Source Countries Research Articles

Modeling Import Demand for Fishery Products in Japan: A Dynamic AIDS Approach

A dynamic AIDS model was employed to estimate the expenditure, own-price, and cross elasticity of five major import source countries for shrimp, salmon, albacore and tuna, crab, and cuttlefish in Japan. Our findings show that COVID-19 has had no significant impact on Japan’s fishery imports in the short term. The expenditure elasticities of fishery imports in Japan are greater than 1 or close to 1, implying that consumers in Japan have a relatively high dependence on fishery imports. Specifically, the expenditure elasticities of shrimp and cuttlefish imports from Vietnam, albacore and tuna imports from Australia, and crab imports from Russia are close to 1, while their own-price elasticities are the least sensitive compared with other import source countries, suggesting a greater export potential in the Japanese market.

A Review of the Trade in Toucans (Ramphastidae): Levels of Trade in Species, Source and Sink Countries, Effects from Governance Actions and Conservation Concerns

Utilising wildlife as natural resources has a long history and wide appeal for many nations, while seeking international wildlife that is sustainably managed is the primary responsibility of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). However, data-driven trade reviews are required, utilising CITES data to increase our understanding of the trade and facilitate evidence-based conservation planning. This study presents the first trade review for Toucans utilising CITES import reported data. The total number of Toucans exported was over 22,000, which subsequently generated a retail ‘real price’ value of nearly US $72 million. The countries accounting for the majority of Toucan exports were Guyana (39%), Suriname (33%) and Nicaragua (14%), while the main importing country was The Netherlands (nearly 25%). Toucan species traded were Ramphastos vitellinus (accounting for 21.5%), Ramphastos toco (19%) and Ramphastos tucanus (17%), making the top three while trade was recorded in 10 species. However, successfully identifying economic values for 15 species highlights that trade exists within non-CITES listed Toucan species too. Therefore, the levels of trade in non-CITES-listed Toucan species need urgent attention, as do the non-detrimental findings that underpin the CITES quotas set for each species, given the species’ importance ecologically.

Pharmaceutical regulation under market integration through parallel trade

AbstractIn this paper, I study the effect of parallel trade (cross‐border resale of goods without the authorization of the manufacturer) on pharmaceutical regulation. Governments may restrict prices directly (price caps) or limit third‐party payer reimbursement for the drug (reimbursement limits). I find that parallel trade may relax regulation in the source country of parallel imports under both instruments and intensify regulation in the destination country under a reimbursement limit. I also find that parallel trade may change regulatory preferences: under no parallel trade, both the source and destination country set price caps, and under parallel trade, the source country sets a price cap but the destination country sets a reimbursement limit, thereby enforcing a higher price cap in the South. This implies that drug prices are higher under parallel trade in both source and destination countries.

Exploring the trade facilitation role of Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs): A comparison of BRICS and the Next Eleven economies

The present study assesses the trade facilitating role of regional trade agreements (RTAs) of BRICS and the Next Eleven (N-11) economies using annual bilateral trade over the period 2000–2019. For empirical estimation, we applied structural gravity with Poisson pseudo maximum likelihood estimator. The findings show higher effect of the RTAs for imports compared to exports for both BRICS and the N-11 countries. While the RTAs of BRICS countries mostly facilitate exports of metals, chemical products, plastic and rubber; the RTAs’ role is more pronounced for the exports of animal products, cereals, fruits, vegetable, in addition to labor intensive industries such as textile, footwear, and leather in the N-11 economies. Furthermore, the findings show that the adjustment in the exporting process in response the entry of an FTA is affected by the governance quality prevailing in the source country. In this context, Bangladesh, Egypt, Iran, Nigeria, and Pakistan particularly need to improve governance quality to spur their export performance.

Risk assessment for cross-border transmission of multi-country Mpox outbreaks in 2022

ObjectivesGlobal trade and travel have facilitated infectious disease transmission. In 2022, over a short time, cross-border Mpox (monkeypox) outbreaks were reported. Since, most countries are at risk of cross-border Mpox transmissions, in this study, we developed a real-time risk assessment model for the cross-border transmission of Mpox. MethodsThis model includes priori indicators related to the source area before the Mpox outbreak and posterior indicators derived from the quantitative data evaluation afterward. Based on transportation, this model can also be used to assess the global import risk of Mpox for specific countries and cities. ResultsEuropean risk values displayed high levels between May and July 2022 and gradually decreased after July. After September 2022, risk values elevated in most countries and regions in the Americas. As for China, high importation risk cities were highly exposed to the United States and moderately exposed to Australia and Germany. Some cities were exposed to the potential risks from only one source country. ConclusionsDynamic surveillance of the cross-border spread of infectious diseases is essential. Importation risks vary widely across cities and regions, and developing risk prevention and control strategies specific to the traffic flow, medical care capabilities, and risk levels in the main source countries are essential.

Wages of UK immigrant men across generations: who catches up?

Abstract This article examines UK immigrant-native wage differentials for men across major first- and second-generation immigrant groups with the UK Household Longitudinal Study (UKHLS) pooling cross-sections over the years 2009–19. I find that first-generation immigrants with UK human capital experience less of a wage disadvantage than their immigrant counterparts with foreign language proficiency, qualifications, and work experience. Conditional on the heterogeneity in these productivity characteristics of first-generation immigrants, I observe no intergenerational economic progress across the two generations relative to UK natives. Using a conditional decomposition shows that UK work experience and not the source country of study for the qualification is a key factor in reducing first-generation, immigrant-native wage differentials in the UK.

Acculturation Experiences of International Students from Sao Tome and Principe in China

While many studies are focused on international students from the main source countries in China, few studies have addressed how minority groups experience acculturation. Therefore, an interpretive phenomenology was used to explore the acculturation experiences of international students from Sao Tome and Principe (STP) studying in China. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight STP students, while analyzing the interview data using the Colaizzi method. Finally, the data yielded a total of four themes that were emerged as follows: 1. surprising explorers, 2. temporary mutes, 3. confused newcomers, and 4. elite pioneers. The findings provide insights into how the acculturation process is experienced and the strategies STP students in China followed toward it and are even consistent with existing theories and literature. International students from STP and other minority groups may benefit a lot from this study and enrich their experience of the acculturation process in a more targeted way.

Exploring Residual Profit Allocation

Residual profit allocation (RPA) schemes have come to prominence in discussions of international tax reform but with almost nothing known about their economic impact. These schemes tax multinationals by allocating their “routine” profits to source countries and sharing their remaining “residual” profit across countries on some formulaic basis. This paper explores the implications, conceptual and empirical, of moving to some form of RPA. Residual profits are estimated to be substantial and concentrated in relatively few multinational enterprises. The impact on tax revenue appears beneficial for developing countries. Aggregate production efficiency is unlikely to increase unless routine profits are lightly taxed. (JEL F23, H25, H87, L25)

Will Chinese students stop coming to the UK? A push–pull analysis among Chinese graduates from UK’s taught master’s programs 20 years apart

ABSTRACT China is a major source country of students in the UK’s taught Master’s programs. The reliance on China as a major source country has caused some concerns over its sustainability. Will the Chinese students continue to come? To answer this question, a push–pull factor analysis is conducted on the perceptions of Chinese students who graduated from the UK around the year 2000 and 2020. The goal is to explore the major pull factors for Chinese students’ mobility to the UK and whether there have been changes in the past 20 years. The findings of this pseudo longitudinal study suggest that, though most of the UK’s pull factors have stayed stable, the declining weight of the UK’s higher education reputation should be concerning. To sustain the UK’s attractiveness, the UK universities should slow the neoliberal expansion of international recruitment and strengthen the desirable Socratic approach to teaching and learning.

An Analysis of the Impact of International R&D Spillovers and Technology Innovation in China

To test the impact of international R&D spillovers on China’s technological innovation, we collect and use province-country-level data from 23 provinces from 2001 to 2020 to fill a measurement gap of international R&D spillovers, so that our measurement can avoid ‘aggregation bias’ unlike the calculation methods in previous studies. We find that imports act as an effective international R&D spillover channel for improving technological innovation. Meanwhile, international R&D spillover through inward FDI and imports positively promotes China’s innovation performance. It suggests to policymakers that continuing to open up the economy and attract high-quality inward FDI is still required. Moreover, our results confirm that the eastern region enjoys a more significant international R&D spillover effect because of a more effective innovation environment. Hence, we suggest that given the inherent short board in the central and western regions, preferential policies to make up for this short board should be proposed to improve the innovation environment in the inland regions so as to enjoy a more significant international R&D spillover effect. Finally, we also observe that different periods of economic growth and the development levels of source countries also result in heterogeneous innovation impacts of international R&D spillover effects.

African Emigration to Europe

From the 1960s onwards , the main source countries for migration from Africa to Europe were Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia, which led to the emergence of large diasporas originating in these countries at the end of the 20th century. In the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis, immigration controls in Europe were tightened. The result was not a reduction in migration from North Africa, but rather support for the permanent settlement of previously temporary migrants and related family migration. Much of this migration was from the Maghreb to France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. Since the second half of the 1980s, destination countries for Maghreb migrants have expanded to include Spain and Italy due to increased demand for low-skilled labor in these countries. Spain and Italy imposed a visa requirement on migrants from the Maghreb in the early 1990s, resulting in an increase in illegal migration across the Mediterranean.

Lessons on educational borrowing and change: teachers’ implementation of differentiated instruction in Singapore

ABSTRACT Learner-centred educational approaches, like differentiated instruction (DI), have been gaining popularity worldwide through the process of educational borrowing. Teachers’ experiences with educational change are complicated when the educational ideas they encounter are transferred from abroad. This mixed method study examined how ten teachers in Singapore implemented and experienced DI, an educational approach from the USA. Findings revealed that when the destination conditions are more aligned with source conditions, Singapore teachers experience greater successes in their DI implementation, specifically in creating environments that support learning, building on quality curriculum, and leading and managing the classroom. When teachers faced cultural, technological, and political misalignments, they encountered greater obstacles, specifically, in using assessment and adapting instruction to student variances. Findings spell implications for greater synergy across educational change and borrowing work, including more criticality when borrowing educational ideas across countries and the need to foreground contextual peculiarities in both source and destination countries.

In vitro characterization of the pyrazole-carrying synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonist 5F-3,5-AB-PFUPPYCA and its structural analogs

The synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonist (SCRA) market is undergoing important changes since the enactment of the 2021 class-wide generic SCRA ban in China, one of the most important source countries for new psychoactive substances (NPS). Recently, various compounds with new structural features, synthesized to bypass this legislation, have entered the recreational drug market. Certain monocyclic pyrazole-carrying “FUPPYCA” SCRAs have been sporadically detected since 2015 without gaining further popularity. However, as evidenced by their recent detection in Scottish prisons, 5F-3,5-AB-PFUPPYCA and 3,5-ADB-4en-PFUPPYCA have re-emerged, potentially triggered by the new legislative ban. The aim of this study was to characterize the in vitro intrinsic CB1 and CB2 receptor activation potential of 5F-3,5-AB-PFUPPYCA and 3,5-ADB-4en-PFUPPYCA, as well as 4 analogs (5F-3,5-ADB-PFUPPYCA, 3,5-AB-CHMFUPPYCA, 5,3-AB-CHMFUPPYCA and 5,3-ADB-4en-PFUPPYCA) using live cell β-arrestin 2 recruitment assays. Most analogs were essentially inactive at either CB1 or CB2, with only 3,5-AB-CHMFUPPYCA, 5,3-AB-CHMFUPPYCA and 5,3-ADB-4en-PFUPPYCA showing a limited activation potential at CB1. Furthermore, the importance of the position of the tail structure was demonstrated, with 5,3 regioisomers being more active than their 3,5 analogs. Moreover, all compounds exhibited antagonistic behavior at both receptors, which may be associated with their structural resemblance to cannabinoid antagonists and inverse agonists. Although the 3,5 regioisomers of these “FUPPYCA” SCRAs circumvent the Chinese ban, it is unlikely that these SCRAs will pose a major threat to public health, given the lack of pronounced CB receptor activity.

Cross-Border Bank Flows and Systemic Risk

Abstract We find that heightened cross-border bank flows are associated with lower systemic risk in a target country’s banking system. The reductions in systemic risk are stronger for flows coming from source countries with stronger regulatory oversight than the target country. Such cross-border bank flows linked to regulatory arbitrage are also associated with improvements in target banking sector profitability, asset quality, and efficiency. We assess several alternative channels of influence for cross-border bank flows but interpret the evidence on these flows as mostly consistent with a benign form of regulatory arbitrage.

Advancing Public Entrepreneurship through State Government Capacity and Competitiveness: The Impact of Discretionary Fiscal Policy of American States on Worldwide Manufacturing Industries

Many policymakers and administrators have directed efforts to increase foreign manufacturing investment (FMI) due to its potential to raise the employment rate, technological progress, and productivity in their regions. Despite foreign manufacturers’ significant influence on the economies of their host countries, institutional and policy uncertainty creates significant entry barriers for multinational manufacturers. Focusing solely on American state performance in economic development as measured by amounts of FMI, this study suggests that different institutional designs and regulations that affect state taxing and spending decision-making make a difference in FMI in American states. This research empirically assesses the relationship between fiscal federalism and FMI by focusing on the level of fiscal decentralization, federal grants, and fiscally constraining institutions. Testing two different FMI datasets that cover all 50 American states by source country between 1987–2006 and 2008–2016, this study finds that manufacturing firms increase their investment in the states that exercise higher discretion in managing fiscal policy, receive more federal grants, and implement more restrictive taxing and spending regulations. The observed positive impact of fiscal institutions and constraints is more prominent for foreign manufacturing firms in the tax-exemption group.

Reconstruction of International Tax Rules to Meet the Challenges of Digital Economy

The current cross-border income tax collection rules of “positive income is levied in the source country and passive income is levied in the resident country” seriously violate the benefit principle in practice. The corporate income tax system is the institutional root of the failure of the above rules. The digital economy with data as the key production factor, invisibility and liquidity, relying on user participation and natural monopoly intensifies the negative impact of the corporate income tax system on the current rules. Starting from the principle of benefit and combined with the theory of value creation, this paper advocates the reconstruction of the cross-border income tax collection rule system, which takes the whole multinational enterprise group as the tax subject, takes the formula distribution as the method, takes the progressive tax rate as the improvement direction, and adopts “positive income is levied in the resident country and passive income is levied in the source country”.

Bibliometric Analysis: Analysis of Government Social Media Innovations from 2012 to 2023

Government social media innovation is a trend carried out as an effort to respond to needs in the era of technological development and as an effort to improve services, especially in the public sector. Therefore, government social media innovation has become one of the research topics developed in recent years. As research on the topic of government social media innovation continues to develop, stakeholders need an up-to-date perspective on government social media innovation research. The aim of this research is to provide an objective and accurate summary of government social media innovation research using 194 documents taken from the Scopus database and analyzed using a bibliometric approach. Research was analyzed by publication per year, country of contributor, subject area, author, affiliation, and source. This research uses the CiteSpace application to analyze connectivity trends on related topics using keywords and reference nodes. The results of this research are useful for identifying clusters and research in communities such as royal colleges, sustainable development, public service delivery, and other clusters. This research can contribute to the body of knowledge quantitatively and accurately in terms of contributing to the knowledge map regarding government social media innovation and can be used as material for research reviews on similar topics and developed in the future.

Strategies for the discovery of potential anticancer agents from plants collected from Southeast Asian tropical rainforests as a case study.

Covering up to early 2023The present review summarizes recent accomplishments made as part of a multidisciplinary, multi-institutional anticancer drug discovery project, wherein samples comprising higher plants were collected primarily from Southeast Asia, and also from Central America, and the West Indies. In the introductory paragraphs, a short perspective is provided on the current importance of plants in the discovery of cancer therapeutic agents, and the contributions of other groups working towards this objective are mentioned. For our own investigations, following their collection, tropical plants have been subjected to solvent extraction and biological evaluation for their antitumor potential. Several examples of purified plant lead bioactive compounds were obtained and characterized, and found to exhibit diverse structures, including those of the alkaloid, cardiac glycoside, coumarin, cucurbitacin, cyclobenzofuran (rocaglate), flavonoid, lignan, and terpenoid types. In order to maximize the efficiency of work on drug discovery from tropical plant species, strategies to optimize various research components have been developed, including those for the plant collections and taxonomic identification, in accordance with the requirements of contemporary international treaties and with a focus on species conservation. A major component of this aspect of the work is the development of collaborative research agreements with representatives of the source countries of tropical rainforest plants. The phytochemical aspects have included the preparation of plant extracts for initial screening and the selection of promising extracts for activity-guided fractionation. In an attempt to facilitate this process, a TOCSY-based NMR procedure has been applied for the determination of bioactive rocaglate derivatives in samples of Aglaia species (Meliaceae) collected for the project. Preliminary in vitro and in vivo mechanistic studies carried out by the authors are described for two tropical plant-derived bioactive lead compounds, corchorusoside C and (+)-betulin, including work conducted with a zebrafish (Danio rerio) model. In the concluding remarks, a number of lessons are summarized that our group has learned as a result of working on anticancer drug discovery using tropical plants, which we hope will be of interest to future workers.

A Benefit-Cost Analysis of Increased International Migration of Skilled Labor in Africa and the World

AbstractGreater labor migration can establish more channels for information flows, directly contributing to faster economic growth and improved innovation and work. It can also expand international remittances, which can be invested by recipient households in home countries in education, entrepreneurship, and improved and sustainable agricultural technologies. At the same time, however, increased emigration of medical professionals and technical workers from poor countries can reduce quality of local services, innovation, health status, and productivity. This analysis attempts to quantify the economic benefits and costs of permitting an immediate 10% increase in the bilateral migration of skilled workers (physicians, engineers or science, engineering, technology, and mathematics workers, and other persons with advanced educations) among the nations of the African Continental Free Trade Area and, more broadly, among 25 global regions. Economic benefits include higher migrant incomes abroad, welfare gains in destination countries associated with higher economic efficiency, spillover productivity gains, and an improved ability of the younger and more skilled working force to support the needs of the wider population, resulting in higher national production. Benefits in source countries include productivity enhancements from two sources: (a) greater access to knowledge associated with more bilateral trade and investment and (b) the ability of local households to invest remittances in productivity-enhancing activities. Welfare losses in source nations include static efficiency reductions and a worsened demographic support capability. In Africa, the benefit-cost ratios range from 3.7 to 6.9; in the global analysis, 17 to 38.

COLOURING WITH THE SAME BRUSH: REVISITING UNDOCUMENTED MIGRATION IN SOUTH ASIA

Undocumented cross-border migration is an active agent of the state indeed. The inflow single-handedly affects the state policies and bilateral relations with the source country. In this process of interaction, these movements get altered reciprocally. In a heterogeneous society like South Asia, recurrent tension persists between groups and even the States. As a result, the region remains vibrant in territorial and communal disputes. South Asia witnessed a great exodus and constant illegal migration across the borders that shaped the politics in the region. The paper attempts to analyze the inconsistent attitude toward different cross-border migrations in South Asia. The analysis has contextualized the affairs of the state and the history of South Asian countries. The uncertainty of immigrants and the absence of a proper legislative framework exclusive to South Asia results in administrative ad hocism.