Russia and oil have mixed impact in Caucasus

Subject Economic turmoil in the South Caucasus. Significance Economic performance has been affected by two major external factors: turmoil in Russia, which remains a significant economic partner, and declining oil prices. While lower imported fuel bills are positive for Armenia and Georgia, there are second-round negative implications, through the impact on economic activity in Russia. Impacts Lower oil prices will lead to some cuts on infrastructure spending in Azerbaijan but these will be limited. Armenia will suffer the most from the Russian turmoil, but the positive impact of domestic factors will prevail in 2015. Georgia's more diversified economic links make it more resilient to Russian shocks.

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 380-398
Author(s):  
Ramesh Kumar ◽  
Raiswa Saha ◽  
Sekar P.C. ◽  
Richa Dahiya

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to measure the influence of peers, and the Government and non-governmental organization (NGO) initiatives on an individual’s attitudinal drivers such as environmental knowledge and environmental concern, which are the reasons for their green purchasing intentions. This concept was applied among the Indian young consumers. Design/methodology/approach For the research, a structured online questionnaire was used to obtain responses from 342 Indians from various cities. The participants were 20-25 years of age. SPSS software package was used to refine the data while SmartPLS was used to test the validity of the hypotheses. Findings The findings revealed that the Government and NGO initiatives along with peer influence do have a significant effect on a consumer’s environmental knowledge and environmental concerns. Further, this study found a significant positive effect of environmental knowledge and environmental concern on perceived value. In turn, the perceived value had a direct positive impact on green attitude leading to green purchase intention. Practical implications This paper provides critical insights for marketers, as well as for governmental agencies and NGOs promoting the conservation of the environment through environmental-friendly practices. These parties aim to generate greater awareness among consumers and impart knowledge about the benefits of green practices. Originality/value The studies measuring the impact of external factors on green consumption are scarce. Even the few studies available have measured the direct impact of external factors on green purchase intention. Governmental and NGO initiatives along with peer influence are the stimuli impacting operational factors such as environmental knowledge, environmental concern, perceived value, and green attitude, which, in turn, lead to the response of green purchase intention. This study provides new insights to this relationship by using a stimulus – organism – response framework.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Oguzhan Ozcelebi

Purpose Might the impact of the global economic policy uncertainty (GEPU) and the long-term bond yields on oil prices be asymmetric? This paper aims to consider the effects of the GEPU and the US long-term government bond yields on oil prices using quantile-based analysis and nonlinear vector autoregression (VAR) model. The author hypothesized whether the negative and positive changes in the GEPU and the long-term bond yields of the USA have different effects on oil prices. Design/methodology/approach To address this question, the author uses quantile cointegration model and the impulse response functions (IRFs) of the censored variable approach of Kilian and Vigfusson (2011). Findings The quantile cointegration test showed the existence of non-linear cointegration relationship, whereas Granger-causality analysis revealed that positive/negative variations in GEPU will have opposite effects on oil prices. This result was supported by the quantile regression model’s coefficients and nonlinear VAR model’s IRFs; more specifically, it was stressed that increasing/decreasing GEPU will deaccelerate/accelerate global economic activity and thus lead to a fall/rise in oil prices. On the other hand, the empirical models indicated that the impact of US 10-year government bond yields on oil prices is asymmetrical, while it was found that deterioration in the borrowing conditions in the USA may have an impact on oil prices by slowing down the global economic activity. Originality/value As a robustness check of the quantile-based analysis results, the slope-based Mork test is used.


2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 1732-1750 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charbel Bassil ◽  
Hassan Hamadi ◽  
Marion Bteich

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of terrorism in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) on the return and volatility of world price of oil. Design/methodology/approach GARCH models and daily data from 1987 till 2015 will be used. Findings The empirical results reveal that terrorism in the OPEC affects positively oil returns and negatively its volatility. Results also show that the different characteristics of the attacks are likely to have different impact on the return and volatility of oil prices. In overall terms, terrorism has a much larger positive impact on the return of oil prices and negative impact on its volatility if it targets the oil industry in the OPEC. This marginal effect is even greater if those attacks were successful. Originality/value The distinguishing feature of this paper is that the authors use a framework that takes into account different attributes for terrorism the success of the attacks, the intensity of the attacks and the associated targets.


2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kanika Mahajan

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) on farm sector wage rate. This identification strategy rests on the assumption that all districts across India would have had similar wage trends in the absence of the program. The author argues that this assumption may not be true due to non-random allocation of districts to the program’s three phases across states and different economic growth paths of the states post the implementation of NREGS. Design/methodology/approach – To control for overall macroeconomic trends, the author allows for state-level time fixed effects to capture the differences in growth trajectories across districts due to changing economic landscape in the parent-state over time. The author also estimates the expected farm sector wage growth due to the increased public work employment provision using a theoretical model. Findings – The results, contrary to the existing studies, do not find support for a significantly positive impact of NREGS treatment on private cultivation wage rate. The theoretical model also shows that an increase in public employment work days explains very little of the total growth in cultivation wage post 2004. Originality/value – This paper looks specifically at farm sector wage growth and the possible impact of NREGS on it, accounting for state specific factors in shaping farm wages. Theoretical estimates are presented to overcome econometric limitations.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Begüm Yurteri Kösedağlı ◽  
Gül Huyugüzel Kışla ◽  
A. Nazif Çatık

AbstractThis study analyzes oil price exposure of the oil–gas sector stock returns for the fragile five countries based on a multi-factor asset pricing model using daily data from 29 May 1996 to 27 January 2020. The endogenous structural break test suggests the presence of serious parameter instabilities due to fluctuations in the oil and stock markets over the period under study. Moreover, the time-varying estimates indicate that the oil–gas sectors of these countries are riskier than the overall stock market. The results further suggest that, except for Indonesia, oil prices have a positive impact on the sectoral returns of all markets, whereas the impact of the exchange rates on the oil–gas sector returns varies across time and countries.


2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 532-554 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tommy Lau ◽  
Man Lai Cheung ◽  
Guilherme D. Pires ◽  
Carol Chan

Purpose The abolishment of the wine tax in Hong Kong has led to increased wine consumption and increased demand for wine-related professionals, such as sommeliers. Yet the importance of sommeliers’ value-adding performance in the context of upscale Chinese restaurants has not been examined. To address this gap, the SERVQUAL framework is adopted to examine the influence of sommeliers’ service quality (SQ) on customer satisfaction (CS) and loyalty in the context of upscale Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong. Design/methodology/approach The survey method is used to collect data from 302 units of the population of interest, partial least square-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) is used to test the links between constructs. Findings Four of the seven dimensions of sommeliers’ service quality, namely, empathy, tangibles, credibility and assurance, have a significant positive impact on customer satisfaction and customer loyalty, whereas the impact of perceived value and responsiveness on customer satisfaction and customer loyalty is positive but only marginally significant. Reliability has a weak and non-significant impact on customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. Research limitations/implications Examining a small number of upscale Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong limits generalisation of the findings to other contexts. Replication of the research in different contexts will enhance generalizability. In terms of implications, the discussion highlights the importance of sommeliers’ service performance on customers’ SQ perceptions SQ, CS and loyalty, all of which are important variables for restaurateurs. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study of the influence of the quality of sommelier’s SQ on CS and loyalty in upscale Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong. Given the lack of attention to this service role in the literature, the study contributes theory from which further understanding can develop.


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 467-477 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matvey S. Oborin ◽  
Irina Kozhushkina ◽  
Tatyana Gvarliani ◽  
Nikolay Ivanov

Purpose This paper aims to analyze the modern problems and the main trends of development of the health-improving tourism sector in the southern part of Russia and to identify significant factors in overcoming the complex challenges related to specific socio-economic conditions in the study area. Design/methodology/approach The material that served as the basis of the study comprises statistical data from the Southern Federal District and its subjects, as well as data about the development of tourism infrastructure on the official websites of governments, Ministry of Tourism and the population of the Southern Federal District. This information was systematized from a number of perspectives, including identification of the chronology of health-improving tourism infrastructure development in the chosen territory, as well as the advantages and disadvantages in this area. Based on the results of the study, the authors also developed some recommendations to overcome existing inactive trends in the field of health tourism. Findings This paper sheds light on the understanding of the challenges and changes that took place in the resort agglomerations of the south of Russia in terms of current issues and those that must be addressed in the coming years. It was concluded that health tourism in the south of Russia has old traditions based on the natural resource potential of territories that are included in the composition of the Southern Federal District. At the same time, the authors came to the conclusion that, unfortunately, not resort agglomerations are fully utilized. Furthermore, some historic resorts were not well maintained by local authorities and have suffered more recently because of lack of investment. At present, the financial results of health resorts and others related to health-improving tourism are precarious as most operations are unprofitable, and so complex decisions are needed to address the underlying problem of resource optimization because of the important social and economic role of the cities in this region. They have special natural and resource potential and preserve traditions related to health-improving tourism. Research limitations/implications The paper provides a conceptual analysis based on limited empirical data combined with some directions for further research. Originality/value The paper attempts to reveal the impact of social, economic and geopolitical factors, both negative and positive, on the development of the health-improving tourism segment, restructuring of the Russian tourism market and the emergence of promising opportunities and new directions for development. The findings also provide insights for practitioners and researchers, and the tourism industry can draw on this analysis to guide the development of strategy, increase investment attractiveness, make more effective use of the natural resource potential and maintain pressure on government partners to provide support to tourism.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ayman Abu-Rumman ◽  
Ata Al Shraah ◽  
Faisal Al-Madi ◽  
Tasneem Alfalah

Purpose This study aims to explore if the application of the customer results criteria contained within the King Abdullah II Award for Excellence (KAIIAE) is correlated with high levels of patient satisfaction within a large hospital based in Jordan. Design/methodology/approach Using a mixed methodology, supported by a pragmatist theoretical approach, a satisfaction survey was conducted with patients accessing the hospital as an in-patient across a range of specialities gathering feedback about different aspects of their care. The results were compared with a self-assessment completed by different speciality teams about the existence and maturity of customer result arrangements implemented as a result of the (KAIIAE). Findings The findings confirmed that quality awards such as the KAIIAE can effectively be applied in a health-care setting and can help provide a framework for improving patient experience and satisfaction. A correlation was found with those specialties that self-assessed themselves more highly in terms of these arrangements and the overall levels of patient satisfaction with that specialty, suggesting that the products of working towards the KAIIAE such as establishing effective patient experience monitoring arrangements and improved learning from complaints, has a positive impact on patient satisfaction. Originality/value There are limited studies which focus specifically on customer results and on the use of the KAIIAE more generally. This study therefore makes a valuable contribution in adding to the debate about the strategic value of working towards formal quality improvement models and awards in health-care settings.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kimberly W. O'Connor ◽  
Kimberly S. McDonald ◽  
Brandon T. McDaniel ◽  
Gordon B. Schmidt

Purpose The purpose of this exploratory study is to examine individual perceptions about the impact that social media use has on career satisfaction and perceived career benefits. We examined whether informal online learning through “typical” types of social media behaviors (e.g. liking a post or messaging another user) and “networking” types of social media behaviors (e.g. endorsing another user, writing recommendations, going “live,” or looking for a job) impacted career-related perceptions. Design/methodology/approach In this study, we analyzed Amazon Mechanical Turk survey data gathered from adult participants (n = 475). We focused our inquiry specifically on two social media sites, Facebook and LinkedIn. We asked participants about their social media use and behaviors, as well as their perceptions of career satisfaction and career benefits related to social media. Findings We found that both typical and networking types of social media behaviors positively predicted the “knowing whom” career competency (defined as career relevant networks and contacts that individuals use to develop their careers) and career satisfaction. Only networking behaviors were positively associated with perceived career benefits of social media use. We further found that LinkedIn users’ career satisfaction was lower compared to non-LinkedIn users. Originality/value This study adds to the small, but growing body of career research focusing on social capital and social media. Our results suggest that informal online learning via social media may have a positive impact on employees’ career-related perceptions.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xianchun Zhang ◽  
Zhu Yao ◽  
Wan Qunchao ◽  
Fu-Sheng Tsai

Purpose Time pressure is the most common kind of work pressure that employees face in the workplace; the existing research results on the effect of time pressure are highly controversial (positive, negative, inverted U-shaped). Especially in the era of knowledge economy, there remains a research gap in the impact of time pressure on individual knowledge hiding. The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of different time pressure (challenge and hindrance) on knowledge hiding and to explain why there is controversy about the effect of time pressure in the academics. Design/methodology/approach The authors collected two waves of data and surveyed 341 R&D employees in China. Moreover, they used regression analysis, bootstrapping and Johnson–Neyman statistical technique to verify research hypotheses. Findings The results show that challenge time pressure (CTP) has a significant negative effect on knowledge hiding, whereas hindrance time pressure (HTP) has a significant positive effect on knowledge hiding; job security mediates the relationship between time pressure and knowledge hiding; temporal leadership strengthen the positive impact of CTP on job security; temporal leadership can mitigate the negative impact of HTP on job security. Originality/value The findings not only respond to the academic debate about the effect of time pressure and point out the reasons for the controversy but also enhance the scholars’ attention and understanding of the internal mechanism between time pressure and knowledge hiding.


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