International Economy Research Articles

Sabotaging ordoliberal communitarianism: for a critical discursive political economy of ‘the local community’ in neoliberal Europe

The commentary aims to provoke a discussion in Critical Political Economy (CPE) about local articulations of neoliberalism, proposing the concept of ordoliberal communitarianism as a theoretical practice to sabotage the hegemonic essentialisation of ‘the local community’ within the context of EU neoliberal constitutionalism. This conceptual proposal is a plea to critical scholars who assume a pre-existing local community to instead enquire from whom, how and why the necessity of appealing to ‘the local community’ emerges to strategically essentialise socio-historically contingent political forms. To support this argument, I first discuss the relationship between ‘the community’ and the global political economy by combining sociology of knowledge, CPE and governmentality studies. This discussion leads to a consideration of ordoliberal communitarianism as produced by and through dominant institutions and translating hegemonic concepts in and through local contexts. As an indicative case emerging from research on the interpellation of local communities in the current Italian competitive strategy, I offer some notes for a history of Italian ordoliberal communitarianism as a transnational socio-historical experience to investigate the formation of local developmental coalitions led by EU governance. The commentary concludes by recalling the role of critical scholars in semantically sabotaging the hegemonic essentialisation of ‘the local community’.

Deep learning-based vehicular engine health monitoring system utilising a hybrid convolutional neural network/bidirectional gated recurrent unit

Vehicles play a pivotal role in the current era of Industry 4.0 by providing passengers with excellent mobility, comfort, and safety while strengthening national and international economies. Unanticipated vehicular engine issues can hinder performance and lead to costly maintenance. As analytics processes become faster, more accurate, and more reliable, intelligent fault prediction and diagnosis for vehicles, particularly engines, is becoming increasingly popular. To date, hybrid deep learning approaches to vehicle engine diagnostics have been limited, and none have used engine health monitoring and categorisation based on vulnerability assessment and vehicle structural information. This paper introduces a hybrid deep learning-based vehicular engine health monitoring system (VEHMS) decision model using Deep CNN (convolutional neural network)-BiGRU (bi-directional gated recurrent unit). This model monitors a vehicle’s engine health in real-time and classifies its status as good, critical, moderate, or minor condition. Several advanced and hybrid deep learning algorithms were applied to monitor engine health and categorise its status by integrating sensor data with evaluated vulnerability information from an infrastructure vulnerability assessment model. The Deep CNN-BiGRU-based VEHMS decision model outperformed other techniques with an accuracy of 0.8897, ensuring minimal decision losses while classifying engine conditions. This study aims to contribute to developing comprehensive vehicle health monitoring systems and advance the automotive industry by incorporating more intelligent features. The proposed approach can enhance vehicle performance, reliability, and efficiency in the transportation sector by improving engine health monitoring.

Negotiating North-South relations: The World Bank’s Grain Marketing Project in revolutionary Ethiopia, 1974–1978

This article explores the driving reasons that shaped the World Bank policy toward Africa in the 1970s through the lens of the relationship between the World Bank, western countries, and revolutionary Ethiopia from 1974 to 1978, during the negotiations for the Grain Marketing project (GMP). The trajectory of the GMP reveals that the World Bank’s attitude was shaped by external and internal factors as well. The organization operated under pressure of major Western shareholders and associated business groups demanding compensation for the nationalization of their assets. The continuation of negotiations and the final approval of the GMP, however, were primarily shaped by the demands of the Ethiopian government and the internal confrontation between the advocates of macro-economic orthodoxy and the supporters of a flexible approach to development. According to the latter, the relationship with Addis Ababa was a critical test for the World Bank’s legitimacy in sub-Saharan Africa at a time when demands for a New International Economic Order challenged established patterns of North-South relations.

Predictions and Hopes: Global Political Economy Dynamics of the Next Ten Years

Predictions and hopes are different things. Predictions are based on past empirical observations. They single out what seem to be essential variables and the relationships between them and assume that their importance will prevail in the future. Hopes add a component to a prediction, namely an evaluation, which refers back to the entity that produces the prediction. More favourable predictions are hoped to become a reality while others, which would see the entity in a worse position, are not hoped for. A closer look reveals that with a consideration of what predictions are used for by an entity, predictions and hopes are less independent. By predicting an event that one hopes for, the chances that it actually happens might be increased. E.g. in business environments predicting that a competitor will have no chance might intimidate the opponent and help to be victorious. On the other hand, predicting a bad result might induce the entity under consideration to change its current course of action. E.g. the catastrophe predictions of the Club of Rome in the Sixties were meant to be a self-destructing prediction to save the entity, human society, from running into environmental disaster. In both cases, predictions usually exaggerate to produce a stronger impact. Therefore, the way a prediction is formulated always to some extent carries the hopes or anxieties of the entity that produces it.

Economic Responses to Nazi Aggression in Europe: Albert Hirschman and Paul Rosenstein-Rodan on the Economic Sovereignty of Central and Eastern Europe

Abstract Germany's expansion in Central and Eastern Europe was not just one among many aggressive moves by the Third Reich but the central strategy of the Nazi imperial project on the continent. Prominent economists, politicians, and think tanks agreed that crucial to this project was Germany's economic domination of the area, and they committed to developing a new vision for a postwar international order that avoided the instability and turmoil of the interwar years. This article discusses the analyses of the crisis of Central and Eastern Europe and solutions to it that Albert Hirschman and Paul Rosenstein-Rodan, then both virtually unknown and working independently one from the other, produced during World War II—Hirschman with a focus on the international dimension and Rosenstein-Rodan with a focus on the domestic one. This article offers a synthetic discussion of how the war deeply affected their economic thinking and how, in turn, their analyses became foundational elements of new and important disciplinary fields in the postwar decades, such as international political economy and development economics.

Penny Wise and Pound Foolish: Does Striving to Meet Earnings Expectations by Manipulating Real Activities Trigger Product Recalls?

We examine whether managers’ activities in striving to reach earnings targets through real earnings manipulation affect their firms’ product recalls. Our evidence implies that firms suspected of manipulating real activities in trying to meet earnings benchmarks exhibit a higher likelihood and frequency of product recalls. In cross-sectional results consistent with expectations, we find that the impact of exploiting real activities to attain earnings benchmarks on product recalls intensifies for firms whose managers have stronger incentives to manage earnings and subsides for firms subject to greater customer power and firms with more growth opportunities. Additional analysis shows that lowering product quality to meet or beat earnings expectations undermines firms’ future performance. This paper was accepted by Ranjani Krishnan, accounting. Funding: Y. Chen acknowledges the General Research Fund of the Research Grants Council of Hong Kong [Project 15504219] for financial support. L. Ma acknowledges financial support from the Ministry of Education Project of Humanities and Social Sciences [Project 22YJC630099] and the Young Scholars Grant Program of the University of International Business and Economics [Project 20YQ06]. Supplemental Material: The online appendix and data files are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2021.04035 .

The Missing Agrarian Middle Class

During the middle decades of the twentieth century, Puerto Rico embarked on one of the most rapid processes of industrialization and economic development the world had ever seen. Yet the industrial economy that this process produced had two fundamental flaws: it featured little by way of local capital formation in the manufacturing sector, and it was incapable of producing sufficient employment for the island’s labor force. What explains these flaws? This article seeks to answer this question by drawing on the rich literature on development in East Asia. I engage with four theories that explain successful East Asian development on the basis, respectively, of unique insertion into the international political economy, robust industrial policies, economic nationalism, and agrarian reform processes that preceded industrialization. While Puerto Rico benefited from all of these factors—which may explain the relative success of development on the island—they differed qualitatively from the East Asian cases, with the possible exception of international political economy. I suggest that these differences might in turn be explained by substantial differences in pre-existing agrarian class structure. The absence of a significant stratum of smallholding agricultural producers in Puerto Rico distinguished the island from East Asian societies. It also helps explain the lack of local capital formation and employment generation built into the Puerto Rican development model, as well as the shape of industrial policy and agrarian reform and the ultimate weakness of nationalist impulses.

Dispute Resolution in International Economic Law

Dispute Resolution in International Economic Law

The Current Evolution of International Political Economy: Exploring the New Theoretical Divide between New Globalization and Anti-Globalization

The Current Evolution of International Political Economy: Exploring the New Theoretical Divide between New Globalization and Anti-Globalization

Editorial: The Workshop ‘Pursuing Fairness in Times of Crisis: Reflections on the Future of International Economic Law’ Held within the 2023 ESIL Annual Conference

This editorial reflects on the discussions held during the workshop 'Pursuing Fairness in Times of Crisis: Reflections on the Future of International Economic Law', organized by the Interest Group on International Economic Law of the European Society of International Law (ESIL). The workshop highlighted the challenges and ethical dilemmas related to fairness in international investment arbitration. The selection of five contributions for this special edition from a multitude of submissions underscores the diversity and complexity of the topics addressed. The editorial also highlights the decline in new investment treaties in recent years, analyzing factors such as economic nationalism, geopolitical tensions, and the reassessment of existing treaties. In the current context, investment treaties remain crucial but require ongoing reassessment to ensure a fair balance between investor protection and state sovereignty.

In Ottoman – British Commercial Relations Efforts to Increase Cotton Production in Smyrna and Its Surroundings (1855–1870)

ABSTRACT During the mid–19th century, cotton production and trade became increasingly important in and around Smyrna. This was due to a combination of factors, including favourable climate conditions, fertile plains in the region, and international demand from England and other European countries. These countries were unable to purchase American cotton due to the American Civil War, which made cotton produced in Smyrna even more valuable and in demand. The purpose of this study is to examine the changes and developments in cotton production and trade in Smyrna between 1855–1870, with a particular focus on the general course of Anglo—Ottoman commercial relations during this period. The sources used for this study include the Ottoman Archives, British Press, official publications, and reports. This study aims to shed light on the economic and commercial history of Smyrna during this period, by analysing the factors that contributed to the growth of cotton production and trade in the region. By examining the primary sources available, we can gain a better understanding of the social, political, and economic context in which cotton production and trade took place, and the impact it had on the local and international economy.

Publishing experiences of researchers in the developing world: An analysis of submissions to the Review of Development Economics, January 2015 to April 2022

AbstractResearchers based in poorer countries typically face major challenges in publishing their work in international journals, compared to those faced by researchers in the wealthier countries of Europe and North America. This paper studies this issue based on the experience of papers submitted to the Review of Development Economics, an important international development economics journal. It presents an analysis of submissions and success in publication, based on the fortunes of all papers submitted to the journal between 2015 and April 2022, disaggregated by the country in which the corresponding author is based. Authors based in low and middle income countries accounted for 33% of publications in this period, though they accounted for 61% of the submissions received. A main factor was that these papers were significantly less likely to be sent for review by the journal; if reviewed, they were also less likely to be accepted than papers from authors in high income countries, though that differential is much less stark. This analysis is presented in the interests of transparency and to encourage discussion, but also to raise issues the journal needs to address. The paper finishes by reviewing, based on co‐editor experience over this period, issues and potential responses.

Why Patents on Climate Technologies Must Be Cut Short

Abstract This contribution questions the term of protection for patents under circumstances of climate change. Patents typically last for 20 years but, for climate-related technologies, this is arguably too long. Under the 1.5°C scenario of the Paris Agreement, we need to make significant headway before 2030. Luckily, the technologies that need to be implemented broadly to reach the 2030 threshold have been developed already. To save civilisation from the worst impacts of climate change, the roll-out of existing technologies (static efficiency) is more important than the development of new ones (dynamic efficiency). However, patent terms take neither static efficiency nor the climate timeframe into account. Technologies developed today will come off patent only in the 2040s, limiting their free availability when their wide roll-out should be the main concern. Conversely, the climate technologies that come off patent today were developed in the early 2000s, long before climate change acquired its current urgency and investment in climate technologies was ramped up. These developments show that innovation systems for climate change have worked well, but they also show how terms of protection may now curtail the usefulness of past innovations. The contribution will analyse patent terms from a domestic and an international political economy perspective. The contribution will argue that, on balance, the situation requires a change of the TRIPS Agreement to shorten the term of patents on mature climate technologies. The TRIPS-waiver for patents on COVID-19 vaccines provides a partial precedent.

A Chip War Made in Germany? US Techno‐Dependencies, China Chokepoints, and the German Semiconductor Industry

<p>As geo-economic and geopolitical rivalries intensify, the US is weaponizing its power in global semiconductor supply chains to restrict Chinese technological development. To win this chip war against China, the US must compel key foreign firms in Asia and Europe not to supply its adversary with the materials, tools, and know-how needed to make advanced semiconductors. But will these firms agree to follow the US chip embargo and avoid the lucrative Chinese market? This article examines Germany’s “China chokepoint” firms, whose identity and behavior remain critically understudied. Drawing on novel data sets and annual company reports, we show that German firms across three case studies are highly “techno-dependent” on the US. Despite this techno-dependence, German firms have so far sought to circumnavigate US export controls. This constitutes a puzzle because Germany’s semiconductor firms are no more involved in the Chinese market than are firms in Japan and South Korea—which have frequently signaled voluntary compliance or even withdrawn from China in anticipation of harsher US sanctions. To resolve this puzzle, we map out Germany’s semiconductor network and demonstrate that it is tightly articulated with Germany’s auto industry—which is in turn heavily exposed to Chinese markets. We propose that this secondary exposure, through firms’ embeddedness in Germany’s “national production regime,” encourages them to resist the US chip embargo. In this way, we contribute empirical and conceptual insights to international political economy scholarship on firms as geo-economic actors, actively engaged in a protracted and contentious policy process with US authorities.</p>

Research on International Industrial Cooperation and Cross-border Integration in Hebei Province

This paper analyzes the complex situation of international political economy, and emphasizes the opportunities brought by the effectiveness of RCEP and the recovery of emerging economies. In this context, Hebei has shortcomings in the areas of cooperation and investment scale. International production capacity cooperation and the integration of cross-border industrial chains have become the key to achieving high-quality and open development. Hebei should make up for the loss of foreign trade through production capacity cooperation, ensure the safety of the industrial chain, and promote the flow of production factors. Cross-border industrial chain integration is an important way for Hebei to go global with superior production capacity, which will help stabilize the industrial foundation, promote cooperation in the whole field and cultivate new advantages. Hebei should adapt to the new situation of trade and investment, promote the upgrading of production capacity cooperation, and promote regional economic integration.

Current state and prospects of tourism business development in the city of Almaty

The tourism business is growing rapidly as a tool for economic development, revenue generation and development of national and international economies. After all, tourism business allows to create jobs, increase investments and products. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to identify the current state of tourism business development in the city of Almaty and SWOT-analysis of the main problems and prospects. In the course of the study, survey questions were developed with a review of literature included in the Scopus and WoS database, with the main conclusions drawn. The survey was conducted to determine the level of tourism business development in Almaty city, in which owners and managers of 523 enterprises voluntarily participated. In order to ensure the accuracy of the survey, the answers of 510 respondents were selected after a 3-month selection process. The analysis of the survey responses showed that 72.7% of tourism business representatives do not have special tourism education; and 32.9% do not have staff contracts. However, as positive perspectives: it is encouraging that respondents are keen to grow their businesses, keen to overcome the effects and crisis of the Covid-19 pandemic, and that 29% of respondents are young entrepreneurs. In addition, as a result of SWOT-analysis, the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and risks of tourism business development in Almaty became known. Thus, this study helps to identify a promising direction for future research, being an auxiliary tool in solving problems that hinder the development of tourism infrastructure in Almaty, improvement of service provision, sustainable development of tourism business.

Trade, Power, and Welfare: An International Economic Political Analysis of Great Power Competition

Traditional international trade theories seldom consider the pursuit of power as maintaining and enlarging a country’s relative strength in the process of interstate competition. However, in the context of great power competition, the importance of power in the trade between advanced and latecomer countries has become more pronounced. Given this situation, we can establish a tractable and generalized international economic political framework for analyzing great power competition by introducing the power factor into classic two-country trade theory, treating the absolute welfare and relative welfare emphasized by economics and political science respectively as actors’ dual objectives, and making use of game theory methods. It can be found that in a two-country game composed of an advanced and a latecomer country, the latter will prefer a strategy of “enhancing its own strength and rectifying its own weak points,” while the former will favor a strategy that “worsens the other’s weak points and enhances the other’s strengths.” Once the technological gap that determines comparative advantage narrows, the advanced country will tend to totally suppress the latecomer and even “decouple” from it.

Structural limits to effective environmental activism: Post‐neoliberal development, extractive imperative and authoritarianism in Ecuador

AbstractWith the election of President Rafael Correa in the 2006 elections, Ecuadorian environmentalists became influential policymaking actors. Agenda‐setting successes were followed by their decisive contribution to determining legislative content and its passing. However, the moment of alliance between environmentalists and Correa proved to be temporary. Environmentalists returned to a more adversarial posture in relation to the state and its approach to constructing a post‐neoliberal development model that relied on the intensification of primary commodity extraction. Their efficacy in shaping environmental policy making and implementation declined and their activities against oil and mining extraction were met by increasingly authoritarian responses by the state. Structural constraints emerging from the global political economy of environment and development were ultimately decisive in the rise of authoritarianism and the reversal of the agenda of the environmentalists.

The Role of International Institutions in Enforcing International Economic Law: Analysis of Strength and Weaknesses

The Role of International Institutions in Enforcing International Economic Law: Analysis of Strength and Weaknesses

Globalization is Evolving, Not Ending: Notes on International Economic Linkages Amidst Geopolitical De-Risking

Globalization is Evolving, Not Ending: Notes on International Economic Linkages Amidst Geopolitical De-Risking