Do greater amounts of FDI cause higher pollution levels? Evidence from OECD countries

Using an ARDL model for a panel of 15 OECD countries, this work analyses the impact that FDI, both jointly and by sector, has on CO₂ emissions. The findings reveal that these countries are yielding to the pressure on the trade sector. Unexpectedly, gross fixed capital formation shrink pollution, excluding in the mining sector. With findings supporting the Pollution Haven Hypothesis, policymakers must pay attention to FDI inflows, ensuring that FDI place high importance on the transfer of green technologies to improve the efficiency. These goals could be achieved through an increase in the stringency of environmental laws within the host countries, especially the ones related to FDI.     

FDI,democracy and corruption in Sub-Saharan Africa

This paper investigates the relationship between FDI, democracy and corruption among 30 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) over the period of 1985–2014 to determine whether the ‘helping hand’ or ‘grabbing hand’ hypothesis is most applicable. The results of GMM analysis show that corruption is used by FDI investors to overcome the region’s weak democratic regulatory and institutional status and thus the ‘helping hand’ is more prevalent. However, the results further show that as democratic capital accumulates, this association may outlive its usefulness and thus corruption as a ‘helping hand’ in time becomes a ‘grabbing hand’ instead. These results imply that SSA countries should focus on integrating into the international economy so as to take advantage of existing financial enforcement legislation while reconstructing and strengthening domestic constitutional anti-corruption legislation and institutions.     

企业社会责任与企业投资水平——基于企业生命周期的视角

基于利益相关者理论、代理理论和社会网络理论，以企业社会责任增加企业的投资能力和提升管理层投资意愿两方面为切入点，通过理论分析与实证检验深入研究企业社会责任对于企业投资的动态影响效应。研究发现:企业社会责任可以显著提升企业的投资水平。在对样本企业划分生命周期后发现，成长期和成熟期的企业履行社会责任能够显著增加企业投资，然而社会责任对企业投资的促进作用在衰退期企业中并不明显。     

政府补偿下基于私人公平偏好的PPP项目投资决策分析

针对PPP （Private-Public Partnership）项目收益的不确定性，引入政府补偿契约问题。考虑私人投资者对政府补偿存在公平偏好倾向，借鉴BO模型的思想，将私人投资要求的特许收益作为其公平参考点，并通过对FS模型加以改进，构建私人公平偏好效用函数，从而给出私人在政府补偿下的投资决策模型。通过模型求最优解和概率分析，探讨私人公平偏好对其最优投资决策的影响，并借助数值分析给予检验。结果表明:当政府补偿使私人感知有利不公平时，私人将选择期望效用最大的最优投资，并随其感知程度的增加而增加；而当政府补偿使私人感知不利不公平时，私人最优投资及可能性将在有限公平偏好内随其感知程度的增加而减小。     

Neoliberalisation,the social investment state and social work

ABSTRACT

This article focuses on the challenges to social work evolving from two major discourses contributing to the common sense contextualising social work within the new spirit of capitalism and the governing of the soul. Beside neo-liberal ideas and values challenging social work values and the welfare state, the question is also about managerialism. To what extent is the social worker able to contribute to liberating, reflexive critique, or exert pastoral power? I have chosen to see how the idea of the social investment state may be linked to Rose’s and Foucault’s ideas about expanding governmentality and end my discussion by relating to some of the early writing on social work’s challenges in confronting ideas and practices interpreted as neoliberalisation moves.     

企业资源配置战略与盈余持续性

盈余持续性是盈余质量的重要特征。较高的盈余持续性预示着企业的盈余质量较高,在一定程度上表明企业的经营状况平稳并具有良好的管理水平,有利于企业降低经营风险、提升公司价值。近年来,盈余持续性已经成为资本市场研究领域的一个热点问题。以我国A股市场2007—2017年非金融类上市公司为样本,对企业资源配置战略与盈余持续性之间的关系进行了实证研究。研究结果表明,经营主导型公司的盈余持续性要显著强于投资主导型公司;进一步区分具体的盈余构成后发现,经营主导型公司核心利润的持续性显著强于投资主导型公司,但其投资收益的持续性显著弱于投资主导型公司。上述结论表明,盈余及其构成的持续性均会受到公司资源配置战略的影响。相关研究结论既为公司资源配置战略影响盈余特征提供了经验证据,又对外部利益相关者透过战略本质看清会计信息的内在价值具有一定的启示作用。     

双循环新发展格局下中国双向直接投资研究

构建以国内大循环为主体、国内国际双循环相互促进的新发展格局,是对未来中国经济发展路径做出的重大战略部署,作为连接国内国际双循环的纽带,双向直接投资的发展战略和路径面临重塑和调整。研究认为,应当以推动新时代科技创新和产业升级为目标,提高双向直接投资的质量,畅通供应链和产业链; 以“一带一路”倡议为依托,通过更高水平的双向投资带动中国与沿线国家贸易水平的提高; 建设高水平自贸区和自贸港,提高对外开放标准,更高质量吸引外资,提升参与国际大循环的技术含量和自主性; 在畅通要素流动领域,建立更加完善的现代化物流体系,建设更高标准的要素流通市场体系,降低制度性交易费用,提高生产率和对高质量外资的吸引能力。     

Evaluating social investment in disability policy

Disability policy in European countries is displaying a shift towards social investment: increasing human capital and access to the labour market. The reasoning that underlies this transition is that disabled persons would benefit from mainstream employment, but are impeded in traditional policy by deficiencies in labour supply and demand. However, the shift towards more activating policies in many countries is accompanied by a decline in social protection. It is unclear whether social investment may effectively promote the employment chances of disabled persons within this context. The present research examines this question through a quantitative, cross-sectional, multilevel analysis on microdata from 22 EU countries. Our findings suggest greater activation to predict lower employment chances, while reducing passive support shows mixed effects. Conversely, measures for facilitation in daily life predict greater employment chances, as do measures for sheltered work. These findings raise questions over the value of social investment for disabled persons—and underline the need to overcome broader barriers in the labour market and in society.     

How does BREXIT affect production patterns of multinational enterprises?

This paper explores how the British exit from the European Union (EU) potentially affects the United Kingdom (UK) economy and the production patterns of multinational enterprises that choose the UK as either a destination market or a gateway to the EU market. Utilizing an extended version of the knowledge-capital model, which includes six types of firms and four countries grouped into market and non-market, simulation analysis reveals that efforts to enhance attractiveness of the UK as a destination market to increase horizontal-type inward foreign direct investment would be a solution to cover losses from reduction in the number of export-platforms.