This paper discusses whether the integration of international financial markets affects business cycle fluctuations. In the framework of a new open economy macro-model, we show that the link between financial openness and business cycle volatility depends on the nature of the underlying shock....

The Eastern enlargement of the European Union (EU) is likely to give a further boost to trade and capital flows, yet empirical evidence on the possible magnitudes is still scarce. This paper uses four different datasets to estimate the determinants of international asset holdings and trade...

Pecking order models of international finance suggest that countries should become less reliant on international bank lending as they develop. Reduced information costs are one of the factors behind this trend towards disintermediation. This paper presents a simple model on the choice between...

Biodiversity can sometimes only be preserved if natural habitats are excluded from human uses. Such protection measures generate positive externalities at the global scale. This holds especially for protection in developing countries that host great parts of global biodiversity. For...

Nationally implemented protected area measures for biodiversity conservation generate cross-border externalities. For internalizing these externalities at the international level, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) has been established as a multilateral mechanism of transfer. This paper...

Genetische Ressourcen sind Lebewesen, die genetischen Informationen in sich tragen, welche für die biotechnologische Forschung und Entwicklung von Bedeutung sind. Angesichts eines sich beschleunigenden weltweiten Artenverlustes stellt sich die Frage, ob durch den privaten Handel mit genetische...

The debate on the risks and benefits of the globalisation of international capital markets has focused on the volume and the volatility of the main capital flows – foreign direct investment (FDI), portfolio investment, and foreign bank lending. Financial transfers in the form of worker...