<p>According to the Globalizations Council the most important task Sweden has is to assess the opportunities and challenges presented by the global economy to a small, open country like Sweden. There has been dual competition, some has been able to sell the resource services of human and physical knowledge capital, and others offering to sell unskilled labor at wages way below Swedish standards. This thesis will examine the changes in market position in the manufacturing sector, and how comparative advantage and the role of technology have impacted the changes.</p><p>The empirical analysis is based on the relative international competitiveness index to examine how market position in different sectors has changed during the time-period 1985-2003. In the regression measures for human and physical capital has been included as well as R&D expenditure for both Sweden and the OECD countries.</p><p>The results show that the changes in market position for most products are relatively small. What can be concluded is that it is not the sector as a whole that experience improving market positions instead it is certain products such as pharmaceutical, sulphate and electronic components among others.</p><p>Sweden ranks very high in terms of resources dedicated to production of new technology and there are proofs on both side of the "Swedish Paradox"; which states that high technology exports are low given the high R&D investment.</p><p>The result also indicates that Sweden has a labor-intensive disadvantage, i.e. indications that the market position for industries with high total capital-intensity has increased.</p>

According to the Globalizations Council the most important task Sweden has is to assess the opportunities and challenges presented by the global economy to a small, open country like Sweden. There has been dual competition, some has been able to sell the resource services of human and physical knowledge capital, and others offering to sell unskilled labor at wages way below Swedish standards. This thesis will examine the changes in market position in the manufacturing sector, and how comparative advantage and the role of technology have impacted the changes. The empirical analysis is based on the relative international competitiveness index to examine how market position in different sectors has changed during the time-period 1985-2003. In the regression measures for human and physical capital has been included as well as R&amp;D expenditure for both Sweden and the OECD countries. The results show that the changes in market position for most products are relatively small. What can be concluded is that it is not the sector as a whole that experience improving market positions instead it is certain products such as pharmaceutical, sulphate and electronic components among others. Sweden ranks very high in terms of resources dedicated to production of new technology and there are proofs on both side of the "Swedish Paradox"; which states that high technology exports are low given the high R&amp;D investment. The result also indicates that Sweden has a labor-intensive disadvantage, i.e. indications that the market position for industries with high total capital-intensity has increased.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 127-129).

This thesis sheds light on several macroeconomic aspects of international and domestic goods trade during the last three decades. The first chapter investigates the causes of the growth of world trade during this period and shows that it is best understood from a factor-proportions perspective. The second chapter analyses the decline in trade experienced by countries in the wake of sovereign debt crises. Empirical evidence suggests that it is due to a reduction in exporters’ access to foreign credit. The third and final chapter provides an explanation for the procyclicality of input trade among domestic firms. I argue that periods of economic expansion affect vertically integrated producers asymmetrically, providing incentives for intermediate-goods trade between fast-growing and slow-growing firms. / Aquesta tesis posa en relleu varis aspectes macroeconòmics del comerç internacional i domèstic en les últimes tres dècades. El primer capítol investiga les causes del creixement del comerç mundial en aquest període i demostra que s’entén millor des de la perspectiva dels proporcions dels factors. El segon capítol analitza la caiguda del comerç experimentada per països arran de crisis del deute sobirà. L’evidencia empírica suggereix que aquest declivi es deu a la reducció en l’accés dels exportadors al crèdit extern. El tercer i últim capítol ofereix una explicació per la prociclicitat del comerç d’inputs entre empreses domèstiques. En períodes d’expansió econòmica els productors integrats verticalment es veuen afectats d’una forma asimètrica, proporcionant així incentius pel comerç de bens intermedis entre empreses que creixen a diferent ritme.

Ce travail vise à apporter des éléments de réponse à plusieurs questions: quelles sont les relations entre ressources naturelles et conflits ?Quelle est la géographie des conflits liés à l’exploitation des ressources naturelles ?Quelle est l’origine des conflits liés à l’exploitation des ressources naturelles ?Après un bref aperçu critique des modèles développés dans la littérature contemporaine pour expliquer les relations entre conflits et ressources naturelles, le constat de leur insuffisance entraîne un examen approfondi de ces relations sous plusieurs angles. Il s’ensuit que les conflits liés aux ressources naturelles sont ceux qui ont trait à la répartition des ressources, aux conditions d’exploitation et à la répartition des revenus de l’exploitation des ressources. <p><p>À partir d’une classification des conflits selon une typologie des Etats du monde d’inspiration Centre-périphérie, l’argument principal de ce travail consiste à expliquer les conflits liés aux ressources naturelles – et plus largement tous les conflits – par l’amplification de deux phénomènes :le déclin de l’activité économique et l’exacerbation des tensions politiques. L’examen d’une série de cas (Aceh, Colombie, Angola, Afghanistan, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Cambodge) confirme la lecture matérialiste politico-économique des conflits liés à l’exploitation des ressources naturelles. Le rôle des structures d’appropriation du pouvoir et des revenus, en particulier de la rente des revenus issus de l’exploitation des ressources naturelles – cruciale dans des économies peu industrialisées – apparaît à la lumière du jour. <p><p>Enfin, ce travail offre quelques réflexions sur l’influence des structures d’appropriation dans l’éclatement et la durée des conflits. La question de l’origine des structures d’appropriation et de ses liens présumés avec la diffusion de la propriété privée en parallèle avec le développement du système-monde est ainsi développée, précédant la critique du rôle pseudo-développementaliste des ressources naturelles, dont le résultat de l’exploitation est surdéterminé par les structures d’appropriation locales (Tchad). Le travail se conclut sur une mise en perspective des enjeux du contrôle des territoires où sont exploités des ressources naturelles et de l’apport de cette question dans l’élaboration d’une géographie de la violence.<p> / Doctorat en sciences, Spécialisation géographie / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished