Search

Organized crime is a significant and persistent threat to the global economy, affecting financial stability, economic development and social cohesion. This article examines the profound impact of organized crime on the world economy, highlighting the mechanisms by which it operates and its long-term consequences. Money laundering destabilizes financial systems by introducing illicit funds into the legal economy, affecting the integrity of financial institutions and investor confidence. Corruption allows criminal groups to infiltrate state institutions, undermining governance, eroding public trust and affecting the efficient allocation of resources. The distortion of economic markets by counterfeiting and smuggling affects fair competition, innovation and tax revenues, impacting key industries such as pharmaceuticals, luxury goods and technology. Human trafficking has serious consequences for the labor market, leading to the exploitation of individuals, lowering wages and eroding labor standards. Cybercrime compromises the security of critical infrastructure and sensitive data, generating significant economic costs and threatening the digital economy. To effectively combat organized crime, a multidimensional approach involving governments, international organizations, the private sector and civil society is required. Proposed strategies include strengthening the legal framework, promoting transparency, international cooperation, using technology to detect and prevent crime, and tackling the root causes of crime, such as poverty and inequality. In conclusion, organized crime is a global problem that requires global solutions, and only through firm commitment and close collaboration can we reduce its impact and ensure a safer and more prosperous future for the global economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work theoretically finds out the welfare implications of different reformatory policies in a small open developing economy using a 2 × 2 full-employment general equilibrium model with distorted factor and product markets. We have found that there exists a trade-off between labour market and credit market reforms, and that there might exist certain critical levels beyond which the implementation of the policies might produce perverse effects on social welfare. Even though our results are interesting and have important policy bearings, their applications in reality in a large democratic country like India, may not be practicable because of political economy reason. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is concerned with cross-dependencies between endogenous market structure and tax policy. We extend the Mirrlees (Rev Econ Stud 38:175–208, 1971) model of income taxation with a monopolistic competition framework with general additively separable consumer preferences. We show that quantity and variety distortions resulting from the market structure require adjustments to income tax policy, which also needs to be complemented with commodity or firm taxation to achieve the constrained social optimum. We calibrate the model and find that in policy design the failure to account for the market structure results in a welfare loss of 1.77%. Motivated by practical cases, we study a policy regime that is solely based on income taxation. We show that departures from the social optimum can be compensated by lower and less regressive income taxes and a smaller government compared to the regime with income and commodity taxes. We also examine the role of consumer preferences for policy outcomes and show that it is substantially amplified by an endogenous market structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because improved sanitation can improve public health but is lacking in many rural areas, many organizations use sanitation marketing to increase latrine coverage. In rural Cambodia, iDE has facilitated the sale of more than 395,000 pour-flush latrines since 2011 but recognizes that market actors are not incentivized to sell to the poorest households. Using a randomized controlled trial, in which poor households in treatment villages were offered partial latrine subsidies, this study investigated how subsidies affected latrine sales and program cost-effectiveness. Results show latrine sales among poor households that were offered subsidies increased by 14–16% compared to those that were not offered subsidies. Also, no significant effect on latrine sales among non-poor households was found, although lower village-level latrine coverage can reduce latrine sales to non-poor households. Cost-effectiveness analysis shows the increase in sales and thus economies of scale from subsidies yield lower per-latrine program costs compared to non-subsidy costs ($38 vs. $54). Well-targeted latrine subsidies can significantly increase latrine sales among poor households with minimal impact on latrine sales to non-poor households and favorable program cost reductions. However, subsidies must not be introduced into a market before baseline sanitation coverage is achieved to avoid market distortion effects. HIGHLIGHTS Latrine sales among poor households that were offered subsidies increased by 14–16%.; Subsidies for poor households can increase latrine sales without affecting sales to non-poor households.; Increased latrine sales from subsidies can lower per-latrine program costs.; Subsidies must not be introduced too early to avoid market distortion effects.; Local market knowledge is required to accurately target latrine subsidies.;

Copyright of Waste Forum is the property of Czech Environment Management Center (CEMC) 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.)

Resource misallocation (RM) refers to the existence of marginal output inequalities between different industries or companies in an economy. Prior studies of RM have mostly focused on effect analysis, construction industry structure upgrades, and organization management. However, these studies have been fragmented and unrelated. This paper analyzes the status quo, consequences, and emerging trends of RM research at the macroscopic level based on current problems and with the aim of exploring potential solutions. Drawing on grounded theory, a qualitative analysis using text-mining is used to analyze the characteristics of 124 RM-related papers. The results more comprehensively and systematically reveal that current RM research encompasses four major dimensions of sources and concepts, misallocation degree measurement and characterization, focused issues (field), and RM research deficiencies. Methods for measuring RM have also been developed from the simple proportional method to current mainstream methods (e.g., growth rate decomposition and variant substitution). We conclude that, in order for this discipline to thrive and effectively reduce RM, future research into RM should focus on core categories, especially the reform of market-oriented factors, transformation of government functions, construction industrial structure adjustment, and methods of income distribution. This systematic review provides a discipline oversight and uncovers necessary and potential research directions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Having recognised the significant role of natural gas in reducing carbon abatement costs, China is rapidly promoting its growth. However, obvious distortions exist in China's natural gas market, and it is unclear how these may affect abatement policies going forward. Therefore, to assess the effects of energy market distortions on the carbon marginal abatement costs (MACs) in China, this study proposes a computable general equilibrium model for China's natural gas sector, which considers the monopoly market structure, price regulation, and import restrictions. Results show that deregulation of gas prices will lead to an effective decrease in China's MACs. China's MACs are insensitive to liberalisation of the market monopoly or gas import restrictions. When all three distortions are fully deregulated, China's MACs show an obvious upward trend. Finally, this study uses China's carbon trading policies as an example to propose policy implications under different scenarios of natural gas market reform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Craft guilds were created as a response to certain problems associated with raising royal revenues and securing basic public services in Prague during the medieval and early modern periods. The theory consistent with historical evidence predicts that the rise, spread, and fall of guilds was a result of mutually beneficial bargaining between local craftsmen and their feudal rulers. Guilds enabled craftsmen to utilize the benefits of collusion by offering their capacities to sovereign authorities in exchange for exclusive market privileges. Nevertheless, they created social distortions within their industries in the process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an emerging economy, market distortions exist in China's institutional adjustment during its economy transformation. However, the price distortion of capital and labor factors will lead to factor misallocation among provinces. This will eventually reduce the total factor productivity (TFP) at the national level. Based on Hsieh and Klenow's [1] model framework, this paper aims to measure the degree of misallocation of capital and labor factors among provinces, and estimates the growth potential of China's TFP by using input-output data from 1993 to 2017. The findings show that: First, the degree of inter-provincial labor misallocation is greater than that of capital. For example, in 2017, the degree of capital (labor) misallocation was 5.77% (10.25%), resulting in China's TFP loss of 17.23%. Second, due to the factor marketization reforms, the degree of labor misallocation has declined while the degree of capital misallocation has intensified in recent years. Lastly, this paper introduces the time-varying elasticity production function model, finding that using the Cobb-Douglas production function will cause the factor misallocation to be underestimated by 5.91% due to the assumption of constant output elasticity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Resource misallocation (RM) refers to the existence of marginal output inequalities between different industries or companies in an economy. Prior studies of RM have mostly focused on effect analysis, construction industry structure upgrades, and organization management. However, these studies have been fragmented and unrelated. This paper analyzes the status quo, consequences, and emerging trends of RM research at the macroscopic level based on current problems and with the aim of exploring potential solutions. Drawing on grounded theory, a qualitative analysis using text-mining is used to analyze the characteristics of 124 RM-related papers. The results more comprehensively and systematically reveal that current RM research encompasses four major dimensions of sources and concepts, misallocation degree measurement and characterization, focused issues (field), and RM research deficiencies. Methods for measuring RM have also been developed from the simple proportional method to current mainstream methods (e.g., growth rate decomposition and variant substitution). We conclude that, in order for this discipline to thrive and effectively reduce RM, future research into RM should focus on core categories, especially the reform of market-oriented factors, transformation of government functions, construction industrial structure adjustment, and methods of income distribution. This systematic review provides a discipline oversight and uncovers necessary and potential research directions.

Mongolia has been in transition from a planned economy to a market economy for more than 20 years. In many sectors of the economy, it is necessary to define which market mechanisms exist. Grain occupies important economic sector in Mongolian economy. The current state of the wheat market has been studied based on NEIO research methods. In this study, the data for years from 2000 to 2017 and from 2007 to 2017 about wheat and wheat seed sector were taken through 6 indicators. We estimated the supply and demand functions for wheat and wheat seed. Using these functions, we defined market behavior, cost function, price elasticities, and market equilibrium. The capacity setting for product prices of wheat producers is weak, and this market is likely free-style competition.

In the Philippines, a mixture of public and private higher education institutions (HEIs) exists. Because of the government subsidy among the public HEIs, the major concern of the private sector is the “uneven playing field”. This study hopes to eliminate this unhealthy competition and market distortion in the educational landscape. This study utilizes the quantitative non-experimental retrospective explanatory design. Results show that regardless of the extent of state intervention, the market can be distorted. Hence, assigning specific programs to be offered based on the type of HEI is a good alternative. The programs to be fully subsidized and offered by the government are agriculture, sciences, engineering, manufacturing and construction, and humanities and arts (HA) while services, health and welfare, education and social sciences, business and law programs will be for private sector service providers. This stimulates healthy competition among the HEIs leading to a better quality of education.

Some 30 years ago Gordon Tullock, in his capacity as Editor of Public Choice, made a pointed effort to motivate researchers to measure and quantify resource investments in rent-seeking activities. Despite Tullock's identification of this aspect of rent-seeking as a significant gap in the literature and call to arms, this remains an under-studied topic of importance. Why is this? In our opinion, the answer is that, for a variety of reasons, measuring rent-seeking turns out to be very difficult. In this paper we identify and discuss several of the difficulties, both theoretical and empirical, although we concede that our treatment surely is not exhaustive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the MLS and the land registration data from Indiana, this paper identifies and explains price distortions associated with out-of-state sellers and buyers in the housing market. We find that out-of-state buyers pay 20.4% higher prices than local buyers, and the premium is fully explained by the former purchasing larger homes than the latter. On the other hand, out-of-state sellers receive a 21.2% price discount, among which 9.3% is attributable to differences in transactional characteristics, 3.2% is explained by increased motivation and weak bargaining power of out-of-state sellers, and 1.5% is due to differences in agent characteristics and behaviours. The remaining 7.2% discount varies systematically with the informational disadvantage of out-of-state sellers, and with the market condition. Our results are robust to model misspecification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

U.S. renewable electricity resource subsidization program design relies on production-based payments that lower electric energy market prices, often below zero, contrary to the objective of increasing market prices when correcting for an environmental externality. An alternative pricing approach, capacity-based subsidy payments, would substantially reduce the likelihood of negative electric market prices. A more thoughtful examination of the impact of subsidization program design on wholesale power markets is long overdue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In contrast to conventional system, concept of Islamic economy emphasize that market mechanism and price arrangement need to be regulated to create market balance and economic justice, taking into consideration the interest of the parties involved in the market. Reasonable and fair price is the price obtained through the force of supply and demand. If there exist actions such as zhulm resulting distortion or imbalance market price, government needs to take steps to implement price arrangement taking into account factors causing distortion and restore the original price at the balance pointDOI: 10.15408/aiq.v5i1.2552

Within the structure of a simple general equilibrium model, corporate leverage, growth of assets and resource allocation, and their inter-relationship under condition of market distortion are examined. Market distortion here refers to plurality of interest rates, as noted in the Modigliani and Miller's classic work (1958) in the later section on the analysis of capital structure. In this work, the concept of leverage it construed in two different senses - physical and financial - conditioned only by the presence of market distortion, and after that distinction is spelled out, it is explained how the changes in debt, equity, prices of the firm products, and market distortion affect the growth (decline) of firms, component cost of capital assets, and valuation. It is shown that returns on debt capital in real terms for a firm are increased (decreased) by the relative increase in the product price of the firm, and by the appropriate measures of leverage. The magnification effects on the earnings of the firms are also sketched out by the physical leverage of firms, and the modification of such magnification is induced or even reversed by opposite financial leverage situation. Elasticity of substitution between assets, demand elasticity and supply-side elasticity also come into play, and asset allocation is further exposited with all the parametric changes within this two-firm general equilibrium model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past two decades firms from developing countries have made enormous strides toward becoming competitive in the new global market. The pressure from their imports has caused a new type of market disturbance. Although developed countries have benefited from the imports from developing countries, the impact on their markets is raising concern. This paper examines the struggle that developed countries face in trying to balance the imports against the competitive affects of the penetration on local markets. Ultimately, what level of regulation should be used to bring balance back to the developed countries markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]