Optimal Capacity in the Banking Sector and Economic Growth.

The paper investigates, from the welfare and growth point of view, the determination of the optimal capacity of the banking system. For that purpose, we consider an overlapping generation model with endogenous growth. There is horizontal differentiation and imperfect competition in the banking sector. Macroeconomic shocks affect the return on capital and, together with the expectations of depositors, condition the stability of the banking sector. We specify to what extent deposit insurance may reduce instability and increase the number of deposits, welfare and growth. We also characterize the conditions under which excess banking capacities may appear and how their reduction may improve welfare.Deposit insurance ; imperfect ; competition ; growth, banking.

Approaching an investigation of multi-dimensional inequality through the lenses of variety in models of capitalism

After a synthetic presentation of the state of poverty and inequality in the world and the contradictions incurred by economic theory in this field after decades of globalization and in the midst of a persisting global crisis, in paragraphs 2. and 3. we outline the rational for our theoretical analysis, underlining two main aspects. First of all, in paragraph 2. we recall the reasons which makes inequality a multidimensional phenomenon, while in paragraph 3. we explore the reasons why the models of capitalism theory is relevant for studying multidimensional inequality. These paragraphs emphasise that inequality is a multidimensional and cumulative phenomenon and it should not be conceived only as the result of the processes of personal and functional distribution of income and wealth, which even by themselves are intrinsically multidimensional. The basic idea is that institutions, the cobweb of relations among them and their interaction with the economic structure define the model of capitalism which characterises a specific country and this, in turn, affects the level and the dynamics of inequality. This approach is consistent with the sociological approach by Rehbein and Souza (2014), based on the analytical framework developed by Pierre Bourdieu. In paragraph 4. we outline the rational for our empirical analysis, applying the notion of institutional complementarity and examining the relationship between institutional complementarity, models of capitalism and inequality. Besides, refining Amable’s analysis (2003), we provide empirical evidence on the relationship between inequality in income distribution and models of capitalism. Additionally, basing on cluster analysis, we identify six different models of capitalism in a sample of OECD countries, provide preliminary evidence on the different level of inequality which characterises each model and suggest that no evidence supports of the idea that a single model of capitalism is taking shape in this sphere in EU. In paragraph 5. we give some hints about issues in search for a new interpretation capable to fasten together the process of increasing inequality, the notion of symbolic violence and the models of capitalism theory. In the last paragraph we focus on conclusions useful for carrying on our research agenda

A comparative assessment of the information technology services sector in India and China

The purpose of this paper is to assess the nature of competition in the information technology (IT) services sector between India and China. Using primary and secondary data sources, we compare and contrast the strengths and weaknesses of the IT services sector in the two countries along the main dimensions of Porter&rsquo;s competitive advantage model. The principal findings indicate that the IT services sectors in the two countries are distinctively different, have developed along different paths and are highly complementary to each other. China has a well established hardware sector and its IT services sector focuses mostly on servicing its domestic market. India&rsquo;s IT services sector is predominantly export orientated with focus on the US and Western European markets. Contrary to popular beliefs, given the complementary characteristics of the IT services sectors in India and China, it is unlikely for the two countries to compete against each other in the near future and greater strategic co-operation between IT service providers in the two countries is a more likely outcome.<br /

On the interaction of vortices with mixing layers

We describe the perturbations introduced by two counter-rotating vortices - in a two-dimensional configuration - or by a vortex ring - in an axisymmetric configuration - to the mixing layer between two counterflowing gaseous fuel and air streams of the same density. The analysis is confined to the near stagnation point region, where the strain rate of the unperturbed velocity field, A0, is uniform. We restrict our attention to cases where the typical distance 2r0 between the vortices - or the characteristic vortex ring radius r0 - is large compared to both the thickness, δv, of the vorticity core and the thickness, δm∼(ν/A0)1/2, of the mixing layer. In addition, we consider that the ratio, Γ/ν, of the vortex circulation, Γ, to the kinematic viscosity, ν, is large compared to unity. Then, during the interaction time, A0,-1, the viscous and diffusion effects are confined to the thin vorticity core and the thin mixing layer, which, when seen with the scale r0, appears as a passive interface between the two counterflowing streams when they have the same density. In this case, the analysis provides a simple procedure to describe the displacement and distortion of the interface, as well as the time evolution of the strain rate imposed on the mixing layer, which are needed to calculate the inner structure of the reacting mixing layer as well as the conditions for diffusion flame extinction and edge-flame propagation along the mixing layer. Although in the reacting case variable density effects due to heat release play an important role inside the mixing layer, in this paper the analysis of the inner structure is carried out using the constant density model, which provides good qualitative understanding of the mixing layer response