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Improved sustainability of aquaculture can be achieved by reducing product wastage post-harvest. Aquaculture of the green-lipped mussel, Perna canaliculus, is an important industry for New Zealand, which increasingly exports to live markets. Live transport can keep mussels fresh, but mussels could also be susceptible to handling stresses. To remedy this, pre-treatments that make mussels metabolically depressed, and thus potentially less sensitive to external stressors, were explored. As indicators of depressed metabolism, heart rate (HR), inferred cardiac output (PCO), and relative gaping magnitude (RGM) were simultaneously monitored in mussels experiencing different temperatures, dissolved oxygen levels and anaesthetic (MgCl2) concentrations to compare their efficacy in inducing suppressed metabolism of adult P. canaliculus. We found complex interactions between HR, PCO, and RGM in response to these conditions; however, overall, these response variables were significantly correlated. Mussels showed depressed HR and PCO by up to 100% at 4 °C within 2 h, with correspondingly decreased RGM of up to 48%. Similarly, mussels immersed in 40 g L−1 MgCl2 suppressed HR by up to 97%, accompanied by up to 76% decrease in PCO, and a slight increase in RGM (11%) after 2 h. While responses were variable, low DO levels suppressed HR by up to 50%, yet PCO and RGM increased two- and threefold relative to control groups. The results of the present study indicated that 4 °C and 40 g MgCl2 L−1 were more effective conditions as pre-treatments than low dissolved oxygen lower the metabolism of P. canaliculus before live transport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we provide an assessment of the evolution of markups in Italy in the last twenty years. To this aim, we resort to both macro- and micro-data and estimation techniques, namely reduced forms accounting measures (price–cost margins) and production function model-based indicators. When using aggregate data, we present a comparative study with respect to the other main Euro area countries, whereas the micro-level analysis focuses on the markup dynamics across and within Italian firms. According to our findings, (i) aggregate markups show flat/slightly decreasing dynamics across EU countries, settling to a 1.1 level on average; (ii) the aggregate dynamics hide substantial cross-sector and cross-firm heterogeneity; (iii) the within-firm component is the most relevant driver of markup dynamics; and (iv) no superstars-driven dynamics emerge: although firms with higher markups show slightly more variation over time, there is no evidence of an increasing trend. Finally, we compare our results with those obtained by De Loecker and Eeckhout (Global market power, National Bureau of Economic Research, Cambridge, 2018) and show that they differ mainly because our sample, including non-listed firms, is more representative of the EU corporate sectors. Our study has important policy implications: it warns against blindly extending the conclusions valid for specific contexts to others with different characteristics, while inviting a careful assessment of the actual competitive landscape, based on representative datasets and robust analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the linkage of momentum and reversal in the G7 stock markets. We confirm Conrad and Yavuz's (Rev Financ 21(2):555–581, 2017) finding that momentum is not linked to subsequent return reversal in the US stock market. In the stock markets of the remaining G7 countries, our results object the decoupling of momentum and return reversal. In these stock markets, the two return anomalies are linked to each other. In particular, momentum is followed by return reversal in the stock markets of Germany, the UK, Japan, Canada, France, and Italy. These observations obtain for momentum portfolios which are made up of different risk profiles with respect to size and book-to-market ratio. Our results hold true both in raw returns and in risk-adjusted returns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Selecting suitable trading partners in the globalized trade landscape remains critical. Traditional selection processes driven by factors like comparative advantage and trade costs are cumbersome and incomplete. Economic complexity offers a more precise measure of a country's economic development and product capacity, facilitating future-oriented choices. Leveraging international trade data from 2001 to 2015, this paper employs economic complexity theories to analyze Chinese and the US' trade networks in the global market. It explores multi-level considerations for exporting countries' partner selection, revealing varying product diversification challenges and market clustering tendencies. China shows increasing overall product proximity relationships, specifically notable in textile-related products, while the US exhibits decreasing product proximities. Additionally, trading positions and product dependencies vary across markets. Some countries, like Japan and Germany, maintain stable positions, while others fluctuate. Notably, countries like Nigeria, Bangladesh, and Cambodia have higher positions in the Chinese market, suggesting promising long-term trade partnerships. Conversely, countries like Yemen, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, and Sudan have higher positions in the US market, indicating significant disparities. Products that are needed in the Chinese market and occupy higher complexity positions are primarily concentrated in the field of non-ferrous metals, while the US market relies more on raw materials. This highlights distinct market dynamics, particularly pronounced in the US market. Hence, there is a greater likelihood of obtaining better economic benefits by trading these products in their respective markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The incorporation of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into private investments is transitioning from a risk management strategy to a catalyst for innovation and novel prospects that benefits both business and society in the long run. The growing prominence of such investments necessitates a comprehensive assessment of their risk under varying market conditions. This research aims to provide a thorough analysis by examining the risk of ESG portfolios across global financial markets (categorised as developed and emerging) during distinct market regimes. The study utilises daily data of representative ESG equity portfolios from developed markets (US and Japan) as well as emerging markets (China and India). The portfolios are divided into sub-periods to accommodate the disparity between the Covid and post-Covid regimes. The study compares and contrasts the volatility patterns of all the ESG portfolios using a GJR-GARCH model that takes into consideration both the conditional variance and asymmetricity in the financial time series. Although the results reveal no clear distinction when comparing return and risk between developed and emerging markets, there is presence of varying performance across market regimes, with all the portfolios showing higher returns and lower risk during the Covid, reflecting dynamic market conditions. Additionally, the asymmetricity in volatility is more during Covid period as compared to the post-Covid period for all the portfolios. The findings provide valuable guidance to asset managers and investors seeking to mitigate portfolio risk by engaging in ESG investing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sweet melon, and in particular, spotted melon, is one of the most profitable fruit crops for farmers in the international market. As the spot ratio impacts the melon's visual appeal, it plays a significant role in shaping consumers' initial impressions and influencing their decision to purchase a spotted melon. However, accurately determining the spot area on a melon's skin is challenging due to the diverse sizes and colors of these spots among different types of melons. In this study, the novel networks based on UNet model have been proposed to accurately determine the spot area on melon skins after harvesting. First, Mask R-CNN model was employed to isolate the melons from unwanted objects and backgrounds. Then, the novel variants of the Atrous Spatial Pyramid Pooling (ASPP) and Waterfall Atrous Spatial Pooling (WASP) were developed based on the multi-head self-attention (MHSA) approach to efficiently enhance the original structures. Finally, the proposed modules were integrated into VGG16-UNet network to segment melons' spots on its skin. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed methods yielded promising outcomes, achieving a mean IoU of 89.86% and an accuracy of 99.45% across all classes. Moreover, it outperformed other existing models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The internationalization process is complex and neither constantly moving ahead nor steady. Businesses often narrow the extent of their global reach or even exit overseas markets entirely. This research aimed to study the important driving elements and firms' performance following the de-internationalization strategy. We performed a cross-case analysis of two leading auto firms that chose to de-internationalize and examined how this has improved the different aspects of their performance. We used a flowing stream strategy framework to compare the performance of automakers before and after implementing a partial de-internationalization strategy. We chose General Motors and Ford for our study because the financial performance of both firms improved following the partial de-internationalization approach. Contemporary research demonstrates that organizations should be flexible in redirecting resources that are not producing the intended results to profit sectors. This article recommends that firms should adopt a strategic flexibility framework to compete in the changing business climate. This work will facilitate managers to plan their resources proficiently and respond wisely to volatile events in an international market. This research adds value to the theoretical perspective of international business literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biomass processing technology plays a key role in the production of bioenergy, which has the potential to reduce carbon emissions and mitigate climate change. This review article presents the current state of biomass processing technology, its potential advantages for bioenergy production, and factors that may influence the future global market. This review begins with an overview of biomass industry and its role in bioenergy production. Various biomass processing techniques, including thermochemical and biochemical methods, are then reviewed, along with their advantages and limitations. Moreover, it discusses current bioenergy market trends in the past, present, and future growth potential. In addition, this article examines the factors that may influence the future global market for biomass processing technology and bioenergy. Factors including technological advancements, regulatory policies, market competition, and global energy demand are discussed. The results emphasize the importance of choosing the appropriate processing technology based on the specific biomass feedstock and desired end product. The need for R&D investments to improve biomass processing technology and increase the efficiency and scalability of bioenergy production is conclusive. The review points out the importance of political support to promote bioenergy adoption and boost market demand. Despite challenges to overcome, the potential advantages of using biomass processing technology to produce bioenergy make it a promising candidate for meeting global energy needs and reducing carbon emissions. This review article provides a comprehensive overview of biomass processing technologies and their potential role in the global bioenergy market. This highlights the importance of continued investment in research and development and supportive policy frameworks to enable bioenergy deployment and accelerate the transition to a more sustainable energy future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to determine whether the involvement of prestigious attorneys in issuing companies affects withdrawals in the initial public offering (IPO) market. There is little evidence on how the involvement of famous lawyers affects IPO withdrawal. The study considers a large dataset consisting of 24,312 IPOs that were either successful or withdrawn from 22 distinct IPO marketplaces between January 1995 and December 2019. We find that IPO issuers may benefit from engaging with reputed attorneys by leveraging exceptional legal or negotiating abilities as quality certification signals to reduce IPO investors' ex-ante uncertainty. Here, the objective is to protect their IPOs from withdrawal of at least by 22%. Multiple robustness tests validate the reliability of the results of this study. These findings have significant implications for researchers, legislators, investors, and issuers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study uses complex network analysis to investigate global stock market co-movement during the black swan event of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. We propose a novel method for calculating stock price index correlations based on open-high-low-close (OHLC) data. More intraday information can be utilized compared with the widely used return-based method. Hypothesis testing was used to select the edges incorporated in the network to avoid a rigid setting of the artificial threshold. The topologies of the global stock market complex network constructed using 70 important global stock price indices before (2017–2019) and after (2020–2022) the COVID-19 outbreak were examined. The evidence shows that the degree centrality of the OHLC data-based global stock price index complex network has better power-law distribution characteristics than a return-based network. The global stock market co-movement characteristics are revealed, and the financial centers of the developed, emerging, and frontier markets are identified. Using centrality indicators, we also illustrate changes in the importance of individual stock price indices during the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on these findings, we provide suggestions for investors and policy regulators to improve their international portfolios and strengthen their national financial risk preparedness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There were no studies about the structure of the international fresh blueberry market in developing countries for contributing to the development of strategies and policies for the production, imports, and exports of fresh blueberries in the involved countries. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the structure of the international fresh blueberry market in the period 2001–2020. The research design was non-experimental, and longitudinal, with trends on per capita consumption, the market concentration index, and a multiple linear regression model. It was concluded that per capita consumption is led by Canada and the USA and that the concentration indices of the four main countries [CR(4)] of production, imports, and exports went from very high concentration levels to high concentration levels. The eight main countries [CR(8)] of production and exports were at a very high level and imports went from a very high level to a high level; in addition, the Herfindal–Hirschman-Index (HHI) of production was at a highly concentrated level: (a) highly concentrated level in imports in the period 2001–2018, (b) moderately concentrated from 2019 in imports, (c) highly concentrated in exports in the period 2001–2009, (d) moderately concentrated in exports in the period 2010–2018, and (e) not concentrated in exports as of 2019; in addition, the multiple linear regression model showed that per capita consumption, market share, price, and production contribute with 94.3% of the explanation of the variability of fresh blueberry exports. Finally, it was recommended to study the blueberry consumption habits and access restrictions to other international markets for increasing blueberry exports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the beginning of the twenty-first century, several pandemics, including SARS and COVID-19, have spread faster and on a broader scale. Not only do they harm people's health, but they can also cause significant damage to the global economy within a short period of time. This study uses the infectious disease EMV tracker index to investigate the impact of pandemics on the volatility spillover effects of global stock markets. Spillover index model estimation is conducted using the time-varying parameter vector autoregressive approach, and the maximum spanning tree and threshold filtering techniques are combined to construct the dynamic network of volatility spillovers. The conclusion from the dynamic network is that when a pandemic occurs, the total volatility spillover effect increases sharply. In particular, the total volatility spillover effect historically peaked during the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, when pandemics occur, the density of the volatility spillover network increases, while the diameter of the network decreases. This indicates that global financial markets are increasingly interconnected, speeding up the transmission of volatility information. The empirical results further reveal that volatility spillovers among international markets have a significant positive correlation with the severity of a pandemic. The study's findings are expected to help investors and policymakers understand volatility spillovers during pandemics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A recent rise in the global brewery sector has increased the demand for high-quality, late summer hops. The effects of ongoing and predicted climate change on the yield and aroma of hops, however, remain largely unknown. Here, we combine meteorological measurements and model projections to assess the climate sensitivity of the yield, alpha content and cone development of European hops between 1970 and 2050 CE, when temperature increases by 1.4 °C and precipitation decreases by 24 mm. Accounting for almost 90% of all hop-growing regions, our results from Germany, the Czech Republic and Slovenia show that hop ripening started approximately 20 days earlier, production declined by almost 0.2 t/ha/year, and the alpha content decreased by circa 0.6% when comparing data before and after 1994 CE. A predicted decline in hop yield and alpha content of 4–18% and 20–31% by 2050 CE, respectively, calls for immediate adaptation measures to stabilize an ever-growing global sector. The effects of climate change on the yield and aroma of beer hops remains unknown. Here the authors demonstrate a climate-induced decline in the quality and quantity of traditional aroma hops across Europe and calls for urgent adaptation measures to stabilize international market chains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information asymmetry is particularly common in the supply chain framework. As we know, the downstream retailer usually knows more about the market demand information than the upstream manufacturer because of her proximity to consumers. This paper considers a supply chain that a manufacturer sells products to consumers via a retailer in a local market. Besides, the manufacturer has an option to establish a direct online channel in the overseas market, in which the retailer can sell products as a gray marketer to earn an extra profit. Both markets' demand information is transparent to the retailer but asymmetric to the manufacturer. There are two side an opposite effects of information sharing on the retailer. The positive effect is that when she withholds demand information she can possess an information advantage. However, the negative effect is that when the retailer shares her private demand information, especially when the manufacturer enters the overseas market, the retailer's profit may be negatively affected because of the competition. Therefore, whether the retailer has motivation to share her private demand information with the manufacturer is an intriguing yet unanswered question. We first characterize the tradeoff in three supply chain structures, Local Market, Dual Market and Gray Market. Then, we obtain the equilibrium results of each case and find that a co-opetition strategy may arise because of competition when considering gray market and dual-channel. Finally, we uncover the underlying reasons and develop valuable insights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The network structure of non-centrally cleared derivative markets, uncovered via the European Market Infrastructure Regulation, is investigated by reconstructing initial and variation margin networks to analyze channels of potential losses and liquidity dynamics. Despite the absence of central clearing, the derivative network is found to be ultra-small and a maximization-based filtering tool is proposed to identify channels in the network characterized by the highest exposures. I find these exposures to be mainly toward institutions outside the euro area, emphasizing the need for cooperation across different jurisdictions. Anomalous behavior in terms of diverging first and second moments of the degree and strength distributions are detected, signaling the presence of large exposures generating extreme liquidity outflows. A reference table of parameters' estimates based on real data is provided for different network sizes, with no break of confidentiality, making it possible to simulate in a realistic way the liquidity dynamic in global derivative markets even when access to supervisory data is not granted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The market and manufacturers of hydrogen fuel cells are analyzed. The main types of fuel cells and their operating principles are discussed. The main requirements applied to gas-diffusion layers and their main properties are identified. Domestic technology of gas-diffusion layers as carbon–carbon composite materials is described. A scheme for producing gas-diffusion layers as carbon–polymer composites based on carbon fibrous materials from cellulose hydrate or polyacrylonitrile is given. Hydrophobization of gas-diffusion layers is performed using fluoroplastics. The technology can be shortened and economized by fabricating gas-diffusion layers as carbon–polymer composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The attractive biological properties and health benefits of natural astaxanthin (AXT), including its antioxidant and anti-carcinogenic properties, have garnered significant attention from academia and industry seeking natural alternatives to synthetic products. AXT, a red ketocarotenoid, is mainly produced by yeast, microalgae, wild or genetically engineered bacteria. Unfortunately, the large fraction of AXT available in the global market is still obtained using non-environmentally friendly petrochemical-based products. Due to the consumers concerns about synthetic AXT, the market of microbial-AXT is expected to grow exponentially in succeeding years. This review provides a detailed discussion of AXT's bioprocessing technologies and applications as a natural alternative to synthetic counterparts. Additionally, we present, for the first time, a very comprehensive segmentation of the global AXT market and suggest research directions to improve microbial production using sustainable and environmentally friendly practices. Key points: • Unlock the power of microorganisms for high value AXT production. • Discover the secrets to cost-effective microbial AXT processing. • Uncover the future opportunities in the AXT market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work we analyse the global soccer player transfer market providing a network approach that takes into account both the number of transfers and the related costs for football players in the world market. We propose a community detection methodology that considers different features of the network. We cluster countries according to similarities in their roles in the transfer market and to the presence of indirect connections due to common neighbours. Numerical results show a strict relation between the composition of clusters and the economic value of the football leagues of different countries. Indeed, we observe that, on average, leagues with a similar economic value belongs to the same cluster. The analysis has been also extended providing a comparison based on the world trade network. We observe that prominent European players in the economic trades are also relevant in the soccer transfer network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we study the interdependences between the dynamics of the stock market indexes of 30 different stock markets across 29 different countries to analyze the nonlinear dynamics of their information flows. We find that the system exhibits complex dynamic properties that go beyond what has been generally found in the previous literature, suggesting that the structure of information flows is regulated by subtle homeostatic forces that cause the roles of the single markets in the whole network to evolve in unexpected ways. We present a toolkit of ANN-based methods that can be systematically deployed to analyze different aspects of such dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An increasing involvement of the Asian market in the global context plays a fundamental role in spreading shocks across the financial system. This paper examines the extent of vulnerability across Asian equity markets and the United States (US) equity market by distinguishing between spillovers and contagion. Spillovers are detected using a generalised historical decomposition method, while contagion is identified using a portfolio mimicking factor framework using moment conditions. The transmission of spillovers is assessed to capture the direction, strength and signs of the spillovers. The findings show evidence of changing vulnerability in Asia and the US. This is as a result of increased spillovers during crisis events and the presence of contagion. Stronger connections during crisis periods are evident as well as a general deepening of the global network. These connections may result in reduced opportunities for emerging markets. The findings suggest that caution is needed when developing regulations or methods to create a stable financial system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of International Business Studies is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Drawing from the literature on institutional pressure, we argue that firms with different ownership types have different strategic options in domestic and overseas markets, namely the zone of conformity. State-controlled enterprises (SCEs) have a broader range of acceptable actions than do private-controlled enterprises (PCEs) in a domestic market but face more sanctions and stricter conformity requests in an overseas market. The concept of the zone of conformity predicts SCEs have a higher probability of deal failure overseas than in domestic markets and strategically seek less equity ownership of target firms in cross-border deals. The autocracy level of target country moderates the M&A behaviors difference between SCEs and PCEs. Our analysis of 12,497 Chinese mergers and acquisitions supports the study hypotheses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine the presence of dependence across 51 energy markets classified into different regions from Jan 2007 to June 2021. In order to examine the presence of dependence across different energy markets, we apply standard and threshold dependence measures proposed by Diebold and Yilmaz, Int J Forecast 28:57-66, (2012) and Baruník and Křehlík, J Financ Econ 16(2):271-296, (2018). We highlight the presence of strong dependence between the energy markets at both regional level and across other regions. European and American energy markets are highly connected within the region over the long-run whereas Asia–Pacific and the African energy markets offer optimal diversification opportunities. Both short- and long-run dependence exists between Chinese and the Hong Kong energy markets and between the US and Canadian energy markets. We also witness substantial increase dependence across all the energy markets during different crisis periods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of market power has gained a lot of attention by scholars and policy-makers since De Loecker and Eeckhout (Global market power. Working paper 24768, National Bureau of Economic Research, 2018). In their work, they show the temporal evolution of market power worldwide using detailed data from the financial statements of thousands of firms. In this paper, we propose an alternative way of estimating market power using sectoral-based data. By utilizing the aggregates observable in a series of input–output tables and by applying an estimation procedure based on entropy; indicators of market power can be derived without requiring the use of micro-data. We document a heterogeneous evolution of market power across 28 European countries and 14 manufacturing sectors between 2000 and 2014. Market power is found to be rising for several central- and East-European countries, while decreasing in multiple South- and West-European nations. Globalisation and value chain positioning are both seen to have a significantly decreasing impact on markups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of International Business Studies is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Because the U.S. is a major player in the international oil market, it is interesting to study whether aggregate and state-level economic conditions can predict the subsequent realized volatility of oil price returns. To address this research question, we frame our analysis in terms of variants of the popular heterogeneous autoregressive realized volatility (HAR-RV) model. To estimate the models, we use quantile-regression and quantile machine learning (Lasso) estimators. Our estimation results highlights the differential effects of economic conditions on the quantiles of the conditional distribution of realized volatility. Using weekly data for the period April 1987 to December 2021, we document evidence of predictability at a biweekly and monthly horizon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose a novel approach to visualize and compare financial markets across the globe using chaos game representation (CGR) of iterated function systems (IFS). We modified a fractal method, widely used in life sciences, and applied it to study the effect of COVID-19 on global financial markets. This modified driven IFS approach is used to generate compact fractal portraits of the financial markets in form of percentage CGR (PC) plots and subtraction percentage (SP) plots. The markets over different periods are compared and the difference is quantified through a parameter called the proximity (Pr) index. The reaction of the financial market across the globe and volatility to the current pandemic of COVID-19 is studied and modeled successfully. The imminent bearish and a surprise bullish pattern of the financial markets across the world is revealed by this fractal method and provides a new tool to study financial markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the impact of US partisan conflict index (PCI) on international stock markets. It extracts innovations from a VAR model and estimates regression specifications. The results document that PCI has a substantial explanatory power. This effect is unique given that (i) traditional disagreement measures per se have no explanatory power, and (ii) neither macroeconomic, nor financial uncertainty measures can undermine the power of PCI. The effect appears to be stronger during periods when the Republican Party is in power. Findings further suggest that this linkage could be seen through the prism of both macroeconomic activity and discount rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of International Business Studies is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study investigates the South Korean government's effort to promote macro-level quality development. Using the single case study method, the authors examined 28 empirical studies published for Korean audiences that discussed the quality development initiative in South Korea which occurred between the 1950s and the mid 2010s. The results revealed the Korean government's unique model for macro-level quality development. Discussed herein is the key strategic approach for the governance of the initiative, its timeline, the innovative policy and administration necessary for sound governance, and the contribution of collaborative partnerships. An investigation into this iterative, macro-level, quality development process in South Korea provides insight into the process of shifting perspective about quality and establishing a culture of continuous quality improvement to gain a competitive edge in the global market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International graduates have been shown to experience comparatively poor outcomes in their transition to the host labour market after course completion. In Australia, international graduates typically fare worse than domestic graduates in the labour market, with new evidence pointing to a deterioration in their relative labour market position over the years. The contributing factors for the deterioration, however, remain unclear. In this article, we analysed unique large-scale survey data from the Australian Graduate Survey to identify the factors underlying the deteriorating labour market outcomes of international graduates from 2000. Our findings indicate that the deteriorating labour market outcomes of international graduates can be largely linked to the declining share of these graduates who are a citizen or permanent resident of Australia. The rising percentage of international graduates who are non-native English-speakers also played a role, albeit a modest one. These findings call attention to the persistent labour market disadvantage of international graduates and highlight the inadequacies of existing policies aimed at temporary retention and stronger English language skills in promoting labour market integration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relationship between entrepreneurial orientations and internationalization has been examined extensively, but the recent developments in the rapidly changing environment point to the need for further examination of international entrepreneurs' orientations in their own embedding contexts and beyond. There is ample evidence suggesting a positive relationship between the firm's combined overall international entrepreneurial orientation, its extent of innovativeness, export (or international marketing), collaborative, and socio-cultural orientations and the scope and speed of its internationalization. The aim of this article is to examine the challenges and developments among the integral components of international entrepreneurial orientations and their associated activities, strategies, and resources to integrate their interactive impacts for better understanding of the broader concepts of international entrepreneurship orientations and international entrepreneurship capital in the increasing complexities of entrepreneurial internationalization processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interactions with global markets offer development opportunities for Indigenous communities. They also place pressure on the natural resources that communities depend upon for their livelihood and, in many cases, their political and cultural autonomy. These markets often interact with family-based enterprises embedded within commons, with important implications for the social relationships and shared territorial resources that characterise such regimes. In this paper, we analyse the relationships that exist between commons, global markets, and small-scale family enterprises, using the case of mezcal production—an alcoholic beverage made from agave—in an Indigenous community in Oaxaca, Mexico. Most mezcal production is organized at the family level; yet the raw materials and inputs (land, wild agave, firewood, water) necessary for making mezcal are held communally and regulated by locally-crafted institutions. Empirical data show that as family enterprises engage with an emergent global market for mezcal, the commons become essential for not only protecting territorial resources but also maintaining a degree of autonomy from powerful global markets and value chains. However, this requires substantial investment in monitoring and enforcement, and for community members to value sustainable commons management over short-term economic self-interest. To seek autonomy while participating in global markets, producer families also join together to develop cooperative strategies to access markets on better terms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study prices paid at auction for artworks created by male and female artists, based on birth-identified sex, and how these prices have evolved over time. Artworks produced by female artists comprise less than 4% of art auction sales; after controlling for artwork characteristics, we find that artworks by female artists are 4.4% more expensive than artworks by male artists. In the top echelon of the art market—for sales above $1 million—artworks by male artists sell for 18.4% more than by female artists. The top 40 artists represent 40% of total market share; no female artist makes the top 40 ranking of artists in terms of total sales value at auction in the period under study, 2000–2017. However, for contemporary artists, our empirical results show that works by male artists sell for 8.3% more than their female counterparts. Overall, this study highlights significant price differences across birth-identified sex in the secondary market for fine art. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose a novel risk measure that is built on comparing high-frequency time-varying volatility and low-frequency return spillover estimates. This measure permits to identify the markets that are epidemic in their complex interdependence. We conjecture that initially a highly volatile market experiences episodes of risk transmission, but only later absorbs risk and becomes an epidemic market. Moreover, we can detect newly emerging 'contagion' in the system. We examine the behaviour of 30 global equity markets and compare spillover measures, which encapsulate many large and small crises episodes. Instead of relying on ex post crisis information, our model identifies crises periods. An important implication of the proposed approach is that highly interrelated markets, such as China, are less likely to transmit a global economic crisis under the current interdependence setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic impacts from plant pests are often felt at the regional scale, yet some impacts expand to the global scale through the alignment of a pest's invasion potentials. Such globally invasive species (i.e., paninvasives) are like the human pathogens that cause pandemics. Like pandemics, assessing paninvasion risk for an emerging regional pest is key for stakeholders to take early actions that avoid market disruption. Here, we develop the paninvasion severity assessment framework and use it to assess a rapidly spreading regional U.S. grape pest, the spotted lanternfly planthopper (Lycorma delicatula; SLF), to spread and disrupt the global wine market. We found that SLF invasion potentials are aligned globally because important viticultural regions with suitable environments for SLF establishment also heavily trade with invaded U.S. states. If the U.S. acts as an invasive bridgehead, Italy, France, Spain, and other important wine exporters are likely to experience the next SLF introductions. Risk to the global wine market is high unless stakeholders work to reduce SLF invasion potentials in the U.S. and globally. The spotted lanternfly planthopper poses a global threat as a paninvasive wine grape pest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to inspiring growth over the past 20 years, the dynamics of Chinese exports have been the focus of many researchers. In contrast to current literature, this study examines the quadratic relationship between China's real exports to 154 partner countries and the income of trading partners from 1996 to 2019. The findings obtained from the second generational econometric analysis confirm cross-section dependence and heterogeneous slope among panel members. Second, while the GDP per capita of partner countries has a positive impact on China's exports, the quadratic of GDP per capita has a negative impact. These findings indicate an inverted U-shaped relationship between China's exports and GDP per capita of its partner countries—thus, validating the trading Kuznets curve (TKC) hypothesis. The appreciation of the Renminbi (RMB) has statistically significant negative effects on China's exports. From a policy perspective, Chinese policymakers could consider the TKC hypothesis when determining market and export strategies. Additionally, the Chinese monetary authority could consider stabilizing the value of the RMB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global market for seafood alternatives is witnessing an exponential growth. Nevertheless, the nutritional quality of such products is scarcely studied. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate, for the first time, the nutritional quality of seafood alternatives launched in the global market from 2002 to 2021 and to compare them with the conventional seafood products. Using the Mintel Global New Products Database, the nutritional information of seafood alternatives (i.e., tuna, shrimps, calamari, fish fingers, fish sticks, salmon, caviar, and fillet) was retrieved, and compared with conventional products. A total of 149 seafood alternatives were identified, of which 83 items had complete mandatory nutritional labeling. Conventional products (n = 973) were also collected, from which 130 products have a complete nutritional labeling. Results revealed that tuna, shrimps, caviar and fillet alternatives contained significantly less protein than conventional products, while calamari, fish fingers, fish sticks and salmon alternatives had similar amounts to their conventional counterparts. Salt content was significantly higher in tuna, fish fingers and sticks substitutes, but lower in shrimps, calamari and caviar alternatives compared to conventional products. Overall, the commercially available seafood alternatives have nutritional strengths and some shortcomings to be further addressed in future research such as low protein content. Additionally, fortification of seafood alternatives with micronutrients, such as omega-3 fatty acids and vitamins (A, B, and D), should be considered to ensure a nutritional equivalence with the conventional products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article considers Turkey as an archetypal example of the semi-periphery, neither entirely beholden to international rules and norms nor free to set them. We focus on three leading export sectors – textiles and garments, automotives and infrastructure – and analyze how the Turkish state and associated industrial firms have worked to navigate the complicated demands of cost-competitiveness while increasing the production of value-added goods. We find that the Turkish state and firms have adopted a mix of strategies for integrating with export markets, combining neoliberal adherence to the rules and norms of Western markets through global value chains with neomercantilist efforts to direct cross-border trade and investment toward the Balkans, Middle East, and Central Asia. Although neoliberalism and neomercantilism are traditionally treated as opposing approaches to international economic integration, we find that, for semi-peripheral countries like Turkey, these strategies are not contradictory but rather complementary, as they reduce exposure to the volatility and dependence upon Western markets. While the success of these efforts varies across industries and types of firms, we suggest that such dualistic approaches may be a key strategy for semi-peripheral countries seeking to minimize their dependence on Western markets while exerting economic influence in their near abroad. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the predictability of a fixed uncertainty index (UI) for realized variances (volatility) in the international stock markets from a high-frequency perspective. We construct a composite UI based on the scaled principal component analysis (s-PCA) method and demonstrate that it exhibits significant in- and out-of-sample predictabilities for realized variances in global stock markets. This predictive power is more powerful than those of two commonly employed competing methods, namely, PCA and the partial least squares (PLS) methods. The result is robust in several checks. Further, we explain that s-PCA outperforms other dimension-reduction methods since it can effectively increase the impacts of strong predictors and decrease those of weak factors. The implications of this research are significant for investors who allocate assets globally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses, for the first time, potential convergence patterns of hotel revenues across provinces in China. Through the club clustering methodology, the analysis uses a unique dataset of all hotels across all Chinese provinces. The findings document that these hotel revenues follow a diverging pattern on a national level, while a converging pattern is identified across certain provinces, thus forming specific clubs. When the analysis is extended to identify potential drivers for such diverging or converging behavior, the new results illustrate the role of productivity trends, management strategies and tax policies as those factors that drive such patterns. The results could be of substantial value, primarily for tourism policymakers to further improve the current framework of the Chinese hotel industry to introduce practices and policies that will allow the industry to catch up with the global market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces a new measure of comovement and contagion of crises between countries, applies it to 16 world crises, including the current COVID-19 pandemic, and provides insights regarding the occurrence of contagion during these crises. Our measure demonstrates several important advantages over the extant measures of contagion. Traditional measures of contagion, such as increase in correlation, could be limited in scope since they are bivariate, whereas contagion is often a regional or global market phenomenon. The multiple comparisons that the binary correlations require in such cases could yield inconclusive or contradictory results and fail to capture the broad effects of the crisis on the regions. Moreover, during crises, a country's stock market volatility often increases, a phenomenon that could lead to a spurious indication of increased correlation with other countries (contagion). Corrections for this bias have been suggested, but they could adversely affect the power of the contagion tests and fail to detect genuine contagion. Using simulations, we show the robustness of our measure to changes in volatility and demonstrate its power to affirm instances of genuine contagion. Support for the power of our measure relative to an extant leading measure of contagion is also provided by analysis of the cases of the 1994 Mexican peso crisis, the 1997 East Asian crisis, and Black Monday, the 1987 US stock market crash. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The past decades witness the impressive development of China. Along with the huge demand of China for commodities, the Chinese shipping market becomes more and more important. This paper investigates the determinants and the interactions of the Chinese shipping market with the international shipping market. We utilize the relatively large-dimensional Chinese commodities data as part of the controlled variables. The principal component analysis is applied to the commodities data to reduce the size of the data dimension. It is found that the controlled variables, including fuel cost, financial markets, and prices of large commodities, have the explanatory capability for the Chinese and the international shipping markets. There are mutual influences between the two shipping markets, with the Chinese market more sensitive to the movements of the international market. The Chinese shipping market has integrated into the international shipping market to some extent, instead of being isolated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the dynamics of food trade, which involves a corresponding virtual trade in environmental resources, is relevant for its effects on the environment. Among the socioeconomic factors driving the international food market, trade agreements play a significant yet poorly understood role in facilitating access to worldwide trade. Focusing on the global trade of grain from 1993 to 2015, we investigate the role of trade agreements in activating new linkages and increasing traded volumes and their environmental implications. Through a data-driven approach, we show that the activation of a trade agreement among countries induces a more than six-fold increase in the probability of establishing a new link. Also, the presence of a trade agreement over time, not just its activation, relates to a more stable market since it reduces the probability of link deactivation by more than half. The trade links covered by agreements show larger flows and smoother inter-annual fluctuations. Furthermore, trade agreements encourage the development of more water-efficient flows by stimulating the exchange of crops with high water productivity values. The average economic water productivity of crops traded under trade agreements increases by 62% when considering total virtual water and even by 93% when focusing on blue water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This study applies OLS, panel regression and Granger causality test to investigate the impact of the Coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) outbreak on the global equity markets during the early stage of the pandemic. We find that the Covid-19 outbreak has a significant negative impact on the overall equity index return of the eight economies even at 0.1% significance level. Furthermore, the pandemic has a more significant impact on the European countries than on the East Asian economies. The results have three main implications. Firstly, policy makers should react fast to mitigate the impact of a crisis. Secondly, investors should be aware of an outbreak of disease or other risks and adjust their investments accordingly. Furthermore, the Covid-19 outbreak results in a shift of power from the west to the east. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We consider directional volatility connectedness among energy markets and financial markets over time and frequencies simultaneously during the period 2007–2018. We utilize and expand Barunik and Krehlik (J Financ Econom 16:271-296, 2018) connectedness measurements using HVAR in order to achieve a better perspective of energy markets. Our results indicate that during a crisis, the connectedness among markets increases dramatically. Furthermore, our findings support that markets are mostly driven by short-term factors and are highly speculative. Among energy markets, Natural Gas Futures contribute the least to other markets in all time frames. Besides, London Gas Oil Futures and Heating Oil Futures collaborate. Currencies and Natural Gas Futures are suitable choices for portfolio managers to hedge their risks especially in the long run. The findings of this article can offer new insights to policymakers about the mechanism of connectedness among different markets and international investors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the spillover effects of unconventional monetary policies (UMPs) by the Bank of Japan (BOJ) and the Federal Reserve (Fed) on the domestic and global financial markets, taking a possible regime change into account. Applying a smooth-transition global VAR model to ten countries and the Euro zone for the sample period between 2002–2015, we find that the BOJ's expansionary UMPs have significantly increased the equity prices and depreciated the exchange rates, regardless of the regimes. Also, our results indicate that the BOJ's UMPs have become more effective for the government and corporate bond prices in more recent years. In addition, we find that the Fed's expansionary UMPs have had significant positive effects on their domestic financial markets throughout the sample period. Finally, our results suggest that the BOJ's UMPs have rather limited effects on global financial markets and that the effects of the Fed's UMPs are considerably larger. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In current years, natural pigments are facing a fast-growing global market due to the increase of people's awareness of health and the discovery of novel pharmacological effects of various natural pigments, e.g., carotenoids, flavonoids, and curcuminoids. However, the traditional production approaches are source-dependent and generally subject to the low contents of target pigment compounds. In order to scale-up industrial production, many efforts have been devoted to increasing pigment production from natural producers, via development of both in vitro plant cell/tissue culture systems, as well as optimization of microbial cultivation approaches. Moreover, synthetic biology has opened the door for heterologous biosynthesis of pigments via design and re-construction of novel biological modules as well as biological systems in bio-platforms. In this review, the innovative methods and strategies for optimization and engineering of both native and heterologous producers of natural pigments are comprehensively summarized. Current progress in the production of several representative high-value natural pigments is also presented; and the remaining challenges and future perspectives are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

VET (vocational education and training) is a highly complex, multidimensional worldwide phenomenon with diverse structures. Additionally, very different actors define the functions of a national (or even a regional) VET system. The paper contributes to a better understanding of the policy frameworks and current states of such systems. Therefore, we focus on selected VET systems in order to understand their specifics and thus, their market conditions. A qualitative approach is used to answer the research question regarding which conditions create or support market-based opportunities for the provision of commercial vocational training services. We find that the liberalism and deregulation of the VET sectors, as well as the marketisation of VET practices, lead to incentives to internationalise VET offers. Thinking in terms of skills, the kind of education system does not play a role. This is the case in liberal market-driven VET approaches (here, the UK, the USA and Australia) and is mirrored in the micro-analysis categories of curricula, learning location, content, and learning process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]