Infrastructure development and economic growth in China

China is the fastest growing country in the world for last few decades and one of the defining features of China's growth has been investment-led growth. China's sustained high economic growth and increased competitiveness in manufacturing has been underpinned by a massive development of physical infrastructure. In this context, we investigate the role of infrastructure in promoting economic growth in China for the period 1975 to 2007. Overall, the results reveal that infrastructure stock, labour force, public and private investments have played an important role in economic growth in China. More importantly, we find that Infrastructure development in China has significant positive contribution to growth than both private and public investment. Further, there is unidirectional causality from infrastructure development to output growth justifying China's high spending on infrastructure development since the early nineties. The experience from China suggests that it is necessary to design an economic policy that improves the physical infrastructure as well as human capital formation for sustainable economic growth in developing countries.China, Infrastructure, Economic development, Investments, China, Investment, L9 - Industry Studies: Transportation and Utilities, H4 - Publicly provided goods, O1 - Economic development

India-Korea Trade and Investment Relations

Though economic relations between India and Korea have been strengthening, the current size of trade and investment between the two countries is relatively low compared to the size and structural complementarities of the two economies. In this context, the present paper analyses trade and investment relations and explores future areas of potential co-operation between India and Korea. We find that the increase in merchandise trade between the two countries has been mainly because of the changing demand structure and comparative advantages of both the economies in complementary sectors in recent years. The Revealed Comparative Advantage (RCA) analysis, at both the aggregated and disaggregated levels, shows that while Korea has been specialising in a few, high value-added manufacturing products, India's exports have been more diversified. The analysis also indicates that both the countries have comparative advantages in different products in the same industry, revealing the opportunity for intra-industry trade (IIT). Moreover, the increasing trade complementarity index (TCI) shows that Indian and Korean trade gradually has become more compatible over time, indicating that any agreement between the two countries is likely to enhance trade flows. The trade intensities between the two countries reveal that Korea is doing much better and there is scope for India to improve its export intensity with Korea. The study also suggests the areas where there is huge scope for increased investment and technological collaboration between the two countries. Further, there is huge potential for trade in services in areas such as information technology, science and technology, pharmaceutical industry, broadcasting, tourism, healthcare and human resource development. Removal of tariff and non-tariff barriers, especially sector specific barriers, will give a major boost to bilateral trade and investment relations.India, Korea, Trade, Investment and Barriers

Commercialization of agriculture in the Himalayas

Increased market integration and commercialization of traditional agriculture in the Himalayas is part of a development strategy towards growth and better standard of living. More than 97 percent households depend upon agricultural and allied activities for livelihood which constitutes 30 percent of the household income. Given the importance of commercialization of agriculture to improve the productivity, per capita income and thereby the standard of living in the Himalayas, we examine the factors affecting the commercialization of agriculture on the basis of primary survey data. The results reveal that the land size, gender of the household head, livestock assets, ethnicity, education and location are important determinants of commercialization. Although commercialization of agriculture is considered as stimulated private-sector activity, public policy is essential to facilitate driving forces viz., trade and market reforms, rural infrastructure, and the institutional framework for legal and contractual arrangements between farmers and processors.Agriculture, Agricultural policy, Rural societies, Market, Household, India, Himalaya, Commercialization, Rural, Poverty, Production

Performance of financial institutions in Bhutan

The Kingdom of Bhutan is a small landlocked country in South Asia, located in the eastern Himalayas, and bordered by India and China. Bhutan is a small and fragile economy with a population of about 687,000. Nevertheless, its banking system plays an essential role in the growth and development of the country. This paper analyzes the financial performance, the development and growth of bank and non-bank financial institutions of Bhutan for the period 1999-2008 using both traditional and data envelopment analysis (DEA). The DEA analysis shows that financial institutions in are efficient and Bhutan National Bank has been the most efficient one. Overall, the paper finds that the ROE of the financial institutions in Bhutan are comparable to the international banks.Bhutan, Financial institutions, Performance, Deposit, Net income

Infrastructure development and economic growth in China

China is the fastest growing country in the world for last few decades and one of the defining features of China\u27s growth has been investment-led growth. China\u27s sustained high economic growth and increased competitiveness in manufacturing has been underpinned by a massive development of physical infrastructure. In this context, we investigate the role of infrastructure in promoting economic growth in China for the period 1975 to 2007. Overall, the results reveal that infrastructure stock, labour force, public and private investments have played an important role in economic growth in China. More importantly, we find that Infrastructure development in China has significant positive contribution to growth than both private and public investment. Further, there is unidirectional causality from infrastructure development to output growth justifying China\u27s high spending on infrastructure development since the early nineties. The experience from China suggests that it is necessary to design an economic policy that improves the physical infrastructure as well as human capital formation for sustainable economic growth in developing countries

Performance of financial institutions in Bhutan

The Kingdom of Bhutan is a small landlocked country in South Asia, located in the eastern Himalayas, and bordered by India and China. Bhutan is a small and fragile economy with a population of about 687,000. Nevertheless, its banking system plays an essential role in the growth and development of the country. This paper analyzes the financial performance, the development and growth of bank and non-bank financial institutions of Bhutan for the period 1999-2008 using both traditional and data envelopment analysis (DEA). The DEA analysis shows that financial institutions in are efficient and Bhutan National Bank has been the most efficient one. Overall, the paper finds that the ROE of the financial institutions in Bhutan are comparable to the international banks

Commercialization of agriculture in the Himalayas

Increased market integration and commercialization of traditional agriculture in the Himalayas is part of a development strategy towards growth and better standard of living. More than 97 percent households depend upon agricultural and allied activities for livelihood which constitutes 30 percent of the household income. Given the importance of commercialization of agriculture to improve the productivity, per capita income and thereby the standard of living in the Himalayas, we examine the factors affecting the commercialization of agriculture on the basis of primary survey data. The results reveal that the land size, gender of the household head, livestock assets, ethnicity, education and location are important determinants of commercialization. Although commercialization of agriculture is considered as stimulated private-sector activity, public policy is essential to facilitate driving forces viz., trade and market reforms, rural infrastructure, and the institutional framework for legal and contractual arrangements between farmers and processors