2,336 research outputs found

    Trade Policy, Openness, Institutions

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    This paper examines the importance of institutions vis-à-vis openness and trade policies in determining per capita income differences across countries. Recent literature has tried to demonstrate that more open economies grow faster. On the other hand, it has also been asserted that it is not openness per se but institutions and good governance that matter in promoting growth. This paper attempts to test this hypothesis across a crosssection of nations. Unlike other papers in the field, we have tested not only for the degree of openness but also for trade policy indicators, as well as a fuller set of six institutional variables. Our broad finding is that although institutions matter, trade policies are also relevant to promoting growth, whereas openness per se has little impact on growth.International Integration, Economic Development

    Politics Remains but Economics Leads and Peace Follows: Making a Case for India-Pakistan Peace Process in line with China Model

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    The paper traces the causal links of Indo-Pakistan conflict with trade, military expenditure and democracy under multivariate time series framework from 1950-2005. We find that higher exports to outside world and increased bilateral trade have high propensity to reduce hostilities between both nations. Furthermore, historically high military expenditures in Pakistan have been a direct outcome of continued hostilities in its Eastern borders whereas Indian military expenditure is weakly related with the conflict. Political orientation of both countries does not seem to significantly affect the conflict either. Overall, the findings support the case for liberal (economic) peace than political (democratic) peace.Inter-state conflict and trade; democracy and conflict; conflict and economic development

    On the Conflict Mitigating Effects of Trade: The India-Pakistan Case

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    We examine whether greater inter-state trade, democracy and reduced military spending lower belligerence between India and Pakistan. We begin with theoretical models covering the opportunity costs of conflict in terms of trade losses and security spending, as well as the costs of making concessions to rivals. Conflict between the two nations can be best understood in a multivariate framework where variables such as economic performance, integration with rest of the world, bilateral trade, military expenditure, democracy scores and population are simultaneously considered. Our empirical investigation based on time series econometrics from 1950-2005 suggests that reduced bilateral trade, greater military expenditure, less development expenditure, lower levels of democracy, lower growth rates and less general trade openness are all conflict enhancing. Globalization, or a greater openness to international trade with the rest of the world, is the most significant driver of a liberal peace, rather than a common democratic orientation suggested by the pure form of the democratic peace.Inter-state conflict and trade, democracy and conflict, conflict and economic development

    India and Pakistan: Trading for Peace

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    Are shared democratic values the most important factors in promoting peace between countries, or common economic interests? New econometric research shows that, in the case of India and Pakistan, trade with other countries increases the chance of peace.Inter-state conflict and trade, democracy and conflict, conflict and economic development

    Labour Markets, Education and Duality of Returns

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    The aim of this paper is to examine the impact of increased trade on wage inequality in developing countries, and whether a higher human capital stock moderates this effect. We look at the skilled-unskilled wage differential. When better educated societies open up their economies, increased trade is likely to induce less inequality on impact because the supply of skills better matches demand. But greater international exposure also brings about technological diffusion, further raising skilled labour demand. This may raise wage inequality, in contrast to the initial egalitarian level effect of human capital. We attempt to measure these two opposing forces. We also employ a broad set of indicators to measure trade liberalization policies as well as general openness, which is an outcome, and not a policy variable. We further examine what type of education most reduces inequality. Our findings suggest that countries with a higher level of initial human capital do well on the inequality front, but human capital which accrues through the trade liberalization channel has inegalitarian effects. Our results also have implications for the speed at which trade policies are liberalized, the implication being that better educated nations should liberalize faster.Integration, Trade Liberalization, Wage Inequality

    Quantum gravitational corrections to the stress-energy tensor around the rotating BTZ black hole

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    Modes emerging out of a collapsing black hole are red-shifted to such an extent that Hawking radiation at future null infinity consists of modes that have energies beyond the Planck scale at past null infinity. This indicates that physics at the Planck scale may modify the spectrum of Hawking radiation and the associated stress-energy tensor of the quantum field. Recently, it has been shown that, the T-duality symmetry of string fluctuations along compact extra dimensions leads to a modification of the standard propagator of point particles in quantum field theory. At low energies (when compared to the string scale), the modified propagator is found to behave as though the spacetime possesses a minimal length, say, \lp, which we shall assume to be of the order of the Planck length. We utilize the duality approach to evaluate the modified propagator around the rotating Banados-Teitelboim-Zanelli black hole and show that the propagator is finite in the coincident limit. We compute the stress-energy tensor associated with the modified Green's function and illustrate graphically that the quantum gravitational corrections turn out to be negligibly small. We conclude by briefly commenting on the results we have obtained.Comment: v1. 7 pages, 2 figures; v2. 11 pages, 4 figures, discussion extended to the case of the rotating BTZ black hole, figures improve

    Beyond Institutionalism: There Lies a Good Set of Trade Policies

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    The purpose of this paper is to empirically examine the contribution of trade liberalisation to differences in the level of prosperity across nations. We compare this with the relative contribution of institutional capacity to prosperity, as well as the role of human capital accumulation in that respect. We employ several concepts of institutional quality, trade policy and openness variables following various definitions prevalent in the literature. Unlike in the comparable study by Rodrik et al (2004) we have (a) included a role for human capital, (b) employed six institutional variables compared to one only in Rodrik et al (rule of law), (c) included trade policy variables, and not just openness indicators and (d) expanded the set of openness measures employed. We discover that opening up domestic markets to foreign competition by removing trade restrictions and barriers may be good for economic performance. Secondly, developing human capital is as important as superior institutional functioning for economic wellbeing. We find that openness counts for little per se in explaining income differences across countries. This is because it is an outcome and not a cause. Trade policies, and liberalisation, on the other hand, are not insignificant in explaining cross-country per-capita income variation. With regard to trade policies, export taxes are the most important in explaining cross-country per-capita income differences.Economic Growth, Institutions, International Trade

    Structural Behavior of Reinforced Concrete Beams Incorporating Foamed Glass as Aggregates

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    Natural resources that are utilized in civil engineering applications can be saved by replacing them with some recycled materials to produce sustainable concrete with required mechanical and durability properties. In recent years, recycled glass is being used as aggregates in concrete production in many countries across the world. In the present study, the structural properties of reinforced concrete beams containing foamed glass (FG) as a partial natural coarse aggregate replacement are investigated. Five concrete mixes were employed to conduct the present study. The coarse aggregate was replaced with 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% (by volume) of FG. Four point-loading flexural tests on beams were conducted up to failure. The results showed that the compressive strength was decreasing linearly with the increasing amount of FG. It was also observed that the ductility of the reinforced concrete beams significantly improved. However, the load-carrying capacity of the beam and load at which the first crack occurs was reduced. It was concluded that the inclusion of FG in structural concrete applications is possible and the structural behavior of concrete beams proved to be similar to that of other types of lightweight aggregate concrete such as wood and plastic aggregates used in similar structural elements
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