The globalization of U.S. business investment

This paper documents some key facts about foreign direct investment flows by U.S. businesses overseas and foreign businesses in the United States. We show how the pattern of flows has evolved, examine the sources and destination of these flows, document associated employment and productivity gains, and show how investment-related sales compare with traditional exports. While the United States is a net debtor to the rest of the world, direct investment overseas by U.S. businesses exceeds direct investment in the U.S. by foreign businesses. Furthermore, U.S. businesses seem to earn more on their foreign investments than foreign firms earn on their U.S. investments. The globalization of business investment is a long-standing phenomenon, but it has accelerated in recent years and become a source of concern for some, as it is intimately related to the debate on offshore outsourcing. Yet contrary to what some think, the bulk of U.S. investment overseas is in other high-income countries. And foreign investment in the U.S. has been an important source of employment growth in recent years.Investments, Foreign - United States

Openness and inflation

This paper reviews the evidence on the relationship between openness and inflation. There is a robust negative relationship across countries, first documented by Romer (1993), between a country's openness to trade and its long-run inflation rate. However, a key part of the standard explanation for this relationship—that central banks have a smaller incentive to engineer surprise inflations in more-open economies because the Phillips curve is steeper—seems at odds with the facts. While the United States is still not a very open economy by conventional measures, there are channels through which global developments may influence the nation's inflation. We document evidence that global resource utilization may play a role in U.S. inflation and suggest avenues for future research.Inflation (Finance) ; Trade ; Phillips curve

Actin at cell-cell junctions is composed of two dynamic and functional populations

The ability of epithelial cells to polarize requires cell-cell adhesion mediated by cadherin receptors. During cell-cell contact, the mechanism via which a flat, spread cell shape is changed into a tall, cuboidal epithelial morphology is not known. We found that cadherin-dependent adhesion modulates actin dynamics by triggering changes in actin organization both locally at junctions and within the rest of the cell. Upon induction of cell-cell contacts, two spatial actin populations are distinguishable: junctional actin and peripheral thin bundles. With time, the relative position of these two populations changes and becomes indistinguishable to form a cortical actin ring that is characteristic of mature, fully polarized epithelial cells. Junctional actin and thin actin bundles differ in their actin dynamics and mechanism of formation, and interestingly, have distinct roles during epithelial polarization. Whereas junctional actin stabilizes clustered cadherin receptors at cell-cell contacts, contraction of peripheral actin bundle is essential for an increase in the maximum height at the lateral domain during polarization (cuboidal morphology). Thus, both junctional actin and thin bundles are necessary, and cooperate with each other to generate a polarized epithelial morphology

Knowledge sharing for the development of service learning champions

Published ArticleChampions engage in knowledge sharing within triad service learning partnerships. However, the role of knowledge sharing in the development of champions needs further exploration. This qualitative study within a constructivist paradigm, shares the effect of mutual learning at the University of the Free State in the nursing education field. Selected international, national, regional and local champions shared perceptions through semi-structured interviews, indicating that: (1) champions could be situated in any sector of the triad model; (2) sharing different kinds of knowledge develop different domains; and (3) connection, collaboration and continuous communication should guide knowledge sharing towards societal change and reciprocal empowerment

BUSINESS CYCLES, FISCAL STABILIZATION AND VERTICAL FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT: ESSAYS IN INTERNATIONAL MACROECONOMICS

My dissertation studies various questions falling into the broad context of macroeconomics and international economics. The questions have macroeconomic components because they are concerned with the behavior of aggregates. Specifically, the second and third chapters of my dissertation study the causes of fluctuations in aggregate macroeconomic variables and the way policy can be coordinated internationally to reduce these fluctuations, respectively. In addition, chapters III and IV address questions that fall into the realm of international economics. They are concerned with the optimal exchange rate regime between two countries, the consequences of partial exchange rate pass-through and the effect of an increase in vertical Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) by domestic firms. The framework of my analysis is given by different versions of general equilibrium models. The second chapter of my dissertation decomposes fluctuations in aggregate observables for the UK economy during the 1980s recession. Using a modern accounting procedure, I estimate parameters that describe the economy using annual data from 1970 to 2002. Then, I simulate different versions of the model to find the distortions that are essential in driving the observed fluctuations. I find labor market distortions to be crucial in accounting for the episode, suggesting that the policies of the time were well targeted and effective. The third chapter of my dissertation studies policy coordination in a two-country framework allowing for partial pass-through. In particular, both countries are assumed to have monetary and fiscal stabilization instruments available. The optimal setting of these instruments under differing pass-through regimes is analytically derived. Fiscal policy is found to be used in a counter-cyclical fashion. In addition, the magnitude of fiscal stabilization is the largest when pass-through is partial. In the fourth chapter, I study the consequences of vertical FDI on aggregate productivity and welfare. The framework allows for heterogeneity across firms in two dimensions. It is firms that are at a disadvantage with respect to manufacturing costs that are benefiting most from moving their production process abroad. Overall, the ability to engage in vertical FDI increases productivity, lowers prices and thus increases welfare

Health policy and systems research: needs, challenges and opportunities in South Africa – a university perspective

The last two decades have seen growing international recognition of the need to strengthen health systems in order to deliver already available, cost-effective health interventions. This chapter describes the parallel global growth of the field of Health Policy and Systems Research (HPSR) and outlines what this field of research is and what it is not. The chapter also clarifies how HPSR can contribute to strengthening health systems. The particular relevance of HPSR in SA is discussed, given the range of health system transformation initiatives in place. Drawing both on an HPSR capacity assessment conducted in three universities and discussions with a wider group of researchers and health system managers, the chapter also considers the existing assets for and challenges facing the development of the field in South Africa. It closes with suggested strategies and priorities for developing and building capacity in this field nationally.CHEPSAAWeb of Scienc

Global assessment of internal audit competence: Does one size fit all?

The Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) programme is the formal globally recognised test of competence for internal auditors. However, the question is raised whether this assessment of competence has kept up with the changing demands of modern internal auditing, taking into account the fact that demands may differ from one country or region to the next. The fact that Australia, the UK & Ireland and South Africa require qualifi cations in addition to those of the CIA programme may be attributed to a need for a different level of competence in comparison with the Rest of the World. The objective of the study was to determine whether differences exist between the respective competency level needs for internal auditors from South Africa, the UK and Ireland, Australia and the Rest of the World. Data from the Institute of Internal Auditors’ (IIA’s) latest global Common Body of Knowledge (CBOK) study was used to determine and statistically analyse the perceived levels of importance of general competencies, technical skills and behavioural skills needed by internal auditors. The results indicated that globally internal auditors have similar perceptions of what competencies are most important for internal auditors, but the levels of importance differ among the regions. South Africa demanded a higher level of competence and aligned closely with the UK and Ireland, which could explain why South Africa now needs a customised competency assessment. Australia consistently indicated different perceptions of the levels of importance of competencies, which could explain Australia’s need for a country-specifi c internal audit competency assessment. Hence one size may not fi t all.Management Accountin

Seasonal variation in species richness and abundance of waterbirds in Mole National Park, Ghana: Implication for conservation and ecotourism

Mole National Park is the largest and the oldest national park in Ghana and an important bird area, yet its waterbird fauna is poorly documented because it is situated in the northern ecological zone far away from the coast of Ghana. Information on the seasonal variation in the park’s bird abundance and diversity is generally patchy but necessary for effective birdwatching planning and management of the park’s birds. Therefore, as a guide to potential ecotourists interested in waterbirds, this study described the seasonal variation in waterbird species diversity and abundance at Mole National Park. As waterbirds mostly congregate around open wetlands and their abundance is more appropriately determined by counting all individuals in the congregant, data were collected using the total area count of waterbirds from August 2015 to October 2015 (the wet season) and from December 2015 to February 2016 (the dry season). Secondary data on arrival of tourists in the park were also analysed. The park’s waterbird species richness was 29 in the dry season compared to 18 in the wet season. There was significant difference (p < 0.05) in the abundance of waterbirds in the dry season in which 4014 waterbirds were encountered compared to 646 in the wet season. The yearly tourist arrival data at Mole National Park shows an increasing trend with peak visitation period occurring during the wet season. The chances of tourists encountering more species and numbers of waterbirds in the park are higher in the dry season compared to the wet season. Conservation implications: Species richness and abundance of waterbirds in Mole National Park varied according to the wet and dry seasons with both the number of species and abundance higher in the dry season than the wet season. It is therefore indicative that most birdwatchers who visit the park in the wet season miss out on a number of species and numbers of waterbirds. To achieve effective birdwatching, management should schedule birdwatching activities to coincide with the dry season as the chances of encountering more species and numbers of waterbirds are higher

Economic Analysis of Rubber Agroforestry Systems in Ghana

Even though rubber contributes massively to Ghana’s economy, smallholder rubber farmers’ inability to wait for about 6-8 years to see the benefits constrains establishment and expansion of the rubber subsector. To lessen the waiting time to the benefits, an option exists to intercrop rubber with food crops. Cost benefits analysis of rubber/plantain intercropping system under different treatments on two experimental plots for sole crop plantain (P) and three intercropping treatments consisting of one (PR), two (PPR) and three (PPPR) rows of plantain each between two rows of rubber each were carried out to assess the most viable. Analysis using discounted cash flow was used to determine the benefit/cost ratio (BCR), net present value (NPV) in addition to internal rate of return (IRR) at 25 % interest rate. All the rubber/plantain intercropping systems (PR, PPR and PPPR) were found to be profitable from the results. The highest return of GHȻ40, 331 (USD 9,379) per hectare from plantain over the period of two years was realized from the PPPR cropping system. Additional analysis performed to assess the profitability of rubber/plantain intercropping systems by varying the price of plantain, discount rate and the total cost of production showed that the systems were all profitable. The PPPR was the most profitable with the highest income to smallholder farmers. Extension education by the government through the Ministry of Food and Agriculture and Ghana Rubber Estates Limited and support to rubber farmers to access credit can help in farmers’ adoption of rubber agroforestry system