Since the conclusion of world War II, Taiwan, the Republic of China (ROC), has developed into an industrialized country following a long period of severe inflation. Taiwan has produced a successful example of economic development through export expansion. Exports and imports of Taiwan increased from approximately 10 percent of the gross national product (GNP) in the 1950s to more than 45 percent in the 1980s. The role of Taiwan's foreign exchange rates and traderelated policies on exports and imports was examined in this study. Trade-related policies implemented by the government of ROC were documented from 1950 to 1980 by categorizing the past 30 years into import substitution, export promotion, external shocks, and the 1980s trade liberalization periods. In addition, this study analyzed quarterly import and export data from 21 sectors between 1981 and 1991 to measure the effects of changes on the exchange rate. variables included in the regression analysis were GNP of Taiwan and exchange rate for import demand functions and GNP of the U.S. , export price index in Taiwan and Korea, and exchange rate for the export demand function. Partial auto- correlation functions were estimated and examined for 21 export and import commodity groups to determine the appropriate number of lags in the demand function. In sectors in which regressions were found to be significant, an econometric partial adjustment model was used for estimating short- and long-run exchange rate elasticities.

<p>This thesis deals with the incidence and economic effects of payroll taxes earmarked for unemployment insurance. A major objective is to provide an appropriate theoretical framework for a discussion of this issue. In cases where D.I. coverage is reasonably comprehensive, S6 that the D.I. tax can be regarded as a broad based tax, it is argued that the proper engine of analysis is basically the standard macroeconomic general equilibrium model. The macroeconomic effects of taxation, whether they originate from the demand or supply side, are regarded as an integral part of incidence analysis.</p> <p>The standard macro framework requires modification in one direction, which is a ~ore detailed development of the aggregate labour supply function. This reflects the view that the most important macroeconomic effects of unemployment insurance are likely to emerge from the supply side, via work incentives.</p> <p>A number of variants of a small macroeconomic model are developed, each incorporating an explicit modelling of a hypothetical D.I. system. Qualitative incidence results are obtained using the traditional method of comparative statics, while a quantitative dimension is added in static and dynamic simulation exercises with plausible parameter values drawn from the relevant econometric literature. Different versions of the model employ various alternative hypotheses about the way in which the labour market operates and/or different specifications of the aggregate labour supply function.</p> <p>The incidence results depend largely on the effect of payroll tax increases on labour supply. In the so-called neoclassical version of the model, for example, payroll tax increases reduce both participation and average weeks worked by participants, but tax and benefit rates are connected via the D.I. budget constraint, and benefit rate changes also effect labour supply. An increase in the benefit rate will tend to reduce average weeks worked by participants but to increase participation itself. Therefore a balanced budget increase in payroll tax rates has a potentially ambiguous effect on labour supply. If the net impact on lahour supply is negative we obtain the 'standard' incidence results. A balanced budget increase in payroll tax rates reduces output and emplo)~ent, increases the general price level, and reduces both capital and labour income. (Similar results also occur in other versions of the model in which the labour market does not clear due to (e.g.) real or money wage rigidity.) On the other hand, if the net impact on labour supply is positive we obtain 'perverse' results, increases in output and employment, reductions in the price level and so on.</p> <p>The comparative static analysis and simulation exercises enable us to identify the key parameters in the aggregate labour supply function, and their critical values. For plausible parameter values, chosen on the basis of the available empirical evidence, it would appear that perverse results are not likely. However, there is clearly a need for more empirical investigation in this area.</p> <p>These results conflict with the traditional view that labour bears the full burden of payroll taxation, but we conclude that this view depends heavily on the assumed inelasticity of the aggregate labour supply function. The latter assumption is demonstrated to be inconsistent with the bulk of the empirical evidence on labour supply.</p> <p>Finally, some attention is also paid to the aggregate demand effects of unemployment insurance, in particular the case where the savings propensity out of U.I. benefits is less than that out of private factor incomes.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

AbstractThis thesis is based on two questions: What are the differences in the outcome of a sport event depending on the choice of method to be used for evaluation? And what method is the most appropriate one in terms of evaluation of the economic effects of sport events? There are two methods used: and the first one is the traditional multiplier analysis and the second method used is introduced by Braunerhielm and Andersson (2007). The economic results of the two different methods used in this thesis have been applied on a real life event, The European Championships in Figure Skating in Malmo City 2003. The two methods is of great importance and they provide us with two suggested results that are of interest, but what method to be used depends on who is making the evaluation and for what purpose. The suggested method by Braunerhielm and Andersson (2007) results in an outcome representing the economic effects of the event concerning all areas in the municipality involved both the private sector and the public sector. This method is of best use for athlete organizations that wants to keep a continuous record of their contribution towards the municipality through events and the positive result will help them promote their importance of existence to the municipality so that they can get public funding for arranging future events and gain more profit by increasing the interest of their association. Whereas,the multiplier analysis is appropriate to use for the municipality, as the results is the tax revenue gained from the event that is to be reinvested in e.g. new schools or roads the result will then help promoting the public funding of sport events to the public. The appropriate method to use is the multiplier analysis as it generates results that is of interest for the public as it calculates the effect for the municipality as a whole and not only the effects for the once directly involved in the sport event.

The aim and purpose of this report is to describe how the domestic tobacco industry is affectingsustainable development in Malawi. This is done by describing the environmental and socio-economic effects ofthe cultivation and selling of tobacco leaves. Together with an outlook on the future developments of the industry,this information is used to describe how the Malawian tobacco industry corresponds to sustainable developmentand how it can be changed to improve sustainability in the country. The report is based on a literature study andtwo interviews. Theories on sustainable development and developmental concepts form the theoreticalbackground for the report. The conclusion of the report is that the situation regarding the Malawian tobaccoindustry is a complex one, where direct economic benefits are the main motive, but various socio-economic andenvironmental effects combine to make the situation unsustainable in a number of aspects. The suggestion of thisreport is to turn away from the current high dependence on tobacco to a more diversified agriculture, wheredifferent types of food crops substitute tobacco as the main source of income, while at the same time providingmore food in a country where poverty and malnutrition are problematic issues.

<p> <strong>Abstract</strong><p>This thesis is based on two questions: What are the differences in the outcome of a sport event depending on the choice of method to be used for evaluation? And what method is the most appropriate one in terms of evaluation of the economic effects of sport events? There are two methods used: and the first one is the traditional multiplier analysis and the second method used is introduced by Braunerhielm and Andersson (2007). The economic results of the two different methods used in this thesis have been applied on a real life event, The European Championships in Figure Skating in Malmo City 2003. The two methods is of great importance and they provide us with two suggested results that are of interest, but what method to be used depends on who is making the evaluation and for what purpose. The suggested method by Braunerhielm and Andersson (2007) results in an outcome representing the economic effects of the event concerning all areas in the municipality involved both the private sector and the public sector. This method is of best use for athlete organizations that wants to keep a continuous record of their contribution towards the municipality through events and the positive result will help them promote their importance of existence to the municipality so that they can get public funding for arranging future events and gain more profit by increasing the interest of their association. Whereas,the multiplier analysis is appropriate to use for the municipality, as the results is the tax revenue gained from the event that is to be reinvested in e.g. new schools or roads the result will then help promoting the public funding of sport events to the public. The appropriate method to use is the multiplier analysis as it generates results that is of interest for the public as it calculates the effect for the municipality as a whole and not only the effects for the once directly involved in the sport event.</p></p><p> </p>

The geographical distance between home and workplace is present and increases within modern society. Along with changing economic structures and technological developments it has increased the spatial division of labour and changed the pressure on global, regional and local markets. Regional development strategies today emphasize on more mobile, flexible and larger geographical labour markets to improve matchmaking between jobs and labour force to reach and obtain development. Commuting has therefore increased and is often promoted as a positive solution for involved individuals and the regional society at large. Although, the notion and benefits of such regional development strategies have been questioned as commuting involves a consideration between economic and social circumstances and effects on all involved household members. The social and economic effects on commuting households in Umeå enlarged local labour market region have therefore been studied in and investigated in this thesis. Empirical data has been collected through qualitative interviews with four commuting households with different home-work locations and commuting situations. Results of this study goes in line with previous studies and pictures how commuting is a strategy to obtain or maintain desired living conditions within desired location when the local labour opportunities are limited. Commuting households therefore gain “quality of life” and labour opportunities. But, the economic benefits are reduced by transport costs and reduction of labour hours, and the social consequences of reduced time in the home environment effects relations between family members and the division of household responsibilities’. This study have also broaden the understanding of commuting effects and showed that shorter commuting distance also hold social and economic implications for commuting households.

Policy responsiveness to the demands of the whole is important because it is a determinant of growth and development: Institutions that make governments more inclusive favor economic progress and factors that make governments more exclusive inhibit prosperity. Growth-enhancing policies likely to please the citizenry include policies that ensure the prevalence of the rule of law, policies that protect property and intellectual rights, and policies that foster competition, access and the perfection of markets. In contrast, growth-retarding policies likely to initiate from the representation efforts of politicians advancing narrow concerns include infringement on property rights, diffuse patent legislation, regulation to rise some price or wage, regulation blocking the entry into specific markets, official protection to monopolistic markets and adoption of legal barriers against international competition. If policy responsiveness to the interests of the whole favors economic affluence, what political institutions matter for the advancement of wide-encompassing interests through the policy making process? This dissertation examines the idea that the incentives provided by the intra-party candidate selection methods are crucial in order to understand the politicians' representation efforts. Expressly, increasing participation and democratization of the intra-party nomination process increase the incumbent's propensity to represent wide-encompassing interests and adopt policies that favor economic affluence. In contrast, elite-centered nomination methods decrease the incumbent's incentive to be politically responsive to the interests of the whole in favor of the representation of narrow concerns that often demand policies that benefit the group at the expense of overall economic growth. Empirically, the idea that aspirants to party tickets must first respond to the demands of those with the power to add their names to the electoral ballot finds robust support. In the developed world, candidate nomination appears largely informed by inclusive and democratic practices. Quite the opposite, in the less-developed world events of intraparty participatory politics are for the most part absent, with nomination decisions often monopolized by national party leaders and local party bosses.

In this study 272 beef heifers were studied from just prior to their first breeding season (15 October 2003), through their second breeding season and until just after they had weaned their first calves in March 2005. The study consisted of two main parts: in the first part, heifers were randomly allocated to either a synchronised TEST group or an unsynchronised CONTROL group. The TEST group received artificial insemination (AI) for 6 days followed by prostaglandin F2á (PGF) treatment on day 6 (PGF/6) and further AI for a total of 50 days, which was followed after a 6 day break by a 42 day bull breeding season. The CONTROL group were bred for the same period without PGF treatment. Synchronisation resulted in a reduction in days to first insemination (P < 0.01) and days to calving (P = 0.04). No significant difference could be demonstrated in pregnancy rate to the 50 day AI season (60.0% vs. 51.8%, TEST and CONTROL groups respectively, P = 0.18), final pregnancy rate (82.2% vs. 83.2%, P = 0.87) or pregnancy rate to the subsequent breeding season (96.0% vs. 95.0%, P = 1.00). A significant increase in mean weaning mass of the calves due to synchronisation could not be demonstrated (207.0 kg vs. 201.4 kg, TEST and CONTROL groups respectively, P = 0.32). However, data from this study were used to calculate the benefit:cost ratio, and a value of 2.8 was reached, representing the return on investment for the synchronisation protocol under these circumstances. It was concluded from this study that a PGF/6 protocol may lead to a change in the total mass of calves weaned by changing days to calving and thus weaning mass, birth mass of calves, weaning rate and/or the ratio of male:female calves born. It was further concluded that a practical way to predict the cost effectiveness of an oestrus synchronisation protocol is to determine the ratio between the total cost of the programme and the price of weaner calves per kg live mass. This ratio represents the minimum increase in mean weaning mass that has to be achieved for the programme to be cost effective if no increase in weaning rate is achieved. In the second part of this study, reproductive tract scoring (RTS) was performed on the same group of heifers one day before the onset of their first breeding season. The effect of RTS on several reproduction and production outcomes was tested, and the association of RTS with the outcomes was compared to the associations of other input variables such as mass, age, body condition score (BCS) and Kleiber ratio using multiple or univariable linear or logistic regression. RTS was associated with pregnancy rate to the 50 day AI season (P < 0.01), days to calving (r = 0.28, P < 0.01), calf weaning mass (r = 0.22, P < 0.01) and pregnancy rate to the subsequent breeding season (P < 0.01). These associations were mostly independent of associations with mass, age and BCS before the onset of the first breeding season. RTS was a better predictor of fertility than was Kleiber ratio, and similar in its prediction of calf weaning mass. It was concluded from this study that RTS is a unique predictor of heifer fertility, compares well with (but is independent of) other traits used as a predictor of production outcomes and is likely to be a good predictor of life production of the cow. / Dissertation (MSc (Veterinary Sciences))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Production Animal Studies / unrestricted

The economic impact of reducing the amount of nitrate leached out of the root zone under irrigation in the arid West was examined. A general introduction into the nature of the problem and a review of the literature was provided in chapter I. In chapter ll the economic incentives of irrigation management were evaluated under the assumptions of both profit-maximizing and utility-maximizing (in reducing cost and effort expended in irrigation) decision-making criteria. The results indicate that there is a coincidence of interests of the farmer and the environment. Both behaviors result in less nitrate leaching than less profitable or less utilityproducing irrigating practices. In chapter lli the economic impact of reducing the amount of nitrate leached out of the root zone under irrigation with various nitrogen sources and application methods was examined. The economic incentives of nitrogen management were evaluated under the assumption of profit-maximizing behavior. The results indicate that there is a coincidence of interests for irrigators who respond to economic incentives and environmentalists who wish to reduce nitrate residuals in irrigation drainage and the groundwater. Profit-maximizing behavior results in less nitrate leaching than less profitable irrigating practices when salt balance is not a major concern.

This thesis examines the effects of war on a state's economy. The Liberal Theory of international relations maintains that there are costs to war in terms of trade; in line with this argument, many researchers have suggested that trading partners are less likely to war with each other out of a fear of disrupting their trade, which would in turn disrupt their economies. Due to issues of elasticity and substitution, however, overall trade may not significantly decline during war. Additionally, there are known economic costs of war, such as debt. If war truly does have costs, then, it must be more in terms of costs to the national economy, rather than trade. This work examines the theory that war has costs to the economies of war initiators, and samples the economies of war initiators from the mid-nineteenth century to the late twentieth century. This paper uses a time series analysis and tests for anterior, concurrent, and posterior effects of war initiation on national economies, and uses a time period of up to twenty years before and after each war event. The results indicate that there are, in general, no negative effects of war on a state's economy: only one case had a significant negative result, while two had significant positive results; these two positive cases, however, also had strong evidence of autocorrelation. These results pose a challenge to the Liberal Theories of International Relations.