European Economic Community Countries Research Articles

«ЗОЛОТИЙ ВІК»: ІНТЕГРАЦІЯ ІТАЛІЙСЬКОЇ ЕКОНОМІКИ У ЄВРОПЕЙСЬКИЙ РИНОК (1951–1973 РР.)

The article is devoted to the development of the Italian economy in 1951–1973, which is recognized by researchers as the most successful period in the economic history of independent Italy, and which coincided with the first two decades of its European integration. The division of the economic history of Italy for 1951–1973 into three stages was proposed. In the first stage (1951–1957) Italy joined the European Coal and Steel Union (ECSU). Together with the admission, Italy has undertaken to change trade legislation toward liberalization, reduce quotas and tariff rates. At the same time, the Italian Government developed a program of accelerated development of some sectors of heavy industry, including metallurgy, based on the availability of cheap coal and technologies from other countries of the European Union, as well as on the emergence of promising markets for sales. The second stage (1958–1963) was reached for the first years after Italy joined the European Economic Community (EEC). This stage is known in the historiography as “economic miracle”, or “economic boom”, due to extremely high rates of economic development. It is argued that the factor of European integration has become a significant impetus for the development and transformation of Italy. As a result of the deliberate economic policy, the EEC countries have become Italy’s main trading partners. The third stage (1958–1973) is characterized by the rationalization of economic management, as well as by the gradual slowdown in economic growth. There signs of stagnation began to emerge, and they became evident after the failure to fulfil the goals of economic development of the country. A number of economic indicators demonstrate the beginning of a change in the type of Italian economy from industrial to post–industrial. However, this process had a negative impact on the pace of economic development. In general, the changes in the Italian economy during 1951–1973 were not only quantitative but also structural. Italy is an example of a semi–agrarian, under–developed country, that was in a state of post–war recovery with limited financial and natural resources, but with the help of its competent economic policy and European integration, it has become a developed industrial country, which has taken a leading place in the newly created the European common market.

A Transnational and Transregional Study of the Impact and Effectiveness of Social Distancing for COVID-19 Mitigation.

We present an analysis of the relationship between SARS-CoV-2 infection rates and a social distancing metric from data for all the states and most populous cities in the United States and Brazil, all the 22 European Economic Community countries and the United Kingdom. We discuss why the infection rate, instead of the effective reproduction number or growth rate of cases, is a proper choice to perform this analysis when considering a wide span of time. We obtain a strong Spearman’s rank order correlation between the social distancing metric and the infection rate in each locality. We show that mask mandates increase the values of Spearman’s correlation in the United States, where a mandate was adopted. We also obtain an explicit numerical relation between the infection rate and the social distancing metric defined in the present work.

Impact of ICT development on economic growth. A study of OECD European union countries

Most of the scientific literature recognizes a positive impact of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) on economic growth. In contrast, different investigations suggest that this impact is limited or even null, that is, there are mixed results.In view of this problem, we conducted a study whose objective is to analyse the impact of ICT on economic growth.To address the study, we apply Partial Least Squares (PLS), using the databases of Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), which allowed us to analyse those European Economic Community countries, members of the OECD, in order to reduce the differences in economic development between the countries analysed. As far as we know, this is the only work that studies the relationship between ICT and economic growth by measuring ICT with the Digital Economy and Society Index database (DESI), in European Union countries that belong to the OECD and that apply the PLS-SEM technique.Based on the empirical results, the paper suggests that progress in the deployment and use of ICT drives the economic growth of countries that are within the framework of developed European economies.

The recognition of plastic surgery as a medical speciality in the European economic community: a 40th anniversary

With the signing of the Treaty of Rome in 1957, the European Economic Community (EEC) was established. Its principal aim was to allow free mutual movement of goods, capital, services and persons. Medical doctors from the EEC countries were to obtain the right of establishment and practice in all six countries, as of January 1, 1968. In 1959, the national professional associations of doctors formed an interest group (Standing Committee) to act as discussion partner for the legislative bodies of the EEC on medical issues. The professional organisations of the medical specialists in the EEC countries formed the Union Europeenne des Medecins Specialistes (UEMS) to give advice to the Standing Committee in matters concerning specialised medicine. The UEMS established various monospecialistic sections, one for each recognised speciality, thus expressing the fact that the speciality is practised by specialists who occupy themselves solely with this one particular speciality. Because no monospecialistic section for plastic surgery was initially established, the Dutch plastic surgeons initiated efforts to have their speciality recognised, in 1964. This initiative resulted in recognition and the establishment of a ‘Section Monospecialisee de Chirurgie Plastique’ by the UEMS, in 1969. The impact of the formation of this separate section on the national status of plastic surgery in various countries has been considerable. Still, it took another 6 years before the European Council of Ministers formally recognised this speciality on June 16, 1975. The years of step-by-step efforts to obtain this recognition are memorised to commemorate its 40th anniversary.

The impact of reduction in the benzene limit value in gasoline on airborne benzene, toluene and xylenes levels

Background benzene, toluene, xylenes (BTX) average concentrations have been measured over the urban agglomeration of Toulouse, France, during both springtime and summer periods of 1999 and 2001. The benzene average amount over the two Toulouse campaigns in 1999 is equal to 2.2 μg/m 3, very close to the French air quality standard and well under the average value of 5 μg/m 3 recommended by European Economic Community countries, recognising that those regulations are given for a whole year. BTX pollution over Toulouse has, in particular, been produced by motor vehicle exhaust gases. For the study conducted during the same periods of 2001, benzene concentrations were within the French quality value in the whole area. This is because the benzene limit value contained in gasoline went from 5% to 1 % since 2000 January 1. It will be important to measure benzene over annual periods in order to know its exact values over such a period and to observe its potential seasonal variations.

Diarrhoeal enterotoxin production by psychrotrophic Baccillus cereus present in reconstituted milk-based infant formulae (MIF).

One hundred reconstituted milk-based infant formulae (MIF) representative of 10 leading brands available in many European Economic Community countries were examined for psychrotrophic Bacillus cereus and for the presence of diarrhoeal enterotoxin. Of the 38 B. cereus isolates recovered from MIF, one, four and 16 strains grew at 4, 6 and 8 degrees C after 15 d. One (2.6%), two (5.3%) and six (15.8%) of the isolates were identified as potential psychrotrophic food poisoning strains as they were both enterotoxigenic and exhibited good growth at 4, 6 and 8 degrees C, respectively. Enterotoxin was not detected in MIF in which less than 5.36 log10 cfu of B. cereus ml-1 had grown. While psychrotrophic enterotoxigenic B. cereus strains occur occasionally in MIF, brief storage of reconstituted MIF at the recommended refrigeration temperature of 4 degrees C will allow this product to remain safe for consumption.

Maltodextrin stimulates growth of Bacillus cereus and synthesis of diarrheal enterotoxin in infant milk formulae.

One hundred reconstituted milk-based infant formulae (IMF) representative of 10 leading brands available in many European Economic Community countries were examined for Bacillus cereus and for the presence of diarrheal enterotoxin. Sixty-three reconstituted IMF supported growth of the organism after 14 h at 25 degrees C, and in 4 of these, which contained maltodextrin, enterotoxin was detected. Reconstituted IMF (and basal synthetic media) supplemented with > or = 0.1% maltodextrin supported both growth of B. cereus and diarrheal toxin production when incubated for 14 h or more at 25 degrees C.

Content and distribution oftrans‐18:1 acids in ruminant milk and meat fats. Their importance in european diets and their effect on human milk

AbstractThetrans‐18:1 acid content and distribution in fats from ewe and goat milk, beef meat and tallow were determined by a combination of capillary gas‐liquid chromatography and argentation thin‐layer chromatography of fatty acid isopropyl esters. Thetrans isomers account for 4.5 ± 1.1% of total fatty acids in ewe milk fat (seven samples) and 2.7±0.9% in goat milk fat (eight samples). In both species, as in cow, the main isomer is vaccenic (trans‐11 18:1) acid. The distribution profile oftrans‐18:1 acids is similar among the three species. The contribution of ewe and goat milk fat to the daily intake oftrans‐18:1 acids was estimated for people from southern countries of the European Economic Community (EEC): France, Italy, Greece, Spain, and Portugal. It is practically negligible for most of these countries, but in Greece, ewe and goat milk fat contributeca. 45% of the daily consumption oftrans‐18:1 acids from all dairy products (0.63 g/person/day for a total of 1.34 g/person/day). Thetrans‐18:1 acid contents of beef meat fat (ten retail cuts, lean part) and tallow (two samples) are 2.0 ± 0.9% and 4.6%, respectively, of total fatty acids (animals slaughtered in winter). Here too, the main isomer is vaccenic acid. Othertrans isomers have a distribution pattern similar to that of milk fat. Beef meat fat contributes less than one‐tenth of milk fat to thetrans‐18:1 acid consumed. The daily per capita intake oftrans‐18:1 acids from ruminant fats is 1.3–1.8 g for people from most countries of the EEC, Spain and Portugal being exceptions (ca. 0.8 g/person/day). In France, the respective contributions of ruminant fats and margarines to the daily consumption oftrans‐18:1 acids are 1.7 and 1.1 g/person/day (60 and 40% of total, respectively). These proportions, based on consumption data, were confirmed by the analysis of fat from milk of French women (ten subjects). The mean content oftrans‐18:1 acids in human milk is 2.0 ± 0.6%, with vaccenic acid being the major isomer. Based on the relative levels of thetrans‐16 18:1 isomer, we could confirm that milk fat is responsible for the major part of the daily intake oftrans‐18:1 acids by French people. The daily individual intake oftrans‐18:1 isomers from both ruminant fats and margarines for the twelve EEC countries varies from 1.5 g in Spain to 5.8 g in Denmark, showing a well‐marked gradient from the southwest to the northeast of the EEC.

Comparison of cancer mortality trends in major European areas, 1960-89.

In the prospect of a political and economic 'harmonization' of the European Economic Community (EEC) and, possibly, all Europe, the identification of differences in cancer frequencies and trends in major European areas (ie EEC, non-EEC western countries, and eastern European countries) can help to set health priorities. From 1960-64 to 1985-89 all-age mortality rates of some common cancers (mouth or pharynx, pancreas, lung, kidney, prostate and skin) increased substantially especially in East Europe. Conversely, mortality rates from cancer of the stomach, uterus, testis and from Hodgkin's disease declined, but, again, trends in East Europe were less favourable. Some elevations in rare malignancies (non-Hodgkin's lymphomas, multiple myeloma and connective and soft-tissue sarcomas) emerged rather uniformly in Europe, especially in elderly people. Most favourable trends in total cancer mortality were apparent among females in the EEC (minus 7%) and non-EEC western countries (minus 14%). The picture becomes gradually less favourable with respect to non-EEC western European males and eastern European females (virtually no change) and EEC males (plus 13%). With a 25% increase in total cancer mortality rates in the past 30 years, males in East Europe emerge as the 'problem' group. The even wider gap between West and East Europe in cancer rates in young males leaves no hope for future improvements in the absence of effective interventions. Raising public awareness (especially with respect to smoking and alcohol consumption), and increasing motivation and quality controls among health professionals are badly needed in disadvantaged European areas.

Light Duty Diesels—The Emissions Challenge

Further restrictions of automotive diesel emissions are planned for European Economic Community countries at the end of 1992 and in North America for 1994. The effect of changes in emission legislation on engine development is reviewed. This paper also examines these standards and the technologies that are being applied to light duty automotive diesel engines. Combustion systems, fuel injection equipment, exhaust gas recirculation and oxidation catalysts are areas where development is reaping benefits in reducing diesel emissions.

An Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Tobacco-Control Legislative Policies in European Community Countries

The purpose of this paper was to assess the effectiveness of anti-tobacco smoking legislation from 1948 onwards in reducing actual per capita tobacco consumption in the twelve countries of the European Economic Community (EEC). In order to undertake these assessments a score was assigned to every legislative measure, indicating the a priori likely impact of this measure on tobacco consumption. Two approaches were then utilized. In the first, it was found that the cumulative anti-tobacco legislative score correlates well in time with a reduction of tobacco consumption. In the second, cross-sectional data from the EEC countries and multiple regression modelling were used to estimate the elasticities of tobacco price, per capita income and cumulative anti-tobacco legislation score; it was found that legislation has an impact on tobacco consumption which, although considerably smaller than the corresponding impact of tobacco price levels, is nominally significant and potentially important. The evaluative approaches utilized in this paper are based on observational data of ecologic nature and can provide only weak evidence about the causal nature of the reported associations. Nevertheless, this limited evidence suggests that legislative measures may be effective both by affecting price levels and through other mechanisms, including health education and the formation of a more general anti-smoking ethos.

Comparative study on the national legislations of the European Economic Community countries on phytosanitary substances with the European Council's Directives

Comparative study on the national legislations of the European Economic Community countries on phytosanitary substances with the European Council's Directives

Dial-a-ride round Europe

ERICA (European Research Into Consumer Affairs) is engaged in research into problems faced, notably by the underprivileged, in the countries of the European Economic Community (EEC). An early project investigated dial-a-ride systems for the transport of disabled people in six EEC countries. The object was to discover their successes and failures and pass on the information. In spite of national differences, many of the problems were the same. So, since the aim of all ERICA's research is action, the first step has been to publish guidelines for any voluntary organization or local authority aiming to set up a dial-a-ride.

The Environment, COST-301 and Coastal State Policy

This paper was presented at a seminar entitled a European Concerted Approach to Vessel Traffic Services for Safe Navigation – EEC Project COST-301, sponsored jointly by the Institute's Netherlands branch and the Royal Institute of Engineers, Delft University of Technology and the Netherlands Directorate General for Shipping and Maritime Affairs held in Delft on 20 January 1986. It was published under the auspices of the European Environmental Bureau, an independent coalition body of leading environmental organizations in all the European Economic Community countries (with a total membership of over 10 million). The paper, of which the following is a condensed version, seeks to comment on the implications for environmental protection of the various COST-301 research programmes, and to assess the contribution which the findings resulting from them may make to future European coastal state policy and international measures.Aline De Bièvre is with the European Environmental Bureau and John Kemp is Professor Emeritus at the City of London Polytechnic.

EEC Trade Policies towards Asian Developing Countries

In recent years, there has been growing international concern about protectionist tendencies in industrial countries against exports from the developing world. Estimates show that during the early 1980s, protectionist measures covered an increasing extent of the exports of developing countries. The evidence indicates that compared with Japan and the United States, the European Economic Community (EEC) has the highest relative level of manufactured imports facing non-tariff barriers and also the greatest increase of such trade restrictions. This may seem to suggest that the high rates of unemployment and the keen competitiveness of imports in recent years prompted the EEC countries to respond to the demands for protection from domestic labor organizations and producers. Such a view, however, would be misleading. Rather, protectionism in the EEC must be considered as a part of the process towards the formation of a customs union…

African-European Economic Relations under the Lome Convention: Commodities and the Scheme of Stabilization of Export Earnings

Ever since Raul Prebisch, UNCTAD's first Secretary General, called attention to it in his famous 1964 report (UNCTAD, 1964), the commodities problem has been a priority item on the international agenda in the various forums where the North-South dialogue has been taking place. When the First Lome Convention was signed on 28 February 1975 between the nine countries of the European Economic Community (EEC) and forty-six African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) states, it was hailed as a major achievement, exemplary of the New International Economic Order (NIEO) then emerging within the wider framework of the North-South dialogue. In particular, much was made of the EEC countries' attempt to come to grips with the commodities problem by agreeing to set up a scheme (known as in Lome parlance) for the stabilization of export earnings from commodities exported by the ACP states to the EEC. This system, generally held as the most innovative feature of the Lome6 Convention, seemed to meet some, if not all, of the demands voiced by the developing countries in the context of the NIEO on the problem of commodities. Yet, this was by no means a gratuitous gesture on the part of the EEC. In the first place, the Community's acute awareness of its dependence on raw materials imports from the ACP states, as well as of the latter's dependence on raw materials exports to the EEC, tended to make it responsive to the ACP states' demands in the area of commodities. Furthermore, Stabex, as a system of compensatory financing, constitutes only one of several ways to deal with the problem, but by no means the most effective. Lastly, a preliminary analysis of the actual functioning of Stabex over the period covered by the First Lome6 Convention (1975 to 1979) and the first three years of implementation of the Second Lome6 Convention (1980 to 1982) shows that the system is fraught with many deficiencies relating to its mechanism, financial resources, distribution of benefits and actual operation by the Community's authorities. It has now become clear that Stabex has fallen far short of the high expectations which it initially raised, and that it has not been able to solve in a satisfactory manner the commodities problem encountered by the African ACP states.1

Maximizing Welfare in Customs Unions: The Case of Agricultural Price Policy Within the EEC

A basic idea of economic integration is to increase welfare. Customs union theory, consequently, has concentrated upon welfare effects of such integrated economies (Krauss, Collier). Empirical studies have tried to measure potential gains (Balassa). However, there is another problem to be considered. Once a customs union is formed, policy analysis becomes more complex than with single countries. Various interests of autonomous countries and the particular conditions of supranational integration must be taken into account in selecting policies which maximize welfare within a customs union. The welfare maximization problem in customs unions is particularly relevant for agricultural price policy within the European Economic Community (EEC). This policy must accommodate a complicated system of integrated markets and common financial responsibilities. Moreover, an essential part of this policy involves common decisions on prices for most agricultural products within the EEC. Differing national interests of EEC countries make it difficult to determine which agricultural price policy will be optimal from a welfare point of view. Divergencies among EEC countries since the introduction of monetary compensatory amounts (MCA) have resulted in failure to establish common EEC agricultural prices. The purpose of this paper is to analyze formally the meaning of a welfare-maximizing agricultural price policy within the EEC. The procedure is to formulate explicit welfare functions for EEC agricultural markets and to maximize them with respect to relevant price variables. With integrated economies, we must distinguish between national welfare functions for EEC countries and a supranational welfare function for the EEC as a whole. Then the relevant optimum conditions will reveal an optimal agricultural price policy.' Welfare Functions

Cassava as a food.

This review has attempted to examine information pertaining to the role of cassava (Manihot esculenta) as a major food source for a large part of the world population, particularly the countries of South America, Africa, and Asia, where it is primarily a major source of energy for 300 to 500 million people. Its cultivation, usually on small farms with little technology, is estimated to cover on an annual basis about 11 million hectares providing about 105 million tons, more than half of which is consumed by humans. The importance of cassava as an energy source can be seen by its growing demand in the European economic community countries where it forms up to 60% of the balanced diets for swine. Cassava is one of the crops that converts the greatest amount of solar energy into soluble carbohydrates per unit of area, thus 1 kg of moisture-free cassava meal may yield up to about 3750 kcal which would mean that a yearly production of 15 tons of cassava meal per hectare would yield some 56 million kcal. The major limitations of cassava as food appear to be its poor protein content and quality and the rapid post harvest deterioration of its roots which usually prevents their storage in the fresh state for more than a few days. However, in addition to its use for culinary purposes, cassava finds application in industrial products such as an adhesive for laundry purposes, for manufacturing paper, alcohol, butanol, dextrin, adhesive tape, textile sizing, and glue.

In Honor of Adolf Sprudzs

Adolf Sprudzs, Foreign Law Librarian and Lecturer in Legal Bibliography, came to the University of Chicago in August 1965. At that time the Law School Library had initiated a development program which aimed at the in-depth acquisition of legal materials for the European Economic Community countries and some other selected areas of the world. The appointment of Mr. Sprudzs was an essential step in the successful implementation of this program. The Law School already possessed a particularly rich collection of French and German legal publications, inter alia, and a faculty that included several European-trained law professors. The most influential of these was Max Rheinstein, who was instrumental in the growth of the foreign and comparative law program at the University of Chicago. The partnership of Professor Rheinstein and Mr. Sprudzs combined their great knowledge, interests and talents. Mr. Sprudzs’ ability to inspire faculty support led to the development of a comprehensive retrospective and current foreign and international law collection within the guidelines of the program. However, the real challenge to Adolf Sprudzs’ resourcefulness began in the early 1970's. As grant money became scarce, prices and the volume of legal publishing began a steady increase and the value of the dollar declined. Mr. Sprudzs was realistic in his assessment of the possible support of the collection and focused the scope of the collection in the areas that were of long-term research interest at the University of Chicago. He worked hard to increase European alumni support and to maintain the friendship that the foreign law graduates feel for the University of Chicago. His close contacts with these alumni, as well as with other librarians and law teachers in Europe, have often enabled the Law Library to acquire materials and obtain grants that would otherwise have been unavailable.

The effect of chlormequat on the yield and yield components of oil-seed rape

The objective of this study was to examine the effect of the chemical growth regulator chlormequat on the yield and yield components of oil-seed rape. Although this chemical is widely used in wheat production systems, its use as a morpho-regulator for oil-seed rape has not been examined thoroughly. A few Eastern European experiments have been published. Voskerusa (1972) applied it at 2, 4, 6 and 8 kg/ha to winter varieties in Czechoslovakia. His results, which agree with those of Fabry & Hannich (1972), demonstrated reduced winter kill using an autumn application. However, studies on modern varieties such as Rafal, now widely grown in European Economic Community countries, have not been reported in detail.