THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HEALTH CARE AND TOURISM DEMAND IN IRANIAN ECONOMY

Majid FESHARI

Assistant Professor of Economics, Kharazmi University (Corresponding Author)

majid.feshari@gmail.com

Hedayat HOSSEINZADEH

Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, Payame Noor University, Iran

hedhus@gmail.com

Abstract

The relationship between health care and international tourism is one of the important issues in tourism literature. The main objective of this study is to investigate the correlation between health care and international tourism in the long-run and short-run by using a fully modified ordinary least square (FMOLS) and Toda-Yamamoto approach over the time period of 1971-2016. The empirical results of this study indicate that there is a long-run relationship between health care and tourism. Health care has a positive and significant effect on the tourists’ arrivals as a proxy for international tourism demand. Moreover in the short-run, the results suggest that there is unilateral causality from health care to international tourism. Hence, the main implication policy of the study is that policy makers should adopt policies to improving health care and attract more international tourists.

Keywords: Health Care, International Tourism, FMOLS, Toda and Yamamoto Approach

JEL classification: C22, I10
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SHALE INDUSTRY’S ECONOMIC CONTRIBUTION IN OHIO, USA: IMPLICATIONS FOR FUTURE ACTIVITY IN THE STATE

Gilbert MICHAUD

PhD. Assistant Professor of Practice, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio, United States of America

michaudg@ohio.edu

Abstract

Ohio’s shale industry serves as a significant facet of the state’s economy, employing nearly 150,000 and contributing over $22 billion of positive impacts as of 2015.  With advancements in hydraulic fracturing techniques, and access to the Marcellus and Utica shale plays in the eastern part of the state, Ohio has noteworthy potential for future shale development despite anecdotal discussion of a potential bust of the industry.  This research employed a multi-industry economic contribution analysis using IMPLAN and an input-output methodology with 2015 data to quantify the economic contribution of the shale industry across the entire State of Ohio, as well as a 26-county Appalachian Ohio region where most shale extraction activity is taking place.  Strong economic impact metrics are found for shale activity, including robust multiplier effects relative to other industries in the state.  Out of the six modeled shale-related sectors, Pipeline Transportation, by far, pays the highest wages.  Further, in order, the top five counties by total economic contribution per capita are Noble, Monroe, Belmont, Guernsey, and Washington.  In fact, roughly 90% of the gross regional product in Monroe and Noble counties is attributable to the shale industry.  With these findings, economic development and policy implications are highlighted, which are important as no other shale-play region in the U.S. is so disproportionally affected by resource extraction which contributes to regional poverty and negative pollution effects.  Retaining wealth in this region with the legacy of boom-and-bust resource extraction is ever important, and this paper provides a baseline for analysis when looking how the shale industry changes over time.

Keywords: Energy, Natural Resources, Rural Economics, Resource Policy

JEL classification: J68, O13, P48
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PATTERNS OF SPATIAL DEVELOPMENT: EVIDENCE FROM RUSSIA

Veronika MASLIKHINA

Ph.D. in Economics, Associate Professor of  Department of Management and Law, Volga State University of Technology, Yoshkar-Ola, Russia

Maslikhina_nika@mail.ru

Abstract

The aim of the paper is to analyze the trends of spatial inequality in Russia in 1994-2015 based on the convergence concepts. Russia faced the problem of inter-regional inequality as well as most countries. The situation is aggravated by the external economic and domestic factors in recent years. The fall in energy prices and Western sanctions had a negative impact on the country’s economic development. Russia is compelled to take into account geopolitical interests in the implementation regional policies in some regions (the Far East, the Crimea, the Kaliningrad region, the republics of the North Caucasus, the Arctic). Many regional budgets have budget deficit, highly debt load. They optimize spending on the social sphere and reduce investments in the real economy. Russia is emerging from the crisis despite the difficult situation. A review of the theoretical positions of the four types of convergence concepts (σ-, β-, γ-, ρ-convergence) was made. The spatial inequality evaluation was carried out on the basis of σ-convergence and absolute β-convergence concepts. The Williamson coefficient, the Hoover index, the Theil index and the Atkinson index were used to analyze spatial inequality based on the σ-concept. Differentiation has increased over the analyzed period, but gap decreased after 2005. The  convergence speed  is 1.79% in Russia. Regions with a low initial level of development have higher growth rates than regions with a higher initial level of development

Keywords: spatial inequality, spatial development, β-convergence, σ-convergence, Russia

JEL classification: D63, O52, R1, R58
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