The transfer problem is defined by the possibility for a donor country to end up better off after having given away some resources to another country. The simplest version of that problem can be formulated in a two consumer exchange economy with fixed total resources. Existence of a transfer...

There has been much discussion of the differences in macroeconomic performance and prospects between the US, Japan and the euro area. Using Markov-switching techniques, in this paper we identify and compare specifically their major business-cycle features and examine the case for a common...

This paper critically assesses the literature on the relationship between economic integration and the environment. In particular, we investigate how trade liberalisation and capital market integration affect environmental policy and thus environmental quality. Conversely, we also study how...

International climate protection investments (Joint Implementation and Clean Development Mechanism projects) are burdened with problems of contract enforcement, which prevent the realisation of efficiency gains associated with these investments. The paper analyses this problem from the...

The Kyoto Protocol stipulates that industrialised countries and countries with economies in transition, i.e. the group of Annex I countries, shall reduce their overall emissions of carbon dioxide and other five greenhouse gases by at least 5 % as compared to their 1990 emission levels. This...

The study analyzes the role played by technological determinants, using the approach of National System of Innovation (NSI), in enhancing or hampering Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) with different motivations, namely horizontal and vertical FDI. The empirical analysis is carried out using data...

This paper studies how comparative advantage and the political elites' endowments shape long-run performance in an economy with imperfect political institutions. In a capital-scarce economy, an autocrat catering to the needs of landowners favours openness to trade at an early stage of...

Economic growth has traditionally been attributed to the accumulation of human and physical capital and the increased productivity arising from technological innovation. The quest to attract physical capital led to the design and implementation of policies and the building of institutions by...

There are various ways to indicate the importance of international trade. In this paper, we use the ‘labor footprint’ concept to gain new insights into the implications of trade for employment. We focus on the US, but also provide information on 39 other, mostly developed, countries for the...

Noch immer ist unklar, wann die Briten die EU verlassen werden. Es deutet aber viel darauf hin, dass der Brexit schon heute die Handelsbeziehungen zwischen dem Vereinigten Königreich und Deutschland beeinflusst hat. Das ist zum einen der Unsicherheit darüber geschuldet, ob es zu einem...