Marketplace Research Articles

Impact of economic policy uncertainty on global carbon emissions

The article aims to examine the potential effect of Economic Policy Uncertainty (EPU) on the mean and variance of carbon (CO2) emissions by employing a novel nonparametric causality-in-quantiles and quantile-on-quantile on the dataset comprising of 17 economies to test our hypothesis. The results of causality-in-quantiles find that EPU offers a significant yet mixed ability to impact the carbon emissions of most economies. These mixed patterns of impact pertain not only to mean and variance but also across regions. The results of quantile-on-quantile reveal that high EPU leads to an augmented level of carbon emissions. This causality may indicate that macroeconomic and institutional factors influence the carbon emission for all analyzed countries. These findings are particularly useful for practitioners, policymakers, academic researchers, and traders in the carbon market as they could promote the realization of carbon reductions targets by maintaining stable economic policies that have tangible ramifications for carbon emissions behavior.

Краудфандинговые онлайн-платформы для малого и среднего бизнеса в России

In the modern world, in the conditions of digitalization of the economy, significant changes are taking place in the financing market. One of the results of such changes was the emergence and development of alternative sources of financing. Crowdfunding is becoming one of the most attractive forms of financing for small and medium-sized businesses, which, due to its features, significantly reduces financing costs. This article discusses the concept of platform crowdfunding, the dynamics of the crowdfunding platform market in Russia, as well as possible prospects for its development.

Exploring the relationship between Chinese crude oil futures market efficiency and market micro characteristics

This paper uses daily frequency data spanning from March 26, 2018 to February 3, 2023, and combines the exponential generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity in mean (EGARCH-M) model with the time-varying parameters state-space (TVPSS) model to dynamically test the efficiency of the Chinese crude oil futures market (CCOFM). Additionally, the paper examines the relationship between market efficiency and market micro characteristics such as market depth, market liquidity, noise trading, speculation rate, and information asymmetry. The results show that the CCOFM exhibited weak-form efficiency in June 2020, which lasted until the end of February 2022, and after that, the efficiency showed a poor development trend. Analyzed from the macro level, the Market Maker System and Trader Suitability System have a positive effect on market efficiency, while the Russian-Ukrainian conflict has a negative effect on market efficiency. Analyzed from the micro level, market depth and information asymmetry have a positive effect on market efficiency, while the speculation rate has a negative effect on market efficiency, and noise trading and market liquidity have no significant effect on market efficiency. Market efficiency has a positive effect on market depth and a negative effect on speculation rate. Market liquidity and noise trading have a positive effect on speculation rate, while both information asymmetry and market liquidity have a negative effect on noise trading. In addition, speculation rate has a weak negative effect on information asymmetry, and market depth and speculation rate have a weak positive effect on market liquidity. This study provides theoretical support and decision-making foundation for the development of CCOFM by dynamically exploring the relationship between CCOFM efficiency and micro characteristics.

Потребительское поведение российской молодёжи в условиях санкций

The article delves into the phenomenon of consumer behavior of young people in the context of a new eco-nomic reality formed by the introduction of several packages of economic sanctions and a number of related adverse factors which form a new way of thinking among young people, which directly affects consumer be-havior, and therefore it is important for manufacturers to take into account these changes. The author analyzes approaches to the study of consumer behavior from the point of view of economic theory, sociology and psy-chology. The features of youth as a specific socio-demographic group are considered. The results of sociologi-cal and marketing research are presented as an evidence base. Conclusions are drawn about the continuing strategy of rational consumption, the growing share of online purchases, the increasing role of market places, the demand of young people for eco-friendly products and ethical brands based on the principle of “healthy for me and for the environment”.

The Stakeholders’ Perception on the Development of Baguio City Public Market

The development of Baguio City Public Market (BCPM) is awarded to SM Prime Holdings Incorporation (SMPHI) by the City of Baguio headed by Mayor Benjamin Magalong. Thus, the researcher aimed to understand and describe the perceived awareness of the active stakeholders participating in this development. As such, the researcher attempts to establish how the different stakeholders response to the development of BCPM using qualitative content analysis. Several online publications were subjected to analysis which provided the researcher the needed data. Thus, the paper identified five active stakeholders which are BCPM Vendors/ Baguio Market Vendor Groups, The Local Citizen, Tongtongan ti umili (TTU), Media Groups and Tourists. These stakeholders all possess power, legitimacy and urgency. The stakeholders’ perceived awareness revolves on the idea that there is a development undergoing in BCPM, specifically the stakeholders believe in two opposing ideas. First, the development is in good hand as the stakeholders support the action of the City Mayor. Second, the stakeholders think that the city’s socio- cultural and environment aspect is again threatened because of the participation of a big corporation which is the SMPHI.

PENGUATAN MANAJEMEN USAHA DAN STRATEGI PEMASARAN UMKM MELALUI KKN UMD UNEJ DI DESA KLAMPOKAN, PANJI, SITUBONDO

UNEJ UMD KKN is the theme in the implementation of KKN 2023. The implementation of KKN UMD focuses on one project, where this project supports the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the Village. The selection of work programs in Klampokan Village, Panji, Situbondo is the assistance and development of MSMEs. Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are productive businesses in the form of individual business entities that can develop and be consistent in the national economy. It is important for an entrepreneur to produce decent and quality products to be sold in the public market. Strengthening business management supports an entrepreneur in the process of advancing their business products. An entrepreneur must also have the ability to expand the products produced, commonly known as marketing strategies. The existence of a creative and innovative marketing strategy is an effort to achieve goals in expanding market reach. This research was conducted in Klampokan Situbondo Village to improve the quality of competitiveness so as to expand market reach and the economy of this village can develop sustainably and have a positive impact on community welfare and local economic development.

What Makes HFTs Tick? Tick Size Changes and Information Advantage in a Market with Fast and Slow Traders

We study the impact of two changes in the minimum tick size, a reduction and a subsequent increase, on the trading behavior of fast and slow traders in the spot foreign exchange market. We find that the most notable impact of the tick size reduction is a substantial increase in the liquidity demand of high-frequency traders (HFTs) and not the decrease in their liquidity provision discussed by prior literature. We show that this change in behavior is linked to the higher frequency of price signals that arises with the smaller tick size and to the ability of fast traders to profit from it, often at the detriment of slower traders. Following the tick size decrease and the increase in liquidity demand by HFTs in the spot market, the role of the spot market in price discovery drops relative to that of the futures market. We discuss these findings in the context of the impact of HFTs on the information content of financial markets. This paper was accepted by Agostino Capponi, finance. Supplemental Material: The data files are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2022.02935 .

Assessment of Background Gamma Radiation Levels Across Major Markets in Southern Senatoria District of Cross River State, Nigeria

Human exposure to ionizing radiation from natural and artificial sources is unpreventable phenomenon on earth. Radiation profile and dose at for some markets in Cross River State, Nigeria have been ascertained using 451p ion chamber survey meter and the following indices of radiation absorb dose, annual effective dose equivalent, and excess life cancer risk, were calculated. the dose rate measures at the seven market are as follows; Biase 0.02\(\mu\)sv/h to 0.09\(\mu\)sv/h, Akamkpa 0.02\(\mu\)sv/h to 0.09\(\mu\)sv/h, Odukpani 0.02\(\mu\)sv/h to 0.09\(\mu\)sv/h marian market 0.06\(\mu\)sv/h to 0.19\(\mu\)sv/h, Calabar South, 0.05\(\mu\)sv/h to 0.30\(\mu\)sv/h, Akpabuyo 0.02\(\mu\)sv/h to 0.19\(\mu\)sv/h, Bakassi 0.02\(\mu\)sv/h to 0.16\(\mu\)sv/h. The mean value for dose is mean 0.047 \(\pm\) 0.018 for Biase, 0.043 \(\pm\) 0.018 for Akamkpa, 0.043 \(\pm\) 0.017 for Odukpani, 0.110 \(\pm\) 0.036 for Marian, 0.106 \(\pm\) 0.059 sv/h for Calabar South, 0.104 \(\pm\) 0.056 sv/h for Akpabuyo and 0.053 \(\pm\) 0.031 sv/h for Bakassi. Mean values of 0.073 \(\pm\) 0.026msvy-1, 0.067 \(\pm\) 0.029msv/y, 0.095 \(\pm\) 0.08msv/y, 0.158 \(\pm\) 0.072msv/y, 0.134 \(\pm\) 0.114msv/y, 0.159 \(\pm\) 0.084msv/y and 0.223 \(\pm\) 0.654 for AEDE were observed respectively for within the markets. Similarly, 0.259 \(\pm\) 0.092 x 10-3, 0.235 \(\pm\) 0.095 x 10-3, 0.338 \(\pm\) 0.265 x 10-3, 0.552 0.252 x 10-3, 0.470 \(\pm\) 0.397 x 10-3, 0.558 0.29 x 10-3, and 0.265 \(\pm\) 0.097 x 10-3 were recorded for ELCR, with the marketer the AEDE values are with the permissible limit as recommended by the international bodies, the ELCR values are also within permissible limit. The implication of the AEDE & ELCR values is that the markets sides is radiation safe for any radiological health burdens that might arise due to absorb dose from BIR, but the probability of are developing cancer over a life time exposure in market places is high. It’s recommended that periodic BIR monitory and evaluation and radioactive concentration of nuclides in soil and rocks of the area be carried out by local authority.

Fungal Mycobiome of Mature Strawberry Fruits (Fragaria x ananassa Variety 'Monterey') Suggests a Potential Market Site Contamination with Harmful Yeasts.

An amplicon metagenomic approach based on the ITS2 region of fungal rDNA was used to investigate the diversity of fungi associated with mature strawberries collected from a volcanic orchard and open-air market stands. Based on the Kruskal-Wallis test, no statistically significant differences were observed in both non-phylogenetic and phylogenetic alpha diversity indices. According to beta diversity analyses, significant differences in fungal communities were found between groups (orchard vs. market). Taxonomic assignment of amplicon sequence variables (ASVs) revealed 7 phyla and 31 classes. The prevalent fungal phyla were Basidiomycota (29.59-84.58%), Ascomycota (15.33-70.40%), and Fungi-phy-Insertae-sedis (0.45-2.89%). The most predominant classes among the groups were Saccharomycetes in the market group, and Microbotryomycetes and Tremellomycetes in the orchard group. Based on the analysis of microbiome composition (ANCOM), we found that the most differentially fungal genera were Hanseniaspora, Kurtzmaniella, and Phyllozyma. Endophytic yeasts Curvibasidium cygneicollum were prevalent in both groups, while Candida railenensis was detected in fruits originating only from the market. In addition, Rhodotorula graminis (relative abundance varying from 1.7% to 21.18%) and Papiliotrema flavescens (relative abundance varying from 1.58% to 16.55%) were detected in all samples regardless of origin, while Debaryomyces prosopidis was detected in samples from the market only, their relative abundance varying with the sample (from 0.80% to 19.23%). Their role in fruit quality and safety has not been yet documented. Moreover, several clinically related yeasts, such as Meyerozyma guilliermondii and Candida parapsilosis, were detected in samples only from the market. Understanding the variety and makeup of the mycobiome in ripe fruits during the transition from the orchard to the market is crucial for fruit safety after harvest.

Creating culturally-informed protocols for a stunting intervention using a situated values-based approach (WeValue InSitu): a double case study in Indonesia and Senegal

International development work involves external partners bringing expertise, resources, and management for local interventions in LMICs, but there is often a gap in understandings of relevant local shared values. There is a widespread need to better design interventions which accommodate relevant elements of local culture, as emphasised by recent discussions in global health research regarding neo-colonialism. One recent innovation is the concept of producing ‘cultural protocols’ to precede and guide community engagement or intervention design, but without suggestions for generating them. This study explores and demonstrates the potential of an approach taken from another field, named WeValue InSitu, to generate local culturally-informed protocols. WeValue InSitu engages stakeholder groups in meaning-making processes which ‘crystallize’ their envelope of local shared values, making them communicable to outsiders.Our research context is understanding and reducing child stunting, including developing interventions, carried out at the Senegal and Indonesia sites of the UKRI GCRF Action Against Stunting Hub. Each national research team involves eight health disciplines from micro-nutrition to epigenetics, and extensive collection of samples and questionnaires. Local culturally-informed protocols would be generally valuable to pre-inform engagement and intervention designs. Here we explore generating them by immediately following the group WeValue InSitu crystallization process with specialised focus group discussions exploring: what local life practices potentially have significant influence on the environments affecting child stunting, and which cultural elements do they highlight as relevant. The discussions will be framed by the shared values, and reveal linkages to them. In this study, stakeholder groups like fathers, mothers, teachers, market traders, administrators, farmers and health workers were recruited, totalling 83 participants across 20 groups. Themes found relevant for a culturally-informed protocol for locally-acceptable food interventions included: specific gender roles; social hierarchies; health service access challenges; traditional beliefs around malnutrition; and attitudes to accepting outside help. The concept of a grounded culturally-informed protocol, and the use of WeValue InSitu to generate it, has thus been demonstrated here. Future work to scope out the advantages and limitations compared to deductive culture studies, and to using other formative research methods would now be useful.

Sentiments of Public Opinion

Sentiment analysis, also known as opinion mining, is a computational technique that aims to identify and extract subjective information from text data, allowing us to understand and categorize the underlying sentiment expressed by individuals. With the exponential growth of social media, online reviews, and user generated content, sentiment analysis has gained significant attention as a valuable tool for businesses, researchers, and decision-makers to gain insights into public opinion, customers satisfaction, and market trends. The project is about searching the web for public opinion about people, movies, places, companies or any entities. The user of this software can type in a query that is any entity and the system mines the web for public opinion about that entity and generates a sentiment score. A positive score represents a positive public sentiment about that entity and negative score represents a negative sentiment or opinion.

Banana Flour Goes to Market: the Marketing Parameters to Introduce Banana Flour to the Consumer Market

Purpose: With the main points to be researched being, the consumer perspectives on the four Ps of marketing: product, price, place, and promotion. We also explored the consumer attitude towards the banana flour being introduced to the market place. Design/Methodology/approach: These quantitative and qualitative research projects focused on the reactions of consumers to the marketing mix of banana flour in Thailand. The study was conducted with a random sample of four hundred participants by using questionnaires as the tool among shoppers in local grocery stores in Surin Province, Nakhon Ratchasima Province and Buri Ram Province This research project concentrated on the perceptions of the banana flour shoppers. Finding: The results show that the consumers are aware of the banana flour product. The product has the right consistency is in unbleached and sold in packages of pound or a kilogram. The banana flour price, the health conscious consumers do not mind to pay a premium price for premium product. Sales promotions help introduce banana flour to the general consumers and the promotion on-line appears to be more effective than printed media. The sales person may actually be the most effective way of promoting the product as it still requires a lot of education and convincing Promotion and distribution appears to go hand in hand importance from the perception of the consumers. Research limitation/implication: This study has certain limitations that suggest future research. First, its findings are based on data from Thailand, whose consumer experience may not be easily transferable to other economies (Ahlstrom & Ding, 2014). Thus, it is vital to explore whether the findings can be generalized beyond the banana flour industry. It is highly recommended to follow up the study with a larger sample in other parts of Thailand and Asia. Original/Value: Most people think Banana flour is the flower of the banana tree – wrong. Banana flower is still relatively unknown in the western world. Banana flour (BF) is in fact the starch of green bananas (Musa spp.) and has been used as substitute for wheat flour in Africa Asia and South America – as it is hard to grow wheat in those regions. However, banana flour needs to be introduced to consumers world-wide through the design of an appropriate marketing mix.

Isolation and Phenotypic Identification of some Molds Isolated from Peanut Pastes Sold in some Public Markets in the City of Daloa, Central-West, Côte d’Ivoire

Molds are common contaminants in peanut pastes. Their presence can have a more or less serious effect on the health of the consumer. The general objective of this work is to evaluate the diversity of filamentous fungi producing mycotoxins in peanut paste sold in public markets in the city of Daloa. A total of fifty samples were collected from five markets for carrying out the work. Isolation was carried out on Sabouraud medium with chloramphenicol. An identification of filamentous fungi was carried out through the analysis of macroscopic and microscopic morphological characters. Of the 50 samples, ten do not contain mold with a rate of 20% and 40 contain mold with a rate of 80%. Macroscopic analysis after enumeration made it possible to identify two species of mold. These are Aspergillus niger and Aspergillus flavus. Microscopic examination made it possible to partially confirm its two species. The presence of these species with their mycotoxin production capacities suggests that contaminated peanut paste represents a risk to the health of consumers.

Place branding in resource peripheries: attracting the knowledge elite to Antofagasta, Chile

ABSTRACT Cities in resource peripheries tend to be unattractive places. They lack the features that appeal to the knowledge elite – at least from the perspective of Richard Florida’s influential work – and, therefore, face challenges to diversify their economy. The article deals with Antofagasta, which is the capital of one of the world’s most important mining regions. In recent years, considerable efforts have been undertaken in terms of “place branding” and “place marketing” so as to make Antofagasta more livable. Against the backdrop of narrative interviews, the author analyzes whether these efforts help to attract highly skilled professionals. A qualitative comparative analysis reveals that career opportunities are the key factor – a necessary condition for the knowledge elite to move to Antofagasta, not amenities or a pleasant lifestyle. The region’s general economic conditions are relevant too. The built urban and natural environment is much less important, although it matters to some interviewees. Most highly skilled professionals find that Antofagasta is not an attractive city to live in. They do not project themselves being there for a long time.

Racial Discrimination in Sourcing: Evidence From Controlled Experiments

Entrepreneurial activity is widely seen as an important tool for addressing the racial wealth gap. However, the survival of minority-owned businesses depends on their ability to win contracts from buyer firms—which might be impacted by buyers’ racial biases. Whether discrimination can exist in sourcing and affect this ability is an unexplored question, perhaps due to an implicit assumption that business-to-business settings are immune from discriminatory biases. In this paper, we use controlled experiments to study whether racial discrimination can affect sourcing decisions. We find that when a supplier's sales manager has a distinctively Black name, buyers are 6.5% less likely (statistically significant at 1% level) to select that supplier compared to a supplier with a sales manager with a distinctively white name. Our findings suggest that equal-opportunity legislation similar to that already in place in the labor market may be needed in the sourcing context. Our findings have implications for executives, suggesting that supplier diversity programs and procurement-bias training can boost corporate performance by expanding the supplier pool, and simultaneously enhance a firm's corporate social responsibility profile.

PENYULUHAN PERAN ASI EKSKLUSIF TERHADAP TUMBUH KEMBANG ANAK DITENGAH WANITA PEKERJA PEDAGANG PASAR TRADISIONAL

Exclusive breastfeeding is giving breast milk to babies from 0-6 months of age exclusively without additional food or drink. Exclusive breastfeeding provides many benefits for both baby and mother. Some of the benefits of exclusive breastfeeding for babies are increasing the baby's body resistance or antibodies against disease attacks and helping the baby's brain and physical development. For the Deli Serdang Regency area, the percentage of babies who receive exclusive breast milk is only 47.26%. From these data it can be seen that there is still a lack of exclusive breastfeeding for babies. The low level of exclusive breastfeeding will have an impact on the quality and vitality of the next generation. One of the factors that hinders exclusive breastfeeding is working mothers, especially in the informal sector such as traditional market traders. This PKM activity using the counseling method aims to provide information to breastfeeding mothers about the role of exclusive breastfeeding in the growth and development of babies among women who work as traders at the Deli Tua traditional market. The process of implementing this community service activity is carried out by providing information and education to respondents regarding the role of exclusive breastfeeding in the growth and development of babies and tips on how to meet the needs of exclusive breastfeeding for children among women who work as traditional market traders. Then the respondents distributed pre-test and post-test questionnaires to the participants and the results obtained were 76.9% of the 13 respondents had increased knowledge regarding the role of exclusive breastfeeding in the growth and development of babies and tips on how to meet the needs of exclusive breastfeeding for children among working women. as a traditional market trader.

STUDY OF THE STREET MARKET OF CASCAVEL-PR: FROM PRODUCERS’ AND CUSTOMERS’ PERSPECTIVE

This study aims to analyze the working mechanism of a farmers market to estimate its potential for socio-productive and commercial inclusion compared to conventional retail chains. The article is characterized as a qualitative case study applied to the Feira do Pequeno Produtor (Small Farmers Street Market) in Cascavel, Paraná. As for the results, the farmers market in this study was able to demonstrate the socio- productive inclusion of family farmers through three main aspects: first, for being organized through the association of producers; second, because it counts on close and trusting relationships between the family farmers and the customers; and, third, for having solidary relationships among the participants. The street market has established itself as a space perceived by customers and producers in two of the five dimensions of the immersed markets.

Prevalence and Biopsychosocial Factors Associated With a Current Episode of Low Back Pain Among Adults With a Previous History of Low Back Pain: A Cross-sectional Study of Market Traders in an African Population

Low back pain (LBP) is the leading cause of years lived with disability globally, with Nigeria having one of the greatest burdens. A current episode of LBP is important in Nigeria, but the associated factors are unknown. This cross-sectional study investigated the prevalence, biomechanical, and psychosocial factors associated with a current episode of LBP among 700 adult market traders with previous LBP in an urban Nigerian population. Descriptive, bivariate, and multivariate analyses were conducted. The prevalence of a current episode of LBP was 76.4%. Factors associated with an increased risk of a current episode of LBP in a decreasing order of importance were exposure to biomechanical factors (aggregate [total] score) (odds ratio [OR] = 1.535; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.398–1.685); anxiety (OR = 1.182; 95% CI = 1.089–1.282); fear-avoidance beliefs (physical activity) (OR = 1.139; 95% CI = 1.029–1.261); fear-avoidance beliefs (work) (OR = 1.105; 95% CI = 1.047–1.165); while factors associated with a reduced risk of a current episode of LBP were ability to take breaks in the job in addition to scheduled breaks (OR = .430; 95% CI = .240–.773) and ability to control the order and pace of tasks (OR = .477; 95% CI = .236–.965). Occupational biomechanical and psychosocial factors were associated with a current episode of LBP in logistic regression models explaining 52.7% and 73.1% of the variation in a current episode of LBP. Occupational biomechanical factors, particularly handling large and bulky objects at arm’s length and kneeling and squatting, produced the greatest risk of a current episode of LBP. PerspectiveOccupational biomechanical factors, occupational psychosocial factors, and personal psychosocial factors such as anxiety and fear-avoidance beliefs are associated with a current episode of LBP in Nigeria. Pragmatic public health and occupational health initiatives that modify exposure to these factors may be required in Nigeria.

INFLUENCING FACTORS OF CONSUMERS’ BRAND PREFERENCE OF POWDERED MILK

Oghenenyerhovwo Rita Inoni E-mail: oghenenyerhovwo.inoni@dou.edu.ng Ph.D, Dennis Osadebay University Asaba. Delta State, Nigeria https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3656-2000 Justice Taiwo Ogundare E-mail: justice.ogundare@dou.edu.ng Ph.D., Dennis Osadebay University Asaba. Delta State, Nigeria https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8622-9206 Abstract: Consumer brand preference (CBP) is a precursor to a consumer’s final purchase decision of a product, and is an important area in the field of consumer buying behaviour. This is particularly so owing to the multitudinous array of competing products in the market place. Thus, the purpose of this study is to investigate the variables that influence consumers' brand preferences for powdered milk in the study area. In order to realise the objectives of the study, data were drawn from a sample of 381 milk consumers in Delta and Edo States in Southern Nigeria, using stratified and purposive sampling methods. The data generated were analysed with descriptive and inferential statistics including frequency tables, cross tabulation, ANOVA and multiple regression. The results of the cross-tabulation of monthly income and milk brands reveal that ‘Dano’is the most preferred (17.3%) powdered milk brand, while ‘Milksi’ is the least preferred (5.8%) by consumers across all income groups. The multiple regression results indicate that CBP for milk powder is significantly influenced by consumers’ attitude, reference groups, product quality, consumption emotions, television advertisement and product price, with positive consumption emotions as the dominant predictor. The study also found significant variation in CBP with respect to educational status, household size and income. Therefore, milk producing companies should adopt pragmatic pricing and marketing strategies to reach desired target segments in order to sustain customers’ patronage and ensure they remain loyal to their brands. Keywords: consumer brand preference; purchase decision; consumption emotions; powdered milk; Nigeria JEL classification: D12, M30, M31

Appearance of hexahydrocannabinols as recreational drugs and implications for cannabis drug testing – focus on HHC, HHC-P, HHC-O and HHC-H

This study investigated the effects of hexahydrocannabinol (HHC) and other unclassified cannabinoids, which were recently introduced to the recreational drug market, on cannabis drug testing in urine and oral fluid samples. After the appearance of HHC in Sweden in 2022, the number of posts about HHC on an online drug discussion forum increased significantly in the spring of 2023, indicating increased interest and use. In parallel, the frequency of false positive screening tests for tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in oral fluid, and for its carboxy metabolite (THC-COOH) in urine, rose from <2% to >10%. This suggested that HHC cross-reacted with the antibodies in the immunoassay screening, which was confirmed in spiking experiments with HHC, HHC-COOH, HHC acetate (HHC-O), hexahydrocannabihexol (HHC-H), hexahydrocannabiphorol (HHC-P), and THC-P. When HHC and HHC-P were classified as narcotics in Sweden on 11 July 2023, they disappeared from the online and street shops market and were replaced by other unregulated variants (e.g. HHC-O and THC-P). In urine samples submitted for routine cannabis drug testing, HHC-COOH concentrations up to 205 (mean 60, median 27) µg/L were observed. To conclude, cannabis drug testing cannot rely on results from immunoassay screening, as it cannot distinguish between different tetra- and hexahydrocannabinols, some being classified but others unregulated. The current trend for increased use of unregulated cannabinols will likely increase the proportion of positive cannabis screening results that need to be confirmed with mass spectrometric methods. However, the observed cross-reactivity also means a way to pick up use of new cannabinoids that otherwise risk going undetected.