Este estudo analisa a intervenção do Estado sobre e na indústria do petróleo em uma perspectiva histórica e argumenta que as recentes reformas do setor expressam um novo padrão de intervencionismo estatal o neodesenvolvimentismo. A intervenção sobre essas atividades econômicas é modalidade de intervenção indireta que se expressa no monopólio público do art. 177 da CF/88 e nas regras infraconstitucionais para o setor. Por sua vez, a intervenção na própria atividade econômica, ou direta, é instrumentalizada principalmente por meio de empresas estatais. A Lei n° 2.004/53 é marco do Estado desenvolvimentista brasileiro e instituiu monopólio legal em regime de exclusividade pela Petrobras. No modelo de Estado regulador da década de 1990, reformas jurídicas permitiram a contratação de empresas privadas para exercício do monopólio estatal que, no entanto, permanece intacto como poder de escolha. As recentes descobertas do Pré-sal revolucionaram o horizonte do setor no Brasil e resultaram na edição de novo marco legal composto pelas Leis n° 12.351/10, Lei n°12.304/10 e Lei n° 12.276/10. Sem prejuízo do contrato de concessão da Lei n° 9.478/97, esse novo marco estabeleceu contrato de partilha de produção, nova empresa estatal (PPSA) e reforçou o papel atribuído à Petrobras no setor. O novo arcabouço é representativo do Estado neodesenvolvimentista. As rendas petrolíferas podem ser maldição ou bênção, a depender da política econômica adotada. / This dissertation analyses the modalities of State intervention in the Brazilian oil industry in a historical perspective to sustain that a new pattern of State intervention takes place Neodevelopmentalism. Indirect interventionism is a byproduct of the public monopoly of Article 177 of the Federal Constitution and of applicable legal regulation. Direct Interventionism is pursued mainly through state enterprises. Law No. 2.004/53 is representative of the Brazilian Developmental State and creates an exclusive monopoly for Petrobras. In the context of the Regulatory State of the 90s legal reforms opened the sector to the private initiative, without revoking the monopoly that still remains as a comprehensive power to regulate activities related to the oil industry. Recent discoveries in the Pré-Sal layer revolutionized Brazilian oil production horizon and resulted in the enactment of a new legal framework: Law No. 12.351/10, Law No. 12.304/10 and Law No. 12.276/10. In addition to the concession agreement of Law No. 9.478/97, this new framework regulates the execution of production sharing agreements, the creation of another state enterprise (PPSA) and provides new powers to Petrobras. This new framework is representative of the Neodevelopmental State. Oil revenues can be a blessing or a curse, depending on the economic policies that are adopted.

A presente pesquisa analisou as feiras agroecológicas realizadas por camponeses no estado da Paraíba, experiência que se constituiu na comercialização direta de alimentos produzidos em assentamentos rurais e pequenas propriedades. Essa iniciativa foi resultado de soluções para problemas provocados pelo uso de agrotóxicos, a venda da produção para atravessadores e a busca pela constituição da vida na terra conquistada. Os camponeses que encabeçaram essa experiência traziam uma vivência de enfrentamento contra os latifúndios improdutivos e oligarquias rurais. Foi na longa trajetória percorrida na luta pela terra que se formaram as bases políticas e sociais no sentido que pretendiam dotar a vida na terra conquistada. Dessa forma, a não utilização de agrotóxicos e de fertilizantes químicos, bem como a recusa em plantar as sementes transgênicas fizeram parte de uma prática agrícola contra-hegemônica, que buscou diminuir a dependência das famílias camponesas dos oligopólios mundiais. Diante disso, objetivamos compreender o protagonismo camponês na luta por condições mais justas no campo, diante da concentrada estrutura fundiária brasileira e dos privilégios governamentais concedidos ao agronegócio. Nesse contexto, identificamos que até concretizarem a realização da primeira feira agroecológica, as famílias camponesas enfrentaram uma série de dificuldades, desde a falta de apoio governamental até a proibição de instalação de feiras em algumas cidades. Mesmo diante das adversidades, constatamos uma série de resultados positivos, como melhoria da saúde das famílias, oferta de alimentos saudáveis para a cidade, melhoria do solo agrícola e aumento da renda familiar. Todavia, apesar das conquistas, o número de integrantes que praticam uma agricultura contra-hegemônica ainda é pequeno diante da agricultura convencional. Dessa forma, a partir dos estudos da geografia agrária, buscamos analisar os processos de monopolização do território e territorialização do monopólio na agricultura, para compreender os processos de criação e recriação do campesinato. Portanto, com base nesses processos, levantamos a tese da possibilidade de superação da condição de subordinação camponesa a partir da realização de projetos como o das feiras agroecológicas, enquanto concepção mais ampla de vida e de transformações sociais, interligadas às discussões da construção da soberania alimentar. / This research analysed the agroecological fairs held by peasants in the state of Paraíba, as an experience that was constituted in the direct commercialization of food produced in rural settlements and small properties, an initiative that was the result of solutions to issues such as the problems caused using agrochemicals, the sale of production for middlemen and the constitution of life in the conquered land. The peasants who led this experience brought an experience of confrontation against the unproductive latifundios and rural oligarchies. It was throughout the long trajectory crossed in the struggle for land that the political and social foundations were formed in the sense that they intended to endow their life in the conquered land. Thus, the non-use of agrochemicals and chemical fertilizers, as well as the refusal to plant transgenic seeds, were part of an anti-hegemonic agricultural practice that sought to reduce the dependence of peasant families on global oligopolies. Based on this, we aim to understand the peasant protagonism in the fight for fairer conditions in rural, facing the concentrated Brazilian land structure and the governmental privileges granted to agribusiness. In this context, we identified that until the first agroecological fair was held, the peasant families faced a series of difficulties, from the lack of government support to the prohibition of the installation of fairs in some cities. Even in the face of adversity, we have seen many positive results, such as improving the health of families, providing healthy food for the city, improving agricultural land and increasing family income. However, despite the achievements, the number of members who practice an anti-hegemonic agriculture is still small compared to conventional agriculture. Thus, from the studies of agrarian geography, we seek to analyse the processes of monopolization of the territory and territorialization of the monopoly in agriculture, in order to understand the processes of creation and recreation of the peasantry. Therefore, based on these processes, we raised the thesis of the possibility of overcoming the condition of peasant subordination from the realization of projects such as agroecological fairs, as a broader conception of life and social transformations, linked to the discussions of the construction of food sovereignty.

This thesis explores the late-nineteenth century partnership between Bradford worsted manufacturers the Briggs brothers and the German merchant Ernst Posselt, and their subsequent foreign direct investment in a modern factory and workers’ community at Marki, near Warsaw, in Russian Poland. Protectionism and increasing foreign competition are discussed, among many complex economic pressures on British industry, as likely catalysts for this enterprise and the general historiography of the Polish lands is explored to reveal a climate of extraordinary opportunity for well-capitalised foreign industrialists in this period. This thesis provides fresh perspective on the role of the consular service in facilitating British foreign enterprise and, in context of the Bradford partners’ strategy for local integration through social networking and religious affiliation, presents unique findings regarding the character and operations of Warsaw’s elite commercial community in the late-nineteenth century. Through the development and domination of market and raw materials sources, this venture is shown to have monopolised worsted manufacture in the Russian Empire, using state of the art technology to create, and modern marketing techniques to promote, its product range and evolving image. Aspects of British and Polish social history are compared to assess the efficacy of introducing the model-community concept, in combination with a radical employment policy, to less industrially-developed Russian Poland. The instrumentality of an expatriate community of skilled Yorkshire foremen in diffusing British industrial technology throughout the Russian Empire is described, against a backdrop of political instability and social upheaval which dramatically impacted on business behaviour after 1905.

La libéralisation du transport aérien et maritime a entrainé, à l'instar des autres secteurs, la transformation des infrastructures respectives afin que la libre concurrence soit assurée. Or, à côté des autres conséquences entrainées sur l'exploitation des infrastructures, l'évolution majeure a été le déploiement d'une concurrence entre elles. Malgré les missions particulières de satisfaction de l'intérêt général qui peuvent peser sur les infrastructures de transport et même si chaque infrastructure prise isolément détient un pouvoir de marché considérable, les infrastructures aéroportuaires ou portuaires sont susceptibles de subir une pression concurrentielle. En effet, les caractéristiques de monopole naturel des aéroports et des ports ont été relativisées sous l'effet de la mobilité dans l'économie de transport. Tant les aéroports que les ports deviennent souvent des maillons dans les stratégies concurrentielles des transporteurs, qui constituent leurs interlocuteurs puissants. Le droit a réagi à ce phénomène économique avec le démantèlement des monopoles étatiques, par leur privatisation ou décentralisation, et la restructuration des infrastructures. Par conséquent, il a entrainé une concurrence entre les opérateurs qui ont émergé, qui s'exerce pour et dans le «marché des infrastructures». Il s'agit certainement d'un marché «hétéro-déterminé», c'est à-dire hautement dépendant de la concurrence des transporteurs. D'une part, la délimitation du marché pertinent prend en compte le marché du transport, d'autre part, les formes que peut revêtir la concurrence entre infrastructures ou leur coopération éventuelle sont dictées par les stratégies des transporteurs. / The liberalization of air and maritime transport has resulted in the transformation of the respective infrastructures, in order to facilitate competition between transport operators. However, the most remarkable change has been the development of competition between them. In spite of the particular tasks of general interest assigned to the infrastructures of transport and although each infrastructure taken separately holds a considerable market power, airports and ports are susceptible to competitive pressure. Indeed, the natural monopoly characteristics have been relativized due to the mobility in the economy of transport. Both airports and ports often become simple links in the competitive strategies of carriers, which constitute their powerful counterparts. The law responded to this economic phenomenon, by dismantling state monopolies, proceeding to their privatization or decentralization. Therefore, this tendency has led to a competition between emerged operators, for and within the "market of infrastructures". This market is certainly "hetero-determined", which means that it is highly dependent of the competition in the market of transport. Thus, the definition of the relevant market takes into account the market of transport. Besides, the possible forms of competition or cooperation between infrastructures are determined by the carrier strategies.

This dissertation is a collection of three economics essays on different aspects of carbon emission trading markets. The first essay analyzes the dynamic optimal emission control strategies of two nations. With a potential to become the largest buyer under the Kyoto Protocol, the US is assumed to be a monopsony, whereas with a large number of tradable permits on hand Russia is assumed to be a monopoly. Optimal costs of emission control programs are estimated for both the countries under four different market scenarios: non-cooperative no trade, US monopsony, Russia monopoly, and cooperative trading. The US monopsony scenario is found to be the most Pareto cost efficient. The Pareto efficient outcome, however, would require the US to make side payments to Russia, which will even out the differences in the cost savings from cooperative behavior. The second essay analyzes the price dynamics of the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX), a voluntary emissions trading market. By examining the volatility in market returns using AR-GARCH and Markov switching models, the study associates the market price fluctuations with two different political regimes of the US government. Further, the study also identifies a high volatility in the returns few months before the market collapse. Three possible regulatory and market-based forces are identified as probable causes of market volatility and its ultimate collapse. Organizers of other voluntary markets in the US and worldwide may closely watch for these regime switching forces in order to overcome emission market crashes. The third essay compares excess skewness and kurtosis in carbon prices between CCX and EU ETS (European Union Emission Trading Scheme) Phase I and II markets, by examining the tail behavior when market expectations exceed the threshold level. Dynamic extreme value theory is used to find out the mean price exceedence of the threshold levels and estimate the risk loss. The calculated risk measures suggest that CCX and EU ETS Phase I are extremely immature markets for a risk investor, whereas EU ETS Phase II is a more stable market that could develop as a mature carbon market in future years.

This master thesis analyses impact of private military companies on the monopoly on legitimate violence. It examines the influence of private military companies on this monopoly in case of the United States and Iraq during the war in Iraq. The united States are in a position of a sending state that has had a long tradition of using these companies. On the other hand Iraq can be seen as a weak state and one could presume that the use of private military companies has a negative impact on its monopoly on violence. Just to validate the negative or positive impact of these companies a state and size of the militaries as main means of violence, and a capability to enforce law on a state's territory is analyzed.

Cette thèse de doctorat se fixe tout particulièrement pour objectif d’apporter un éclairage sur la problématique de la production des éléments de terres rares aux États-Unis. Ces minéraux, aux qualités nucléaire très particulières, constituent des intrants cruciaux dans certaines technologies et industries stratégiques : technologies « vertes », technologies d’information et de communication, ainsi que dans les technologies militaires. Ces minéraux stratégiques constituent aujourd’hui un enjeu géoéconomique mais aussi géopolitique et environnemental majeur. En 2011, 97 % des éléments de terres rares dans le monde proviennent de la Chine (qui dispose donc d’un monopole), selon l’United States Geological Survey. Cette position de la Chine a soulevé des inquiétudes chez les responsables américains concernant l’accès à ces ressources minérales, de manière évidente depuis 2010. Cette recherche questionne le rôle crucial joué par les acteurs au sein des agences étatsuniennes dans l’objectif d’élaborer une politique solide pour faire face au risque géopolitique lié à la vulnérabilité des États-Unis face au risque de ruptures d’approvisionnement de ces minéraux stratégiques. Ces minéraux sont donc une source de conflit international, surtout en raison de la montée de la Chine comme un nouveau joueur sur la scène internationale, dotée d’un quasi monopole sur les terres rares. Situé à la croisée des préoccupations géoéconomiques et géopolitiques et environnementales, il a semblé nécessaire de comprendre quels enjeux essentiels soulèvent ces minéraux stratégiques : enjeux géoéconomiques, défis géopolitique ou danger écologique ? C’est donc en ces termes que nous examinerons la question des minéraux de terres rares par les États-Unis. / This doctoral dissertation particularly aims at shedding light on the issue of U.S. rare earth production, a group of minerals with very special qualities nuclear, which are vital inputs in certain strategic industries and technologies: green technologies, information and communication technologies, as well as in military technologies. These strategic minerals constitute nowadays one of the major challenges associated with geo-economic, geopolitical and environmental issues. In 2011, China has provided approximately 97 percent of the world’s rare earth minerals (near-monopoly) according to U.S. Geological Survey data. This position of China has raised concerns about access to these mineral resources among American officials, obviously since 2010. This research discuss the crucial role played by actors within the U.S. Agencies to develop a robust policy to deal with the geopolitical risks about U.S. vulnerability to a supply disruption of these critical strategic minerals, as part of a source of international conflict, especially with the rise of China as a new player on the international stage. Located at the crossroads of geo-economic, geopolitical, and environmental concerns, it seems necessary to understand what key impasses constitute rare earths strategic minerals, economic power or geopolitical challenges or ecological danger? It is in these terms that we will deal with the issue of rare earths as considered by the United States.

Customer-orientation is a strategy that has been adopted by many organizations. This strategy refers to the ability to assess the customer's perception of the service quality, for instance through customer feedback. Customer feedback can be acquired through surveys or given to the frontline employees. The processes for acquiring customer feedback for customer-oriented firms are generally well-developed. However, research shows that utilizing this valuable information is not conducted in a systematic matter. In this thesis, we investigate how a Swedish DSO can transfer knowledge from customer feedback internally to facilitate organizational learning. The primary empirical data in this qualitative research is gathered through interviews from the empirical context as well as with management consultants with organizational learning as their expertise. Findings from this thesis show that there is no panacea regarding how customer feedback should be presented and communicated in order to enable the organization to act on it. However, the findings indicate that an unsupportive organizational culture inhibits customer feedback to be shared effectively. Knowledge from customers must be equally valued as technical knowledge. Furthermore, it became evident that the organization endeavor a codification strategy. While this strategy is suitable for solicited feedback, this thesis argues that a personalization strategy might be more adequate for unsolicited feedback since it is difficult to express in a codified form. Our thesis is a small contribution to the limited research done on how to act on customer feedback and bring knowledge from customersto organizational learning. In addition, this thesis also contributes to existing research by investigating barriers that a regulated monopoly encounters when trying to become customer-oriented. / Kund-orientering är en strategi som många organisationer använder sig av. Denna strategi refererar till organisationens förmåga att förstå kundernas upplevelse av den service som organisationen erbjuder. Detta kan ske genom att t.ex. samla in kundfeedback. Kundfeedback kan samlas in genom enkäter eller ges direkt till de anställda som möter kunderna. Processer för att samla in kundfeedback för kund-orienterade företag är generellt sätt välutvecklade. Tidigare forskning visar dock att processer för att användandet av denna värdefulla information inte sker på ett systematiskt sätt. I den här uppsatsen, undersöker vi hur ett svenskt elnätsbolag kan överföra kundfeedback internt för att möjliggöra organisationsinlärning. Den primära datainsamlingen i den här kvalitativa undersökningen erhålls i form av intervjuer från den empiriska kontexten samt från managementkonsulter med organisationsinlärning som deras expertområde. Resultaten från denna studie visar att det inte finns något universalmedel för hur kundfeedback ska presenteras och kommuniceras för att organisationen ska agera på det. Resultaten visar dock att en organisationskultur som inte stöttar de anställda till att dela sin kunskap hindrar kundfeedback från att effektivt spridas i organisationen. Kunskap från kunder måste värderas lika mycket som teknisk kunskap. Vidare visar undersökningen tydligt att en “codification-strategy” föredras. Denna strategi är passande för kundfeedback som erhålls direkt via enkäter, dock argumenterar vi i denna uppsats att en “personalization strategy” är mer adekvat för att kommunicerar indirekt feedback eftersom att denna feedback är svår att uttrycka i en kodad form. Denna uppsats är ett litet bidrag till den begränsade forskning som gjorts gällande hur en organisation ska agera på kundfeedback och överföra kunskap till den resterande organisationen för att gynna utveckling. Utöver detta bidrar denna uppsats till förståelse gällande utmaningar som ett reglerat monopol möter då de går mot en kundorienterad strategi.

This thesis explores the late-nineteenth century partnership between Bradford worsted manufacturers the Briggs brothers and the German merchant Ernst Posselt, and their subsequent foreign direct investment in a modern factory and workers’ community at Marki, near Warsaw, in Russian Poland. Protectionism and increasing foreign competition are discussed, among many complex economic pressures on British industry, as likely catalysts for this enterprise and the general historiography of the Polish lands is explored to reveal a climate of extraordinary opportunity for well-capitalised foreign industrialists in this period. This thesis provides fresh perspective on the role of the consular service in facilitating British foreign enterprise and, in context of the Bradford partners’ strategy for local integration through social networking and religious affiliation, presents unique findings regarding the character and operations of Warsaw’s elite commercial community in the late-nineteenth century. Through the development and domination of market and raw materials sources, this venture is shown to have monopolised worsted manufacture in the Russian Empire, using state of the art technology to create, and modern marketing techniques to promote, its product range and evolving image. Aspects of British and Polish social history are compared to assess the efficacy of introducing the model-community concept, in combination with a radical employment policy, to less industrially-developed Russian Poland. The instrumentality of an expatriate community of skilled Yorkshire foremen in diffusing British industrial technology throughout the Russian Empire is described, against a backdrop of political instability and social upheaval which dramatically impacted on business behaviour after 1905. / The full text was made available on 29th Nov 2017

The primary goal of this study was to determine the impact of price discrimination on tourism demand. Four objectives were defined with reference to the primary research goal. The first objective was to analyse the concept of price discrimination and relevant theories by means of a literature study. In this regard it was found that price discrimination between markets is fairly common and that it occurs if the same goods were sold to different customers at different prices. Price discrimination is also possible as soon as some monopoly power exists and it is feasible when it is impossible or at least impractical for the buyers to trade among themselves. Three different kinds of price discrimination can be applied, namely first-degree, second-degree and third-degree price discrimination. The data also indicated that price discrimination is advantageous (it mainly increases profit) and that it has several other effects too. The second objective was to analyse examples of price discrimination by means of international case studies. In these different case studies it was found that demand and supply, therefore consumer and product, formed the basis of price discrimination. If demand did not exist, it would be impossible to apply price discrimination. The findings also indicated that, for an organisation to be able to practice price discrimination, the markets must be separated effectively and it will only be successful if there is a significant difference in demand elasticity between the different consumers. Furthermore, the ability to charge these different prices will depend on the consumer's ability and willingness to pay. If an organisation should decide to price discriminate, it would lead to a higher profit, a more optimal pricing policy and also to an increase in sales. The third objective was to analyse national case studies. This was done through comparing the data of a tourism organisation price discriminating (Mosetlha Bush Camp, situated in the North West) to two organisations that did not implement price discrimination (Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park in the Northern Cape and Golden Leopard Resort, also situated in the North West). It was found that a customer with low price elasticity is less deterred by a higher price than a customer with a high price elasticity of demand. As long as the customer's price elasticity is less than one, it will be very advantageous to increase the price: the seller will in this case get more money for less goods. With the increase in price the price elasticity tends to rise above one. The fourth objective was to draw conclusions and make recommendations. It was concluded that price discrimination could be applied successfully in virtually any organisation or industry. Furthermore, price discrimination does not always have a negative effect; but can have a positive ass well. It can have a positive effect on tourism demand. The findings emphasised that the main reason for implementing price discrimination is to increase profit at the cost of reducing consumer surplus. From the results it was recommended that more research on this topic should be conducted. / Thesis (M.Com. (Tourism))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.