China and the World Financial Markets 1870-1930: Modern Lessons From Historical Globalization

China began to borrow in the world capital markets in the late 19th century, issuing bonds to pay for defense as well as for large-scale economic development. Particularly interesting is the role that the clash between domestic and international investors played in China's 1911 revolution. The protection of external investor rights was perceived at the time as an infringement on Chinese sovereignty. In this paper we interpret the conflict over foreign investor rights in terms of a disequilibrium in the development of financial markets. Europe's high level of investor diversification put her investors at a relative advantage in bidding for development projects in China, while European investor expectations about protection from expropriation and default, lowered Chinese cost of capital, but also led to erosion of national sovereignty and a dramatic, grassroots political backlash. Despite fundamental differences between China today and China 100 years ago it is still important to consider the dangers of an imbalance between domestic and international investor markets, and the mismatch between domestic and foreign expectations about investor protection. The lessons of the last century suggest that China today should consider opening Chinese investor access to foreign capital markets in order to equilibrate the level of diversification between foreign and domestic investors. In addition, protection of domestic corporate investor rights is at least as important as protecting foreign investor rights.

Global Innovation Policy Index

Ranks fifty-five nations' strategies to boost innovation capacity: policies on trade, scientific research, information and communications technologies, tax, intellectual property, domestic competition, government procurement, and high-skill immigration

Rebalancing global demand

The article examines to what extent the recovery of the global economy could gain support from a more balanced growth of global demand than in the past. Despite the gradual recovery of the global economy, it remains highly uncertain when – or even whether – growth can return to the often very vigorous pace prevailing before the crisis, especially as that dynamism was in many countries largely based on macroeconomic distortions which were most clearly apparent in the growing current account surpluses and deficits on the balance of payments, as is evident from our analysis of the figures from 1995 onwards. At the Pittsburgh summit in September 2009, in the Framework for Strong, Sustainable, and Balanced Growth the G20 leaders agreed that deficit countries should support private savings and strive towards fiscal consolidation. They will not only need to modify their spending patterns but will also have to transfer their focus to the export sector. To offset the shortfall in demand from these deficit countries, the surplus countries are called upon to reduce their dependence on exports and tap domestic sources of growth. The authors examine the actual policy implications of this for the US, China and the euro area. Although a number of countries have already adopted a range of policy measures which are a move in the right direction, restoring the balance of global demand remains a major challenge, not least on account of the difficult-to-implement but no less essential structural reforms, or the time required to push those reforms through. It will be no easy task to restore the macroeconomic equilibrium, achieve a broad consensus and create the conditions for strong, sustainable and balanced growth, in line with the G20 aims. The movement towards a new global balance risks becoming a protracted process, with the possibility of a worldwide growth slowdown in the meantime.G20, United States, China, euro area, saving, investment, balance of payments current account

The Evolution of the Insurance Sector in Central and Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union

This paper provides a detailed profile of the development of the insurance industry between 1989-98 in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and the New Independent States (NIS) of the former Soviet Union. In doing so, the author utilizes various sources of data to describe the nature of the insurance market in the region. On an individual host country basis, attention is given to data on premium income with respect to both life and non-life coverage, an analysis of average annual growth rates, as well as insurance density and penetration rates by type of coverage. The paper also addresses a number of issues pertaining to the competitive environment, including the legal conditions for insurance operators, a profile of the key players, and the role of foreign insurers operating within the region. The paper concludes by identifying the three main trends of the insurance industry in the region, the associated policy implications of each, as well as the need for future research.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/39720/3/wp336.pd

China, Europe, and the Pandemic Recession: Beijing’s Investments and Transatlantic Security

Given the depth and breadth of the pandemic-induced recession in Europe, private companies in need of capital and governments looking to shed state-owned enterprises may be tempted to sell shares, assets, or outright ownership to investors with liquidity to spare. Of greatest concern is the role that China might play in Europe, building Beijing’s soft power, weakening allied geopolitical solidarity, and potentially reprising the role it played in the 2010s, when its investments in Europe expanded dramatically. More specifically, there is concern over China’s investments in infrastructure and sensitive technologies relevant to American and allied military operations and capabilities. Whether Europe is prepared and able to parry Beijing’s economic statecraft is somewhat unclear, given varied attitudes toward China and the patchwork of investment screening mechanisms across the continent. Regardless, the outcomes will have significant implications for US security and for the Defense Department specifically. In support of US European Command (EUCOM) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the U.S. Army War College’s Strategic Studies Institute (SSI) assembled an interdisciplinary team to examine these issues and offer actionable policy recommendations for military leaders and decisionmakers on both sides of the Atlantic. Study sponsors (nonfunding): United States European Command, United States Department of Homeland Securityhttps://press.armywarcollege.edu/monographs/1945/thumbnail.jp

How gold is the Golden Visa for the Chinese? The Chinese investment in the Ari program in Portugal : 2012 to 2021

This study aims to achieve a better understanding of the Chinese investors in the Portuguese Golden Visa program, the so-called ARI (Autorização de Residência para Atividade de Investimento). Apart from the ARI, there are two other “residency by investment” programs which are very similar to the latter: the Spanish and the Greek Golden Visa. The ARI ´s Greek counterpart is known to be the least expensive way to enter the European Union. Even with prices that double the Greek ones´, the ARI still attracts as many Chinese investors as the Greek Golden Visa. How did this dynamic develop and what are the factors granting the ARI ´s success vis à vis the Chinese investors? When speaking about residency for investment programs, there are also many critics in Portugal and all over the European Union, as the ARI offers the applicants the possibility to travel freely in the whole Schengen area. Should countries be allowed to give their residency away for money or does this entail security risks for the receiving country and the whole European Union? These points are to be analysed and taken into consideration for the outlook of how the attractiveness of the ARI might develop after the sanitary crisis. Even more important seems the impact of the changes that are planned to be introduced to the Portuguese Golden Visa which might highly shrink the number of applicants to the ARI. These measures and their effects will also be discussed and underpinned by surveys to four Chinese investors to the Golden Visa.Este estudo visa alcançar uma melhor compreensão dos investidores chineses no programa Português Golden Visa, a chamada ARI (Autorização de Residência para Atividade de Investimento). Para além da ARI, existem dois outros programas de “residência por investimento” que são muito semelhantes a este último: o espanhol e o grego Golden Visa. A contrapartida grega da ARI é conhecida por ser a forma menos dispendiosa de entrar na União Europeia. Mesmo com preços que duplicam os gregos, o ARI ainda atrai tantos investidores chineses como o Visto de Ouro grego. Como se desenvolveu esta dinâmica e quais são os factores que garantem o sucesso da ARI em relação aos investidores chineses? Quando se fala de residência para programas de investimento, há também muitos 4 críticos em Portugal e em toda a União Europeia, já que a ARI oferece aos candidatos a possibilidade de viajar livremente em todo o espaço Schengen. Os países devem ser autorizados a ceder a sua residência por dinheiro ou isso implica riscos de segurança para o país receptor e para toda a União Europeia? Estes pontos devem ser analisados e tidos em consideração na perspectiva de como a atractividade da ARI poderá desenvolver-se após a crise sanitária. Ainda mais importante parece ser o impacto das mudanças que estão planeadas para serem introduzidas no Visto de Ouro Português, as quais podem reduzir muito o número de candidatos ao ARI. Estas medidas e os seus efeitos também serão discutidos e sustentados por inquéritos a quatro investidores chineses para o Visto de Ouro

European FDI Regulatory Framework and China

With little doubt, the 21st century will be remembered mainly for the role China plays in it. Decades of unprecedented economic growth has been an endless source of workers and later customers for investors all across the world. China is currently the second-largest economy in the world and has increasingly begun investing overseas itself. However, China is a single-party state, with a large state-owned sector dominating large parts of the economy. This has caused concern in the European Union about the influence China might gain through investing in European countries. Furthermore, China has been very protective of its domestic industries, which is seen as an unfair advantage for Chinese companies over their European competitors. This study focuses on the challenges that EU FDI regulation faces because of China. The European FDI regulation has been created in a fundamentally different world, where all major investors are similar, free market based liberal democracies with rule of law. The emergence of a fundamentally different system on a massive scale, like China upsets this premise and forces strategic considerations to be taken into account when regulating FDIs. China is both a blessing and a curse for the EU. The Chinese markets are vital for European industry but at the same time, the EU fears China´s growing influence over its member states and of being taken advantage of by the comparably free access given to Chinese investors into the EU markets and the lack of transparency in Chinese investment activities

China-Portugal economic relations: analysis and prospects in the context of the Belt and Road Initiative

In 2013, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) launched a new initiative that is currently referred to as the “Belt and Road” (B&R) initiative. It aims to establish new physical, political, commercial and cultural links across Eurasia. The “Belt” refers to the “Silk Road Economic Belt” a recreation of the land-based trade connections from China throughout Eurasia. The “Road” refers to the “21st Century Maritime Silk Road”, a set or maritime routes that initially aims to extend over the South China Sea, the Strait of Malacca, the Arabic Sea and the Mediterranean Sea. Portugal is within the countries of reach of the project, although B&R is still in a very early stage for Portugal, with few explicit projects to link it with. This thesis aims to use three schools of IR theory (Realism, Liberalism and Constructivism) as its theoretical basis with the objective to link it with China-Portugal economic relations in the context of the B&R initiative. For that, we propose a research with quantitative data on Chinese trade, foreign investment and enterprise investment in Portugal. We also offer qualitative data in the form of interviews to have relevant insights in the prospects of China-Portugal relations. At the end, the goal is to link theoretical insights and the panorama of China-Portugal economic relations with the context of the overall B&R project

The chimera of competitiveness: varieties of capitalism and the economic crisis

In this paper we assess the different definitions and theories of economic competitiveness at the firm and national levels. First we contrast the theories of classical liberal economists with those of the German historical school of national economics, noting the importance of the historical school for theories of national economic competitiveness. Drawing on the comparative political economy literature on ‘varieties of capitalism’, we hen discuss the factors underlying competitiveness in social market economies, social democratic economies, and liberal economies. These models f capitalism are compared under six headings: labour markets and labour market institutions; financial markets; corporate funding and governance; inter-firm relations; the role of the state; and economic culture and history. In the penultimate section of the paper we discuss how the different odels of capitalism have responded to the economic crisis and the impact of the crisis on their economic competitiveness. The paper concludes with a summary of the key points to emerge from the analysis and looks to how the scene may evolve as national economies begin to adapt