International trade increases connections and dependencies between countries, weaving a network of global supply chains. Agricultural commodity trade has implications for crop producers, consumers, ...crop prices, water and land uses, and other human systems. Interconnections among these systems are not always easy to observe when external impacts penetrate across multiple sectors. To better understand the interactions of non-linear and globally coupled agricultural-bioenergy-water systems under the broader economy, we introduce systematic perturbations in two dimensions, one human (restrictions on agricultural trade) and the other physical (climate impacts on crop yields). We explore these independently and in combination to distinguish the consequences of individual perturbation and interactive effects in long-term projections. We show that most regions experience larger changes in cereal consumption due to cereal import dependency constraints than due to the impacts of climate change on agricultural yields. In the scenario where all regions ensure an import dependency ratio of zero, the global trade of cereals decreases ~50% in 2050 compared to the baseline, with smaller decreases in cereal production and consumption (4%). The changes in trade also impact water and bioenergy: global irrigation water consumption increases 3% and corn ethanol production decreases 7% in 2050. Climate change results in rising domestic prices and declining consumption of cereal crops in general, while the import dependency constraint exacerbates the situation in regions which import more cereals in the baseline. The individual and interactive effects of trade perturbations and climate change vary greatly across regions, which are also affected by the regional ability to increase agricultural production through intensification or extensification.
The ability of load to respond to short-term variations in electricity prices plays an increasingly important role in balancing short-term supply and demand, especially during peak periods and in ...dealing with fluctuations in renewable energy supplies. However, price responsive load has not been included in standard models for defining the optimal scheduling of generation units in short-term. Here, elasticities are included to adjust the demand profile in response to price changes, including cross-price elasticities that account for load shifts among hours. The resulting peak reductions and valley fill alter the optimal unit commitment. Enhancing demand response also increases the amount of wind power that can be economically injected. Further, wind power uncertainty can be managed at a lower cost by adjusting electricity consumption in case of wind forecast errors, which is another way in which demand response facilitates the integration of intermittent renewables.
In 2021, Germany launched a national emissions trading system (ETS) in its road transport and housing sectors that increases the cost burden of consumers of fossil fuels, the major source of carbon ...dioxide (CO2) emissions. A promising approach to secure public acceptance for such a carbon pricing would be to entirely reallocate the resulting “carbon” revenues to consumers. This article discusses three alternatives that were discussed in the political arena prior to the introduction of the national carbon pricing: a) a per-capita reallocation to private households, b) the reduction of electricity prices by, e.g., decreasing the electricity tax, as well as c) targeted financial aid for vulnerable consumers, such as increasing housing benefits. To estimate both the revenues originating from carbon pricing and the resulting emission savings, we employ a partial equilibrium approach that is based on price elasticity estimates on individual fossil fuel consumption from the empirical literature. Most effective with respect to alleviating the burden of poor households would be increasing housing benefits. While this measure would not require large monetary resources, we argue that the remaining revenues should be preferably employed to reduce Germany's electricity tax, which becomes more and more obsolete given the steadily increasing amount of electricity generated by renewable energy technologies.
•To secure acceptance for a carbon pricing, “carbon” revenues should be reallocated to consumers.•This article discusses three alternatives: a) a per-capita reallocation to private households.•b) the reduction of electricity prices by, e.g., decreasing the electricity tax.•c) targeted financial aid for vulnerable consumers, such as increasing housing benefits.•Preferably, Germany's electricity tax should be reduced, as it becomes more and more obsolete.
In December 2017, the 15-member ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) and the 8-member WAEMU (West African Economic and Monetary Union, a subset of ECOWAS) passed new Tobacco Tax ...Directives. Both Directives increased the minimum ad valorem excise tax rate to 50%. In addition the ECOWAS Directive introduced a minimum specific tax (US$ 0.02/stick), but the WAEMU Directive did not. This paper examines the likely effects of these new Directives on cigarette prices, sales volumes and revenues.
Tax simulation models using comparable data were constructed for each of the 15 countries to estimate the effects of the ECOWAS and WAEMU Directives.
If the 15 ECOWAS members implement the ECOWAS Directive it would substantially increase the retail price of cigarettes (unweighted average 51%, range: 12% to 108%), decrease sales volumes (22%, range: -8% to -39%) and increase tax revenue (373%, range: 10% to 1243%). The impact of the WAEMU Directive on WAEMU countries' cigarette prices (unweighted average +2%), sales volumes (-1%) and revenue (+17%) is likely to be minimal.
The 2017 ECOWAS Directive, which adds a specific excise tax per pack, along with an increase in the ad valorem tax, substantially improves its members' cigarette tax structure. The specific tax overcomes the weakness of the ad valorem excise tax, since it does not depend on import or ex-factory values, which comprise only a small part of the retail price in ECOWAS countries. We recommend that WAEMU countries adopt the ECOWAS Directive, rather than the WAEMU Directive.
Purpose
This study aims to critically evaluate hospitality and tourism demand research and introduce a behavioral economics approach to solve the problems faced by researchers.
...Design/methodology/approach
Current issues in hospitality and tourism demand analysis are identified through critical reflection, and a behavioral economics approach is adopted to develop a new conceptual framework.
Findings
Four issues in hospitality and tourism studies are identified from the microeconomic theory and econometric modeling perspectives. The study’s demand framework provides both a theoretical underpinning and quantitative models to resolve the identified issues. With a focus on consumers’ cost–benefit assessments in light of individual differences and environmental factors, the authors’ conceptual framework represents a new effort to quantify hospitality and tourism demand at the disaggregate level with interactive multiple demand curve estimations.
Research limitations/implications
The study’s analytical framework for hospitality and tourism demand analysis is unique, and it fills the research gap. However, this research is still in the conceptual stage, and the authors leave it to future studies to empirically test the framework.
Practical implications
The proposed demand framework at the disaggregate level will benefit both private and public sectors involved in hospitality and tourism businesses in terms of pricing, marketing and policymaking.
Originality/value
The authors offer a new conceptual model that bridges the gap between aggregate and disaggregate hospitality and tourism demand analyses. Specifically, the authors identify research directions for future hospitality and tourism demand research involving individual tourists/consumers at the disaggregate level.
This paper aims at understanding the drivers of residential electricity demand in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries by applying the structural time series model. In addition to the economic ...variables of GDP and real electricity prices, the model accounts for population, weather, and a stochastic underlying energy demand trend as a proxy for efficiency and human behaviour. The resulting income and price elasticities are informative for policy makers given the paucity of previous estimates for a region with particular political structures and economies subject to large shocks. In particular, the estimates allow for a sound assessment of the impact of energy-related policies suggesting that if policy makers in the region wish to curtail future residential electricity consumption they would need to improve the efficiency of appliances and increase energy using awareness of consumers, possibly by education and marketing campaigns. Moreover, even if prices were raised the impact on curbing residential electricity growth in the region is likely to be very small given the low estimated price elasticities—unless, that is, prices were raised so high that expenditure on electricity becomes such a large proportion of income that the price elasticities increase (in absolute terms).
•Residential electricity demand for Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, and Saudi Arabia•Estimated residential electricity demand relationships using STSM/UEDT approach•LR income and price elasticities from 0.43 to 0.71 and −0.16 to zero respectively•Impact CDD elasticities from 0.2 to 0.7•Estimated UEDTs suggest exogenous electricity using behaviour.
The Swedish congestion charges: Ten years on Börjesson, Maria; Kristoffersson, Ida
Transportation research. Part A, Policy and practice,
January 2018, 2018-01-00, 2018, Volume:
107
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
•The price elasticity was lower when the congestion charging levels were increased.•The price elasticity was also lower when the Stockholm system was extended.•The price elasticity is substantially ...higher in the off-peak period than in the peak.•Long-term price elasticity is declining in Gothenburg but increasing in Stockholm.•Public support has declined in Gothenburg and Stockholm in response charge increase.
Time-of-day dependent cordon-based congestion charging systems were introduced in Stockholm in 2006, and in Gothenburg in 2013. The Stockholm system was significantly extended in 2016, and the peak charge has been increased in the two cities. This paper analyses the effects of the first decade with the Swedish congestion charges, specifically effects of the system updates, and draws policy lessons for the years to come. Should we introduce congestion charges in more cities? Should we extend the systems that we have? We synthesize previous research findings and focus on the long-term effects that have varied over time including the recent years: the price elasticities on the traffic volume across the cordon, the revenue and system operating cost, the public and political support, and consequences for the transport planning process. We also explore the effects on peak and off-peak, and different types of traffic (trucks, company cars and private passenger cars), because of access to novel data that make this analysis possible. We find that the price elasticities have increased over time in Stockholm, but decreased in Gothenburg. We find that the public support increased in the two cities after their introduction until the systems were revised; since then, the public support has declined in both cities. We find that the price elasticity was substantially lower when the charging levels were increased, and when the Stockholm system was extended, than when the charges were first introduced, a likely reason being that the most price-sensitive traffic was already priced off-the road at the introduction.
Borrowing decisions affect most households, with large stakes and implications for research subfields as varied as macroeconomics and industrial organization. I review theoretical and empirical work ...on household debt: its prevalence, level, growth, and composition, as well as various measures of consumer choice and market (in)efficiency, elasticities, and prices, including new evidence on how borrowing heterogeneity affects the distribution of the opportunity cost of consumption. I also discuss opportunities and challenges in policy evaluation. A key takeaway is that puzzles abound, and I highlight numerous avenues for further research.
Marketing products globally is challenging due to the diverse nature of markets. We use market heterogeneity, unbranded competition, resource and infrastructure availability, and sociopolitical ...governance as country-market characteristics that distinguish between developed and emerging countries. We investigate their moderating role on the relationship between elements of the marketing mix and brand sales. We provide evidence, from a hierarchical linear model and a panel data set of brands from 14 emerging and developed markets that account for 62% of the global GDP, that country-market characteristics moderate the relationship between the complete set of marketing mix elements and brand sales performance asymmetrically. While distribution and price have the largest impact in emerging and developed countries, respectively, product innovation and advertising have significantly larger impacts in emerging markets relative to developed countries. These finding highlights the importance of contingency view of marketing strategy in global markets.
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