Diversification Opportunities Research Articles

Literary Tourism and Cultural Sustainability: The Landscape of Beppe Fenoglio in the Langhe, Italy

This article explores the niche sector of literary tourism with a focus on the works of Italian writer Beppe Fenoglio in the Langhe-Roero and Monferrato area of Piedmont, Italy. It questions whether literary tourism can contribute to the cultural sustainability of a landscape. Nowadays, this area is already a well-established tourist destination known for its food and wine; however, Fenoglio’s work offers a different perspective, highlighting a specific heritage comprising the area’s rural life, local culture, and history of the Resistance movement. The research used a mixed method approach with documentary analysis, questionnaires, and in-depth interviews. “Fenoglians” (tourists motivated by Fenoglio’s life and works) were identified, and their characteristics were explored. The results cannot be generalized, as the chosen sampling method does not provide sufficient materials for broad application. While being a small group, these special interest tourists represent an opportunity for tourism diversification. This article concludes that Fenoglio’s literary tourism offers a distinctive experience, fosters new interpretations of the landscape, and strengthens collective memory of the Resistance. It highlights the importance of local communities in understanding how fictional narratives shape tourist perceptions of a destination as well as their role in preserving the community’s collective memory and landscape.

Stability source or curse? Fossil fuels and Algeria’s regime stability in the light of EU’s green transition

ABSTRACT Rentier states that export hydrocarbons are stable when prices are high. They can subsidize basic goods, allocate resources among the ruling elite and co-opt opposition leaders. In contrast, when prices go down, they might face fiscal crises that oblige budget cuts and the use of repression to survive. It can thus be argued that hydrocarbons are both a stability source and curse for rentier states, a reality that poses a dilemma to elites: defending the rentier state or reform it. The two options can have dire implications for the regime. However, this much-studied trade off might be changing in the light of the so-called green transition, an intervening variable in the relation between regime stability and hydrocarbons. Using the Algerian case, the article illustrates to what extent this nexus has been affected by the European Grean Deal (EGD), the EU’s plan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. The article concludes that while rentier states might see opportunities for economic diversification through renewable energy in times of low hydrocarbon prices, when prices recover, path dependences and instability fears can be important barriers to reform. In the long term, policy inconsistencies can make hydrocarbons more of a curse than a stability source.

Improving the Local Economy Through Diversifying the Use of Mangrove Forests as Marine Resources

Purpose: This research aims to 1) Analysis of the economic infrastructure around the mangrove forest on the local economy; 2) Identify potential and opportunities for diversification of mangrove forest use; 3) Development of optimal action plans including production, marketing, and sustainability strategy planning. The research was conducted in East Pentadu and West Pentadu Villages, Boalemo Regency, which is one of the mangrove forest locations in Boalemo Regency, Gorontalo Province.Design/Methodology/Approach: The research uses qualitative methods to analyze economic improvement through diversification of mangrove forest use. Data collection and data analysis techniques are carried out through observation and documentation with stages of data reduction, data presentation, and conclusion.Findings: The research results showed that the development of tourist attractions in East Pentadu Village by utilizing the mangrove forest area began in 2017 and West Pentadu in 2022 offers great potential for local economic development. With the background of the beach location in East Pentadu Village which used to be a place for mooring fishing boats and the beach in West Pentadu Village which was not used, these two locations have been transformed into attractive destinations for visitors, both from inside and outside Boalemo Regency. Regarding the use of mangroves in overcoming the problem of managing tourist attractions, several steps need to be taken by the village government and community including forming working groups and dialogue between elements of society.

Risk spillovers among Islamic and conventional banks in Saudi Arabia: frequency TVP-VAR approach

While extensive research has explored interconnectedness, volatility spillovers, and risk transmission across financial systems, the comparative dynamics between Islamic and conventional banks during crises, particularly in specific regions such as Saudi Arabia, are underexplored. This study investigates risk transmissions and contagion among banks operating in Islamic and conventional modes in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Daily banking stock data spanning November 2018 to November 2023, encompassing two major crises—COVID-19 and the Russian-Ukraine war—were analyzed. Using the frequency TVP-VAR approach, the study reveals that average total connectedness for both banking groups exceeds 50%, with short-run risk transmission dominating over long-term effects. Graphical visualizations highlight time-varying connectedness, driven predominantly by short-run spillovers, with similar patterns observed in both Islamic and conventional banking networks. The main contribution of this paper is the insight that long-term investment strategies are crucial for mitigating potential risks in the Saudi banking system, given its limited diversification opportunities.

Chromosome-Level Genome Assembly of Five Emberiza Species Reveals the Genomic Characteristics and Intrinsic Drivers of Adaptive Radiation.

Emberiza buntings (Aves: Emberizidae) exhibit extensive diversity and rapid diversification within the Old World, particularly in the eastern Palearctic, making them valuable models for studying rapid radiation among sympatric species. Despite their ecological and morphological diversity, there remains a significant gap in understanding the genomic underpinnings driving their rapid speciation. To fill this gap, we assembled high-quality chromosome-level genomes of five representative Emberiza species (E. aureola, E. pusilla, E. rustica, E. rutila and E. spodocephala). Comparative genomic analysis revealed distinct migration-related evolutionary adaptations in their genomes, including variations in lipid metabolism, oxidative stress response, locomotor ability and circadian regulation. These changes may facilitate the rapid occupation of emerging ecological niches and provide opportunities for species diversification. Additionally, these five species exhibited abnormal abundances of long terminal repeat retrotransposons (LTRs), comprising over 20% of their genomes, with insertion times corresponding to their divergence (~2.5 million years ago). The presence of LTRs influenced genome size, chromosomal structure and single-gene expression, suggesting their role in promoting the rapid diversification of Emberiza species. These findings offer valuable insights into the adaptive radiation of Emberiza and establish a robust theoretical foundation for further exploration of the patterns and mechanisms underlying their diversification.

Long-run Relationship Between Türkiye and SHANGHAI Cooperation Organization Stock Markets: Cointegration Analysis

This study investigates the presence of long-run cointegration relationships between the Turkish Stock Market and the stock markets of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member countries. In a period of stagnation in the EU membership negotiations, Türkiye's shift towards Eastern markets is noteworthy. Using a dataset covering the period from January 2014 to December 2023, this research applies various econometric analysis techniques such as Augmented Dickey-Fuller test, Johansen Cointegration Test and Granger Causality Test to examine the dynamic relationships between these markets. The findings from these analyses indicate that there is a significant long-run cointegration relationship between Borsa Istanbul and Moscow and Shanghai Stock Exchanges. This highlights the opportunities for strategic investment and portfolio diversification in these regions

Promising areas of scientific and technological transformation of the world's largest economies

Subject. The article addresses indicators characterizing the level of scientific and technological development of the world's major economies as of 2023. Objectives. The purpose is to examine trends and promising areas of scientific and technological transformation of the world's largest economies within the framework of global relevant concepts. Methods. The study employs methods of descriptive statistics, correlation and regression analysis, with the construction of a dendrogram of distribution of countries into clusters by the Ward's method. The statistical databases of the World Bank for 2022–2023 served as an information base. Results. The paper presents an overview of popular areas of domestic and foreign research within the topic under consideration, determines the circle of the largest economies in the world by the largest volume of GDP at purchasing power parity, assesses the level of scientific and technological development of the world's largest economies, defines the key parameters of scientific and technological transformation, and classifies countries by level of development based on methods of economic and mathematical modeling, provides a developed conceptual model of global scientific and technological transformation. Conclusions. The findings are of interest to government-specific governance structures and can be integrated into programs for scientific and technological transformation of industry within the framework of global concepts, taking into account potential spillover effects expressed in the form of expanding opportunities for diversification and commercialization of domestic research and development.

Synthesis of 2-Aminobenzo[b]thiophenes via an Intramolecular Dehydrogenative C–S Bond Formation Effected by Iodine(III) Reagents

A direct synthesis of medicinal chemistry-relevant 2- aminobenzo[b]thiophenes has been achieved from substituted thioamides of 2-arylacetic acids through a fast intramolecular cross-dehydrogenative cyclization, mediated by hydroxy(tosyloxy)iodobenzene (HTIB, Koser’s reagent). This synthetic approach is operationally simple, uses easily accessible substrates, and tolerates a variety of substituents at different sites, providing an opportunity for diversification.

Diversifying Investments in Gulf Countries to Mitigate Financial Risks from Oil Price Volatility: A Case of Kuwait

The Kuwait and other countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have traditionally based their economic model on the receipts from the sales of oil. Fluctuations in the price of oil in the global markets has since rendered these economies more vulnerable to such financial risks and through policymaking, the economies have started to look for ways of diversifying on the risks. While the world today is working towards a new energy mix, those changes toward renewables and sustainability have led the reliance on oil towards economic, strategic and developmental issues. For Kuwait, a country that depends on oil as its major source of export, the issue of diversifying the country’s investment portfolio is even more important. It is stated that Kuwait needs to diversify investments to minimise the risk linked with fluctuating oil prices. With regards to this study, the analyses of the current state of economy of Kuwait, the impacts of instability of oil prices and the possible opportunities for diversification of investments will help in a more informed understanding of how Kuwait can better ensure a sustainable economy.

“To protect and serve” … and rule: constitutional sheriffs and the emergence of far-right extremism within local politics

ABSTRACT This paper explores the emergence of far-right extremism within local political institutions in the United States. Building on theories of intergroup contact and group threat, I hypothesize a set of community socio-demographic conditions which may foster public support for far-right extremism, and test these using a database of county sheriffs who aligned themselves with the constitutional sheriff movement – a movement closely tied to white nationalism – between 2012 and 2022. Findings offer support for both contact and threat dynamics; however, which relationship prevails depends on a novel optimal contact condition, where the likelihood of a constitutional sheriff is highest at particular levels of demographic diversity. Additionally, results indicate threat dynamics sourced from economic status, but opportunities for positive outgroup interactions and faster demographic diversification appear to build resilience against extremism. Notably, all identified associations are driven by racial rather than nativity-based dynamics, which I suggest is likely due to the nationalization of anti-immigrant narratives inducing perceived, over experiential, threats. These findings have important implications for understanding the local dynamics of far-right extremism and the infiltration of fringe ideologies into political institutions.

The Interplay Between Livelihood Diversification, Gender Roles, and Food Security by Rural Women Farmers in Osun State Nigeria

This study investigated the interplay between livelihood diversification, gender roles and food security among rural women farmers in Osun state, Nigeria. A multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select 129 respondents for this study. Data were collected through an interview schedule and analyzed using inferential statistics (PPMC and linear regression). Results revealed that most women in the study area were informally educated, within productive age, and married with a relatively large family size, which necessitated livelihood diversification to ensure food security. The women diversified their livelihood with crop farming and trading as primary activities, although lack of access to agricultural inputs and credit facilities were key limiting factors to their efforts.Livelihood diversification significantly influenced food security among rural women. Therefore, the government and agricultural development agencies should train women in the study area to seize opportunities for livelihood diversification and facilitate access to agricultural inputs and credits.

Windows of opportunity for unrelated diversification: a patent data analysis of the field of neurotechnology

PurposeThis study investigates the potential of low-income countries to mitigate technological lock-ins by exploiting windows of opportunity (WOOs). Given their inherent inclination toward path dependency, these countries often face challenges in diversifying beyond their established technological trajectories. We examine the pivotal role of adopting shorter cycle times of technologies (CTTs) in opening technological WOO, triggering unrelated diversification and accelerating technological catch-up.Design/methodology/approachUsing fixed-effect regression models, we analyze country-level patent data within the neurotechnology domain from 1995 to 2021 – a period marked by significant technological change since 2010. Our focus lies in comparing diversification and catch-up trends between low-income and high-income countries, while evaluating the performance of CTT.FindingsOur findings reveal that as low-income countries increase their knowledge complexity (KC), they tend to be locked into existing technological paths. To mitigate lock-in risks, they can strategically adopt technologies with shorter CTTs. These technologies act as catalysts, opening up technological WOOs and stimulating unrelated diversification. KC presents a double-edged sword in the catch-up process, but unrelated diversification can eliminate this dilemma.Practical implicationsOur study introduces the KC-CTT framework, proposing practical strategies to enhance and sustain countries’ competitive advantages.Originality/valueDiversification and catch-up emerge from two separate bodies of literature but present a conceptual overlap. This research bridges the gap between the two literatures by investigating the impact of CTT as their predictor variable.

Connectedness between green bonds, clean energy markets and carbon quota prices: Time and frequency dynamics

In this paper, we investigate the time and frequency dynamics of connectedness among green assets such as green bonds, clean energy markets, and carbon prices. Using daily price data, we explore return spillovers across these green financial markets by applying the novel framework on time and frequency dynamics proposed by Baruník and Krehlík (2018). This allows us to identify the direction of spillovers among our variables, and decompose the connectedness to differentiate between short-term and long-term return spillovers. Our results indicate that green bonds and carbon prices act as net receivers of shocks, but mainly in the short-term. We also observe a low level of connectedness among our clean energy markets across both low and high frequency bands, even during times of economic or political crisis. Additionally, there are periods in which connectedness between the clean energy assets is driven by the long-term. In periods of economic and political stability, carbon prices may also provide an interesting diversifying tool for short-term investors. Our results should be of interest for investors and portfolio managers who focus on green financial markets, by strengthening the notion that green financial markets can offer diversification opportunities, for both short-term and long-term investors. Policy makers could also benefit from our insights on conectedness in their work on short-term and long-term climate policies. This paper is the first to use this framework to investigate systematic risks within green financial markets.

Exploring Diversification Opportunities Across Islamic Stocks, Bitcoin, Oil and Gold in Indonesia

Exploring Diversification Opportunities Across Islamic Stocks, Bitcoin, Oil and Gold in Indonesia

Beyond silicon: Thin-film tandem as an opportunity for photovoltaics supply chain diversification and faster power system decarbonization out to 2050

In the last decade, the manufacturing capacity of silicon, the dominant PV technology, has increasingly been concentrated in China. This coincided with PV cost reduction, while, at the same time, posing risks to PV supply chain security. Recent advancements of novel perovskite tandem PV technologies as an alternative to traditional silicon-based PV provide opportunities for diversification of the PV manufacturing capacity and for increasing the GHG emission benefit of solar PV. Against this background, we estimate the current and future cost-competitiveness and GHG emissions of a set of already commercialized as well as emerging PV technologies for different production locations (China, USA, EU), both at residential and utility-scale. We find EU and USA-manufactured thin-film tandems to have 2–4 % and 0.5–2 % higher costs per kWh and 37–40 % and 32–35 % less GHG emissions per kWh at residential and utility-scale, respectively. Our projections indicate that they will also retain competitive costs (up to 2 % higher) and a 20 % GHG emissions advantage per kWh in 2050.

Der Standort Österreich aus Sicht der ökonomischen Komplexität

Abstract Economic complexity indicators attempt to map latent factors for long-term growth. In this analysis, we shed light on Austria as a business location using multidimensional complexity indicators that allow statements to be made about regional specialization, key technologies for the green transition and individual sectors such as the semiconductor industry. Austria usually occupies top international positions or is at least among the leaders, and this has remained stable over the last 20 years. This implies extensive opportunities for diversification into promising technologies. For individual brown industries, however, there is a risk of getting locked into products whose demand will decline in the course of the green transition.

Information flow between stock returns of advanced markets and emerging African economies

This article used transfer entropy techniques to examine information flows of daily stock market returns between advanced markets and emerging African economies. We modelled the information transfers across different periods of global shocks – the Federal Reserve Bank normalisation post the Global Financial Crisis, oil price shocks, BREXIT, the U.S.-China trade war, and COVID-19. Information interactions from advanced to African markets were moderate, occasionally mixed, and insignificant, leaving room for portfolio diversification. We also discovered some progress regarding the integration process between the developed and African markets on the back of noticeable information exchanges. Our findings from the information exchanges indicate that the stock markets of South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria, and Kenya have led the integration process ahead of their peers. To robust-check our results, we employed the wavelet multiple correlation (WMC) technique by modelling the multi-structure relationship among all the stock markets and confirmed the fast integration between the South African stock market and the developed markets. Our WMC results also revealed that portfolio diversification opportunities are feasible in the short term. The results present important implications for optimal risk management strategies and policy measures to anchor markets to withstand shocks.

Exploration of Sustainable Development Strategies for Budai Opera in the Eastern Fujian Region

This study explores sustainable development strategies for Budai Opera in the Eastern Fujian region, aiming to preserve and promote this traditional art form amidst modern challenges. Through a mixed-method approach, including qualitative interviews, quantitative surveys, and observational data, diverse dimensions of Budai Opera sustainability are examined. Results reveal a diverse demographic profile of stakeholders, varying levels of awareness and interest in Budai Opera, and preferences for cultural events. Economic viability, environmental impact, community engagement, policy support, audience preferences, and technological innovations are also explored. Key findings emphasize the importance of holistic approaches that balance economic, cultural, environmental, and social considerations in promoting Budai Opera sustainability. Addressing challenges such as declining audiences, economic pressures, environmental impacts, and policy constraints, while capitalizing on opportunities for diversification, innovation, community engagement, and advocacy, are essential for sustaining Budai Opera as a cherished cultural heritage in the Eastern Fujian region.

Portfolio Diversification Opportunities between Europe and India do Exist

In this article, a humble effort has been made to check the volatility transmission from European stock markets (FTSE100, DAX30, CAC40 and SMI20) to the Indian stock market (NIFTY50) to determine whether there is any opportunity for portfolio managers to diversify their portfolio. Various statistical tools and econometric models, such as vector autoregression (VAR) and dynamic conditional correlation (DCC)-multivariate generalised autoregressive conditional heteroscedasticity (MGARCH), are used to detect the volatility transmission from the European market to the Indian market. The FTSE100 and the NIFTY50 have been found to have bidirectional causality. VAR results suggest that only the DAX30 and SMI20 (Germany and Switzerland) markets have an impact on the Indian market. Finally, using DCC-MGARCH, the researcher found that information spillover takes place from all European countries to India over a longer period of time, but portfolio diversification between the London market (FTSE) and the Indian market (NIFTY) and German market (DAX) with Indian market (NIFTY) is possible over a shorter period of time. JEL Codes: C01, G1, G17

Analyzing the energy markets and financial markets linkage: A bibliometric analysis and future research agenda

AbstractThis study has been conducted using 200 articles from 1984 to 2023, by undertaking a meta‐literature review on the subject of energy markets and financial markets linkage (EFML). Our study consists of content analysis of 200 articles along with other analyses such as (i) co‐citation analysis, (ii) co‐authorship analysis, and (iii) cartographic analysis. We have identified five research streams: (1) Oil, stock, commodities markets, crypto currency, real estate, exchange rate linkage; (2) Oil and stock market linkage; (3) Energy as a portfolio diversification tool; (4) Dynamic linkage between the oil‐commodity market and stock market; and (5) Oil and other market linkages with respect to the COVID‐19 pandemic, the subsequent financial crisis, and other events. We have performed a comprehensive review of the EFML literature and provided the influential aspects of top journals and authors, the characteristics of the most studied topics, past and current key research streams in the EFML literature. We have also suggested 63 future research questions. Looking at the widespread interest of finance scholarship in the area of energy market linkages, the assessment of energy market linkages, and possible portfolio diversification opportunities and benefits, is of great importance and interest to researchers, policy holders, and portfolio managers.