The increasing vulnerability of African nations to climate change underscores the need to identify the institutional, structural, and technological drivers of CO 2 emissions to advance progress toward SDG 13. However, the role of institutional, technological innovation, and trade in influencing CO 2 emissions remains insufficiently examined in an integrated and multi-channel framework within the African context. Using panel data of 15 African countries from 2000 to 2022, this study utilizes the Bias-Corrected Method of Moments and system GMM to examine the effects of the rule of law, green technology innovation, renewable energy consumption, international trade, and GDP on CO 2 emissions. The results reveal that the rule of law reduces CO 2 emissions, highlighting the role of strong governance and regulatory enforcement in improving environmental performance. Renewable energy consumption is found to reduce CO 2 emissions, reaffirming the environmental benefits of a clean-energy transition in Africa. In contrast, green technology innovation increases CO 2 emissions, suggesting a rebound effect and the predominance of carbon-intensive innovation pathways. GDP similarly contributes to rising CO 2 emissions, consistent with scale-driven environmental pressure. Trade is positively and insignificantly associated with CO 2 emissions. The results underscore the need for Africa to strengthen institutional quality, scale up clean energy systems, and reorient trade toward sustainable sectors to achieve SDG 13. • Examined the effect of rule of law, green technology innovation, andtrade on CO 2 emissions. • Rule of law significantly reduces CO 2 emissions across the African countries. • Green innovation raises CO 2 emissions, showing early-stage rebound effects. • Renewable energy use lowers emissions, supporting Africa's clean transition. • GDP increases CO 2 emissions, reflecting scale-driven pressures.

Population growth debates often posit that depopulation would reduce ecological strains. We explore that premise through the case of Japan, where population decline coincides with rising affluence, dietary change, and growing dependence on food imports. Using environmentally-extended multi-regional input-output analysis, we examine changes in Japan’s food-system footprints between 2008-2022 and apply decomposition analysis to identify key drivers. Our findings show that despite a shrinking population, absolute footprints remained stable, while per-capita shares increased by 21-30%, driven primarily by consumption of ultra-processed and animal-based foods, underpinned by affluence and dietary change. Most critically, Japan’s ultra-globalized food system offshores around 90% of its virtual land and water demand, while 54% of embodied GHG emissions are sourced domestically. Hence, Japan’s experience foreshadows a broader structural shift, whereby affluent societies generate disproportionately large per-capita environmental footprints. We emphasize the primacy of consumption and trade in shaping sustainability outcomes in the Anthropocene. • Depopulation in Japan has not reduced food consumption footprints • Rising affluence and caloric intake offset anticipated gains from depopulation • Ultra-processed and animal food products drive most land, water, and GHG footprints • Japan’s consumption footprints are increasingly displaced via international trade • Human depopulation alone is insufficient for sustainable food system transitions

This study investigates the determinants of timber trade from 21 Latin American countries to global markets over the period 1996–2023 using a gravity model framework. We focus in particular on roundwood, that is the dominant primary forest product in international trade, and we address the high prevalence of zero trade flows by estimating a Negative Binomial hurdle gravity model in a Bayesian setting, with posterior inference obtained via the Integrated Nested Laplace Approximation. Our study contributes to the literature by proposing a novel statistical methodology for gravity models and by providing insights into Latin America’s bidirectional timber trade. The results show that importer countries’ economic size significantly increases both the probability and the volume of roundwood trade, while exporter-side production capacity and forest endowments are key drivers of export intensity. Managed forestry plays an important role: a higher share of planted forests is positively associated with export volumes, suggesting scope for trade expansion without increasing pressure on natural forests. Climate-related natural disasters in importing countries increase the probability of trade, indicating growing demand for timber following extreme events. Institutional quality consistently enhances trade on both the extensive and intensive margins, while currency appreciation in exporter countries reduces competitiveness and trade flows. Finally, participation in selected trade agreements, particularly APEC, ITTA, and MERCOSUR, positively affects trade outcomes. These findings highlight the importance of sustainable forest management, institutional quality, macroeconomic stability, and context-specific trade agreements in strengthening Latin America’s position in global timber markets, while mitigating deforestation risks and increasing resilience to climate-related shocks. • First comprehensive study of Latin American roundwood trade (1996–2023). • Bayesian Negative Binomial hurdle gravity model with INLA in timber trade. • Importer demand, exporter capacity, forest endowments, and management drive intensity. • Institutions, exchange rates, disasters, and trade deals shape trade margins.

How do natural disasters affect agricultural exports?

An unseen threat to coral reef biodiversity: the international trade of live corals for the aquarium industry as reflected by CITES records (1990–2021)

Abstract How do women in parliament shape trade in clean and dirty products? A large body of literature finds that women have stronger preferences for environmental protection than men. I argue that when more women enter parliament, international trade becomes cleaner. One mechanism is by introducing more stringent environmental regulation, which shapes firms’ costs and hence comparative (dis)advantages: Stringent environmental regulation increases costs relatively more for firms producing dirty products, resulting in a comparative disadvantage in global product markets; firms producing clean products gain a comparative advantage. As a consequence, women in parliament make trade cleaner, which has consequences for environmental and distributional outcomes. Leveraging ‘gender quota shocks’ and a variety of country, firm, and product data from European Union (EU) countries, I find support for these arguments. Moreover, examining import flows, I interestingly find no evidence that gender quotas lead to the outsourcing of dirty production. I finally provide suggestive evidence for the mechanism that women’s descriptive representation shapes trade in clean versus dirty products via stricter environmental regulation. These findings enhance the study on the connection between descriptive and substantive representation, introduce a new perspective on trade and environmental politics, and highlight the significance of gendered representation for environmental and distributional outcomes.

In today’s context of economic globalization, cross-border e-commerce has become the core of international trade, and the efficient operation of the supply chain is key to the core competitiveness of cross-border e-commerce platforms. Supply chain optimization involves various processes within the supply chain. The main purpose of optimizing the supply chain is to help enterprises reduce costs and improve efficiency. This paper takes Shopee, a leading e-commerce platform in Southeast Asia and Latin America, as the research subject, systematically analyzing the operating status of its six core supply chain links. It focuses on innovative optimization practices in four key areas: logistics and warehousing, sales platforms, payment and funds, and customer service, and conducts targeted comparative analysis with TEMU in these four areas, clarifying the strengths and weaknesses of both supply chain models. Finally, combining current industry development trends, provide summarizing suggestions for the optimization and innovation of cross-border e-commerce supply chains, and offer some references for the high-quality development of the industry.

This research highlights the importance of analyzing the economic impact of international trade agreements on the agricultural sector, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises. The objective of the study is to examine the economic impact of international trade agreements on the exports of agricultural products of Agrícola ROPAPA, located in Guasave, Sinaloa, considering changes in income, export volume, and competitiveness in the international market. A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining qualitative and quantitative techniques within a case study design, with a cross-sectional scope and descriptive–explanatory approach. Data collection was conducted during the 2025 agricultural season through semi-structured interviews with management personnel, Likert-scale surveys applied to staff, and direct observation of productive and commercial processes, which allowed for data triangulation. The results show positive effects on market access, product quality improvement, and the company’s competitive preparedness; however, challenges persist related to rising costs, non-tariff barriers, and limited technical training. It is concluded that international trade agreements represent relevant instruments for the international integration of the agricultural sector, although their full utilization requires public policies and business strategies that promote more equitable and sustainable adaptation.

As a significant player on the global trade stage, the EU’ s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) influences the international trade landscape, global economic growth, and the formulation of trade rules, presenting opportunities and challenges to countries worldwide and driving changes in the global trade structure and economic adjustment. Malaysia, a major global exporter of aluminum, steel, and palm oil, is significantly affected by CBAM in its exports to Europe. CBAM increases the export costs of related products, weakening their competitiveness in the EU market, while also prompting Malaysia to accelerate its green transition. Its response measures provide a reference for other developing countries and have a domino effect on the global trade order.

Abstract There is a widespread sense among international economic lawyers that the most-favored-nation obligation, as the expression of a nondiscrimination norm is fundamental for international trade law. But ought they adorn MFN with its normative halo? This article studies the historical emergence of the MFN-as-fundamental mythology. It shows that this mythology is the outcome of three controversial projects over the course of the twentieth century. Embedded historically, they reveal that much less than nondiscrimination, MFN has historically been the vector for drawing the boundaries across which discrimination operates, whether between imperial powers and colonies, or between the West and the East. It is only out of a relatively recent, and intellectually radical turn that MFN became synonymous with the very idea of a universalist, nondiscrimination-centric, international trade law. But that intellectual universe—ordoliberalism—now being past us, this Article asks what account can we offer of alternative norms that have structured international trade law.

This study aims to analyze the factors that influence economic growth. Economic growth is an important indicator used to measure the success of a country's development because it reflects the increasing capacity of an economy to produce goods and services. This research uses a descriptive approach by examining several factors affecting economic growth, including investment, labor, unemployment, and international trade. The results show that investment plays a significant role in increasing production capacity and encouraging the development of industry and infrastructure. Labor also contributes to economic productivity through the production of goods and services. On the other hand, a high unemployment rate can hinder economic growth because part of the labor force is not absorbed into productive activities. In addition, international trade through export and import activities can support economic growth by expanding markets for domestic products and fulfilling the need for raw materials and technology in the production process. Therefore, economic development policies need to consider these factors to achieve sustainable economic growth and improve public welfare

As the foreign direct investment (FDI)-driven catch-up model of eight Central and Eastern European (CEE-8) economies approaches its limits, strengthening the export capacity of small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) may play an important role in sustaining economic convergence within the European Union (EU). Despite deep integration into EU production networks, domestic SME participation in international trade remains limited. In this context, digitalization is increasingly seen as a factor that may reduce information, coordination, and administrative barriers associated with SME cross-border trade. This study examines how different dimensions of digitalization relate to intra-EU export performance of SMEs in the CEE-8, conceptualizing digitalization across three distinct but interacting layers: firm-level digital adoption, societal digital usage, and the institutional digital environment. Using a balanced panel dataset covering 2018–2023, the analysis employs a one-way fixed-effects estimator with wild cluster bootstrap inference to address the small-cluster setting. Results indicate that societal digital usage and digital public services for businesses are strongly and positively associated with SME intra-EU export performance. Firm-level digitalization shows a more complex pattern: internal digital tools display delayed positive associations after a maturation period, while e-commerce participation is consistently negatively associated with aggregate export volumes. Robustness checks using Driscoll-Kraay standard errors and alternative functional forms confirm the stability of the core findings. The results suggest that strengthening digital foundations and reducing cross-border digital frictions can support more effective CEE-8 SME participation in the EU Single Market.

ABSTRACT This study investigates the impact of bank capital regulation on firms' export behaviour within a two‐country theoretical framework that explicitly incorporates the banking sector. We show that more stringent capital requirements discourage firms from exporting and reduce export scale by increasing financing costs through tighter lending conditions. Using a comprehensive dataset of listed firms in China, we find that higher bank capital adequacy ratios are associated with lower export propensity and export volumes, with effects particularly pronounced for firms more reliant on bank credit. We further explore the moderating roles of financial market development and monetary policy. The results indicate that more developed financial markets amplify the adverse effects of bank capital regulation on firms' export performance, whereas tighter monetary policy mitigates these effects. By integrating banking regulation, financial conditions, and firm‐level trade outcomes, this study contributes to the literature on banking and international trade and offers policy‐relevant insights for regulators seeking to balance financial stability with firms' international competitiveness.

Air transport infrastructure plays a vital role in economic growth, international trade, tourism, and regional integration, with airports functioning as complex service systems where passenger interactions with terminal facilities shape overall travel experience. This study evaluates the adequacy of facilities at Murtala Muhammed International Airport Terminals I and II and examines their relationship with passenger satisfaction. Data were collected through structured field observations and questionnaires administered to 400 passengers. Descriptive statistics and cross tabulation were used to assess facility provision and satisfaction levels, while chi square test of association and correlation analysis were applied to examine relationships between variables. Results show that Terminal II provides a more developed and passenger oriented environment, with 86.7% of listed facilities available compared to 60% in Terminal I. Correspondingly, 66.7% of passengers in Terminal II reported being satisfied or highly satisfied, compared to 37.0% in Terminal I. The chi square result (χ² = 35.607, p < 0.05) indicates a significant association between terminal type and passenger satisfaction, while correlation analysis shows that key service dimensions such as tangibles (r = 0.62) and reliability (r = 0.57) are strong predictors of satisfaction. Key deficiencies identified include inconsistent power and water supply, inadequate drivers’ lounges, and limited seating and recreation facilities. The findings provide empirical evidence to support targeted improvements in airport planning and management to enhance passenger experience.

Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) pilot programs impose binding quota constraints and enable allowance trading, reshaping cost structures and strategic interactions in oligopolistic agri-food supply chains. This paper quantifies the resulting economic impacts, including equilibrium prices, profits, and trade flows, by developing a multi-tier network equilibrium model that links upstream suppliers, downstream manufacturers, domestic and international demand markets, and a carbon trading center under an Emissions Trading Scheme pilot setting. Suppliers invest in low-carbon technologies, while manufacturers undertake labor-efficiency investments that affect unit costs and throughput, with proximity-based spillovers captured via a grid-distance mechanism. The equilibrium conditions are formulated as a variational inequality framework and computed numerically, enabling systematic comparative statics analysis under alternative quota stringency and trading conditions. Using China-EU garlic trade as an illustrative case, the numerical analysis indicates that tighter policy constraints and trading conditions shift production and allowance-trading patterns, with corresponding changes in prices, profits, and emissions across tiers. It also shows that moderate efficiency investment can improve productivity and may reduce aggregate emissions, whereas very high unilateral investment tends to exhibit diminishing returns and can be associated with non-smooth adjustments in network allocations. Finally, coordinated upstream-downstream investment is generally associated with more stable outcomes than isolated initiatives. The framework offers a decision-relevant tool for evaluating Emissions Trading Scheme pilot designs in regulated international agri-food trade networks.

ABSTRACT Adam Smith's two distinct benefits from foreign trade were offered to dissuade others from adopting the mercantilist view that there is one principal gain from trade: the importation of money. Although Smith's two benefits received considerable attention in the literature, there was no consensus on what Smith meant by his two benefits. This paper offers a new interpretation of those benefits. Smith's first benefit is a micro benefit, with its impact on individuals. That benefit is the subjective value creation that results from voluntary international exchange. Both parties to the exchange experience an improvement in their living standard. Smith's second benefit is a macro benefit, impacting the economy at large. International trade extends markets and allows for production on a larger scale. A greater division of labor increases labor productivity and increases the national product. This increase in aggregate production is the second benefit from foreign trade. What makes this interpretation of Smith's two benefits attractive is the evidence that Adam Smith concurs with the interpretation.

Accurate industrial classification of firms forms the backbone of business surveys, economic policymaking, and international trade analysis. However, national statistics institutes (NSIs) worldwide grapple with the labor intensive manual assignment of International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC) codes: a process prone to human error, inconsistent across regions, and particularly burdensome for developing economies. This study confronts these challenges by assessing performance of token-overlap (Jaccard), TF-IDF cosine similarity, edit-distance (fuzzy) and SBERT embeddings against human-coded ground truth in classifying firms. Using a dataset of 6588 firms, performance diverges sharply: SBERT attains Accuracy = 0.78 and Weighted F 1 = 0.78 (Cohen’s κ ≈ 0.75 ), while surface methods lag (Fuzzy: Accuracy 0.43; Cosine: 0.31; Jaccard: 0.26). Statistical tests confirms these differences (Cochran’s ( Q = 8320.81 ) with p < 0.001 ) and inter-method agreement is only fair ( κ Fleiss ≈ 0.270 ), motivating a class-level diagnostic approach. Using confusion matrices and Haberman adjusted residuals we expose systematic off-diagonal confusions (notably between manufacturing, professional/service and certain retail/wholesale categories) and identify classes with strong, automatable diagonals versus sparse or ambiguous tails that require human coding.

This study examines the impact of business ethics on international trade performance, with particular emphasis on the mediating roles of ethical leadership and organizational identification. Drawing on Social Learning Theory and Social Identity Theory, a dual-path mediation framework is proposed to explain how ethical values are translated into organizational outcomes. Data were collected from 342 employees engaged in international trade activities within Taiwanese small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was employed to test the hypothesized relationships. The results indicate that business ethics has a significant positive effect on international trade performance. In addition, business ethics significantly enhances ethical leadership and organizational identification, both of which positively influence performance. Mediation analysis confirms that ethical leadership (behavioral mechanism) and organizational identification (psychological mechanism) serve as parallel mediators, partially transmitting the effect of business ethics on performance. This study contributes to the literature by integrating ethical leadership and organizational identification into a unified multi-level framework, offering a more comprehensive explanation of how business ethics influences performance. From a managerial perspective, the findings highlight the importance of ethical governance, leadership development, and employee identification in fostering trust, strengthening cross-border relationships, and achieving sustainable competitive advantage in international markets. JEL classification numbers: F23, F14, M12, M14. Keywords: Business Ethics, International Trade Performance, Ethical Leadership, Organizational Identification.

ARTICLE HIGHLIGHT- Belida population in the lake is low and nearing threatened status.- Belida size data show weak population recovery.- Conservation action is needed to protect belida stocks.- Habitat pressure increases belida vulnerability and limits protection.- Findings support stronger conservation for threatened belida.ABSTRACTThe conservation status of belida fish in Indonesia is regulated under the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries of the Republic of Indonesia Number 1 of 2021 concerning Protected Fish Types, which includes four species: Bornean Belida (Chitala borneensis), Sumatran Belida (Chitala hypselonotus), Lopis Belida (Chitala lopis), and Java belida (Notopterus notopterus). The Javan belida fish (Notopterus notopterus) is currently classified as Least Concern (LC) to facilitate data collection on protected fish species and those listed in the Appendices of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). However, intensive harvesting for human consumption may lead to continued population declines in Java. Therefore, this study aimed to estimate the population size and status of the Javan belida fish, providing a scientific basis for government recommendations, particularly by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, regarding its conservation status. Field sampling was conducted in situ in Rawa Pening Lake during three sampling periods (January, February, and March 2024) using bamboo blinds, traps, and lift nets. The collected data were analyzed to estimate population abundance, length-weight relationships, length-frequency distribution, sex ratio, gonad maturity stage, and catch per unit of effort. A total of 47 belida fish were caught, all identified as Javan belida (Notopterus notopterus). The estimated population density in Rawa Pening Lake was 32 individuals per 1,400 m2, equivalent to 229 individuals per ha. Based on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) vulnerability criteria, the belida population in Rawa Pening Lake is considered near threatened.

Based on the analysis of the current state of the Russian agro-industrial complex, the measures of state support in relation to agriculture and agro-industrial products markets regulation have been summarized. A critical assessment of the main aspects of domestic agricultural production development in terms of its participation in international trade and an import substitution strategy implementation has been given. In particular, the analysis of the strategy of Russian’s turn to the East in the context of foreign trade in agricultural products has been carried out, the raw material nature of exports and strategies development for successful cooperation in the Eastern markets have been analyzed. The purpose of the study is to explore Russia’s possibilities and potential in import substitution tools implementation in the agro-industrial complex, considering the current challenges of global economic development. The key objectives of the study were to analyze the current state of Russian agro-industrial complex products on the world market, as well as the internal potential of the country’s agricultural complex. The elements of an optimal strategy for the import substitution mechanisms implementation in the country in the current circumstances have been proposed, as well as recommendations for implementing a successful strategy of turning Russia to the East, which will strengthen the country’s position in the global market. It has been proved that one of the conditions for the import substitution program implementation in the agricultural sector is the filling of the economy with domestic production goods, as well as creating programs aimed at the export-oriented production development.