The European Journal of Economics is an online open-access international journal, which publishes scholarly articles on a wide variety of topics within the fields of Economics. Each study published by EJE undergoes a rigorous double-blind peer-review process.
Mokslines Leidybos Deimantas (Diamond Scientific Publishing)
Assessing Volatility of Returns in Select Stock Markets: Evidence from India, Singapore and USA
Volatility can be regarded as one of the crucial aspects to judge movements of stock price while making financial decisions. This article tried to articulate the movements of stock return during the time comprising before, after COVID-19 pandemic period empirically. To accurately incarcerate the volatility of asset returns, the study presented the commonly used GARCH (1,1) volatility model for assessing the volatility of daily returns of STI (Singapore), Dows and Jones (USA), BSE Sensex (India) stock prices from 1st Jan 2018- 31st Dec 2022, where from 1st Jan 2018 to 16th Jan 2020 is denoted as pre covid-19 phase and From 17th Jan 2020- 31st Dec 2022 is considered as during COVID- 19 phase. The findings suggest that all the markets under study had strong GARCH effect and the volatility clustering is relatively relentless and also the effect of older news upon volatility is quite persistent. In upcoming period, researchers can assess the performance of time series models with multiple variables using day by day return data of more such global markets.
Copyright (c) 2025 Arshi Firdous, Sarbapriya Ray https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Cross-Border E-Commerce and Its Implications for Consumer Protection (2019–2024): A Systematic Literature Review
This paper provides a systematic literature review examining the implications of cross-border e-commerce (CBEC) for consumer protection from 2019 to 2024. The study identifies key challenges, including technological vulnerabilities, regulatory discrepancies, and consumer manipulation risks in the global e-commerce landscape. Utilizing Scopus database searches, 16 articles were analyzed to explore the evolving nature of consumer vulnerabilities due to innovations such as algorithmic price discrimination, deceptive marketing practices, and deepfakes. The findings highlight the need for harmonized international regulations, enhanced digital literacy programs, and adaptive frameworks to mitigate privacy violations and promote trust in cross-border transactions. The Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) model, Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), and insights from behavioral studies underpin the discussion of consumer behavior and its susceptibility to manipulative tactics. Open research gaps are identified, emphasizing the need for future studies on psychological manipulation mechanisms, jurisdictional regulatory harmonization, and consumer digital literacy initiatives. The study concludes with recommendations for policymakers and businesses to prioritize transparency, consumer education, and technological safeguards to ensure a secure, fair, and trustworthy CBEC environment.
Copyright (c) 2025 Philipp Goetzinger, Mario Spremic https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
‘The Effect of Critical Factors on Product Quality’: An Applied Research on Electrical Industry in Egypt
The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect that critical factors on product quality. Which investigates the influence that five essential elements—markets, manpower, money capital, management, and raw materials—have on the product quality produced in the electrical sector. The study utilised a quantitative methodology, and it gathered information from 369 individuals that participated in the survey inside Elsewedy Electric. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was utilised for the purpose of data analysis, and the SmartPLS software was utilised for Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) in order to test the hypothesised correlations between the essential elements and product quality. At Elsewedy Electric, the results of the SEM study suggest that all five essential factors—Markets, Manpower, Money Capital, Management, and Raw Materials—have a strong beneficial effect on product quality. This is the conclusion that can be drawn from the findings of the analysis. With a confidence level of 99%, these data were statistically significant at a level of p < 0.05, thereby verifying all five hypotheses that were being investigated in this study. A detailed evaluation of many essential aspects that influence product quality within the specific context of Egypt's electrical industry is provided in this study.
Copyright (c) 2025 Mohamed Khafaga, Mohamed Abdelraouf, Mohamed Salem https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Short- and Long-Run Effects of Education on Economic Growth: A Panel Error Correction Analysis
This study analyzes the effects of education on economic growth in different countries grouped by income level. The key variables are cointegrated and integrated of order one. Hence, we employ the panel error correction model (PECM) to estimate the short-run and the long-run relationships. Results show differences in the impact of education across income levels. Primary education has been shown to be beneficial in the short and long run. Surprisingly, tertiary education had a negative effect on economic growth for all except the low-income group. Granger causality also suggests the direction of causation is that of education on economic growth and not vice versa.
Copyright (c) 2024 Haya Khan, Jebaraj Asirvatham https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Effect of Exchange Rate Fluctuations on Egyptian International Business Transactions: An Empirical Analysis
This study examines the impact of exchange rate fluctuations on international business transactions in Egypt from 2005 to 2022. Using pooled and fixed effects models, the research analyses the relationship between exchange rates, inflation, GDP, and export volumes. Key findings include a statistically significant positive relationship between exchange rate fluctuations and international business transactions, with fixed effect models revealing that the exchange rate, inflation rate, and GDP significantly affect export volume at a 99% confidence level. Exchange rates account for a large proportion of export volume changes, with adjusted R-squared values between 0.66 and 0.75. These results underscore the importance of exchange rate stability for international trade in Egypt. The study contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence from a developing economy context, offering insights for policymakers and businesses on risk management and strategic decision-making in international trade.
Copyright (c) 2024 Mohamed Abdelraouf, Farid Muharram https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Impact of Green Finance on Green Infrastructural Development in Nigeria (1995 – 2022)
The study examined the impact of green finance on green infrastructure development in Nigeria for the period 1995 to 2022. The dynamic least square (DOLS) econometric technique was employed for the estimation of data for the study, and the findings indicate that green bond (GB) and all share index (ASI) have significant positive impact on green infrastructure development; while agricultural contribution to GDP (AGRIC/GDP) and market capitalization (MCAP) have significant negative impact on green infrastructural development in Nigeria. The study recommends among others that, the government should strengthen the current level of green financing in the country by initiating appropriate policy to reposition green bond market thereby making it more attractive to investors.
Copyright (c) 2024 Joel Obayagbona, Efosa O. Imade https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Economic Value Added Analysis of Portfolio Alignment in the Primary Energy Business of PLN Group and its Impact on PLN Energi Primer Indonesia
In 2022, PT PLN (Persero) holding was established as part of a strategic initiative led by the Minister of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) to streamline core businesses within SOEs. This involved the creation of four subholdings: PLN Indonesia Power, PLN Nusantara Power, PLN Energi Primer Indonesia, and PLN Icon Plus. PLN Energi Primer Indonesia (EPI) specializes in providing primary energy and biomass and innovating during the energy transition. However, two subsidiaries, PT Artha Daya Coalindo and PT Pertadaya Gas, are not yet integrated into the PLN Group. To address this, PT PLN (Persero) has tasked PT PLN Energi Primer Indonesia with conducting an alignment study. In parallel, the present study aims to evaluate whether the proposed strategy contributes to Economic Value Added (EVA) within the PLN Group. It employs analytical techniques such as core competency analysis, financial analysis, and heartland matrices. The findings suggest that a strong core competency analysis and stable financial ratios position the company favorably within the heartland matrix, resulting in positive EVA values. Conversely, weak core competency analysis and unstable financial ratios lead to the opposite outcome. In conclusion, the alignment efforts led by PLN EPI should prioritize future business and income generation to strengthen core competency analysis and maintain strong financial ratios, thus ensuring the generation of robust EVA values.
Copyright (c) 2024 Bryan Charisma, Iwan Agung Firstantara, Dedeng Hidayat, Ignatius Rendroyoko, Agung Wibowo https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Analysis of Women’s Empowerment through Microcredit: Case Study of Samurdhi Program in Sri Lanka
Does microcredit have the potential to empower women? Many factors facilitate female empowerment through microcredit. The Department of Samurdhi Development in Sri Lanka provides microcredit programs to enhance the business environment of unemployed women. The Samurdhu microcredit program is designed with training facilities, market facilities, loan cycles, group lending, exposure to credit, and business support facilities. This study will determine the factors for women's empowerment through microcredit facilities in Samurdhi banks for self-employment activities. In this study, women's empowerment at the household level through the microcredit facility of Samurai Bank has been taken into account to analyze the problem identified in this research. This paper illustrates the most significant factors of the microcredit facility granted by the Samurdhi community-based banks for empowering women. The method used to select women beneficiaries is a simple random sampling from the lists of loan applicants in the bank based on 13 Grama Niladhari Divisions, Madame divisional secretariat, Puttalam District, Sri Lanka.241 cross-sectional data was gathered by the questionnaire survey in the Madampe divisional secretariat, Puttalam District in Sri Lanka. The data analysis in this paper revealed that training facilities and market access are the two most significant factors, followed by group lending and exposure to credit components to facilitate women’s empowerment in rural areas. Finally, this paper proposed policy recommendations for policymakers to improve their microcredit policies with several different components.
Buddika Dissanayake Dissanayake Mudiyanselage
Copyright (c) 2024 Buddika Dissanayake Dissanayake Mudiyanselage https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Foreign Direct Investment and Nigerian Macroeconomy
The study examines the effects of macroeconomic variables on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflow from 1981 to 2022. Different from existing studies, this study also captures the effect of regime shift on FDI inflow to Nigeria, which enabled us to capture the role of political system in crowding-in FDI. The Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model was adopted to show the long-run relationships and dynamic interactions between FDI and the macroeconomic variables. The estimated long-run and short-run coefficients for FDI models revealed that inflation rate and the degree of openness of the economy are significant factors inducing FDI inflow to Nigeria. The GDP growth rate and non-oil export also positively affect FDI inflows in the long run. However, they are not statistically significant. The key policy variables, exchange rate and monetary policy rate, have significant effect on FDI inflows to Nigeria. The estimated results show that exchange rate depreciation causes an increase in foreign direct investment inflows. This is in accord with the real wage channel theory which states that currency depreciation reduces the country’s wages and production costs relative to those of its foreign counterparts. The study recommended that exchange rate stability is very crucial for attracting FDI flows to Nigeria; Government should reduce the monetary policy rate which is presently considered too high and adversely impinging on FDI inflows; while intensifying the war against corruption in all forms and at all levels.
Copyright (c) 2024 Louis N Chete, Iyabo Olanrele, Jacob Sesugh Angahar https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
A Confirmatory Study of the Knowledge Economy in the Context of Moroccan Economic Growth: Analysis, Comparison and Solutions
The knowledge economy drives growth. It increases overall productivity, affecting competitiveness, market share and, most importantly, economic growth. The objective of this research is to study the impact of the knowledge economy on economic growth in Morocco. It will also study and present the causes of the bottlenecks currently facing the Moroccan economy. Our starting point for this study is a literature review, which will constitute the anchor point of our project and will allow us to position ourselves in relation to these studies and to define the different concepts used in this research work. This part is necessary to present the contours of models of endogenous growth which constitutes an improvement of the first models developed by neoclassical theorists and will allow us to identify indicators and to present their impact on economic growth. The realisation of this study was based on neoclassical orthodoxy founded on a positivist approach employing hypothetical-deductive methods. From a methodological point of view, the approach employed will be a quantitative approach based on inferential statistics and particularly econometric studies of panel data. Our empirical findings indicate that the impact of human capital variable is not significant. Furthermore, the innovation variable shows a positive and insignificant impact on economic growth. In addition, information and communication technology has insignificant effect on Morocco’s economic growth. Finally, governance quality has a positive impact on economic growth. Our results explain the weak impact of the knowledge-based economy on Morocco's economic growth, and this weakness does not change regardless of the country's wealth level. This allows us to conclude that despite the multiple reforms and the enormous investment made by Morocco, they benefit little from the competitive advantage and the effects on growth that this economy make it possible to create.
Copyright (c) 2024 Abdelghani LAGZOULI, Amina LAGZOULI, Tarik Lakhal https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Innovation Value Creation and Capture Model for Leveraging Turks and Caicos’ Emerging Food and Beverage Manufacturing Firms’ Competitiveness
In the constantly changing modern business environment, different emerging new businesses as well as the incumbents are increasingly adopting innovation as a performance enhancement strategy. In that context, this study uses interpretivist research paradigm as integrated with exploratory research design and qualitative research method to explore and analyse questions like how, what, when and why the emerging Turks and Caicos food and beverage manufacturing ventures undertake innovations in the way they do as well as the constraints associated with such innovation behaviours and practices. Using data from twenty purposively sampled product development managers that were drawn from 20 (twenty) emerging Turks & Caicos food and beverage manufacturing ventures, thematic analysis of the interview findings indicated most of the manufacturing entities to use a four steps’ process for innovation value creation and capture that encompass market survey, product development, marketing and promotion. Even if some of the emerging new food brands were copied and pasted from the foreign based food concepts, they stated that the emerging food and beverage businesses that use the appropriate innovation value creation and capture strategies have still been able to gain the desired competitive edge. But even if this bolsters improved competitiveness and performance of most of the emerging food and beverage manufacturers, dynamics and complexities were still found to arise from inadequate financial capital, poor top management’s commitment, changing competition landscape and lack of the required talents. To therefore deal with such complexities and dynamics, it is recommended that the emerging Turks and Caicos food and beverage manufacturing firms must adopt the Four Steps’ Process for New Product Development/Innovation Value Creation and Capture Model encompassing industry and market analysis, product conceptualisation, product development, commercialization as well as periodic monitoring, evaluation and improvement.
food and beverage manufacturing ventures
Copyright (c) 2023 European Journal of Economics
A Study of Barriers to Initial and Post E-Commerce Adoption among Small Businesses in Sri Lanka
Small businesses in Sri Lanka are considered the backbone of the economy, and e-commerce can be viewed as a ladder for business growth. However, Sri Lankan Small businesses are not adopting e-commerce to its full potential. This research examines potential barriers within the Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) framework that affect the decision to adopt electronic commerce and post e-commerce adoption within small businesses in the Sri Lanka. The study employed a quantitative research approach, proportion-ate stratified random sampling procedures were used to select a sample of 453 firms in Hambantota District, Sri Lanka. Primary data were collected using a pre-designed and tested questionnaire. For analyzing the data derived from multiple regression. According to statistical analysis in this research the results indicates that, initial and post adoption by these businesses were found to be hindered by some of barriers existing within individual, technological, organizational, and environmental context including lack of knowledge and awareness of e-commerce, fear to change, lack of qualified personnel to develop and support ecom-merce, lack of popularity for online marketing and inadequate delivery networks, higher competition and indirect or hidden cost associated with e-commerce. The research findings will aid in developing more effective government policies and planning decisions to foster a more vibrant small business ecosystem in developing countries.
Analysis of the Impact of Foreign Direct Investment on the Integration of the Automotive Industry of Iran into Global Production Networks
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has long been recognized as a crucial driver of economic growth and development in less-developed countries and their integration into Global Production Networks (GPNs). FDI not only brings capital from the core countries but also technology, innovation, and know-how knowledge that can upgrade the capabilities of host automotive industries. On the other hand, FDI can also have negative impacts on host countries if it leads to significant import dependency. In the case of the Iranian automotive sector, the industry greatly benefited from FDI, with Western carmakers dominating the market. Over time, various types of know-how knowledge, including joint ventures (JVs), trade licenses, and technical assistance, have been provided, helping Iran upgrade its automotive industry. While after the severe geopolitical obstacles imposed by both the EU and the U.S., the industry became over-reliant on the car and spare parts imports, and the lack of emphasis on knowledge transfer further affected the growth and development of the Iranian automotive sector. To address these challenges, current research has adopted a descriptive-analytical methodology to illustrate the gradual changes occurred with foreign suppliers through FDI. The research finding shows that after the two-phase imposed sanctions, the detrimental linkages created by overreliance on the car and spare parts imports without any industrial upgrading negatively affected the growth and development of the national and assembled products of the Iranian automotive sector.
How Can Banks in the EU Achieve Consolidation That Would Lead to Higher Profitability
One of the major issues the EU banking sector is currently facing is weak bank profitability. The several banks competing with one another in the market can be used to explain this. In order to remain competitive, banks are undergoing mergers and acquisitions in order to boost profitability. The majority of M&A activity took place on the domestic market, where larger, more recognizable companies acquired smaller targets. The profitability of the banks involved in the process has benefited from consolidation. It has been discovered, specifically, that the targets' higher capitalization, liquidity, and cost efficiency can be connected to post-transaction profitability. As a result, after the M&A transaction process, cost-cutting reduced the overall number of EU banks and banking industry personnel, which is also mentioned in this study. The goal is to analyze the trend while examining return on equity (ROE), a measure of bank profitability. The paper aims to describe the impact of M&As on banking profitability, the number of banks and the number of employees within the banking sector using an time-analysis on official data on the number of banks and ROE within the EU during a specified time period provided by the European Central Bank (ECB). The most important finding is that M&As have a beneficial effect on banking profitability, which leads to a reduction in the number of banks in the market. The EU's banking industry has become more concentrated, which has significantly reduced competition.
Spiritual Connection and Well-Being at Work: The Impact of Meditation and Pranic Healing
This study investigated the relationship between spiritual intelligence (SQ) and subjective well-being (SWB) in the workplace. The research used a sample of 216 participants who completed the Spiritual Intelligence Self-Report Inventory-24 (SISRI-24), Workplace PERMA Profiler, and WHO-5 Well-being Index. Descriptive statistics and paired t-tests were used to assess the data. Multiple regression analysis found that spiritual practices such as meditation, yoga, and Pranic healing can be applied to promote workplace performance by helping employees feel more connected to their workplace environments. The results demonstrated a large positive link between SQ and SWB, indicating that those with a higher SQ tend to engage in SWB at work. Moreover, the study found that the use of meditation, yoga, and pranic healing was analogous to higher SWB levels among participants, which can help employees cope with stress, enhance their emotional resilience, and improve their well-being. The findings indicate that adopting spiritual tools and techniques into employee well-being initiatives may result in enhanced workplace happiness and well-being.
Direct Lending Shadow Banking Risk: Consequences of Commercial Banks Retreatment from European Middle Market
The regional bank consolidation in the 1990 and the global financial crisis 2008-2009 reshaped the global credit market broadly. This paper analyzes potential direct lending risks based on the commercial banks retreatment from the European middle market loan segment. Fundamental characteristics of the private debt market development, like the intensified competition for deals, yield compression and deterioration of creditor protections and the potential shadow banking risks are analyzed. Furthermore, the lack of market information, delayed valuations and varying investment volumes are discussed in the context of challenging monitoring. In the conclusion the paper explains the importance for the European regulators to prepare for a drawdown of the private debt market, via three lines of defense to take care of the underwriting process, monitoring loans and restructuring expertise. Finally, the paper recommends conducting research on the European private debt deal structure and underlying investments for a regulatory monitoring.
Digitalization and Productivity: Evidence from EU Manufacturing Sector
Manufacturing sector productivity is one of main driver for economy grow in Europe. In the context of manufacturing sector digitalization, importance of influencing factors for productivity increase plays a key role. This paper aims to evaluate digitalization impact on EU manufacturing sector productivity, considering variables as relative size measures for the period of 2012-2020. There are strong believe that digitalization is an engine of innovation and competitiveness in manufacturing sector. Changing processes and integration of digital technologies leads manufacturing sector towards productivity increase. We perform OLS regression on sample of 5013 records covering 27 EU countries and 642 manufacturing firms over the years 2012-2020. Analysis consists of such factors as operating revenue, number of employees per company, tangible fixed assets, intangible fixed assets, profit and loss, investment to digitalization. We study ratio of digital investment to total assets as dependent variable to understand how investment decision of company can be evaluated with independent variables, identified in literature review. We build 3 models for regression analysis. Highest value of R-Square calculated for operating revenue as dependent variable is 0.299 and significance level is sufficient. Our results indicate that R-Square is 0.366 for relationship between digital investment and independent variables in analysis. Moreover, intangible assets impact is not significant considering digital investment outlay, which contradict believe stated in literature for direct intangible impact on digitalization. The main variable is number of employees per company with identified significant negative route.
Copyright (c) 2022 European Journal of Economics
Change, Persistence and Convergence in NATO Member Defense Spending
This study presents an analysis and quantitative summary of 18 NATO member country defense spending over the period 1953-2020. Using recently developed econometric techniques, we explore the time series properties of change, persistence and convergence in two indicators of NATO defense spending data typically used in the literature: real (2019) US dollars and Percent of GDP. Our two indicator variables display a mix of positive, negative and zero trends over the sample period. The only NATO countries with more than 2% defense spending after the 2006 and 2014 Summits are: Greece, Turkey, UK, USA and Poland. Using the fractional difference-based persistence tests of Martins and Rodrigues, we find only UK, Hungary and Poland dollar Defense Spending reject the null of a constant fractional difference (unit root) for the entire sample period; while seven NATO members reject the null of a constant fractional difference (unit root) for Percent of GDP. The mixed set of positive, negative and zero trends render the popular relative convergence test of Phillips and Sul inappropriate for our data. Using the more appropriate weak sigma-convergence test of Kong, Phillips and Sul, we find mixed evidence for convergence of our indicator variables. Our quantitative results present a mixed picture of statistical consistency and coherence for NATO defense spending. Our tests of persistence suggest major changes in the defense policies and spending of NATO members will have a lasting effect in most cases. The emergence and growth of serious threats and potential threats from Russia (and now potentially China as well) will require the NATO allies to address these issues.
The Asymmetric Impact of Oil Price Dynamics on Inflation in Brazil
This study investigates whether oil price changes have asymmetric pass-through effects on inflation using Brazilian quarterly data from the first quarter of 2000Q1 through 2021Q4. It applies a nonlinear Autoregressive Distributed Lag (NARDL) model that can simultaneously decompose the price of oil into its partial sum of positive and negative components to account for both the short-run and long-run asymmetric behaviour of inflation. The empirical findings reveal that the pass-through of the oil price to inflation from the short to the long term has a nonlinear or asymmetric effect. It concludes that the monetary authority should consider the asymmetric effects of the inflation-oil price nexus.
Multidimensional Poverty in Sudan: An Empirical Analysis for the Case of Gezira State, 2021
Poverty remains the most pressing socio-economic issue among all states in Sudan. Poverty is a multi–faceted phenomenon. This paper is set to investigate the persistence of multidimensional poverty among households of Gezira state, following the approach proposed by Alkire-Santos model made up of 10 components has been built and used as a means of analyzing the data, The education and health dimensions are based on two indicators while the standard of living dimension is based on six indicators. The research relies on primary data aided by structured questionnaire compiled by Central Bureau of Statistics staff, field work cover three localities, where around 57% of the households in the state live in these localities. A total of 756 households randomly selected make up for data source upon which the research rests, the analysis of poverty decomposed by urban and rural location. The results indicated that 15.89% of the population under the study area are experience a multidimensional poverty, with deprivation at least a third of the dimensions of health, education and standard of living, present analysis shows decompositions reveal considerable disparity in MPI, rural areas present high levels of MPI than urban one, and the deprivation seem to be concentrated in all dimensions. The standard of living dimension considered the main contributor to poverty in Janoob Al Gezira and El Hasaheisa localities, El Managil locality presents the highest incidence of the MPI due to poor health dimension. Janoob Al Gezira Locality faced severe deprivations in health of children as child mortality is widely spread among the poor population in urban area and low level of education was to be found. The paper concludes with policy implications based on the findings that will help government to identify the poor and where the poor people are live.
Startup Valuation with Artificial Intelligence: A SWOT Analysis
The study in question is aimed at examining the use of AI in evaluation processes in startups. The research seeks to address the issues surrounding the use of AI in startup evaluation. The introduction presents some background information concerning AI use in evaluation processes in a newly created organization. A literature review presents more information as proof of the strengths and weaknesses of AI use in evaluating a startup. A clear presentation of the SWOT analysis of the use of AI in evaluating startup organizations. The findings paint a clearer picture of what startup organizations should expect when implementing the use of AI to evaluate themselves. A discussion of the findings is presented in the research to ensure that people understand the issues surrounding the use of AI in evaluating startups and that they know the strengths and weaknesses of using AI in such processes. A brief conclusion summarizes what has been discussed in the study.
Testing The M & M Relevance and Irrelevance Theories of Capital Structure in Quoted Manufacturing Firms in Nigeria
The study empirically test the Miller & Modigliani (1958, 1961) irrelevance and relevance theory of capital structure in Nigeria. Thus, 16 manufacturing firms listed on the Nigerian Stock Market for the period 2010 to 2020 were tested. Three capital structure variables such as short-term debt to equity ratio, long-term debt to equity ratio and total debt-to-equity ratio (independent variables) were regressed against firm value (dependent variable). The fully modified ordinary least squares (FMOLS) was employed in the analysis of the data, and the empirical results obtained from the two models indicate that the M & M irrelevance and relevance theory does not hold in the Nigerian manufacturing firms within the investigating period. The study recommends that manufacturing firms in Nigeria should begin to focus attention on other factors outside capital structure that could possibly influence the value and performance of the firm. Some of the likely factors could be dividend policy and firm’s specific factors such as total assets, profitability, liquidity, risk exposure, growth among others.
Natural Resources Abundance and Macroeconomic Performance in Nigeria
Since the “Dutch disease”, more studies are establishing a negative relationship between natural resource abundance and a nation’s economic performance that have termed a ‘resource curse’. Nigeria being of such countries with abundant natural resources this study sought to examine the impact of natural resources abundance on the performance of selected macroeconomic development. Annual time series data from 1981-2021 about the variables were obtained from various sources like Central Bank of Nigeria statistical bulletin, National Bureau of Statistics and World Bank data base were used for the analysis. The Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model was adopted. The results obtained indicate that natural resource abundance (in terms of crude oil and natural gas revenue, mineral rent, oil rent and solid mineral revenue) have: 1) mix and unfavourable effect on balance of payments in both short and long run; 2) a positive effect on income per head in the short run and long run, but with the short-run effect different from that of the long run; and 3) only long-run positive effect on unemployment rate, with crude oil and natural gas revenue having a negative effect. Thus, natural resources considered have significant effect on gross domestic product per capital but do not have the desired effect on balance of payments and unemployment rate. This led to the conclusion that Nigeria’s abundant natural resource have only partial impart on macroeconomic performance. These findings will help to drive policy towards optimal natural resource utilization for enhanced macroeconomic performance as suggested.
Determinants of Women Labor Force Participation: In Case of Boke Tiko Town
Women labor force participation is vital for the enhancement and socio-economic development of a nation. This study had attempted to portray the determinants of women labor force participation in Boke Tiko town. The study was conducted by using primary and secondary sources of data. Primary data was gathered through questionnaire method from 99 sample respondents selected via simple random sampling technique. Secondary data were observed from different written materials such as published and unpublished books. To analyze the data, researchers had used both descriptive analysis techniques and econometric model of binary logistic regression. The result of the study indicated that women labour force participation was significantly determined by marital status, educational level, presence of young children and income level of the household. The study had recommended the necessity of giving emphasis for the expansion of family planning usage, creating work opportunities for educated women, and boosting the size of economic activities which could increase income level of women in the study area.
Approximation to general economic costs of mental illness
This paper shows characteristics of mental illness and its economic impact, as well as various cost-estimating approaches and insights in missed economic opportunities. To assess the burden of economic diseases, there are three different ways: the human capital, the economic growth and the value of statistical life approach. The first focuses on indirect and direct costs. Direct costs are frequently associated with care and recovery, indirect costs apply to the "invisible costs" correlated with revenue loss due to death, injury, treatment and a fading productivity. The global financial costs of mental illness were evaluated at US$2.5 trillion, with a significantly bigger impact of indirect costs. Moreover, the effect of mental illness on economic development can only be approximated implicitly. Thus, the lack of production is primary estimated for somatic conditions compared to their corresponding quantity of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). According to some research, the total economic productivity drop associated with mental illnesses between 2011 and 2030 is estimated to be US$16.3 trillion globally. Furthermore, the value of statistical life (VSL) method suggests that trade-offs between risks and capital should be used to assess the probability of injury or death due to psychiatric illness. This computation, like the economic increase effect, is equivalent to that of cardiovascular disease and bigger than that of chronic respiratory disease, cancer, and diabetes. However, greater activism is required to better the existing condition. This involves a shift in thinking away from stigmatizing mentally ill people and supports the activation of financial resources.
Implication of Non-Oil Revenue on Macroeconomic Performance in Nigeria
This study examined the implication of Non-oil revenue on macroeconomic performance in Nigeria for the period of 1990-2020. The study employed secondary time-series data The estimation techniques include Ordinary Least Square (OLS) method, while standard error tests (SE), analysis of variance (ANOVA) are used to test hypotheses. Findings indicated that agricultural trade value, services export, Real interest rate, and credit to agriculture had a positive impact on non-oil revenue while employment in agriculture indicated otherwise. The study recommends that the government should ensure resources are channeled to agricultural-based exports Hence drive foreign exchange earnings through agriculture outputs, hence making the sector more viable and the financial sector should formulate more realistic agricultural driving policies that will enable more availability of credit to the agricultural sector for expansion.
Agriculture and Macroeconomic Performance
The Nexus between Financial Development and Exports Performance: A Re-Assessment with the Structural Gravity Model
The aim of this paper is to re-examine the relationship between financial development and international trade within the structural gravity model. Unlike the previous literature, we implement an identification strategy that considers intra-national trade flows in addition to international trade data in order to deal with the issues of perfect collinearity and the multilateral resistances terms (MRTs). Using a sample of 64 countries and two data frameworks (cross-sectional and panel) and applying the OLS/2SLS estimator and the PPMLHDFE estimator, our findings support the promoting effect of financial indicators on exports of all manufacturing goods relative to domestic trade. This performance is disproportionately higher for final goods than intermediate inputs. Importantly, this research demonstrates the existence of the heterogeneous direct impact of financial development on international trade depending on the level of economic development and across industries.
Analysis of differences in Knowledge of Maize Farmers Who Are Given Training About Corn Marketing in Corn Production Centers in West Sumatra Province
This research purposes to analyze differences and identify increased knowledge of corn farmers about marketing maize in corn production centers. The total sample is 90 maize farmers who have been given training and also those who have not been given training. Sampling was done by purposive sampling. Also, the primary data are collected by the application of a quasi-experimental design that will be used is the Non-Equivalent Control Group Design. The results of the study found that there were differences in the knowledge and understanding of corn farmers who were given training with the control group who were not given training on marketing of corn products through agricultural cooperatives; corn marketing model; an engineering model for corn marketing of maize farmers. However, there is no distinction in know-how between the two farmer groups regarding the marketing margins of maize commodities in the maize production center areas in West Sumatra Province.
ANALYZING THE DYNAMICS OF THE SWAPTION MARKET USING NEURAL NETWORKS
The FIRMS’ PERFORMANCE AND INNOVATION: EVIDENCE FROM SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES (SMES) IN NIGERIA
The effect of innovations on the performance of SMEs in Nigeria was studied in this study using firm-level data from the Enterprise Survey Panel Data for the years 2007-200. Meanwhile, to investigate the relationships between innovation outcomes and firms’ performance, we used static panel data models. The Hausman test statistic, which Hausman created, was used to choose between fixed and random effects estimators. The result showed that 52.05 percent of the 1729 companies polled claimed they had developed a new or significantly improved product, and 52.54 percent said they had developed a new or significantly better process. In the last three years, however, less than half of the organizations (41.87 percent) had undergone organizational transformation. Finally, we noticed that there was a transition from one form of innovation to another throughout time. Furthermore, there was a significant and favorable link between innovation outcomes and R&D spending, as well as employee training. The studies also demonstrated a positive and statistically significant link between firm’s productivity and innovation outcomes. As a result, we recommend that the government encourage strategic coordination of both human and non-human capital in SMEs, such as R&D personnel, FDI inflows, technology, and information. Increased access to funds for research and innovation in formal institutional contexts, as well as policy packages that are highly supportive of innovation