the US and Germany, experienced a modest increase in water stress but alleviated quality-related risks. Local economic risk (WSR) grew from $116B to $380B, with quality-related risks rising from 20 % to 30 %. Virtual economic WSR in global supply chains increased from $39B to $160B, with quality-related risks increasing from 19 % to 27 %. China became the top exporter of economic WSR, ranked above the US, France, and Japan, and the second-largest position as an importer, trailing only the US. We finally conducted scenario modeling by 2030, assuming different progresses on SDG 6 targets. The findings suggest that only the most ambitious progress in both water quality enhancement and efficiency improvement helps to alleviate ∼20 % economic WSR globally. Our findings underscore the necessity for strategies that integrate management of untreated wastewater flows, improved water use efficiency, and diversification of supply chain networks to enhance global economic resilience to water challenges in the future. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Development of reliable and sustainable energy storage options is becoming increasingly important as we continue to consume more non-renewable fossil fuels. Supercapacitors are a promising solution to this issue due to their high-power density, fast charge/discharge process, and excellent cycle stability. However, while they have many advantages, their energy density is still lower than traditional batteries, and their performance depends on the electrode materials used. Recent advancements in metal oxide-based electrodes have attracted significant attention due to their high specific capacitance and good cycling stability. This review provides an overview of these advancements, specifically focusing on RuO 2 , MnO 2 , Co 3 O 4 , NiO, and their nanocomposites. These oxide materials are selected as they have excellent reversibility and superior performance in terms of high specific capacitance among the metal oxide community. The review begins by discussing the working principles, types, and factors affecting the performance of these metal oxide-based electrodes. It then highlights the advantages and limitations of metal oxide-based electrodes, compares their performance with other electrode materials, and discusses current challenges and prospects for the development of four metal oxide-based supercapacitors. Lastly, the review explores the effectiveness of metal oxide-based, solid-state, and flexible supercapacitors and discusses the global market for supercapacitors. [Display omitted] • Basic knowledge and research gap on supercapacitors. • Addresses supercapacitor applications of four metal oxide electrodes and their composites viz. RuO 2 , MnO 2 , Co 3 O 4 , and NiO. • The advantageous, limitations of metal oxides and ways to improve the performance for practical applications. • Current challenges and prospects of the four metal oxide electrodes. • The global market trends of supercapacitors and its comparison to batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emission Trading Schemes (ETSs) have become vital for meeting global emission reduction targets. They are gaining momentum, as witnessed by increasing market size and improving information mechanisms. Examining key emission markets — European Union, New Zealand, California, and Hubei (China) — from April 2014 to December 2021, a Time-Varying Parameter Vector Autoregressive (TVP-VAR) model is applied to discern the markets' connectedness. In a novel approach to global carbon market research, this study uniquely combines the TVP-VAR with the connectedness approach, overcoming fixed parameters estimation and ensuring precise parameter estimates. The approach sheds light on patterns of total, directional, and net return/volatility spillovers, striving to identify which markets act as transmitters and which are receivers. Linking market spillovers to market characteristics, events, and policies offers insights for investors and policymakers. The total connectedness index of 10–12 % suggests a relatively low level of spillover, when compared to other market integration studies. The dynamic nature of return and volatility spillovers is evident, especially during the energy crisis and Covid-19 outbreak. The EU's ETS consistently acts as a net transmitter, predominantly in return connectedness, while New Zealand's ETS emerges as a major shock receiver in both return and volatility systems. Global climate negotiations and carbon market events have only a minor impact on the level of connectedness, in contrast to energy or financial crises and the Covid-19 outbreak. By highlighting the intricacies of carbon price volatility and market transmissions, the findings equip stakeholders with invaluable, actionable insights. [Display omitted] • Analyses carbon prices for California, China, the EU, and New Zealand. • Models market connectedness with time-varying parameters and autoregression. • The aggregated average return (volatility) spillover is 10.42 % (12.10 %). • California and EU have a persistent net-transmitting role in return and volatility. • Crises significantly impact market connectedness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increased globalization, deregulation of energy markets, and environmental constraints, together with associated uncertainty, have created a highly dynamic and uncertain process manufacturing environment. Responding effectively to this increased variation and uncertainty is critical for a company to remain competitive. In this paper, we consider the plant infrastructure in relation to the energy and global market infrastructures. We describe changes to the plant infrastructure system in order to function more effectively in the current manufacturing environment, as well as key research advances that are aligned to addressing challenges faced by present day plant operation. • Discusses relationship between plant, energy, and global market infrastructures. • Identifies challenges associated with the current plant operating environment. • Discusses industry response to identified challenges. • Overview of PSE tools and paradigms aligned with addressing these challenges. • PSE approaches illustrated in the context of industrial air separation plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The evolutionary economic geography literature explores the patterns of regional product evolution from the perspective of supply-side relatedness, leaving behind the role of demand-side relatedness. Using China's international trade data, this paper measures product-scale market relatedness and explores the impact of market relatedness on two-fold export dynamics, that is the entry of new products and the opening of new overseas markets. Our results show that the entry of new products may be driven by two kinds of power (supply-side relatedness and demand-side relatedness) at the same time. New products with strong market relatedness to locally-available products are more likely to enter the city's production network. However, strong market relatedness between products may result in path locking in overseas market expansion. In terms of mechanisms, product entry and overseas market exploitation are conditioned by the degree of the city's market competition and external demand, respectively. • Enrich the understanding of product relatedness from the perspective of demand-side, proposing the concept of market relatedness. • Construct the measuring method of market relatedness by drawing on the probability co-occurrence method. • Market relatedness may have both positive and negative impact on product dynamics. Specifically, market relatedness will promote the locally entry of new products, but hinder the development of new overseas markets. Market competition and external demand play moderating roles between market relatedness and product dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Choosing a foreign market entry strategy is known to be essential for firm internationalisation yet there is very little focus on the role, purpose, and value of open innovation for internationalising high–tech SMEs. A review of the international business, international entrepreneurship and international marketing literature combined with a bibliometric mapping of 2501 articles on firm internationalisation, suggests that research does not readily associate open innovation and the internationalisation of high–tech SMEs. This is regardless of open innovation's activities that can span over a firm's immediate geographical space. Thus, this study introduces new theoretical explanations and a midrange open innovation theory to advance open innovation as an alternative foreign market entry strategy especially for internationalising high–tech SMEs. This has theoretical and practical implications for academics, international business managers, and practitioners because it introduces an alternative internationalisation strategy for SMEs. • An open innovation paradigm can underpin the internationalisation processes of high–tech SMEs. • It can act as an entry that fosters their rapid internationalisation into foreign markets. • As such high–tech SMEs can leverage on open innovation for their international expansion strategy [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This study investigates the use of coagents in the book industry. • We develop a theoretical model of coagents as cultural intermediaries. • A positive relationship between the use of coagents and advance size is found. This study investigates the use of coagents in the book industry. To reach international markets, domestic publishers typically license a title's rights to third-party international publishers, a practice known as 'selling rights'. Rights sellers can either choose to work directly in a local market or with intermediaries known as coagents. Using a data set of over 2000 international rights sales for Australian-authored titles of a major publisher, we examine whether employing the services of a coagent leads to superior outcomes as measured by the size of the advance. We find a positive relationship between the use of coagents and the size of the advance. This result is robust to a variety of contract lengths and international market conventions. The evidence suggests that, on average, coagents help secure better outcomes for authors and domestic publishers. More broadly, our study suggests that international intermediaries may play an important role in the export of cultural goods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to fill the existing research gap in the knowledge of the interrelationships between relational resources, the static capabilities associated with the planning and organization of export activity, certain dynamic capabilities—international entrepreneurial orientation, orientation to foreign markets and strategic flexibility—and the achievement of perceived competitive advantages in international markets. The proposed conceptual model is analyzed on the basis of an empirical study using a multisectoral sample of 330 Spanish exporting companies. The results obtained, based on the use of SmartPLS and fsQCA, show that: 1) relationship resources are essential determinants for the development of an adequate export planning and organization capacity and have an impact on the international entrepreneurial orientation of the organization; 2) it is necessary to plan and organize exports well, since the adequate development of dynamic capabilities in international markets will depend on this; 3) international entrepreneurial orientation, orientation to foreign markets and strategic flexibility are essential, directly or indirectly, for the achievement of sustainable competitive advantages in foreign markets. Based on the results and conclusions obtained, the main implications for management are proposed. • Intangible resources, including relational assets, are pivotal for developing the static and dynamic capabilities of exporting firms. • The ability to plan and execute exports is critical for an organization's international orientation. • Greater international entrepreneurial orientation –IEO- boosts strategic flexibility and facilitates genuine export market orientation –EMO-. • IEO and EMO are pivotal dynamic capabilities for gaining competitive advantages in global markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the process of internationalisation of firms, in the context of heterogeneous firms. The study aims to integrate the literature focused on the ex ante superiority of exporter firms, the self-selection hypothesis, with the literature dedicated to depict the impact of exporting on firm performance, the learning-by-exporting hypothesis. Using a survey of Spanish manufacturing firms, we analyse the six years previous to the entry into export markets and the first six years of exporting of new exporter firms, and we compare their performance with that of domestic firms. The results suggest that starting to export is correlated to a significant increase in size, both in terms of sales and employees. Moreover, we find a significant improvement in the worker's labour conditions, measured as the percentage of employees with permanent contracts, following the entry into export markets. Finally, despite new exporter firms being more productive than domestic firms, the productivity differential does not follow a constant path. Instead, we find a U-shape trend in the productivity differential between domestic and new exporter firms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to present a new routine that produces consistent industrial or product classifications over time. Our routine is useful for empirical researchers since many classification systems such as the Harmonized System (HS) are regularly subject to revisions. The application of our routine is likely to improve the reliability of studies about product survival, churning or scope in export markets and increase the efficiency of "within estimators". The code that is implemented as a Stata command can be easily adapted to other programming (such as R) or data environments. Our routine based on an object-oriented Java program is less prone to coding errors than existing alternative algorithms that rely on long functional procedures instead. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]