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Purpose : Globalisation has influenced many countries, over the last few decades with financial globalisation and liberalisation bringing regulatory reforms in the banking sector. Thus, this study aims to fill a gap in the literature by examining the influence of globalisation on Islamic and conventional bank productivity in Southeast Asia. Design/methodology/approach : The sample comprised 155 banks (23 Islamic and 132 conventional) from 4 countries from 2008 to 2017. Panel data techniques will be used, together with data envelopment analysis (DEA)-based Malmquist productivity index (MPI), to investigate the impact of chosen main determinants on bank productivity. A panel regression analysis will be performed after generating the productivity index from the DEA-based MPI frontier. Findings : According to the findings, Islamic banks are statistically significantly more productive than conventional banks, and the findings of the t-test are corroborated by the findings of nonparametric tests. Furthermore, the findings of the panel regression model reveal that bank specific factors and macroeconomic variables are significant determinants to bank productivity. Surprisingly, the findings also show that the influence of social globalisation elements tends to be negatively related to conventional bank productivity. Originality/value : This study adds to the existing literature by bridging the globalisation gap in the productivity of the dual banking industry, particularly in the specific context of Southeast Asia, given that the area is representative of Islamic and finance globally.

The swiftlet edible bird’s nest (EBN) is a ranching industry in which the ranchers do not have to own the birds and are not required to prepare the food as the birds will find their own. However, the ranchers need to provide the ranches and attract the birds for nesting. This study examined a two-stage analysis on energy efficiency and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission in the swiftlet EBN production in Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia. In the first stage, non-parametric data envelopment analysis (DEA) was used to measure the efficiency score. The results revealed that out of 150 ranches, 7.33% and 40.67% of the ranches were efficient under the Charnes, Cooper, and Rhodes (CCR) and Banker, Charnes, and Cooper (BCC) models, respectively. The average of technical, pure technical, and scale efficiencies are 0.35361, 0.93071, and 0.37199, respectively. Analysis on optimum energy requirement and energy savings showed the total energy input that could be saved by the inefficient ranches was 0.89391 MJ/sqft−1 (63.87%). In addition, the inefficient ranches could reduce emissions by 63.86% (0.04497 kg Co2eq/sqft−1). In the second stage of analysis using the Tobit model, the results reported that a nesting plank was the factor with the most significantly positive effect on the ranch efficiency to improve their efficiency in energy consumption savings and emissions reduction in the EBN production.

Research background: Microfinance institutions (MFIs) play an important role in alleviating poverty. Thus, MFIs should be efficient in order to ensure that their objectives on social welfare and financial performance can be achieved by identifying the potential determinants, specifically on social globalisation. Purpose of the article: This paper examines the impacts of the social globalisation dimensions of interpersonal, informational, and cultural globalisations on the financial and social efficiency of MFIs. Methods: The data period covered the years 2011?2018; the data set consists of 176 MFIs from six Asian countries. The Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) approach was employed to examine the MFIs? efficiency levels. Generalised Least Square (GLS) regressions were used to analyse the impacts of social globalisation and other determinants towards the efficiency of MFIs. Findings and value added: Interpersonal globalisation had a significantly negative correlation with social efficiency, suggesting that increasing the number of foreigners in management intrudes on local managers? decisions. Informational globalisation had a significantly positive correlation with financial and social efficiency, which signifies that more information produces monopolistic profits in this industry. Finally, cultural globalisation had a positive correlation with social efficiency, demonstrating that a global trading culture improves the abilities and technological skills for labour development and enhances MFIs? social efficiency. In general, the Cobb Douglas Production theory explained the understanding of the impacts social globalisation has on MFI efficiency. Furthermore, the findings from this study could provide important scientific, practical gap and contribute new insights and implications to various parties. Firstly, governments or policymakers can establish effective national policies and strategies. Secondly, this study could support investors in monitoring and understanding

The environmental issue has become a global problem that needs to be examined frequently, motivating researchers to investigate it. Thus, the present study has investigated the asymmetric impact of globalization, economic growth and natural resources on the ecological footprint in the presence of environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) in Thailand. The study has used annual time series data from 1970 to 2018. The study applied a novel method of nonlinear autoregressive distributive lag (ARDL). In particular, the current study has investigated the effect of positive and negative shocks on the independent variable on the dependent variable. The findings have confirmed that the effect of globalization and natural resources are significant and nonlinear. However, the effect of negative shocks of globalization and natural resources is more dominant on the ecological footprint in Thailand than the positive shocks of both variables. Moreover, the present study has also tested the presence of EKC in Thailand, and the findings confirm the presence of an inverted U-shape curve in the Thailand economy.

The purpose of the current study is to examine the mediating role of organizational learning on a firm’s capabilities, corporate governance, leadership styles, and the firm’s sustainability. Moreover, the innovative culture used as a moderating variable between organizational learning and the firm’s sustainability. Data were collected from manufacturing organizations operating in Malaysia. This study used simple random sampling technique in data collection. Cross-sectional design and correlational design were used in meeting the objectives of the research. There were 550 questionnaires distributed among respondents,and only 382 questionnaires were returned back, 15 questionnaires were excluded from the 382 questionnaires because of misleading and missing values. Hence, in the final analysis, only 367 questionnaires were used. Findings reveal that organizational capabilities and corporate governance significantly enhance both organizational learning and a firm’s sustainability. Moreover, leadership styles significantly enhance organizational learning but have no influence on a firm’s sustainability. Organizational learning significantly mediates between organizational capabilities, corporate governance, leadership styles, and the firm’s sustainability. Organizational learning also has a significant influence on the firm’s sustainability. Finally, innovative culture significantly moderates between organizational learning and the firm’s sustainability. The practical contribution of this research is that the top management can focus on these indicators in measuring firm’s sustainability. © 2020, Kauno Technologijos Universitetas. All rights reserved.

The present study was aimed at investigating the influence of risk-taking behavior on profitability for IBs in MENA region for a span of time covering 2005-19. The profitability of IBs were measured by ROA, ROE and NIM while the risk-taking behavior was identified with insolvency risk, capital risk, liquidity risk and credit risk. In addition, some controlling factors like efficiency; revenue, profit and cost efficiency and development indictors; stock market development, banking sector development and banking competition along-with macro indicators like inflation rate and GDP growth rate were used. The annual stream of data was formed in panel order by accessing the same from WDI and bank scope databases. The study uses panel data estimation like fixed, random and OLS as well as the dynamic panel estimations like GMM. The Hausman specification test and LM test were not significant which validate the use of OLS for panel estimation while Arellano-Bond, Sargan and Hansen test are not significant too which validates the GMM estimates for dynamic panel. The policy makers in IBs of MENA regions are recommended to consider ROA for measuring the profitability with greater R-square value by considering risk-taking behavior indicators like capital risk, liquidity risk and credit risk. These risk factors are taking positive capacity to strongly enhance the ROA for IBs in MENA region. The future researches may consider the comparative studies based on the variable setting of the present studies with fresh evidences. The estimated results of this study are generalizable to banking sectors only.

This study attempts to discover the impact of the limitation of a country’s governance on Islamic and conventional bank revenue efficiency by using data from the countries of three regions. Non-parametric Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) employed to measure the bank revenue efficiency level. The applied method of estimation consists of pooled Ordinary Least Square (OLS), Fixed Effect Model (FEM), Random Effect Model (REM), and the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) to examine the impact of country governance and other potential determinants on bank efficiency. This study finds out that the dimensions of voice and accountability positively influenced Islamic and conventional bank revenue efficiency, however, the political stability and absence of violence and control of corruption provided the negative relationship. Furthermore, other dimensions of regulatory quality, government effectiveness and rule of law significantly negative with the conventional bank revenue efficiency. Implications from the study allow the related parties to identify the significant dimensions of a country’s governance to the efficiency of the banks to ensure better bank performance.

The association of energy utilization with economic progress has always proven to be crucial in modern business. Acknowledging the importance of sectoral energy utilization, the present study explores the environmental impact of industrial, commercial, transportation& agricultural energy consumption on economic progress of Malaysia. Applying the functionality of Cobb-Douglas, the authors utilized the long time series data from the period of 1978 to 2016. The outcomes of the empirical investigations using ARDL bound testing approach ascertain the presence of long-run association between GDP growth, capital, labor along with the sectoral energy utilizations of the country. Furthermore, the study also finds empirical evidences of positive significant associations of all energy consumptions with economic growth. Lastly, the results of Granger-causality also confirm the existence of bi-directional causal association between all sectoral energy consumptions and Malaysian economic progress. This study brings a valid policy recommendation for the Malaysia Government to invest more in all sector of energy for the progress in the Malaysian economic growth.

Banking institutions have witnessed the failure of poverty reduction due to high risk service for poor people. Microfinance institutions (MFIs) were developed to provide financial services for low income households. In the drive to supply continuous financial services for the poor, performance of the MFIs has been one of the crucial aspects that needs consideration. The MFIs began with a social goal aim of poverty reduction. However, the commercialization of the MFIs has resulted in them becoming financially independent as they are funded by a previous government. Today the MFIs need to retain the social role, to eradicate poverty whilst at the same time they must strive to sustain long term operation. Are the MFIs still able to sustain their social goals when they also need to focus on financial sustainability? This study proposes to determine the level of social efficiency among MFIs in ASEAN 5 countries as the first objective. Secondly it will examine the impact firm characteristics that internally influence the social efficiency of the MFIs. The data consists of 168 MFIs from Southeast Asia that covers five countries from the year 2011 to 2017. The first stage of analysis to identify the level of social efficiency by using non parametric Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) approach. The second stage of analysis is to examine the impact of firm characteristics to influence the social efficiency by applying Multivariate Panel Regression Analysis (MPRA) as an estimation method. The findings reveal the MFIs in ASEAN 5 countries have a lower social efficiency. This indicates the MFIs in ASEAN 5 countries has traded their original mission of poverty reduction to focus more on achieving financial sustainability for long term viability.