This thesis consists of three essays on fi…rm behaviour in international markets. Abstracts can be found at the beginning of their respective chapters. The fi…rst chapter, titled "Trading Tasks and Quality", presents a tractable trade model that combines vertical product differentiation at the firm-level with international fragmentation of production to explain some recently unearthed stylised facts about exporters in developing countries. In line with the recent empirical evidence, it suggests that there is a close link between exports and imports at the …firm-level, and it is quality that establishes the link between the two. The second and third chapters revisit the debate on globalisation and wage inequality. The second chapter, titled "The Trade and Wages Debate Revisited: A new explanation for an old mystery", develops a general equilibrium model where trade liberalisation between two identical countries increases wage inequality in favour of white-collar workers. It shows that country characteristics, such as the relative endowment of white-collar workers and the degree of competition, matter for the equilibrium level of wage inequality after trade liberalisation. The endowment of white-collar labour also affects the level of openness; an increase in the worldwide supply of white-collar labour expands the range of traded goods and increases the volume of trade in already-traded goods. Furthermore, it improves global welfare. The third chapter, titled "Cross-border Mergers and Wage Inequality", focuses on another aspect of globalisation and its effect on wage inequality. It suggests a two-way relationship between cross-border mergers and wage inequality: on the one hand, wage inequality in favour of white-collar workers increases the pro…tability of cross-border mergers; on the other hand, at any level of openness, wage inequality is lower in the presence of cross-border mergers than in their absence. Therefore, participation of a country in global business raises wage inequality, but its level is lower under trade and investment integration compared to trade integration only.

This thesis explores effects of uncertainty on firm investment that are described in estimates of firm level investment specifications which include proxies for uncertainty over expected future firm profitability. A panel data set of UK firms covering the period 1987-2000 is used to estimate firm level investment specifications. Within year volatility in stock returns - a common proxy for firm specific uncertainty in previous literature - is compared with covariance measures between stock returns and market returns representing un-diversifiable risk from the CAPM; and with alternative uncertainty proxies based on volatility in I/B/E/S securities analysts' forecasts of earnings per share. Within estimates of firm level investment specifications, the thesis investigates the sensitivity of coefficients on uncertainty terms to the choice of underlying investment specification: error correction model between the natural logarithms of capital and sales; or the Hayashi (1982) Q model of investment. Coefficients on stock return volatility measures of uncertainty terms are found to vary significantly between estimates of error correction and average q specifications. Differences between coefficients estimated on uncertainty terms across estimates of these two investment specifications are supported with simulated data. Uncertainty measures based on volatility in I/B/E/S securities analysts' forecasts of earnings per share are found to be much more informative of investment behaviour than within year stock return volatility in estimates of both error correction and average q specifications. Coefficients on I/B/E/S uncertainty proxies imply more consistent investment-uncertainty relationships across estimates of error correction and average q specifications for the UK panel data set.

Previous studies show that firms, in general, die young, and that they are in dire needs for capital injections. However, for various reasons, startups are sometime not able to gain financing, and in certain cases one prefer a certain type of capital, which has led to the pecking-order theory, which assumes that internal capital is preferred over external, and debt is issued rather than equity. Furthermore, business angels and venture capitalists have very stringent criteria for investing in a startup, making the conditions very harsh. To remedy this problem, this study aims to see if startups can utilize Corporate Social Responsibility efforts to enhance their odds of gaining capital from business angels and venture capitalists, since it during the last decades has become increasingly popular to integrate in the businesses. Thus, we intend to see if Corporate Social Responsibility can be a new investment criterion that previous studies have not expressed. We identified a research gap in the literature, that investments can be made on other premises than economical, making us wonder whether or not this can be exploited through CSRactivities. This led us to the research questions of this qualitative study: How does CSR-activities within a startup affect the business angel or venture capitalist’s willingness to invest in the firm? To fulfill the purposes of this study, we concluded it would be best to conduct a mono-method qualitative study, wherein we intended to answer the question using data from semi-structured interviews. We gained invaluable information through eight semi-structured interviews, which were thematically analyzed into three global themes; investment criteria, networking and communication, and sustainable undertakings. From the themes we identified different characteristics which are important for both the startup and entrepreneur, as well as found evidence that ethical and environmental efforts of startups indeed increase the willingness of business angels and venture capitalists to invest, especially in economically strong organizations. However, the investors did not try to make the business model more sustainable post investment. These findings are very exciting, as they disclose Swedish investors to be following a triple bottom line approach when investing, meaning that the findings of Carol (1991, p. 42) and other researchers can be adopted when studying Swedish investment decisions. This cements social entrepreneurship as a strong contender to the classic notions of entrepreneurship.

In 2012, the CIA World Fact Book showed that the service sector contributed about 76.6% and 51.4% of the 2010 gross national product of both the United States and Ghana, respectively. Research in the services area shows that a firm's success in today's competitive business environment is dependent upon its ability to deliver superior service quality. However, these studies have yet to address factors that influence customers to remain committed to a mass service in economically diverse countries. In addition, there is little research on established service quality measures pertaining to the mass service domain. This dissertation applies Rusbult's investment model of relationship commitment and examines its psychological impact on the commitment level of a customer towards a service in two economically diverse countries. In addition, service quality is conceptualized as a hierarchical construct in the mass service (banking) and specific dimensions are developed on which customers assess their quality evaluations. Using, PLS path modeling, a structural equation modeling approach to data analysis, service quality as a hierarchical third-order construct was found to have three primary dimensions and six sub-dimensions. The results also established that a country's national economy has a moderating effect on the relationship between service quality and investment size, and service satisfaction on investment size. This study is the first to conceptualize and use the hierarchical approach to service quality in mass services. Not only does this study build upon the investment model to provide a comprehensive decision model for service organizations to increase their return on investment but also, provides a congruence of work between service quality and the investment model in the management and decision sciences discipline.

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Economic integration starts to be achieved faster through the international labor mobility than due to international trade or capital movements. Remittances, important international capital flows, became one of the most discussed topics in world. The migrant's transfers have become the primary source of existence in Moldova. This paper using data on transfer of funds for the period 1995-2010, attempts to examine the relationship between remittances and financial development, economic growth and investment level of Republic of Moldova. The main finding of this study is that remittances influence significantly the economic growth, the investment level. Moreover, these funds substitute for a shortage of development of the financial system and therefore promote growth. Keywords: Remittances, migrant, financial development, investment, economic growth, formal and informal channel. Author's e-mail: oti_marculescu@mail.ru Supervisor's e-mail: cahlik@fsv.cuni.cz

Notre travail, qui s’inscrit en droite ligne des recherches du CERCRID sur les marc consistait a étudier cette question, dans un secteur particulier. Il s’est agi d’aller au-delà du discours général sur les modes alternatifs de règlement des conflits, pour voir précisément ce qu’il en est en matière bancaire. La recherche du GIP droit et justice confiée au CERCRID, et portant sur la baisse générale du contentieux de l’impayé depuis le début des années 1990, a constitué un élément supplémentaire de notre champ d’investigation. A la conjonction de ces deux préoccupations principales, s’est greffée une grave crise économique mondiale née du crédit hypothécaire aux États-Unis d’Amérique. Tous ces facteurs nous ont conduit a nous intéresser à la prévention et au règlement du contentieux bancaire. Le travail a donc consiste en une large recherche sur le contentieux bancaire, le mot traitement ayant été choisi pour englober a la fois la prévention et le règlement. On comprend ainsi que le sens contextuel du mot traitement va au-delà de l’acception habituelle de ce terme. Trois principaux constats se dégagent de l’étude du contentieux bancaire : il s’agit d’une matière éminemment marquée du sceau de la prévention, d’une matière limitativement marquée du sceau de la médiation et de l’adjudication, d’une matière rarement marquée du sceau de l’arbitrage. La prévention du contentieux bancaire repose sur deux axes majeurs : la réduction des occasions de contentieux, ainsi que la limitation des espaces de discussion. La négociation précontentieuse apparait comme le mécanisme prééminent permettant d’éviter le litige et de régler les différends. En cas de litige, les parties peuvent saisir le médiateur bancaire. Il est également possible de recourir au juge. En cette matière, c’est essentiellement le juge étatique que les parties saisissent. Il va sans dire que l’arbitrage est rare, notamment du fait de l’absence d’imperium de l’arbitre. / Our work was done in the framework of CERCRID research on ADR (alternative dispute resolution). the goal was to study this question in a specific sector. we had to go beyond general knowledges on ADR, in order to discover precisely what it was about in the bank sector. the research of the Center « droit et justice », on the falling of the unpaid litigation since the beginning of 1990, which was assigned to the CERCRID, constituted an additional element for our investigations. furthermore, we had to take the sup-primes crises in the USA into consideration. all these factors lead us to work on the prevention and the settling of banking conflicts. the job therefore consisted to do a large research on banking litigation. the word treatment was chosen to include both the prevention and the settling. this is to say that the sense of the word treatment hier goes beyond the common meaning of this word. three main conclusions can be made about the research on banking litigation : it is a matter in which the prevention of conflicts plays a very important role. the mediation and the settling by the judicial court are less important hier. the arbitration is rare.the prevention of conflicts lies on two majors axis : the reduction of conflicts occasions, and the limitation of space for discussions. the negotiation appears to be the most important mechanism to settle disagreements, the banks trying to avoid judicial proceedings. in case of failure, the conflict can be solved by mediation, or by the court. the judicial court is usually the one chosen by the parties at this stage.

Globalization of real estate investments have revealed an increased desire by investors to operate outside their domestic markets. The removal of barriers to international capital movement and liberalisation of financial markets have made cross-border property investments an attractive alternative for investors, as they take advantage of its diversification potential thus spreading their risks. However, international real estate investment entails venturing into the unknown, where there are unfamiliar political and economic environments. Each property market has its rules, business culture and networks, while experience in one market may not translate well to another. This is because the institutions of a market impinge on market outcomes and behaviour by generating transaction costs which weigh against the returns on investment assets, while these costs may affect domestic versus foreign investors differently. Also, the peculiar nature of real estate, for example heterogeneity and asymmetric information makes it a particularly illiquid asset class. The time element of illiquidity represents an important risk to investors because it exposes them to an extended period of uncertainty. Illiquidity in turn makes real estate an asset specific investment as it calls for the input of intermediaries who utilize their extensive knowledge of the market to facilitate transactions. This makes intermediation an essential requirement for successful investment, as intermediaries introduce asset specific knowledge to the investor to promote liquidity and attenuate risk. However, intermediation imposes an additional transaction cost on investors as it is the price paid for immediacy of the transaction. It is therefore argued that the institutional environment of a real estate market not only underpins market structures and behaviour, but also the inherent characteristic of the asset which calls for the need for intermediation further informs the structures of the market through which commercial real estate is traded. Therefore, an understanding of the wider institutional environment of a real estate market is not only important, but also an understanding of the intermediation structure and associated costs which informs market processes is expedient for successful international real estate investment. This study investigates the institutions through which the commercial real estate investment market in Lagos, Nigeria operates. It offers a new and holistic framework for understanding how the institutions of a market influence its operation in terms of the associated transaction costs, particularly in the context of an emerging real estate market. The study adopts a combined Northian and Williamsonian Transaction Cost Economics theoretical framework and employs a qualitative research approach to achieve the objectives of the study. This involves semi-structured interviews with key market players and a process of thematic analyses of the interviews. Findings show that the Land Use Act of 1978 and the indigenous landholding system form the major formal and informal institutions governing the operation of the market respectively. Findings further reveal that transaction costs associated with the formal institution of the market at 15% of assessed property value and additional intermediation cost of between 2.5% and 5% of the property price, are high when compared to the developed market of the UK, for example. Also, while the formal institutions of the market do not affect foreign and domestic investors differently, findings show that the informal institutions and specifically the associated transaction costs do. An implication of the poor enforcement of the formal rule of the market is the increasing informality in the market and consequent difficulty of securing debt financing and high interest rate due to poor evidence of title. The study recommends a review of the key formal institution of the market to remove its ambiguities and eliminate the omo-onile phenomenon which is a negative transformation of the indigenous landholding system, and of which the perpetrators behave opportunistically, exploiting loopholes in poorly written formal law, thus generating transaction costs embedded in informal institutions of land rights.

Master of Arts / Department of Economics / Peri Da Silva / The literature concerning foreign direct investment and the spillover effects on domestic firms has developed significantly over the past two decades. This report examines the historical data on foreign direct investment flows and identifies several different types of spillover effects. Earlier studies identify potential horizontal spillovers but later studies suggest that these spillovers are insignificant. Recently, vertical spillovers, especially through backward linkages, have been identified as occurring in the host country. Studies indicate that this is happening particularly in the manufacturing sector for firms relying on inputs from the services sectors that have higher levels of foreign direct investment.

The aim of this study was to determine whether the South African household sector finds itself in a net lending or net borrowing situation and to analyse the situation. Research was done against the background of the 1993 System of National Accounts (1993 SNA). As suggested by the 1993 SNA, the net lending situation of the South African household sector was calculated in the capital account of the household sector. It became clear that the South African household sector’s saving is in excess of its capital formation, although both components indicated a slight declining trend over the past almost thirty years. Current economic literature was used in focusing on household sector saving and capital formation definitions, categories, motivations and determinants. International situations with regards to saving and capital formation were also compared with that of South Africa, putting the South African situation into perspective. An econometric analysis of net household saving in South Africa for the period 1991 to 2002 indicated five factors that significantly influenced household sector saving over the period. The five factors comprise the income from property, the twelve-month fixed deposit rate, current taxes on income and wealth, compensation of employees and total private consumption expenditure. Making use of further data sets, it became clear that the South African government sector uses the household sector’s excess saving to finance increased current expenditure and does not channel these excess funds towards increased capital formation that would be beneficial for long-term economic growth. This study therefore suggested that the South African household sector should be encouraged to act entrepreneurial, which will lead to increased levels of capital formation, that will in turn contribute to long-term growth, and that can be financed by the current excess saving levels of the household sector. Increased capital formation will lead to increases in productivity and income. This will then enable the household sector to raise its level of saving, that again can be used to finance increased levels of capital formation. The five factors that tested significantly influencing household sector saving in South Africa, were linked to possible policy as well as other initiatives aimed at encouraging household sector saving and capital formation in South Africa. This study concluded by briefly discussing three initiatives currently encouraging and promoting the importance of saving in South Africa. / Prof. A.E. Loots