LABOR TAXATION AND INVESTMENT IN DEVELOPED COUNTRIES. THE IMPACT ON EMPLOYMENT

Michael MITSOPOULOS

Ph.D. Boston University. Director of Business Environment and Regulatory Affairs, SEV Hellenic Federation of Enterprises, Greece.

Michalis@internet.gr

Theodore PELAGIDIS

Professor of Economics, University of Piraeus, Dpt of Maritime St. and Deputy Governor, Bank of Greece. pelagidi@unipi.gr ,

tpelagidis@bankofgreece.gr

Abstract

One of the main topics highlighted in the field of economic policy applications is the impact of taxation on labor. In an era in which macroeconomic stability, technological change and globalization pressure the job market, there exists no strong consensus in the literature on how exactly taxation influences growth, choice between work and leisure, share of income attributed to labor or participation in different job market segments. Focusing on employment levels and using the results of the World Economic Forum (WEF) executive opinion survey (EOS) between 2013-2017 we bypass several challenges often faced in the literature. By doing so, we complement the insights of the existing literature by establishing that, in institutionally mature countries, taxation that is deemed by a survey of business executives to pose a disincentive to work, reduces employment. At the same time, such countries can also rely on the taxation of investment and the flexibility of wages to influence employment levels, unlike less competitive countries.

Keywords: Employment, Taxation of Labor, Non-wage Labor Costs, Executive Opinion Survey

JEL classification: J21, H24, J32, M52

 pp. 13-31

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THE POTENTIAL IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON MEGA ENERGY PROJECTS AND LNG SHIPPING INFRASTRUCTURE; THE CASE OF EASTMED PIPELINE

Antonios STRATAKIS

PhD Candidate, University of Piraeus – Department of Maritime Studies

stratakismaritime@gmail.com

Theodore PELAGIDIS

Professor of Economics, University of Piraeus – Department of Maritime Studies, Deputy Governor – Bank of Greece, Tpelagidis@bankofgreece.gr

pelagidi@unipi.gr

Abstract

It is a matter of fact that COVID-19 pandemic has brought significant changes in political, economic and social level worldwide. The aim of this paper is to examine the potential impact of the pandemic on the launching of large scale energy projects in Southeast Mediterranean region, and in particular the construction of EastMed Pipeline. During 2020, many energy projects across the globe were postponed and that trend is mainly attributed to: a) the economic recession brought by COVID-19, b) a lack of investment appetite by major energy companies whose financial position was severely hit by the pandemic and the volatile energy prices and c) the switching to the use of alternative energy sources (mainly renewables and hydrogen) in an attempt to minimize the global share of fossil fuels and their emissions, the so-called “energy transition” process. This paper takes into account whether all the above exogenous factors create serious implications to the development of the most important mega energy project of Southeast Mediterranean in terms of energy geopolitics, the EastMed Pipeline. Finally, the paper examines the conflicted geopolitical interests of regional players such as Greece, Cyprus, Israel, Turkey and Egypt, as well as the role of European Union and the United States in the energy equation of Southeast Mediterranean.

Keywords: COVID-19, Economic recession, EastMed pipeline, Alternative energy sources, Southeast Mediterranean, Investments

JEL classification: F10, F51, R41, R42, R48

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DIVERSITY OR SPECIALIZARION? UNDERSTANDING KNOWLEDGE SPILLOVER MECHANISMS IN CHINA

Shicong XU

PhD candidate, Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Development Economics, Suite 250 Ag. Administration Building, 2120 Fyffe Rd, The Ohio State University, Columbus OH 43210, USA

Shicong.x@gmail.com

Abdoul G. SAM

Professor, Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Development Economics, Suite 250 Ag. Administration Building, 2120 Fyffe Rd,  The Ohio State University, Columbus OH 43210, USA, Corresponding author

Sam.7@osu.edu

Abstract

China’s rise to the top echelons of the world’s economies was accompanied by an expeditious growth in domestic patent applications. Not surprisingly, this phenomenon has spawned a growing literature trying to sort out the determinants of patented research in China. However, mostly due to data limitations, many of the papers on this topic use aggregated innovation data at the industry, prefecture, or province levels. In this paper, we examine the empirical validity of important theories of knowledge spillover in the context of China at a micro-level, using a firm-level panel dataset comprised of publicly traded companies listed in the Shanghai and ShenZhen Stock Exchanges during the 2006-2010 period. Our study sheds light on whether locating near innovative firms increases patenting activity in general, regardless of the industry membership of these neighboring firms. We also explore how industry makeup, measured by the number of firms in the same or different industries, affects firm-level patenting activity. Our econometric results show that the number of patent applications by firms in close geographic proximity of a firm of interest has a significant and positive impact on that firm’s successful patent applications. In addition, we find that proximity to firms in the same industry reduces innovation while locating near firms from different industries stimulates innovation.

Keywords: patents, knowledge diffusion, MAR spillover, Jacobs spillover, China

JEL classification: O31, O32, O33, R12, D22

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