Stimulus Program Research Articles

A Green New Deal: Discursive Review and Appraisal

The notion of a Green New Deal as an ecology-centered economic stimulus program has garnered increasing political capital in recent years, particularly in OECD countries. However, resistance by political detractors has muddled the discourse under the accusation that it is a ‘far-fetched’ or ‘unworkable’ idea. This discussion paper seeks to review the extant literature on the Green New Deal, and its appraisal indicates that much theoretical and empirical basis already exists for such a proposal to be implemented. The review thereby corroborates the base case for implementing such ecological-economic stimulus programs.

Dynamic asymmetric spillovers and volatility interdependence on China’s stock market

In this paper, we developed a novel measure to quantify the asymmetries in volatility spillovers, which emerge due to negative and positive shocks. Using high-frequency data of ten CSI 300 sector indices from 2007 to 2016, we employ our method to analyze the asymmetries in volatility spillover and volatility interdependence on China’s stock market at the sector level. We find that in general, the spillover from bad volatilities, which due to negative movements in returns, is considerably stronger than that from good volatilities due to positive returns. Except when the State Council of China announced the 4 trillion stimulus program in November 2008 and raised the total maximum QFII quota by $50 billion to $80 billion in April 2012, during which the good volatility dominated. Moreover, our empirical results reveal the asymmetric spillovers transmission mechanism. By decomposing the overall shock into macroeconomic shocks that affect all sectors and industrial shocks that only affect the specific sector, we found that rather than industrial shocks, the macroeconomic shocks dominate the asymmetries in spillover transmission.

Distributive politics inside the city? The political economy of Spain's Plan E

We study distributive politics inside cities by analysing how local governments allocate investment projects to voters across neighbourhoods. In particular, we ask whether politicians use investment to target their own supporters. To this aim, we use detailed geo-located investment data from Plan E, a large fiscal stimulus program carried out in Spain in 2009–2011. Our main empirical strategy is based on a close-elections regression-discontinuity design. In contrast to previous studies – which use aggregate data at the district or municipal level – we exploit spatial variation in both investment and voter support within municipalities and find no evidence of supporter targeting. Complementary results indicate that voters may be responding to investment by increasing turnout.

The Global Financial Crisis and neighborhood decline

The Global Financial Crisis and neighborhood decline

The Chinese stimulus program from 2008 to 2010 and accounting information quality

The Chinese government launched a massive fiscal stimulus package of 4 trillion RMB in November 2008. This paper analyzes this stimulus program’s effect on accounting information quality. We expect a decline in earnings persistence for firms that received the bailout funds due to the low investment efficiency and the nature of this non-tax based and investment-focused stimulus program. Consistent with our hypothesis, we find that the persistence of earnings and therefore the value-relevance of earnings significantly declined for firms after they received the bailout funds. In addition, the decline in value-relevance of earnings can be attenuated by the Big Four auditors. This paper provides substantial evidence that accounting quality is influenced by the institutional characteristics and highlights the importance of understanding the negative impact of government intervention on accounting quality. The policy implication is that governments should be cautious about adopting large stimulus measures, although they are usually considered effective in stimulating the economy.

Governing under Stress: The Implementation of Obama’s Economic Stimulus Program, edited by Timothy J. Conlan, Paul L. Posner, and Priscilla M. Regan

<i>Governing under Stress: The Implementation of Obama’s Economic Stimulus Program</i>, edited by Timothy J. Conlan, Paul L. Posner, and Priscilla M. Regan

Fiscal stimulus and systematic monetary policy: Postwar evidence for the United States

I provide structural VAR evidence that U.S. fiscal stimulus programs induce a systematic loosening of interest rates outside of zero-lower-bound episodes. I characterize this policy easing by the Fed as an indirect reaction to disinflationary dynamics unleashed by fiscal stimulus—a finding I corroborate via Taylor-rule estimations. The supporting monetary policy stance amplifies the impact of the expansion in public spending on GDP by roughly one-third. My evidence aligns with fiscal policy models featuring deep-habits in consumption. The empirical regularity of accommodating policy rates, moreover, questions the perception of stimulus being more effective when policy rates are stuck at zero.

Effect of water quality on the parasite assemblages infecting Nile tilapia in selected fish farms in Nakuru County, Kenya.

Aquaculture has been documented as the fastest developing food industry in Kenya with increased production since the Government initiated the Economic Stimulus Programme (ESP) in 2009. However, the production has not yet reached the maximum level (20,000metrictons per year) anticipated in the country. This is due to a number of challenges, top of which is poor water quality resulting from the uncontrolled addition of inputs (fish feeds, inorganic fertilizers, and organic fertilizers) into the ponds. These deteriorate water quality, cause increased incidences of parasite infections, and impede fish production. Therefore, this study investigated the effect of water quality on parasite assemblages infecting Oreochromis niloticus (Linnaeus 1758) in selected fish farms within Nakuru County from November 2016 to February 2017. Selected physico-chemical parameters namely: dissolved oxygen, temperature, pH, conductivity, and turbidity were measured in situ using appropriate meters. Water samples from each fish farm were analyzed for nutrient concentrations using standard methods. A total of 300 fish were examined for parasites. Parasites were counted, preserved, and identified using identification keys and parasitological parameters determined. The results indicated that certain water quality parameters, such as dissolved oxygen, were significantly different for all the six fish farms (one-way ANOVA, p < 0.05). A total of 15 species of parasites were recovered. Trichodina sp. and Cichlidogyrus halli were found in all the studied fish farms. Correspondence analysis revealed that some parasites' occurrences were highly correlated (positively) with certain water quality parameters. Therefore, regular monitoring and control of water quality in fish ponds are recommended to reduce levels of parasite infestations.

Assessing the Effects of Government Incentive Programs on Export Performance

Iran, despite having a high potential for exports, holds a small share in international markets and, despite the upward trend since the third Development Plan, is still far from optimal conditions. Given the importance of developing non-oil exports, government stimulus programs for export and making them effective are considered as one of the main strategies in line with the policy of macro-economic growth. This study aims at evaluating the effect of government development programs on export performance as well as assessing the performance of construction materials exporters with an emphasis on stimulus programs. For this purpose, 38 top exporting companies in the field of construction materials in 2014 were chosen as the study population. The data were gathered by questionnaires and analysed by the structural equations method with SPSS and LISREL software programs. The result indicated that the managers' perceptions of the export market, export knowledge export strategies, and stimulus programs using variables determined about 71 percent of the export performance of these companies. According to the derived coefficients, export strategies variable had the greatest effect. Also, a one-percent increase in the government stimulus programs could increase the export commitment for 0.29%, the export strategies for 0.22%, the export performance for 0.29%, the managers' perceptions of the export market for 0.33%, and the export knowledge for0.51%.

Withstanding the Great Recession Like China

Data show that the United States, Europe, and even countries with lesser ties to the international financial system have suffered large permanent losses in aggregate output and employment since the financial crisis, despite unprecedented monetary injections. However, the symptoms of the Great Recession were not observed in China, despite a 45% permanent drop in its exports relative to historical trend. We study the precise channels through which the stimulus programs work in China and construct a simple model to rationalize the dramatically different impacts of stimulus programs across countries.

Accelerating Depreciation in Recession

What would you do if on January 13, 2016, you had won the $1.5 billion Powerball jackpot? The prize gives you the choice of a smaller lump sum now or the full jackpot parceled out for years to come. For the New York Times and numerous financial experts, the right choice is clear: take the money over time. While lump sums are nice, they are not worth a big discount when compared to “ultrasafe” income streams (like the Powerball annuity), especially in an “ultralow interest rate environment.”What everyone understands about Powerball seems to elude us when it comes to the United States’ largest corporate tax expenditure. “Accelerated depreciation” rules give taxpayers a lump sum deduction now, rather than the gradual deductions they would normally claim. Called tax law’s “standard method for combating recessions,” accelerated depreciation has become the most important tax policy affecting businesses because it is thought to be an effective if costly way to stimulate the economy, particularly during tough economic times.I argue, to the contrary, that accelerated depreciation debates ignore the lessons of Powerball. Like lottery payments, gradual depreciation deductions are highly certain, making them far more valuable than has been assumed. As a result, replacing them with accelerated depreciation is far less valuable than has been assumed. Further, the benefits of accelerated depreciation plummet during and following recession—precisely when these policies tend to be expanded. I illustrate these points with a numerical example exposing when real firms paid extra taxes (and the government collected extra revenue) as a result of the government’s purported stimulus program.

The Controversies of Modern Macroeconomic Theory in the Context of the Global Economic Crisis

Abstract The aim of this paper is to analyze controversies of modern macroeconomic theories in the period of the global economic crisis. Ideas, disagreement and similarities between the most important theories in relation to state intervention and anti-crisis economic policy are presented. The topical research has found a connection between the roots of the global economic crisis and the paradigm of new liberal theories. The crisis has confirmed that the idea of self-regulation in the private sector is untenable in practice. In times of crisis, the leading theoretical framework in economic policy is reexamined. Rules-based monetary and fiscal policies are replaced by discretionary decision-making. In the world economies affected by the crisis, anti-Keynesian cyclical measures of monetary and fiscal policies were implemented. A comprehensive and unequivocal reaffirmation of Keynesianism in anti-crisis policies has confirmed the assumption of the circularity of economic theories. Central banks quickly reduced their key interest rates and increased their money supply. Fiscal authorities implemented expansive stimulus programs. When creating a new macroeconomic paradigm, market imperfection must be taken into account as well as a limited range of government economic policies.

Did Fiscal Stimulus Lift Developing Asia Out of the Global Crisis? An Empirical Investigation

The substantial slowdown of economic growth since the global financial crisis of 2008-2009 is rekindling debate on whether developing Asia should use fiscal expansion to boost aggregate demand. A key factor in the debate is the effectiveness of countercyclical fiscal policy in the region. The global crisis, as well as the fiscal stimulus packages implemented by developing Asian countries at that time, give some clues to this important issue. The region weathered the global crisis well and experienced a robust V-shaped recovery. According to conventional wisdom, the fiscal stimulus packages put in place by Asian governments played a key role in the region’s recovery. The central objective of this paper is to empirically test this wisdom by using cross-country panel data. Our main finding is that the stimulus has had a limited but positive impact on developing Asia’s output during the global crisis. This lends some support to the notion that countercyclical fiscal policy can help the region cope with severe external shocks. The broader, more fundamental implication for regional policymakers is that the region’s long-standing commitment to fiscal discipline can yield significant benefits beyond macroeconomic stability. An important consequence of this commitment relatively healthy fiscal balance sheets - enabled the region’s governments to quickly and decisively embark upon fiscal stimulus programs.

Do Democratic Economies Grow Faster? The Case of Asia vs. the EU

The dynamics of the five fastest growing GDP per capita economies in Asia and the EU are studied between 2010 and 2014. This time frame was selected in order to avoid the height of the 2008-2009 financial crisis, but to include the stimulus and recovery periods which occurred afterward. The intent was not to compare the recoveries or the impact of the stimulus programs. The intent was to compare the economic growth rates of the two groups and also the absolute per capita income along with five topic areas on economies including: configuration, utilization, investments, demographics, and outcomes. A total of twenty measurements are used for assessment from the World Bank databank website. The findings are that the Asian economies grew faster while the EU economies had a higher per capita income. The workforces of the Asia economies are also younger and more flexible whereas the workforces of the EU economies are older, but more educated. Discussions include the links between effective governments and economic development and the links between democracy and economic levels.

Did Fiscal Stimulus Lift Developing Asia Out of the Global Crisis? An Empirical Investigation

The substantial slowdown of economic growth since the global financial crisis of 2008-2009 is rekindling debate on whether developing Asia should use fiscal expansion to boost aggregate demand. A key factor in the debate is the effectiveness of countercyclical fiscal policy in the region. The global crisis, as well as the fiscal stimulus packages implemented by developing Asian countries at that time, give some clues to this important issue. The region weathered the global crisis well and experienced a robust V-shaped recovery. According to conventional wisdom, the fiscal stimulus packages put in place by Asian governments played a key role in the region’s recovery. The central objective of this paper is to empirically test this wisdom by using cross-country panel data. Our main finding is that the stimulus has had a limited but positive impact on developing Asia’s output during the global crisis. This lends some support to the notion that countercyclical fiscal policy can help the region cope with severe external shocks. The broader, more fundamental implication for regional policymakers is that the region’s long-standing commitment to fiscal discipline can yield significant benefits beyond macroeconomic stability. An important consequence of this commitment relatively healthy fiscal balance sheets - enabled the region’s governments to quickly and decisively embark upon fiscal stimulus programs.

Australian Government Fiscal stimulus programs and gambling activity levels; an analysis of high-ethnic and low-ethnic communities

The appropriateness of fiscal stimulus programs has come into question in light of the Global financial crisis. Indeed the austerity movement has called into question the economic benefits of large public spending programs. There is, however, a genuine dearth of research considering the impact of fiscal stimulus activities employed during the global financial crisis on spending behaviours, particularly when considering Australian stimulus programs. Much of the extant literature focuses on key matters such as quantitative easing and credit easing. The extant literature relating to fiscal stimulus research is typified by the utilisation qualitative methods to analyse the impact of the stimulus on economic activity. Most studies concern themselves with a handful of pertinent macroeconomic factors in an effort to surmise whether any possess any explanatory power, employing qualitative frameworks for analysis. The current study considers the impact of a discretionary stimulus program is affording a once off payment to Australian citizens on spending behaviour specifically the study shall consider the impact of government stimulus activities on gambling behaviours. Employing dynamic panel estimation methods, specifically the system GMM estimator, the study finds that fiscal stimulus significantly increased gambling activity in Australia, pertinently noting differential impacts within high ethnic and low ethnic communities.

139 Sperm Transmembrane Protein 95 (TMEM95) is Required for Sperm - Oocyte Interaction and Successful Fertilization but not Mucus Penetration in Cattle

A population of bulls with 1.7% 56-day non-return rate were found to share a 1386 kb segment of homozygosity (Pausch et al. 2014 PLoS Genet. 10, e1004044). That study identified a nonsense mutation in the transmembrane protein 95 (TMEM95)-encoding gene as the most likely candidate for the subfertility phenotype. Sperm from homozygous bulls (mt/mt) exhibit normal motility and morphology. However, they are not as successful as sperm from wildtype (wt/wt) bulls in binding to the zona pellucida (ZP) or penetrating the plasma membrane of oocytes, which results in lower in vitro fertility (Fernandez-Fuertes et al. 2017 Biol. Reprod. 97, 50-60, 10.1093/biolre/iox065). Sperm from mice deficient for another transmembrane protein, TMEM16E, have normal total motility but cannot penetrate the ZP because they have sluggish motility and are not able to swim in a straight line (Gyobu et al. 2015 Mol. Cell. Biol. 36, 645-659). To determine whether this is one reason behind mt/mt bull subfertility, we assessed the ability of sperm from these bulls to migrate through cervical mucus of oestrus cows. In addition, because mt/mt bulls are homozygous for such an extensive chromosomal segment, this study aimed to determine whether TMEM95 alone is responsible for the loss of sperm function. To test this, sperm from a wt/wt bull was incubated in the presence of anti-TMEM95 antibody (Ab; 1:20 dilution) 1 h before fertilization. In all experiments, data were assessed for normality of distribution and analysed using a one-way ANOVA. In experiment 1, bull genotype had no effect on the number of sperm present in mucus-filled capillaries or on their distribution along them, following 30-min incubation. In experiment 2, incubation of sperm from wt/wt bulls with Ab decreased oocyte cleavage rates compared with the untreated control (59 ± 0.3 v. 76 ± 0.9%, respectively; P &lt; 0.05). However, this percentage was still higher than in the mt/mt group (59 ± 0.3 v. 31 ± 2.9% respectively; P &lt; 0.05). Surprisingly, the Ab did not affect the percentage of blastocysts that developed at Day 8 after fertilization. Three hours after fertilization, a lower number of Ab-treated sperm bound to the ZP compared with untreated sperm (4 ± 1.2 v. 9 ± 2.1, respectively; P &lt; 0.05). This number did not differ between the Ab and mt/mt groups. Consistent with the previous results, Ab-treated sperm were less able to penetrate ZP-free oocytes than untreated sperm (47 ± 1.5 and 58 ± 4.2%, respectively; P &lt; 0.05). However, lower penetration rates were observed in the mt/mt than in the Ab-treated group (24 ± 3.9 and 47 ± 1.5%, respectively; P &lt; 0.05). We concluded that sperm from mt/mt bulls could traverse cervical mucus from oestrus cows. Transmembrane protein 95 seems to be directly responsible for the lower ZP binding and, partially, for the lower plasma membrane penetration observed. However, how this protein exerts these functions and what other factors might be involved remain to be determined. Research was supported by the Irish Department of Agriculture, Food and The Marine under the Research Stimulus Programme (Grant No. 11S104).

Developing resistance through dynamic games, for the 2-nd grade schoolchildren

Abstract The aim of the research was to develop a methodology for the development of resistance motric quality, using dynamic games, these means of education being specific to the children enrolled at primary school level in the 2nd class. In this work we intended to emphasize that if we will conduct, for 10 weeks, one weekly physical education and sports lesson with pupils aged between 8 and 10, a lesson in addition to the two activities provided in the curriculum, in which to use dynamic games that aim at increasing the effort capacity, we will achieve an improvement in motor capacity, with emphasis on motor strength. The research was carried out in several stages: a first stage in which the bibliographic study of the specialized literature was carried out, a stage in which the initial evaluation was carried out, a stage of application of the stimulus program with specific means, a final evaluation stage of the subjects and a stage of processing the collected data and formulating the conclusions. The sample of the survey was made up of 30 pupils at the level of primary education in the 2nd grade, aged between 8 and 10 years. The 30 pupils were divided into two distinct groups in terms of gender, consisting of 15 boys and 15 girls. In the research were used four resistance evaluating tests. The stimulus program consisted of a weekly physical education lesson for 10 weeks, lessons in which pupils played 20 games. Comparing the values recorded by the pupils in the initial assessment with the values recorded in the final assessment, it was concluded that all pupils had better values in the tests that concerned the motor quality of the resistance.

Long-term growth perspectives in Japan and the Euro area

Euro area countries and Japan are confronted with similar challenges. Potential output is on a declining trend in the Euro area, and the decrease started well before the financial crisis. In Japan, low-output growth is a striking feature since many years, despite the unconventional monetary policy stance and numerous fiscal stimulus programs provided by the government. According to a growth accounting exercise based on a Cobb-Douglas production function, the development in both economies can be traced to a weak evolution of TFP. Weak capital deepening is detected especially in the Euro area. Driven by high uncertainty, the willingness of firms to undertake investment is only modest and constitutes the Achilles’ heel for a smooth recovery. Both economies are not well prepared to manage the demographic challenges caused by an elderly population. Given that debt-to-GDP ratios are already at record heights, the scope for further demand-driven policies is limited, especially in Japan. Instead, structural reforms are on the agenda to promote the framework conditions for higher investment and long-run growth in both regions.

INNOVACIÓN Y DESARROLLO: PROGRAMA DE ESTÍMULOS A LA INNOVACIÓN REGIONAL EN MÉXICO

This paper evaluates the Innovation Stimulus Program (pei) in Mexico through its contribution to the Baja California Regional Innovation System (sri) between 2009 and 2013. Using additional behavior methodologies, we analyzed the within-company effect and the network effect, as well as the degree of connectivity and number of interactions between stakeholders from the worlds of business, science, and government involved in the sri. The results reveal that by making funding for innovative projects subject to connections between actors from the realms of business and science, the pei is helping fortify the sri by incentivizing 15% of its interactions.