Responsible Innovation and Happiness: A New Approach to the Effects of ICTs (HAPPY)
The project intends to contribute to the responsible innovation literature by carrying out a set of conceptual and empirical studies on the socio-economic effects of ICTs, considering ...
Telecommunications: the underlying transport means for services exports
This paper analyses the role of telecommunications as a means of transport for services exports with a focus on computer and other business services in India. Telecommunications are typically dominated by major suppliers which need to be regulated and exposed to competition to fulfil their role. This paper notes that India took sweeping unilateral reforms in the telecommunications sector in the 1990s but has been reluctant to bind reforms in international trade agreements. It goes on to show that India is lagging as compared to other lower middle-income countries on international measures of connectivity, and that connectivity is strongly related to timely adjustment of policy to changing market conditions and technology. Second, using gravity estimates, it has been found that connectivity is an important driver for trade in computer and other business services. In particular, broadband connectivity significantly reduces the rate at which exports fall off with distance and extends the reach of exports to distant markets.
Make or buy: offshoring of services functions in manufacturing
About 40% of employment in manufacturing is in services functions. This paper develops a measure of narrow outsourcing: the matching of services functions that are performed by workers who are inside manufacturing firms to the same services functions that are provided by outside suppliers. Narrow outsourcing is entered into labour demand functions where labour is classified by business functions. The impact of narrow offshoring on manufacturing labour demand is small on average but depends strongly on the complexity of the value chain, the policy environment, and ICT maturity. The IT and R&D functions are most sensitive to offshoring.
Spaces and Institutional Logics in Post-Conflict Settings of Mitrovica
Spaces structure interactions between communities in post-conflict settings. They are governed by particular institutional logics, which can foster boundary building and boundary transgression. This article proposes an extended version of the concept of ‘everyday peace’ including a focus not only on micro-level individual actorness in social interactions but also on an important meso- level dimension in the analysis of social behaviour and variation in institutional logics governing spaces where social interactions take place. We apply these concepts to the study of perceptions and practices around bridges in Mitrovica in Kosovo.
The spiralling effects of the Sino-American trade war
Almost two years ago, China and the United States instigated a trade conflict which has had serious international effects, a situation since exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic. What has truly made a solution to this conflict elusive, however, is that its origins lie well beyond questions of trade deficits and fair competition, and are instead based on the looming question of a power transition between to the two states. The effects of this divergence are beginning to be observed in several economic realms, including the financial and the technological. Many other actors in the global economy have begun to experience the side effects of this completion, and may now have to face difficult choices about how to balance between these two emerging poles in the current fragile global economy.
Preferential tariffs and development of Norwegian rose import from Africa
Purpose Imports of cut roses increased after Norway implemented a preferential tariff scheme for the Least Developed Countries in 2002. When the scheme was extended to more countries in 2008 – among them Kenya – imports exploded. This article studies the subsequent changes in supply channels, import costs and the way Norwegian firms imported. Design/methodology/approach Qualitative data, obtained through interviews among five rose importers, are combined with quantitative data for all importing firms and transactions in Norway for years 2003–2014. These data are analysed in light of recent economic theories on international trade. Findings When Kenya was included in the scheme, imports from Europe and domestic production in Norway decreased substantially. Imports from some African countries with low income levels also declined. Importing under GSP involves high fixed import costs due to stringent procedures. Each firm’s imports increased gradually, and over time learning may have facilitated importing. Direct trade with African producers and control over the logistics chain seem to have become more important. Research limitations/implications The analysis build mainly on data for Norwegian importers, not for African exporters. Managerial or Policy implications Simplifying the GSP procedures could increase Norwegian imports from developing countries and induce establishment of new trade relationships, perhaps also for other products than roses. Originality/value Using a mixture of original qualitative data as well as unique, detailed and comprehensive quantitative data, the article provides new insights into how a developed country’s preferential tariff reductions towards developing countries affect trade and buyer-supplier relationships.