Testing the BalassA-Samuelson hypothesis in two different groups of countries: OECD and Latin America

This paper studies the Balassa-Samuelson hypothesis (BSH) in the context of two areas with strong differences in economic development, twelve OECD countries and twelve Latin American economies, taking the USA as the benchmark. Applying panel cointegration techniques, we find that while the first stage of the hypothesis, which links productivities and prices, is satisfied in each group of countries, the second stage, which relates relative sector prices with the real exchange rate, only holds in the Latin American area. The failure of the latter in the OECD countries as a whole is reflected in departures from PPP in the tradable sectors.Balassa-Samuelson effect, Panel cointegration, Economic development, Exchange rate systems

Beyond the Salassa-Samuelson Effect in some New Member States of the European Union

This paper analyses the Balassa and Samuelson hypothesis in two groups of European countries: six New Member States (NMS) and six advanced EU-15 economies. It is found that the second stage of the hypothesis, which relates relative sector prices with the real exchange rate, does not hold anywhere. In the NMS the main reasons are increased demand for domestic tradables stemming from positive differentials in economic growth, probably coupled with quality improvements in domestic tradable goods. In the EU-15, the explanatory factor is segmentation between national markets of tradables, caused by transportation costs, non-tariff barriers and imperfect competition between firms.Balassa-Samuelson effect, panel cointegration, economic transition, market segmentation, quality bias

The over-evaluation of the real exchange rate of the Spanish economy

En la primera parte de este trabajo se aplica el modelo de bienes comercializables y no comercializables para caracterizar los desequilibrios principales de la economía española y deducir la ecuación que fundamenta el «Efecto Penn». En la segunda parte se estima esa ecuación con datos anuales de sección transversal para dos amplias muestras de países y para cada uno de los años del periodo 2000-2009. Se obtiene que en 2002 el tipo de cambio real de la economía española inició un proceso de sobrevaloración frente al resto del mundo que alcanzó su máximo en 2008 (entre el 27% y 29% ). En 2009, se redujo a un nivel entre el 17% y el 19% por el impacto deflacionario de la crisis económica. El trabajo analiza los desequilibrios que acompañaron a este desajuste, y deduce algunas prescripciones de política económica para contrarrestarlos y/o resolverlosIn the first part of this work we apply tradables and non-tradables model to characterise the main economic imbalances of the Spanish economy and to derive the equation that rationalizes and supports the Penn effect. In the second part, we estimate the Penn effect equation using annual cross-sectional data ot two large samples of countries for each year of the period 2000-2009. We observe that real exchange rate of the Spanish economy with respect of rest of the world started an overvalaution rate dropped to 17%-19% in 2009, as result of the deflationary impact of the finnacial crisis. We analyse the the economic imbalances that accompany this misalignment, and deduce some policy prescriptions to solve themLos autores agradecen la ayuda financiera de la Fundación Séneca, «Ayudas para la realización de proyectos de investigación en Humanidades y Ciencias Sociales», proyecto 15183/PHCS/1

Curso de Redes Interactivo

El artículo presenta una plataforma de desarrollo de cursos interactivos de autoaprendizaje en soporte informático para alumnos no presenciales y de repaso para los presenciales. Está basado en un programa modular que presenta al alumno la información de los cursos, accesible por unidades temáticas. Cada unidad consta de una introducción, diversos apartados y un breve resumen. El programa es fácilmente ampliable por su arquitectura modular. Dentro de las unidades de cada curso se puede encontrar texto, esquemas, dibujos ilustrativos, gráficos, secuencias animadas y, también, una serie de preguntas intercaladas. Los dibujos, gráficos y demás elementos explicativos que no sean texto escrito contribuyen a captar la atención del alumno y las preguntas ayudan a asimilar conceptos reflexionando sobre lo expuesto. El programa lee información previamente introducida por el profesor en bases de datos. Existe una base de datos principal a partir de la cual se puede acceder a los contenidos de todos los cursos disponibles.Boronat Segui, F.; Solanes, A.; Lloret, J. (2003). Curso de Redes Interactivo. Jornadas Sobre Enseñanza en las Escuelas de Telecomunicación. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/671

The Current Account Reversails in the Peripheral Countries of the Eurozone

Analizamos aquí las reversiones de las cuentas corrientes en los países periféricos de la zona euro (ZES), Grecia, Italia, España, Portugal e Irlanda, durante los años de la crisis financiera. Después de determinar la tendencia e inicio de estos procesos, investigamos los costes implicados en cada país, utilizando un modelo keynesiano para economías abiertas. Estimamos el modelo con datos de panel del periodo 1999-2013. Nuestros resultados indican que cada país de la muestra sufrió costes significativos en términos de PIB, que van desde 32% en Grecia, hasta 6% en Irlanda. Estos hallazgos nos permiten obtener prescripciones de política económica, tanto para los gobiernos de los ZES como para las autoridades nacionales del núcleo de la zona euro.We analyze the current-account reversals in the peripheral countries of the euro zone (ZES), Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Ireland, during the financial crisis episode. After determining the trend and start date of reversals, we investigate the involved economic costs in each country using a Keynesian model for open economies. We estimate the model with panel data of the period 1999-2013. Our results indicate that each country of the sample suffered significant costs in terms of GDP losses, going from 32% in Greece to 6% in Ireland. Results allow us to derive policy prescriptions for the governments of both peripheral and northern economies of the Eurozone

La reversión de las cuentas corrientes en los países periféricos de la Zona Euro

Analizamos aquí las reversiones de las cuentas corrientes en los países periféricos de la zona euro (ZES), Grecia, Italia, España, Portugal e Irlanda, durante los años de la crisis financiera. Después de determinar la tendencia e inicio de estos procesos, investigamos los costes implicados en cada país, utilizando un modelo keynesiano para economías abiertas. Estimamos el modelo con datos de panel del periodo 1999-2013. Nuestros resultados indican que cada país de la muestra sufrió costes significativos en términos de PIB, que van desde 32% en Grecia, hasta 6% en Irlanda. Estos hallazgos nos permiten obtener prescripciones de política económica, tanto para los gobiernos de los ZES como para las autoridades nacionales del núcleo de la zona euro

External competition flattens the Phillips Curve

In this paper we elaborate an open economy Phillips curve (OEPC) with micro-founded analysis, in which external competition significantly impacts the domestic inflation rate. This influence is transmitted through two channels: a) the gap between the current and potential growth of imports, and b) real exchange-rate misalignment. We estimate this OEPC by applying two econometric techniques, panel regressions and PVAR accompanied by impulse/response analysis. A sample of 15 advanced economies is used with data for the period 1994-2017. The results from both methodologies endorse the validity of this theoretical relationship and suggest that international competition reduces the pricing power of domestic firms, thereby curbing inflationary pressures. We also find that the slope of the OEPC has significantly declined in the years after the Great Recession

Incertidumbres críticas de la agroindustria alimentaria argentina en el contexto mundial

El Proyecto tuvo como finalidad analizar el estado del arte, las tendencias y prospectiva de la agroindustria alimentaria argentina en el contexto mundial, haciendo foco en el procesamiento de alimentos y planteando una estrategia de innovación tecnológica e institucional que contribuya al desarrollo nacional y regional con inclusión y equidad social. Este Proyecto ha servido para avanzar en la construcción de un modelo de organización y gestión orientado a estudiar la industria alimentaria argentina con anclaje regional y territorial. A partir de esta experiencia, es posible consolidar un espacio de trabajo interinstitucional concebido como un observatorio que articule las actividades en ciencia, tecnología e innovación con las oportunidades y problemas del desarrollo agroalimentario, buscando sustentar la formulación e implementación de la política científico-tecnológica nacional en el marco del Plan Nacional de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Productiva – “Argentina Innovadora 2020” y del proceso de integración del MERCOSUR y de la región sudamericana.CR Mendoza-San JuanFil: Vitale Gutierrez, Javier Alejandro. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Centro Regional Mendoza-San Juan; ArgentinaFil: Ruiz, Ana Maria. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA); ArgentinaFil: Santi, Carina Eliana. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Centro Regional Mendoza - San Juan; ArgentinaFil: Giraudo, Vanina. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Políticas y Sociales; ArgentinaFil: Solanes, Fernando Jorge. Fundación Credicoop; Argentin

Impact of smoking on gingival inflammation in representative samples of three South American cities

The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of smoking on gingival inflammation in a representative sample of 1,650 adults from Santiago (Chile), Porto Alegre (Brazil), and Tucumán (Argentina). A questionnaire was administered to participants to gather demographic and behavioral characteristics, including smoking habits. The participants were clinically examined to obtain gingival index (GI), gingival bleeding index (GBI), visible plaque index (VPI), and calculus presence values. Gingival inflammation was defined as a mean GI > 0.5. Heavy smokers presented significantly lower levels of gingival inflammation, as reflected by both GI and GBI, than both light and moderate smokers, despite their having increased amounts of plaque and calculus. Being 50 years old or older [odds ratio (OR), 1.93], a VPI ≥ 30% (OR, 28.1), and self-reported diabetes (OR, 2.79) were positively associated with detection of gingival inflammation. In conclusion, the occurrence of clinically detectable gingival inflammation was lower in heavy smokers than light and moderate smokers. Older age, diabetes, and visible plaque emerged as risk indicators of gingivitis. Plaque and gingival indices are significantly associated regardless of the smoking status

A multicenter study of oral health behavior among adult subjects from three South American cities

The aims of this study were to describe the self-reported oral hygiene habits, dental visit frequency, and gingival bleeding perception in adult populations from three South American cities, and also to assess the association of these variables with sociodemographic data and with the clinical presence of plaque and gingival inflammation. Five-hundred and fifty adult subjects from each city (Porto Alegre, Brazil; Tucumán, Argentina; Santiago, Chile) received full mouth examinations to determine visible plaque and gingival index. A structured questionnaire on demographics, habits, attitudes and knowledge of oral health was also administered. The data were analyzed according to dental visit frequency, toothbrushing frequency, interproximal tooth cleaning frequency, subjects’ perception of gum bleeding, and proportion of subject sites with VP and bleeding sites. Analysis of the association among the variables was performed using either a chi-square test or Fischer's exact test. Toothbrushing twice a day or more was reported by 84.2% of the subjects, but only 17.7% reported daily interdental cleaning, and 60.2% reported visiting a dental clinic only in an emergency. Only 2.97% had no bleeding sites, whereas 33.7% had 50% or more bleeding sites. Regular interdental self-cleaning and a dental visit every 3-6 months was associated with less plaque and less gingival bleeding. More than 12 years of education was associated with healthier habits, less bleeding and plaque scores. In conclusion, the oral health behavior of South American adult subjects from these cities is below the international recommendations, especially in relation to interdental cleaning and regular dental visits