Average Retail Price Research Articles

The Effects of the Re-imposition of US Sanctions on Food Security in Iran.

Background: Following the re-imposition of US sanctions against Iran in 2018, unprecedented inflation has occurred in Iran’s food market that will undoubtedly affect the food security of the Iranian people. The present study aims to determine the effects of the sanctions on food prices and food security of Iranian households. Methods: Interrupted time series (ITS) analysis was applied to assess the effects of sanctions on the average retail price of food products in Iran. Household food security was estimated by calculating the share of household food expenditure. Costs of following a healthy diet based on the food pyramid were estimated. Results: The import dependency ratio of Iran’s food market was about 25%. After sanctions due to the limitations in international financial exchanges a significant increase in the prices of all food groups occurred in 2018, the year after the re-imposition of sanctions. The highest inflation rate was observed in vegetable, meat, and fruit groups. The percentage of urban and rural households in Iran that were prone to food insecurity increased from 8.84% and 25.17% to 11.2% and 29.2%, respectively, from 2017 to 2019. The annual average cost of a healthy diet for a sample Iranian family of 3.3, based on the current prices, is 341 866 008 IRR (US$2849) which is 3.6 times greater than the average amount Iranian families spent on food last year (94 505 000 IRR or US$788). Conclusion: After the re-imposition of US sanctions against Iran, food insecurity as a result of economic vulnerability, has increased and due to the current status of food prices and incomes, following a healthy diet has become more difficult for most Iranians. This makes the Iranian population more prone to chronic diseases in the near future and if this trend persists, it places the country in danger of food crisis and political instability.

Cost Needed to Treat (CNT) and Number Needed to Treat (NNT) analysis of drugs for treatment of heart failure in India

Abstract Background Only little attention has been paid to treatment strategies of chronic disease conditions that require long term treatment and repeated hospitalizations Purpose Our aim was to review cost-effectiveness of guideline directed medical therapy of heart failure in India and identify drugs that can be made available free of cost or at subsidized rates to the patient population. Methods Data extracted from ten landmark trials in heart failure was used to compute Number Needed to Treat (NNT) and Cost Needed to Treat (CNT) of drugs used in heart failure, to prevent cardiovascular mortality and heart failure re-hospitalization using HDS Plotter- Incremental Cost Effectiveness Calculator. Since various brands (i.e. trade names) with wide cost range are available in Indian market, the average retail price in Indian Rupees for year 2019 was considered and converted to US dollars and used for the analysis.NNT and CNT of each drug was computed and the cost-effectiveness was analyzed. WHO recommendation of three times per capita GDP was used as the cost effectiveness threshold. Results Medications that were labeled as class I for the treatment of heart failure, were included in our analysis. Ivabradine, Valsartan and Angiotensin Receptor Neprilysin inhibitor (ARNi) did not meet the cost effectiveness criteria for preventing cardio-vascular mortality. For prevention of heart failure re-hospitalization, all drugs except ARNi, met the cost effectiveness threshold. Conclusion Any future research would need to consider compliance factor along with Willingness to Pay (WTP) to understand the real acceptance of these drugs on the ground in India. Log prices (in US$) of various HF drugs Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding source: None

Technical and economic potentials of the unconventional extruded dried Arabic bread wastes in broilers diets.

Food waste is one of the major global challenges that have adverse socioeconomic and environmental impacts. Therefore, studying food waste utilization potentials and minimizing its negative consequences becomes imperative. This study aims to assess the technical and economic potentials of substituting corn with unconventional extruded dried Arabic Bread waste (EDABW) in broilers’ diets, in terms of broilers’ performance, carcass characteristic, economic net returns, and income over feed cost (IOFC). One hundred eighty unsexed one-day-old broiler birds of Ross breed were distributed randomly in six treatments (0, 20, 40, 60, 80, and 100% EDABW group) of isocaloric and isonitrogenous diets in a completely randomized design with six replicated (5 chicks/replicate). The investigated traits were broilers’ performance (live body weight, total feed intake, total feed conversion ratio, and total weight gain. Other traits such as carcass weight, abdominal fat, edible offal (liver, heart, and gizzard), eviscerated (breast muscles, drum and thigh muscles, and wings) were weighed and expressed based on a live body weight. Results showed that the 20% replacement level of corn with EDABW generated the highest increase in the live body weight and the eviscerated carcass at about 4.24% g and 4.90%, respectively. On the other hand, the economic analysis showed potential reductions in the broilers’ diet cost and the total broilers' production cost as the levels of corn substitution with by unconventional EDABW increased. The reductions were estimated at 5.1%, 6.3%, 8.4%, 9.3%, and 9.9% at substitution levels of 20%, 40%, 60%, 80%, and 100%, respectively as compared to the control diet. The results also showed a potential increase in the net economic returns of broiler meat as the increase in substitution levels ranged between 3.5–06.8% and 4.3–8.3% as compared to the control diets using the average retail and wholesale prices of broiler meats, respectively. In addition, the maximum IOFC was estimated potentially at a 20% substitution level of corn with EDABW. Conclusively, the study results show promising technical and economic potentials for unconventional EDABW in broilers’ diets that could lead to a thriving industry of unconventional broilers’ diets with high net economic returns and maximum IOFC.

1162-P: Coverage, Formulary Restrictions, and Average Retail Prices of SGLT2 Inhibitors and GLP-1 Receptor Agonists across Medicare Part D Plans in 2019

Access to SGLT2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) and GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RA) may be limited by high drug prices and insurance related barriers including prior authorization or step therapy requirements. These barriers are particularly challenging for seniors covered under Medicare’s prescription drug benefit (Part D). We used Q1 2019 national Part D Formulary files to examine: 1) the proportion of plans (weighted by enrollment) that cover a SGLT2i or GLP-1RA without prior authorization or step therapy and 2) the average retail price [IQR] for a 30-day supply of each medication. Among 3,992 plans (enrolling at least 37,980,936 beneficiaries), weighted coverage without prior authorization or step therapy for canagliflozin, dapagliflozin and empagliflozin was 53.2% (95% CI: 49.1 to 57.4), 63.7% (95% CI: 60.1 to 67.3) and 95.4% (95% CI: 94.3 to 96.4), respectively. Coverage without prior authorization or step therapy for GLP-1RA of ranged from 3.2% (95% CI: 1.8 to 4.6) for lixisenatide to a high of 87.4% (95% CI: 85.5 to 89.3) for dulaglutide. The mean retail price [IQR] for a 30-day supply of a SGLT2i or a GLP-1RA ranged from $295 [$285-$303] (ertugliflozin) to $512 [$501-$527] (canagliflozin) and $641.38 [$629-$657] (lixisenatide) to $946.17 [$930-$968] (liraglutide), respectively. In 2019, coverage without prior authorization and step therapy for SGLT2i and GLP-1RA were mixed across Part D plans. Most beneficiaries enrolled in plans that covered at least one SGLT2i and one GLP-1RA without restrictions. Cost sharing (i.e., high out-of-pocket payments) may be more problematic for patients than either prior authorization or step therapy. Disclosure J. Luo: Consultant; Self; Alosa Health. R. Feldman: None. S.D. Rothenberger: None. W.F. Gellad: None. Funding National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (KL2TR001856)

Comparative analysis of nootropic means of consumption in Ukraine, Estonia and Norway

Cerebrovascular disease develops in neurodegenerative, vascular or cerebrovascular diseases of the brain. For their treatment, nootropic agents have neurotrophic, neuroprotective effects, increase brain energy exchange and cerebral circulation.
 The purpose of the study was to study the range and consumption of nootropic agents in the pharmaceutical market of Ukraine and to compare the volume and structure of their consumption with Estonia and Norway.
 The objects of this study were the representatives of two pharmacotherapeutic groups - NO6B «Psychostimulants and Nootropic Drugs» and N06D «Drugs used for dementia» present on the Ukrainian pharmaceutical market. The range of these drugs and the average retail price of their packs in the pharmacy network of Ukraine during the studied period were determined using the Morion Company Pharmexplorer market research system (as of December 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017). Drugs were performed according to DDDs/1 000 inhabitants/day or DID, using pharmacoepidemiological method of study ‒ ATC/DDD methodology.
 In the pharmaceutical market of Ukraine for 2014‒2017, nootropic drugs were represented from 204 tonnes (in 2014) to 237 tonnes (in 2017), based on 18 MNN, mainly domestic production. Drug prices varied over a wide range, which made it possible to choose a drug with nootropic action, taking into account the patient's financial capabilities. Vinpocetine (0.83‒0.98 DID) and piracetam (0.50‒0.52 DID) were predominantly consumed in the N06B group in Ukraine, while Ginkgo leaves (0.51‒0.59 DID) were the most consumed in the N06D group. and memantine (0.08‒0.18 DID). Consumption leaders are represented in the pharmaceutical market in a significant amount of TH and have a wide range of pricing for drug packaging. Compared to European countries, the consumption of nootropic drugs in Ukraine is almost 3.5 times lower than in Estonia and 2.4 times lower than in Norway. In terms of consumption in Ukraine and Estonia, the leaders were Ginkgo leaves, and in Norway, Donezepil.
 In the Ukrainian pharmaceutical market there is a sufficient assortment of products with nootropic action of mainly domestic production, which have a wide range of prices for the packaging of drugs. Consumption rates for drugs in Ukraine were low and inferior to two European countries, and in terms of consumption patterns similar to those of nootropic drugs in Estonia.

Multi-agent mixed complementary simulation of natural gas upstream market liberalization in China

Natural gas supply in regionally interlinked but not perfectly integrated market might lead to high supply side concentration, which fails to achieve economic efficiency and requires market reform. This paper proposes an integration of multi-agent framework and mixed complementary model to outline the gas market-oriented reform schemes and examines the outcomes of gas upstream liberalization in China. In accordance with existing gas market conditions, several counterfactual scenarios are designed to simulate the influences of gas upstream market liberalization. We find that under the current Cournot competition, existing suppliers will exert market power, which results in a 2.18% reduction in gas supply and the retail price rise by 6.72%, but the market power performance will be mitigated with the improvement of infrastructure and the entrance of new gas supplier. Moreover, the current most appropriate price subsidy rate for import gas is about 6%, otherwise the average retail price will increase by 5.57% when the import subsidy is fully elimination. It can be concluded that the liberalization reform of China’s gas upstream market need priority ensure the diversified competition of suppliers, gradually promote the unbundling of infrastructure such as pipelines and gas storage, and then appropriately reduce the level of import subsidy.

A survey of retail prices of antimicrobial products used in small-scale chicken farms in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam

BackgroundIn the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam, high quantities of products containing antimicrobial are used as prophylactic and curative treatments in small-scale chicken flocks. A large number of these contain antimicrobial active ingredients (AAIs) considered of ‘critical importance’ for human medicine according to the World Health Organization (WHO). However, little is known about the retail prices of these products and variables associated with the expense on antimicrobials at farm level. Therefore, the aims of the study were: (1) to investigate the retail price of antimicrobials with regards to WHO importance criteria; and (2) to quantify the antimicrobial expense incurred in raising chicken flocks. We investigated 102 randomly-selected small-scale farms raising meat chickens (100–2000 per flock cycle) in two districts in Dong Thap (Mekong Delta) over 203 flock production cycles raised in these farms. Farmers were asked to record the retail prices and amounts of antimicrobial used.ResultsA total of 214 different antimicrobial-containing products were identified. These contained 37 different AAIs belonging to 13 classes. Over half (60.3%) products contained 1 highest priority, critically important AAI, and 38.8% 1 high priority, critically important AAI. The average (farm-adjusted) retail price of a daily dose administered to a 1 kg bird across products was 0.40 cents of 1 US$ (₵) (SE ± 0.05). The most expensive products were those that included at least one high priority, critically important AAI, as well as those purchased in one of the two study districts. Farmers spent on average of ₵3.91 (SE ± 0.01) on antimicrobials per bird over the production cycle. The expense on antimicrobials in weeks with disease and low mortality was greater than on weeks with disease and high mortality, suggesting that antimicrobial use had a beneficial impact on disease outcomes (χ2 = 3.8; p = 0.052). Farmers generally used more expensive antimicrobials on older flocks.Conclusions and recommendationThe retail prices of antimicrobial products used in chicken production in Mekong Delta small-scale chicken farms are very low, and not related to their relevance for human medicine. Farmers, however, demonstrated a degree of sensitivity to prices of antimicrobial products. Therefore, revising pricing policies of antimicrobial products remains a potential option to curb the use of antimicrobials of critical importance in animal production.

Analysis of price transmission in the beef value chain using a calculated retail carcass price

ABSTRACTThe large difference between the producer price of a beef carcass and the retail prices of individual beef cuts has raised concerns among producers. These concerns are caused by the possibility of asymmetry in the market. This study examines the price transmission mechanisms in the beef market by comparing the weekly producer carcass price with a weekly calculated retail carcass price, instead of average retail prices, over a period of three years. It further estimates the causality links between the producer and retail prices. The traditional and standardised augmented Dickey–Fuller procedures were used to test for co-integration and asymmetry in price transmission. Four competing models, namely the Engle–Granger, threshold autoregressive (TAR), momentum threshold autoregressive (M-TAR) and momentum consistent TAR models, were applied. The results indicated that there is positive asymmetric price transmission between producer and retail price as retailers in the market respond quicker to shocks that squeeze their margin than those that stretch them. Market information was found to be flowing from the producer to the retailer.

Cost Needed to Treat and Number Needed to Treat Analysis of Drugs for the Treatment of Heart Failure in India

Introduction: Our aim was to review the cost-effectiveness of guideline-directed medical therapy of heart failure in India and identify drugs that can be made available free of cost or at subsidized rates to the patient population. Methods: Data extracted from ten landmark trials in heart failure was used to compute the number needed to treat (NNT) and cost needed to treat (CNT) of drugs used in heart failure, to prevent cardiovascular mortality and heart failure re-hospitalization using the HDS Plotter-Incremental Cost Effectiveness Calculator. Since various brands (i.e., trade names) with a wide cost range are available in the Indian market, the average retail price in Indian Rupees for the year 2019 was used for the analysis. NNT and CNT of each drug were computed, and the cost-effectiveness was analyzed. The CNT of these drugs was compared with India's per capita Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The WHO recommendation of three times per capita GDP was used as the cost-effectiveness threshold. Results: Medications that were labeled as Class I for the treatment of heart failure were included in our analysis. Ivabradine, valsartan, and angiotensin receptor neprilysin inhibitor (ARNi) did not meet the cost-effectiveness criteria for preventing cardiovascular mortality. For the prevention of heart failure re-hospitalization, all drugs except ARNi met the cost-effectiveness threshold. Conclusion: Any future research would need to consider the compliance factor along with Willingness to Pay to understand the real acceptance of these drugs on the ground in India.

Vertical Disintegration: The Effect of Refiner Exit from Gasoline Retailing on Retail Gasoline Pricing

The net effect of vertical integration on consumer welfare depends on the magnitude of the price reductions resulting from the elimination of double marginalization at the integrated firm and the price increases resulting from higher input prices charged to un-integrated competitors. In this paper, we estimate both of these effects in the U.S. gasoline industry by examining the change in relative retail gasoline prices after refiners exited gasoline retailing beginning in the mid-2000s. Using station-level price data from Florida and New Jersey, we find that double marginalization caused retail prices to increase by about 1.2 cents-per-gallon. Our estimates of the raising rival’s cost effect, while sensitive to the choice of control group, are of a similar magnitude. On net, we find that the average retail price of gasoline was effectively unchanged as the result of vertical separation.

The study of volume and structure of sales of pharmaceutical assortment of antihypertensive drugs to 2019

A study of the range of antihypertensive drugs on the pharmaceutical market of Ukraine. The ratio of domestic and foreign drugs within each pharmacotherapeutic group of drugs is determined. The positions of Ukraine and foreign suppliers regarding the volume of antihypertensive drugs represented on the Ukrainian pharmaceutical market have been established. The final part of the pharmacoepidemiological study was to study the volume and structure of sales of antihypertensive drugs according to the largest regional wholesale distributors in 2019, and also determined the average retail price of antihypertensive drugs in the pharmacy network.

Analisis Indeks Harga Konsumen (IHK) Menurut Kelompok Pengeluaran Nasional Tahun 2018

The Consumer Price Index is an important indicator of the financial market. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is an index number that describes changes in prices of goods and services consumed by the public in general for a certain period with a predetermined time period. National expenditure according to CPI is divided into four sub-groups, namely the first general sub-group, the second sub-group of foodstuffs the third sub-group of processed foods, beverages, cigarettes and tobacco and fourth sub-group housing, water, electricity, gas and fuel development CPI 2018, every month from January to December tends to increase. Changes in CPI can describe the rate of increase (inflation) or the rate of decline (deflation) of goods or services. CPI can be regarded as a very important economic indicator and is used to represent changes in the average retail price level at the consumer level for a number of certain types of goods and services. The rise in the CPI can lead to an increase in interest rates, increase in money supply growth, increase the attractiveness of currencies, and increase inflation.

\u0410n affordability of statins therapy - comparative analysis between Ukraine and Bulgaria

BackgroundThe statins are а developing group of cardiovascular medicines, widely used for dyslipidemia. As a whole statins consumption leads to reduction in cardiovascular events and death, and improves the disease control. The main study issue considers the differences in an affordability to lipid lowering medicines in the countries with the highest morbidity and mortally rate within and outside EU. The affordability has been researched by exploring the price differences and average wages.MethodsOn total 7 international nonproprietary names and 19 dosage forms available on both markets are observed during 2013–2016. An average, minimum, and maximum retail prices per DDD, standard deviation (SD) has been calculated for all marketed dosage forms. A price ratio between the minimal and maximal price per DDD is estimated in order to evaluate their difference. Affordability of the treatment is determined as the number of working hours per month needed for patient to purchase medicines for a monthly therapy.ResultsLarge variations of price per DDD, SD and the average price exist between different dosage forms in both countries. The highest value of a price ratio is observed for 5 mg rosuvastatin in Bulgaria and 10 mg rosuvastatin in Ukraine.The number of working hours needed to cover monthly therapy has increased during 2013–2016 in Ukraine. The most affordable is treatment with a generic atorvastatin in Bulgaria and generic rosuvastatin in Ukraine. The most expensive rosuvastatin in Bulgaria and atorvastatin in Ukraine are found as the least affordable for a monthly therapy.ConclusionsThe decrease of prices for statins is not the only reason influencing patients’ affordability to therapy for statin therapy in Ukraine and Bulgaria. The difference in affordability in Ukraine and Bulgaria is affected mainly by the economic development in the country as well as wages variation.

Penerapan Algoritma K-Means Clustering untuk Pengelompokan Harga Eceran Beras di Pasar Tradisional Berdasarkan Wilayah Kota

Rice is the main food commodity of the Indonesian people, almost all residents in this country consume rice every day. This causes rice commodities to have a very strategic value, apart from being in control of the lives of many people, it can also be used as a parameter of the country's economic and social stability. This study discusses the application of K-Means Clustering Algorithm for Grouping Retail Prices of Rice in Traditional Markets. The source of this research data is collected based on documents describing the retail price group of rice produced by the National Statistics Agency. The data used in this study are data from 2011-2016 consisting of 33 cities. Data is processed by clustering in 3 clusters, namely high population level clusters, medium and low population level clusters. Centroid data for high population level clusters 10,776, Centroid data for moderate population level clusters 9,436 and Centroid data for low population clusters 8,590. To obtain an assessment based on the grouping of the average retail price of rice in traditional markets in 33 cities with high clusters (C1) of 11 cities namely Padang, Pekanbaru, Tanjung Pinang, Bandar Lampung, Jakarta, Pontianak, Palangkaraya, Banjarmasin, Ternate, Jayapura and Manokwari for medium cluster (C2) as many as 11 cities and for low cluster (C3) as many as 11 cities. From the results of this study can be used as input for the government, especially in cities, so that cities that are included in the high cluster can normalize the retail price of rice in each city area.

301. The cost-effectiveness of antibiotic infection prophylaxis in same-day anterior cervical discectomy and fusion

BACKGROUND CONTEXT Outpatient anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) is associated with dramatically lower costs than the same procedure in the inpatient setting. Nevertheless, postoperative infection remains a concern due to its devastating medical and economic effects. PURPOSE This studying aimed to assess the cost-effectiveness of standard antibiotic protocols for preventing infection following same-day ACDF. STUDY DESIGN/SETTING Break-even cost analysis. OUTCOME MEASURES This study determined the magnitude by which the rate of infection following same-day ACDF would need to be reduced by in order to make application of standard antibiotic infection prophylaxis cost-effective. METHODS The product cost of 2g of intravenous cephazolin was obtained from our institution's purchasing records. Average retail costs of oral cephalexin (500mg every 6 hours) for 1, 3 and 5 days were obtained from open access pharmacy data. Four total protocols were assessed: preoperative intravenous cephazolin alone, as well as preoperative intravenous cephazolin with either 1, 3 or 5 days of postoperative oral cephalexin. Baseline infection rate following same-day ACDF and average direct costs for treating ACDF infection were obtained from the literature. A break-even analysis [break-even infection rate = (initial infection rate - cost of protocol) / cost of treatment] was then utilized to determine the absolute risk reduction (ARR) needed in infection rate to make each protocol cost-effective. RESULTS At $1.64 at our institution, the use of 2g of intravenous cephazolin is economically justified if the initial infection rate (0.20%) of same-day ACDF is lowered by an ARR of 0.02%. Adding one day of oral cephalexin at an average retail price of $11.18 would require an ARR of 0.10% to be cost-effective. At an average retail price $15.68 to add three days of oral cephalexin, an ARR of 0.10% is needed to make the protocol cost-effective. Furthermore, adding five days of oral cephalexin at an average retail price of $20.45 would require an ARR of 0.19% to be economically justified. CONCLUSIONS This break-even analysis demonstrates that preoperative intravenous cephazolin is an economically viable method for preventing infection following same-day ACDF. At our institution's price point, use of preoperative cephazolin is economically justified if is prevents at least one infection for every 5,000 ACDF surgeries. Meanwhile, adding postoperative oral antibiotic prophylaxis to this regimen requires reducing the infection rate by greater than or equal to half the initial rate. FDA DEVICE/DRUG STATUS This abstract does not discuss or include any applicable devices or drugs.

An econometric economical study for animal protein sources in Egypt

The study aimed to identify the current status of production and national consumption of animal protein sources, per capita , food gap and the proportion of self-sufficiency of animal protein sources, and study the factors affecting the national consumption of animal protein sources, as well as statistical estimation of individual demand relations, and study the structure consumer expenditure of animal protein sources according to expenditure categories and estimation of animal protein expenditure in urban and rural areas of Egypt. The study reached the following conclusions: 1. Studying the factors that affect the national consumption of animal protein sources, it was found that the most important factors are the real retail price of poultry meat, the real retail price of fish, the average real retail price of eggs, the real gross national income and the population. 2. The study of the relationship of individual demand for animal protein sources revealed that for the average per capita red meat is influenced by both the real retail price of poultry meat and the time element, and for the average per capita poultry meat, the most important factors are the total production of poultry meat, and the real retail price The main explanatory factors affecting the average per capita fish are the real retail price of red meat, the real retail price of eggs and time, and the most important explanatory factors affecting the average per capita milk is the total production of milk, and the real retail price of milk and its products, and individual real income. 3. It was found that meat is considered a necessary commodity in the urban and rural areas of the Republic. Those who attended the countryside at all spending levels, and that the demand for them is inelastic because of the small value of the elasticity coefficient of expenditure than the correct one, except for the second expenditure category in the urban and rural areas of the Republic, the demand for fish has a flexible demand. Expenditure levels except the second category in the countryside. The study recommends the need to expand the production of animal protein sources to meet the nutritional needs of these important sources, and reduce the food gap and raise the proportion of self-sufficiency from those sources.

U.S. mango performance benchmark

Retail data are important for mango performance benchmarking because it allows one to compare years and observe trends. Mango sales data from US grocery store chains with more than $ 2 million in annual sales was collected and analyzed in 2014 and 2015. Data came from approximately 18,000 stores nationwide and represented fruit items sold in the produce department. A descriptive analysis of mango performance (volume, price, and sales) store‑1 week‑1 was conducted per region, quarter and year. Volume was measured by unit (one whole mango=one unit), price in dollars ($) per mango unit, and sales in $. Overall, retail fruit sales increased 3% in 2015. Mango sales store‑1 week‑1 increased 6% and mango contribution to the produce department increased slightly, maintaining the same position (#20) in fruit sales ranking, as in 2014. Mango volume store‑1 week‑1 increased 16% to 213 units after a decline of 13% in 2014, and the mango retail price decreased 8% to $ 0.98 each. In 2015, most sub-regions experienced mango increases in dollars and volume. The East North Central sub-region had the largest dollar increase, (13% to $ 173 mango dollars store‑1 week‑1), and the West South Central sub-region had the largest mango dollar contribution to department sales at 0.52%, up from 0.47% in 2014. The highest sub-regions, based on volume store‑1 week‑1, were West South Central, Pacific, New England and Mountain. East North Central was the sub-region with the greatest growth in volume with a 43% increase. All sub-regions except Pacific had a decline in average mango price. The West South Central sub-region had the lowest average retail price at $ 0.76 each and the Mid Atlantic sub-region had the highest average retail price at $ 1.22 per mango.

The Effectiveness and Incidence of Litigation as a Policy Instrument: The Case of the New Source Review Settlements

Enforcing regulations through litigation against noncompliant firms is an important policy tool for environmental regulators. In this paper, I provide new empirical evidence on the effectiveness of this mechanism by examining the effects of a major environmental enforcement initiative, which led one-third of the US coal-fired power plant fleet to come under a consent decree. I show that legal settlements arising out of this initiative caused large decreases in pollution emissions, which further led to meaningful improvements in local air quality and decreases in local cardiovascular and respiratory mortality rates. I then show suggestive evidence that in regulated electricity markets average electricity retail price and utility revenues increased following a settlement, implying that a substantial proportion of overall costs were borne by ratepayers.

The Influence of Buyer Power on Supply Chain Pricing with Downstream Competition

This paper aims to investigate the impact of buyer power on the wholesale price and retail price of, in the case, downstream competition. Based on a summary of the competitive characteristics of China’s retail market, a model of a vertical market was constructed to examine the influence of buyer power on the pricing decisions of manufacturers and retailers, and to analyze the mechanism of price decisions. The results showed that the buyer power of national retailers reduced the wholesale price, but the impact on local retailers remained uncertain. Although increasing buyer power initially increased the local retailer’s wholesale price and caused the ‘waterbed effect’, we found that this effect reverted when the buyer power reached a point at which the ‘anti-waterbed effect’ appeared. The opposite was true of the retail price. However, buyer power reduced the average retail price, and consumer welfare improved.

A Low Complexity and Secure Demand Response Technique for Peak Load Reduction

A new heuristic demand response technique for consumption scheduling of appliances in order to decrease peak to average ratio of power demand is introduced. The proposed technique uses a hopping scheme to schedule the appliances with flexible schedule without the need to obtain individual consumption of appliances thereby providing a high level of consumers’ confidentiality. The proposed demand response is built on simple mathematical equations that significantly simplify advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) as well as communication requirements. In the stochastic programming, energy consumption scheduler embedded in AMI defines appliances’ consumption vector based on the information vector that is provided in real time by network’s control center. To show the effectiveness of the proposed scheme, its performance in reducing the peak to average and energy retail price is evaluated numerically and compared to idealistic as well as practical benchmarks.