The Role of Tourism Sector in Economic Growth: An Empirical Evidence From Palestine

This study examines the long-term relationship between economic growth and international tourism receipts in the state of Palestine during the period 1995-2014. To achieve the purpose of the study, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is used as proxy for economic growth while International Tourism Receipts (ITR) is used as a proxy for tourism sector. The findings of the study showed that there is a unique long-term relationship between GDP and international tourism receipts. Furthermore, Granger causality test affirms a causal relationship from international tourism receipts towards economic growth in the state of Palestine. This paper uses an empirical evidence to show the role of tourism sector in economic performance of a country where its economy is highly dependable on foreign aids and donations. So, Palestinian government should develop dynamic policies to promote tourism sector into the country. This in turn leads to generate employment opportunities, poverty alleviation and economic growth. Keywords: Tourism, Palestine, Economic Growth, Co-integration, Causality JEL Classifications: C22, O11, L8

The Impact of COVID-19 on the Congolese Financial System : An empirical Investigation

The COVID-19 pass-through on the financial system moves      at supersonic speed,      undermining      financial stability with a contraction of claims on the private sector, withdrawing      deposits, and tightening the fiscal      circumstances     . The primary goal      of this research      is to investigate the unprecedented influenceof COVID-19      on the Congolese financial system. An autoregressive Vector Bayesian model is used to test the connection     .      The data utilized is a monthly series from December 2013 to October     2020. The results reveal      that the COVID-19 pandemic has varying degrees of negative impact on      the Congolese financial system. The Congolese government      should immediately      ado     pt macroeconomic and financial policies by boosting and injecting liquidity into      the banking sector to mitigate the negative consequences. At the same time, the expansion of Fintechs on the one hand and the expansion of cyberattacks on the other would enhance the financial system landscape     . To maximize      the digitization      of the financial systems and enhance the effectiveness of cybersecurity, financial institutions should implement intelligent      policies and invest in research. This study is the first to be done in Congo to the authors' best knowledge      and serves      as a battery for further research in Africa and the world

Financial Performance Comparison of Islamic and conventional banks in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)

This paper examines the financial performance of Islamic and commercial banks in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The paper gives an empirical insights and comparisons between the performance of Islamic and conventional banking sectors.  The sample of the study consists of 5 fully-fledged Islamic banks and 14 conventional banks working in the UAE under the period 2011-2014. The study uses descriptive analysis, correlation, independent sample t test and multiple regression analysis to assess the performance and to compare between both types of banks. The Return on Assets (ROA) is used as proxy for profitability for both types of banks while bank size (log A), liquidity, capital adequacy, financial risk and operating efficiency as proxies for financial performance for both types of banks. The results showed that there is no significant difference between Islamic banks and conventional banks in terms of profitability (ROA) while there is a significant difference between Islamic and conventional banks in terms of liquidity, operation efficiency, capital adequacy, and financial risk. Further, the results indicated that the Islamic banks have higher operating efficiency, bank size and more liquidity than their counterparts of UAE. However, conventional banks are found to have better capital adequacy ratio than Islamic banks. In terms of financial risk, Islamic banks are found to have higher five times than conventional banks which may reflect challenges in the area of risk management in Islamic banks. Keywords: Financial performance, Islamic banks, Conventional banks, ROA, UAE. JEL Classification: A10, E60, G2

The Impact of Oil Price Volatility, Gross Domestic Product, Foreign Direct Investment on Islamic Banking Investments: An Empirical Evidence of The United Arab Emirates

The current paper examines the impact of Oil Price (OP) fluctuations on Islamic banking investments growth in the UAE. Besides, oil price, the study also uses other variables like Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to identify the determinants of the Islamic banking investments growth in the emerging economy, UAE.  The study is based on econometric analysis with the help of annual time series data from 1990 to 2015 for the study variables. Stationary tests, Cointegration methods, Vector Error Correction Model (VECM), and Granger causality tests are used in the analysis. The major findings of the study revealed that oil prices have long-term and short-term relationships on the Islamic banking investments in the UAE. Our results explore the importance of oil price stabilization in enhancing growth and progress in the UAE economy. The Government of UAE should reform policies and procedures to minimize the effect of such volatility in oil prices which in turn leads to positive impacts on the UAE economy as well. Keywords: Oil Price, Volatility, FDI, GDP, Islamic investments, Growth, UAE. JEL Classifications: F21, F41, O1

Rural women characteristics and sustainable entrepreneurial intention: a road to economic growth in Bangladesh

Purpose: This study aims to provide a better understanding of the individual-level factors that affect rural women’s sustainable entrepreneurial intention in starting and running a business in Bangladesh and contributing to national economic growth. Design/methodology/approach: Data from a sample of 297 rural Bangladeshi women were analysed using a quantitative approach with Smart PLS 3.0 (SEM) and SPSS V25. This was to explore the direct influence of perceived capability, social perception and individual competencies on women’s intention to become sustainable entrepreneurs. The indirect consequences of these three variables on perceived opportunity were also evaluated. Findings: The studies confirmed a positive and significant association between perceived capability and social perception with the intention to become a sustainable entrepreneur. There is no conventional connection between women’s individual competencies and their intention to become an entrepreneur. Moreover, the data confirmed that perceived opportunity mediates the relationship between perceived capability and individual competencies with the intention to become an entrepreneur. However, no mediation role of perceived opportunity in the relationship between social perception and intention was found. Originality/value: This study is one of very few to explore through empirical analysis the relationship between women’s individual characteristics and their intention to become sustainable entrepreneurs and to investigate whether rural women are motivated to become empowered to contribute to economic development through sustainable entrepreneurial intention

The impact of political instability, macroeconomic and bank-specific factors on the profitability of Islamic banks: an empirical evidence

This study investigates the impact of political instability, macroeconomic and bank-specific factors on the profitability of Islamic banks in the context of Yemen. The study used two common measures of profitability, namely, Return on Assets (ROA) and Return on Equity (ROE) as dependent variables. Seven key independent (internal and external) variables are also used. There are five fully-fledged Islamic banks (IBs) working in Yemen. The study selected only three out of five IBs due to the availability of data for the period ranging from 2010 to 2014. The descriptive and multiple regression analyses were done. The results of the study indicate that operating efficiency and financial risk have negative and significant relationships with ROA and ROE. The findings also show that capital adequacy has a negative and insignificant relationship with ROA and ROE. Furthermore, the study reveals that assets size (LogA), assets management, liquidity and deposits have a significant and positive impact on banks’ profitability. GDP, Inflation rate (IR) and Political instability have positive and significant impact on Yemeni banks’ profitability. Based on the best knowledge of the authors, this study is considered one of the first and pioneering studies that determine the factors affecting the profitability of Islamic banks of Yemen. Therefore, the study gives good insights for the policy makers, regulators and interested parties for enhancing the profitability of Islamic banks in Yemen

Asymmetries in climate change and livestock productivity: non-linear evidence from autoregressive distribution lag mode

IntroductionThe livestock sector is extremely important to Socioeconomic growth in Pakistan, yet it is also quite vulnerable to weather changes. Climate change reduces livestock production by changing ecosystem services such as water availability, feed quality and quantity, disease outbreaks, animal heat stress, and a decline in livestock variety and breeds. Climate change has a direct impact on ecological and animal health. As a consequence of climate change, animal diseases, and infections are becoming more widespread. With the non-linearities of climate change in the livestock industry in mind, the present study investigated the asymmetric influence of climatic and non-climatic variables on livestock productivity across Pakistan. The empirical analysis was conducted utilizing secondary time series data from 1980 to 2021.MethodThe non-linear autoregressive distributive lag (NARDL) model is used to examine the asymmetric behavior of climatic variability in the livestock sector. We included CO2 emissions, mean temperature (MT), and precipitation (PERC) as climatic variables in the current study, along with additional control factors.Results and discussionOur research discovered that CO2, MT, and PREC had asymmetries in their impacts on livestock. Variations in CO2, MT, and PREC have contradictory effects on livestock productivity in the long and short term. A percent increase in LCO2 leads to a fall in livestock production insignificantly by 1.0062% for Model I and significantly by 5.7613% and 5.3929% for Models II and III, respectively. A percent decrease in LCO2 significantly lowers livestock production by 4.1739% for Model I and improves livestock production by 8.5928% and 6.7901%, respectively, for Model II and Model III. A unit increase in MT significantly improves livestock productivity by 1.5520% and 0.8149% for Models II and III, respectively, while a unit decrease in MT insignificantly improves livestock production by 0.1316% and 0.2122% for Models II and III, respectively. A unit increase and decrease in PREC significantly lowers and insignificantly improve livestock productivity respectively by 0.002% in both cases for Model III. To protect the livestock industry from the negative effects of climate change, this study suggests that livestock producers use new environmentally friendly technologies and ecological agricultural systems

The Impact of Technological and Marketing Innovations on Retailing Industry: Evidence of India

Innovation is usually linked with technology-based change. Retailers form a significant sector in the developed economies and also are picking up in the developing economies. There have been few studies in the area of innovation in the retail industry in both conceptual as well as empirical points of view. The objective of this study is to study the impact of marketing and technological innovations on the retail industry. The sample of the study was drawn from the customers who live in the city of Aligarh in India. The study is conclusive, descriptive and is based on a single cross-sectional research design. Quantitative data was generated on the basis of the research instrument (a questionnaire). The study concluded that technological innovation is more important than marketing innovation with respect to World of Mouth (WOM) referral and satisfaction. Furthermore, the study revealed that technological innovation has an impact on store image, customer value, brand store equity, satisfaction, WOM referral, and WOM activity. The study also recommended that a retailer can take some advantages of introducing new technologies. This means investing in technologies would help in increasing market share and competitiveness of the retail sector in the long-run