Market Supply Research Articles

Resilience in Agriculture Amidst and Beyond the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Comprehensive Review of Research Trends and Objectives

Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted all facets of human existence, notably the agricultural sector. The term “resilience” has regained popularity as a means of coping with pandemics. The primary objective of this article is to discern and compile scholarly works pertaining to the concept of resilience in agriculture, specifically in the context of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, it seeks to establish connections between various research domains and the specific research goals outlined in the synthesis articles. The publishing data utilized in this study comprises of research publications written in the English language, with a specific focus on the field of agriculture. The data was sourced from reputable databases such as Scopus, ScienceDirect, and Wiley, covering the period from 2020 to 2023. There is a total of 110 articles that meet the specified inclusion criteria. The articles were stored on the Mendeley platform and afterwards subjected to bibliometric analysis using the VOSviewer software. In addition, it is important to note that papers are categorized according to their geographical location and the specific aims of the research. The primary findings indicate that resilience has been a longstanding research focus, which has regained popularity due to its association with COVID-19. The number of publications pertaining to COVID-19 is steadily rising, with a focus on several keywords including market disruption, case studies, community-supported agriculture, agroecology, and disaster recovery. study primarily targets countries in the Asian continent based on their geographical location. The result shows mostly revolve around investigating the effects of lockdown measures on agricultural production, the agri-food supply chain, livelihoods, and market access. Several study objectives were also focused on examining the resilience of various farming systems and smallholder farmers. This analysis serves as a valuable point of reference for future research pertaining to the resilience of the agricultural sector in the face of various shocks.

'Monty, Bring the Blood Can!' Pulling Teeth in Working-Class Lancashire, 1900-48.

Working-class health cultures before the National Health Service have long been of scholarly interest but those related to oral health are chronically underexamined. This article examines one important aspect of this history-tooth pulling-in early twentieth-century Lancashire. By highlighting the dynamics of market supply and demand, it demonstrates how and why the tooth pulling services of non-orthodox practitioners called dental mechanics remained popular despite the increasing monopolization of oral health by dentists. Dentists characterized mechanics as quacks, but working-class Lancastrians sought out these mechanics because they formed a trusted part of their communities. This demonstration of a population's preference for unorthodox over orthodox practitioners provides a much-needed counter-narrative to professionalization in oral health and highlights the significance of geographically specific traditions over the values of medicine and science.

Local government debts and corporate bond spreads: Evidence from China

Using a comprehensive dataset of Chinese corporate bonds that existed during 2011–2018, we find a significant positive relationship between local government debts and the credit spreads of local firms. By matching their debt maturity, we find that long-term government debts have an obvious effect on the spreads of long-term corporate bonds. Moreover, with the expansion of local government debts, local firms reduce their debt financing in response to the rising borrowing cost. These findings show that a crowding out effect does exist between local government debts and local corporate bonds. The effect is attributable to the decrease in the capital supply in the credit market, the weakened implicit guarantee from the government, and the increasing investment cost for local firms, which are all correlated with the expansion of local government debts.

Интеллектуальный капитал малых форм аграрного производства: формирование и использование

In order to obtain competitive advantages for small forms of agricultural production, theoretical and methodological developments in the field of formation and functioning of their intellectual capital are necessary, which determines the relevance of the chosen research topic. The article reveals the theoretical and methodological essence of one of the elementsof human capital — the concept of “intellectual capital”, which is a system of socio-economic relations capable of generating income, and as its structural elements, “knowledge”, “experience” and “awareness” of its bearers — people are distinguished. The scheme of systematic analysis of the intellectual capital of the village through the factors of its availability (the level of socio-economic development of rural areas, the ratio of supply and demand in the labor market) and use (the level of inclusiveness and sustainability of agricultural production, its digitalization, technical and technological support, management of agricultural formations) is proposed. The level of education of the rural population is analyzed as the basis for the formation of the intellectual capital of the village, as well as the degree of its influence on the efficiency of agricultural production in the regions of the Russian Federation. The relevance of creating an educational platform on the basis of a regional university for providing educational and consulting services that contribute to the formation and development of intellectual capital of small forms of agricultural production is substantiated. The obtained results and conclusions will be useful in the development and implementation of program measures for the development of intellectual capital of small forms of agricultural production.

Проблема сверхурочной занятости в Китае: принуждение к переработкам и их тотальное распространение

The article analyzes one of the most pressing problems of labor relations in China today – the problem of widespread forced overtime work by employers. The author sees the main reason for this situation as strong pressure from labor supply in the Chinese labor market. The article examines polarized opinions on overtime work: its proponents argue that both voluntary and forced overtime contribute to the dynamic development of the Chinese economy, while opponents believe that constant overtime employment causes irreparable harm to the workers’ health, including their mental health, increases occupational injuries, and leads to a higher number of suicide attempts among young citizens. The article concludes that the prevalence of overtime work is a consequence of labor market saturation and increased competition among workers for “good positions”, leading to relationships of exploitation in favor of the employer. Addressing this issue will require comprehensive strategies that consider both labor market dynamics and worker protection laws to ensure fair and sustainable labor practices in China.

Target: How a Top Retailer Overseas Global Sourcing Challenges

As one of the largest and most distinguished retailers in the United States, Target Corporation has faced a multitude of global sourcing challenges, as well as other internal and external issues. Through research, Target’s implementation of several processes and systems can be analyzed to explore how it counters the ever-changing market and global supply chains. This includes analyses of its history, business model, supply chain components, and value chains. In conclusion, this comprehensive study provides valuable insights into Target Corporation’s business operations, market positioning, supply chain management, and challenges. By capitalizing on opportunities and fortifying its brand promise, Target has the potential to further enhance its performance and profitability in the retail industry.

Dynamics of a Cournot game with bounded rational firms and various scale effects.

In this paper, we focus on a dynamic Cournot game in the market with a nonlinear (isoelastic) demand function. In our model, there are N competing firms featured by nonlinear cost functions, which enhances our model's resemblance to real-world scenarios. Firstly, we focus on the homogeneous case where firms' marginal costs change at equal rates. We establish analytical expressions of the market supply at equilibrium and perform comparative static analysis. In addition, we investigate the local stability under different economies of scale and show that there could be multiple stable equilibria if firms face economies of scale. The heterogeneous case where firms' marginal costs change at distinct rates is much more complex, thus we investigate the duopoly game with only two firms involved. Methods of symbolic computations such as triangular decomposition and partial cylindrical algebraic decomposition are employed in the analytical investigations of the equilibrium, which is nearly impossible by using the pencil-and-paper approach since the closed-form equilibrium is quite complicated. According to the computational results, we derive that two stable positive equilibria may coexist if both firms face economies of scale. Additionally, we conduct preliminary numerical simulations and find two different types of complex dynamics of the model considered in this paper: complex trajectories such as periodic and chaotic orbits may appear; the topological structure of the basins of attraction may be complex.

Green Supplier Selection Using Fuzzy AHP, Fuzzy TOSIS, and Fuzzy WASPAS: A Case Study of the Moroccan Automotive Industry

The green supplier selection presents numerous challenges, from initial assessment to final selection, which specialists in this field of supplier management often encounter. Among the techniques that aim to meet these challenges that are continually progressing is the creation and development of high-quality decision-making tools. In this study, the assessment of suppliers hinges on both traditional and environmental factors. A framework of multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) is announced in order to appraise green supplier selection. This framework integrates Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) combined with two additional methods: WASPAS (“Weighted Aggregated Sum-Product Assessment”) and TOPSIS (“Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution”). At the outset, there were five environmental criteria for green supplier selection: “Health and Safety”, “Sustainable Product Design”, “ISO 14001 Certification”, “Investment Recovery”, and “Green Packaging”, along with three conventional criteria including quality, price, and delivery, were pinpointed through a review of literature and expert input to facilitate the MCDM approach. As part of demonstrating the pertinency of the recommended framework, a practical case study of the automotive industry in Morocco is discussed. The results demonstrate that the utilized Fuzzy hybrid methods yield consistent rankings for green suppliers. Additionally, among the four green suppliers, number three obtained the best ranking, which indicates the robustness and performance of the chosen models. Furthermore, this study offers a unified platform for selecting green suppliers under a Fuzzy environment. Therefore, the chosen strategy and its analysis provide relevant data and information to decision-makers for the choice and selection of suppliers. It can also provide and help procurement departments and decision-makers to choose and select the efficient ecological supplier in the global market supply chain.

A STUDY ON RISKS AND THEIR MITIGATION IN SUPPLY CHAIN PROCESS WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO JSW ISPAT SPECIAL PRODUCTS LIMITED

This project report examines the various risks inherent in the supply chain of JSW Ispat Special Products Limited and outlines the strategies used to mitigate these risks. The purpose of the research is to find out, through in-depth analysis, how these supply chain risks affect the efficiency of the facility's operations and overall efficiency. The report is comprehensive and includes the results of extensive literature reviews, primary research and detailed data analyses. The main risks identified are supply disruptions, logistical challenges, market instability and regulatory changes. Mitigation strategies such as multifaceted sourcing, improved inventory management, robust logistics planning and compliance frameworks are discussed in detail. The results of this study not only highlight critical supply chain vulnerabilities, but also provide practical insights and recommendations to improve resilience and efficiency. Ultimately, this study contributes to a deeper understanding of supply chain dynamics and provides practical solutions to optimize supply chain processes at JSW Ispat Special Products Limited. Keywords: Supply chain, risk mitigation, JSW Ispat, Supply disruptions, Logistics challenges

Decision process for industry 5.0

ABSTRACT Industry 5.0 is an emerging paradigm that enhances the established Industry 4.0. Automation, digitalisation, big data, and artificial intelligence are becoming complemented by human-centricity, active cooperation between people and machines, and decision-making based on human expertise. This research introduces a generic decision-making process for Industry 5.0. It defines the underlying principles to incorporate multi-criteria decision models, decision procedures, and decision support technology into business and production processes for Industry 5.0. We justify the motivation to aggregate holistic objectivedecisions, which are inferred automatically from big data, with subjective judgements and knowledge of human decision-makers to guarantee unbiased actions. We draw parallels with the aggregation-disaggregation paradigm and constructive learning to address the human-centric specification of preferences in cooperation with technology-driven entities. We assess the relevance and efficiency of decision support for Industry 5.0 with a SWOT analysis. Finally, we apply the introduced generic process to the use case of the flexible electricity supply market.

CODAS–Hamming–Mahalanobis Method for Hierarchizing Green Energy Indicators and a Linearity Factor for Relevant Factors’ Prediction through Enterprises’ Opinions

As enterprises look forward to new market share and supply chain opportunities, innovative strategies and sustainable manufacturing play important roles for micro-, small, and mid-sized enterprises worldwide. Sustainable manufacturing is one of the practices aimed towards deploying green energy initiatives to ease climate change, presenting three main pillars—economic, social, and environmental. The issue of how to reach sustainability goals within the sustainable manufacturing of pillars is a less-researched area. This paper’s main purpose and novelty is two-fold. First, it aims to provide a hierarchy of the green energy indicators and their measurements through a multi-criteria decision-making point of view to implement them as an alliance strategy towards sustainable manufacturing. Moreover, we aim to provide researchers and practitioners with a forecasting method to re-prioritize green energy indicators through a linearity factor model. The CODAS–Hamming–Mahalanobis method is used to obtain preference scores and rankings from a 50-item list. The resulting top 10 list shows that enterprises defined nine items within the economic pillar as more important and one item on the environmental pillar; items from the social pillar were less important. The implication for MSMEs within the manufacturing sector represents an opportunity to work with decision makers to deploy specific initiatives towards sustainable manufacturing, focused on profit and welfare while taking care of natural resources. In addition, we propose a continuous predictive analysis method, the linearity factor model, as a tool for new enterprises to seek a green energy hierarchy according to their individual needs. The resulting hierarchy using the predictive analysis model presented changes in the items’ order, but it remained within the same two sustainable manufacturing pillars: economic and environmental.

Кризис на рынке удобрений и его влияние на продовольственную безопасность в странах Африки южнее Сахары

The stability of the fertilizer market plays a critical role in ensuring food security, particularly in regions heavily reliant on agriculture such as Sub-Saharan Africa. However, the recent fertilizer market crisis has underscored the vulnerability of African countries to external shocks, exacerbating existing challenges related to food production and access. The article examines the assessment of the role of the fertilizer market crisis of 2022–2023 in exacerbating the food security situation in Sub-Saharan African countries. The findings suggest that the increase in the number of people experiencing malnutrition, reaching 262 million individuals (23 % of the population) in 2022 in Sub-Saharan Africa, is largely attributed to the inability to enhance domestic agricultural production. In turn, events in the fertilizer market, leading to a reduction in available supply and price hikes in the global market, hindered African farmers from increasing fertilizer application to boost crop yields. The article also conducts an analysis of factors that prevented African countries from adapting to the fertilizer market crisis, drawing comparisons with developed nations. Addressing the fertilizer market crisis in Sub-Saharan Africa requires a multi-faceted approach that involves improving domestic fertilizer production capacity, enhancing agricultural extension services, and promoting sustainable farming practices. Furthermore, there is a need for increased collaboration between governments, international organizations, and the private sector to develop long-term solutions that strengthen food security and resilience in the face of future challenges.

A modified spatial house price to income ratio and housing affordability drivers study: using the post-LASSO approach

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop an index for measuring urban house price affordability that integrates spatial considerations and to explore the drivers of housing affordability using the post-least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) approach and the ordinary least squares method of regression analysis. Design/methodology/approach The study is based on time-series data collected from 2005 to 2021 for 256 prefectural-level city districts in China. The new urban spatial house-to-price ratio introduced in this study adds the consideration of commuting costs due to spatial endowment compared to the traditional house-to-price ratio. And compared with the use of ordinary economic modelling methods, this study adopts the post-LASSO variable selection approach combined with the k-fold cross-test model to identify the most important drivers of housing affordability, thus better solving the problems of multicollinearity and overfitting. Findings Urban macroeconomics environment and government regulations have varying degrees of influence on housing affordability in cities. Among them, gross domestic product is the most important influence. Research limitations/implications The paper provides important implications for policymakers, real estate professionals and researchers. For example, policymakers will be able to design policies that target the most influential factors of housing affordability in their region. Originality/value This study introduces a new urban spatial house price-to-income ratio, and it examines how macroeconomic indicators, government regulation, real estate market supply and urban infrastructure level have a significant impact on housing affordability. The problem of having too many variables in the decision-making process is minimized through the post-LASSO methodology, which varies the parameters of the model to allow for the ranking of the importance of the variables. As a result, this approach allows policymakers and stakeholders in the real estate market more flexibility in determining policy interventions. In addition, through the k-fold cross-validation methodology, the study ensures a high degree of accuracy and credibility when using drivers to predict housing affordability.

The Implementation of Central Bank Policy during the Economic Crisis in Lebanon

During the last four years Lebanon has been facing a severe crisis that have no way out. It has challenged all the potential of the authorities dealing with financial, social and economic sector circumstances. Recently this economic crisis is still going up in higher frequency and more effectively on the Lebanese people. During this crisis central bank of Lebanon implemented its own monetary policy that is represented by expansionary monetary policy. The aim of this paper is to detect the impact of central bank implemented monetary policy during the economic crisis in Lebanon using money supply and open market operations tools in both short and long run on coincident index and consumer price index. In this consideration we perform monthly data covering the period January 2017 to June 2022 by applying VAR model. The empirical results shows that money supply and open market operation have no impact on coincident index and consumer price index in the long run, in addition they do not cause them in the short run. However the impulse response function show some reactions of coincident index and consumer price index to shocks in money supply and open market operations.

Research on Game-Theoretic Supply Chain Optimisation Strategies Based on Multiple Linear Regression and BP-PSO Combined Time Series Analysis

Vegetable commodities have a short cycle, and supermarkets generally replenish goods based on historical sales and demand for each commodity. Vegetable commodities are different from other commodities with relatively stable supply chain planning and market environment, so the automatic pricing and replenishment decisions of fresh food superstores on commodities are of great significance. This paper focuses on the problem of commodity pricing and replenishment strategy. Firstly, through multiple linear analysis regression analysis, the relationship between total quantity and cost plus pricing, fit a one-dimensional linear fitting equation, and visualise the correlation between sales price and total quantity, secondly, observe the trend of various types of vegetables through matlab time-series analysis, establish BP neural network prediction model, predict the total quantity of sales and total quantity of replenishment in the coming week, and formulate the commodity pricing and replenishment strategy using Linear programming to establish the optimization model, verify the feasibility of the model, the parameter normality test and residual test and visual inspection error, analyse the parameter significance, use BP neural network to test the fitting effect. The results of the study, based on the game theory of supply chain replenishment and pricing strategy to establish a mathematical model.

How the Belt and Road Initiative Promotes Integration and Upgrading of Emerging Market Supply Chains

This study delves into the trans-formative role of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in fostering the integration and upgrading of supply chains within emerging markets. Conceived as a modern revival and expansion of the ancient Silk Road, the BRI has rapidly evolved into a comprehensive framework for global economic collaboration, with a focus on extensive infrastructure development across continents. This paper offers an in-depth exploration of the BRI's structure, including the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, underscoring the initiative's key components and its strategic focus on enhancing connectivity. Through the lens of case studies, this research illustrates the BRI's substantial contributions to strengthening trade links, economic cooperation, and the resilience of supply chains. Moreover, it assesses how the BRI promotes improved connectivity, lowers trade barriers, and enhances the skills and abilities of professionals in the logistics industry, thereby boosting trade and investment. Additionally, the study explores future directions, spotlighting emerging trends, challenges, and strategic imperatives for the BRI. In conclusion, it offers insights into how to navigate the future of global economic integration and supply chain diversification through the BRI.

Exploring supply chain and regional resilience through the analysis of the transport dimension

Despite the key role that global supply chains (GSC), and more specifically, the transport and logistics function, might play in the performance of regions, there is a lack of analytical tools that turn the data generated by supply chain operations into quantitative metrics allowing policymakers to identify early signals of potential vulnerabilities and assess how resilient the GSC are at regional level. In an effort to fill this gap, we present a Transportation Resilience Index (TRI) that permits evaluating how transport chains affect supply chain resilience and, consequently, regional resilience. Our index, based on publicly available data –statistics on foreign trade flows provided by the Spanish Customs, the World Bank’ Logistics Performance Index and the UNCTAD’ Bilateral Liner Shipping Connectivity Index − differentiates between the determinants over which the company has direct decision-making control, and those linked to the selection of the supply market (market and macro dimensions). The TRI is applied to the Spanish regions (NUTS2) by using the Benefit-of-the-Doubt (BoD) approach to Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and applying a Common Set of Weights (CSW) for the selection of the weights to the index components. In our specific analysis, the market and macroeconomic components account for 84% of the total weight of the TRI. Despite the lower relative weight of the company dimension, the high degree of homogeneity in the market and macroeconomic scores means the company dimension plays a key role in the relative resilience of the Spanish regions.

A classroom market experiment: Data and reflections

In this article, the authors analyze data accumulated over 10+ years of teaching market interaction using a simple classroom experiment. The experiment is designed to teach first-year undergraduate students the basics of supply and demand and market efficiency. In total, they analyze data from 85 teaching sessions and 243 individual markets. They find that traded prices typically (90% of the time) move in accordance with market equilibrium comparative statics. They also find that average traded prices are rarely (5% of the time) consistent with market equilibrium but typically (70% of the time) “close” to the equilibrium. The traded quantity is often (60% of the time) more than equilibrium, which results in a loss of efficiency. The law of one price is strongly rejected.

HOW PASSENGER TRANSPORT IS DEVELOPING IN BULGARIA IN THE CONDITIONS OF A DYNAMIC CHANGING ENVIRONMENT?

The current study seeks to establish the preferences of Bulgarians through exploring how passenger transport in Bulgaria developed from 2012 to 2022. On a theoretical level, the characteristics of this sector are described, such as types of passenger transport vehicles. The research interest is aimed at tracking the dynamics behind all the options for passenger carriage forming the supply of the transport market in Bulgaria: by rail, bus, air, water, and urban electric transport. To achieve this objective, the parameters of activity in the passenger transport segment are used as the main measures – number of passengers, passenger-kilometres and average distance travelled. During the studied period, passenger transport in Bulgaria developed at variable rates and was influenced by environmental factors. The mode of transport most affected by the pandemic in 2020–2021 was by air. A decrease in the total number of passengers and overall performance for 2022 compared to 2012 can be observed. This decline is due to a decrease in bus and rail transport indicators. The study has established that Bulgarians prefer traveling by bus to other public transport alternatives. Although the absolute number of vehicles has decreased in this segment, it has the largest relative share according to the indicators of transported passengers and performed work as part of the total transport activity in the country. In a practical respect, attention is focused on modern solutions related to information and communication technologies, as well as some opportunities to attract more public transport passengers. The author also draws attention to some EU initiatives in the field of air and maritime transport concerning Union-wide energy policy.

Emerging into the world: regulation and control of dormancy and sprouting in geophytes.

Geophytic plants synchronize growth and quiescence with the external environment to survive and thrive under changing seasons. Together with seasonal growth adaptation, dormancy and sprouting are critical factors determining crop yield and market supply, as various geophytes also serve as major food, floriculture, and ornamental crops. Dormancy in such crops determines crop availability in the market, as most of them are consumed during the dormant stage. On the other hand, uniform/maximal sprouting is crucial for maximum yield. Thus, dormancy and sprouting regulation have great economic importance. Dormancy-sprouting cycles in geophytes are regulated by genetic, exogenous (environmental), and endogenous (genetic, metabolic, hormonal, etc.) factors. Comparatively, the temperature is more dominant in regulating dormancy and sprouting in geophytes, unlike above-ground tissues, where both photoperiod and temperature control are involved. Despite huge economic importance, studies concerning the regulation of dormancy and sprouting are scarce in the majority of geophytes. To date, only a few molecular factors involved in the process have been suggested. Recently, omics studies on molecular and metabolic factors involved in dormancy and growth regulation of underground vegetative tissues have provided more insight into the mechanism. Here, we discuss current knowledge of the environmental and molecular regulation and control of dormancy and sprouting in geophytes, and discuss challenges/questions that need to be addressed in the future for crop improvement.