The Thesis investigates the determinants and patterns of specialisation and international trade in the manufacturing sectors of countries that are similar in terms of their technology, relative factor endowments and preferences. Chapter 1 shows that differences in country size alone can be a basis for interindustry trade in manufactures. I present a general equilibrium model in which each country has two imperfectly competitive industries which can differ in three respects: relative factor intensities, level of transport costs and demand elasticities. With positive trade costs and increasing returns to scale, each firm prefers to locate in the larger country due to the 'market access' effect. But the increase in demand for factors in the large country induces a 'production cost' effect - a rise in the wage in the large country relative to the small country to offset the locational advantage of the large country. The tension between the market access effect and production cost effect determines which industry will concentrate in which country and the pattern of inter-industry trade. Chapter 2 investigates circumstance in which technological leapfrogging between regions will occur. Input-output linkages between firms in imperfectly competitive industries create forces for agglomeration of industries in particular locations. A new technology, incompatible with the old, will not benefit from these linkages, so will typically be established in locations with little existing industry and consequently lower factor prices. Chapters 3 studies specialisation patterns in the European Union between 1968 and 1990. It investigates whether specialisation has increased in the European Union countries and analyses whether these patterns are consistent with three different strands of trade theories: the classical Heckscher-Ohlin theory, the 'new' trade theories based on increasing returns to scale, and the 'economic geography' theories based on vertical linkages between industries. I find that there is evidence of increasing specialisation in the European Union countries and there is some support for all three strands of trade theories.

Wage structure has shown to be crucial for firms and workers. However, there existwage dispersion for identical workers in labor markets. The paper measures the effectof industry and firm size on wages in Sweden. The results show that both industry andfirm size have significant effects on wages. Regarding the explanation factors, thefinding is that human capital factors can explain a portion of the industry wagedifferentials, but have less impact on wage differentials across firm size. However,compensating differentials and union organization are not the determinants of theindustry wage differentials and firm size-wage effects. In addition, unobservedindividual characteristics can partly explain firm size effect on wages, but cannotexplain industry wage differentials based on our samples.

Formation of new firms is important, since new firms create jobs and economic growth. When entrepreneurs lack the financial resources which are needed to start a firm, they often turn to banks to borrow money. Previous research has shown that relationships between banks and new business borrowers most often are local and that the dependence on banks differs across industries. In light of this, the purpose of this paper is to investigate if local access to banks has a stronger relationship with the rate of new firm formation in some industries than in others. Based on cross-sectional data on all Swedish municipalities in 2009, a series of OLS regressions are estimated to test if variables used to describe the bank market in a municipality are related with the new firm formation rate, both in total and in different industry categories. The results show that the number of bank branches per capita is positively related with the total new firm formation rate. In regards to the inter-industry differences, the findings indicate that local access to banks is more important for new firm formation in some industries than in others.

This diploma thesis contains an economic analysis of the PIVOVAR SVIJANY, a.s. The aim is to perform a scoped analysis of its financial health. The diploma thesis is divided into two main parts. The first is the methodological part, where all of the applied models and processes are mentioned and explained. The second part contains applications of these models on the chosen company. The second part is mostly based on accounting statements. This part also contains an analysis of both absolute and relative indicators. Among the applied models belongs the Du Pont analysis, the cost and inventory analysis, the analysis of the Economic Value Added (EVA), creditworthy and bankruptcy models and an inter industry comparative analysis. The conclusion summarizes and evaluates all the results and presents appropriate recommendation.

The main aim of this dissertation is to provide evidence on the development of bilateral trade relations related to manufacturing industry between Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Slovenia, Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia and the old Member States of the EU (EU 15/EU 25) through focus on the intra-industry trade phenomenon during the period delimited by years 1995, 1999, 2004 and 2007. Based on data from Eurostat Easy Comext database classified according to the Standard International Trade Classification (Rev.3), Grubel-Lloyd indices are computed at the level of 3-digit and 1-digit manufacturing industries (SITC 5, 6, 7, 8) and thereafter aggregate to the level of manufacturing sector as a whole (SITC 5 - 8). Consequently, Greenaway, Hine and Milner methodology is used for disentangling intra-industry trade into its horizontal and vertical components (the latter being further separated into low quality vertical intra-industry trade and high quality vertical intra-industry trade) on the basis of unit value indices. The results show that the share of intra-industry trade in total trade between the countries in focus is increasing during the complete period in all countries and all sectors with SITC 6, 7 and 8 clearly inclining to intra-industry specialization. Altogether, the predominant specialization in high quality vertical IIT is presented, implying so far only slowly advancing convergence steps of the new Member States towards the path of the initial Members of the EU.

The dissertation is mainly made up of three empirical theses on the Optimum Currency Area theory, business cycle synchronization, and intra-industry trade. The second chapter conducts an empirical test into the theory of Optimum Currency Area. I investigate the feasibility of creating a currency union in East Asia by examining the dominance and symmetry of macroeconomic shocks. Relying on a series of structural Vector Autoregressive models with long-run and block exogeneity restrictions, I identify a variety of macroeconomic disturbances in eleven East Asian economies. To examine the nature of the disturbances, I look into the forecast error variance decomposition, correlation of disturbances, size of shocks, and speed of adjustments. Based on both statistical analysis and economic comparison, it is found that two groups of economies are subject to dominant and symmetrical domestic supply shocks, and that the two groups respond quickly to moderate-sized shocks. Therefore, it is economically feasible for the two groups of economies to foster common currency zones. The third chapter investigates the different effects of intra- and inter-industry trade on business cycle synchronization, controlling for financial market linkage and monetary policy making. The chapter is the first attempt to use intra- and inter-industry trade simultaneously in Instrument Variable estimations. The evidence in my paper is supportive that intra-industry trade increases business cycle synchronization, while inter-industry trade brings about divergence of cycles. The findings imply that country pairs with higher intra-industry trade intensity are more likely to experience synchronized business cycles and are more feasible to join a monetary union. My results also show that financial integration and monetary policy coordination provide no explanation for synchronization when industry-level trade are accounted for. The fourth chapter extends the third chapter and explores how the characteristics of global trade network influence intra-industry trade. Borrowing the concept of structural equivalence, the similarity of two countries’ aggregate trade relations with other countries, from the social network analysis, this study incorporates this measure of trade network to the augmented gravity model of intra-industry trade. I build up two fixed effects models to analyze intra-industry trade in the raw material and final product sectors among 182 countries from 1962 through 2000. Structural equivalence promotes intra-industry trade flows in the final product sector, but it does not influence intra-industry trade in the crude material sector. Moreover, structural equivalence has been increasingly important in boosting intra-industry trade over time. / Graduate / 0508

The rapid development of technology is quickly changing the everyday lives of people, and it is now possible to use a mobile phone to pay at the checkout in stores. However, being able to pay with a mobile phone has no intrinsic value over existing payment methods, and thus banks have to find a way to add value to their mobile payment services through inter-industry collaboration with other actors. The aim of this report is to find how banks can collaborate with other actors in order to strengthen their brand in the mobile payment business. Through a literature review and several interviews with representatives in the financial industry, merchant sector, and academia, this report answers questions related to the market in Sweden, dominant design, network externalities, business collaboration, trust, and co-branding. This report found that there is a difference in prioritization regarding features and qualities of mobile payments between different segments in the market, and banks should choose a segment to focus their efforts on. There is also a need for discussion in the market between different actors in order to promote the standardization needed to develop mobile payment services further, and banks should therefore collaborate with other actors regarding standards, even if the collaboration does not need to involve resource sharing. Co-branding with other actors could also be a way banks to enhance their brand in mobile payments and reach new market segments. Trust is a critical factor for the success of mobile payments and the handling of customer data will be one of the biggest issues to solve for the banks and their collaborators. Finally, the most important conclusion of this report is that the banks have to find a business model which is attractive enough to the merchants in order to attract them in collaboration and be able to create added value to mobile payments. / Den snabba utvecklingen av tekniken förändrar snabbt vardagen för människor, och det är nu möjligt att använda en mobiltelefon för att betala i kassan i butiker. Att kunna använda en mobiltelefon för att betala istället för nuvarande betalningssätt har dock inget egenvärde och banker måste därför hitta ett sätt att addera värde till sina mobilbetalningstjänster genom att samarbeta med andra aktörer över industrigränserna. Målet med denna rapport är att finna hur banker kan samarbeta med andra aktörer för att stärka sitt varumärke inom mobilbetalningsbranchen. Med hjälp av literaturstudier och flera intervjuer med representanter från finansindustrin, handeln och akademi svarar den här rapporten på frågeställningar relaterade till den svenska marknaden, dominant design, nätverkseffekter, affärssamarbeten, tillit och varumärkessamarbeten. Rapporten visar att det finns skillnader mellan de olika marknadssegmenten gällande prioriteringen av funktioner och egenskaper hos mobila betalningar, och att banker bör välja ett segment att fokusera på. Vidare fann rapporten att det krävs diskussion på marknaden mellan de olika aktörerna för att främja framtagningen av den standardisering som krävs för att föra utvecklingen av mobila betalningar framåt. Banker borde därför samarbeta med andra aktörer för att få fram en sån standard, även om det inte behöver innebära att man delar resurser. Varumärkessamarbeten med andra aktörer kan också användas av banker för att förstärka sitt varumärke inom mobila betalningar och nå nya marknadssegment. Tillit är en kritisk faktor för att mobila betalningar ska lyckas, och hanteringen av kunddata kommer vara ett av de största problemen för bankerna och deras samarbetspartners att lösa. Slutligen så är den viktigaste slutsatsen av den här rapporten att banker måste skapa en affärsmodell som är tillräckligt attraktiv för handlare för att kunna locka till sig dem till samarbeten och kunna skapa mervärde till mobila betalningar.

The Paris Agreement has stipulated global lowering of carbon emission to reach the 1.5°C target by 2030. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has suggested several scenarios with rapid innovation and downscaling of energy usage. Against this background, this thesis analyzes the productive capacity of Sweden to reach the corresponding carbon emission target. A product-byindustry input-output-model of the economy to study different re-allocations of production is used. The effect of these re-allocations on the output as well as carbon dioxide emissions from domestic production are considered. Linear optimization is used to achieve efficient re-allocations. Two scenarios are considered: one called the “basic case”, and one called the “efficient export case”. The basic case uniformly rescales the output. The efficient export case internalizes the export and allows it to be uniformly rescaled by the optimization up to trade balance as well. The data is from 2016 as it is the latest data with the necessary information. The result for the basic case shows that the 1.5°C target in 2016 can be reached without downscaling the output. The total employment shrinks by 2%, while some sectors of the economy are significantly changed. The result of the efficient export case has a similar result while total employment shrinks by 11%. The basic case releases 2% less than the reported carbon emissions, and the efficient export case 24% less where the efficient export case downscales the gross domestic product with 13%. The dynamics of innovation, negative impacts on production, and population growth are not accounted for in these estimates. Further studies need to internalize more constraints and develop more detailed models to provide more accurate policy guidance.

The purpose of this diploma thesis is to connect the perceived income justice and inter-industry income differentiation in the Czech Republic. One of the aims of the thesis is to place these two topics in a theoretical, and a historical framework, which is the subject of the theoretical part of the thesis. The practical part is focused on secondary data analysis. In the first part of the analysis, a description of the actual form of inter-industry income differentiation is carried out. Subsequently, an analysis of the main determinants of employees' income levels is performed, and lastly, identification of those determinants which may have an impact on employees' perceptions of income justice is made. The thesis therefore seeks to answer the question of what structure the inter-industry income differentiation took in the year 2018 and whether this factor of theeconomic sector, among others, has an impact on the perception and evaluation of income justice, if we control the influence of the characteristics of the employees who work in them.