Suchergebnisse

It is the thesis of this paper that the major determinants of Icelandic foreign relations can be classified under three headings: population, economic geography, and geographic location. The thesis is spelled out in some detail, and the fundamental goals of Ice land's foreign policy are presented as an interplay of these determinants. Finally, the country's foreign policy in three major areas - national security, European integration and the fishery zone question - is analysed in these terms.

Hendrickson reviews 'Imbalance of Powers: Constitutional Interpretation and the Making of American Foreign Policy' by Gordon Silverstein. A book review is presented of Imbalance of Powers: Constitutional Interpretation and the Making of American Foreign Policy by Gordon Silverstein.

"Empirical studies of bilateral foreign direct investment (FDI) activity show substantial differences in specifications with little agreement on the set of covariates that are (or should be) included. We use Bayesian statistical techniques that allow one to select from a large set of candidates those variables most likely to be determinants of FDI activity. The variables with consistently high inclusion probabilities are traditional gravity variables, cultural distance factors, parent-country per capita GDP, relative labor endowments, and regional trade agreements. Variables with little support for inclusion are multilateral trade openness, host country business costs, host-country infrastructure (including credit markets), and host-country institutions. Of particular note, our results suggest that many covariates found significant by previous studies are not robust"--National Bureau of Economic Research web site

Tax policies are postulated to serve three principal functions: raise revenue, keep incumbent politicians in office, & redistribute income. Data from nineteen industrialized nations were used to attempt to identify determinants of policy choices regarding taxation. Few significant statistical relationships were found between standard political & economic indicators & taxation policy indicators. Such relationships as were found pointed to the importance of economic development in explaining redistributive tax patterns, while political factors were related to the desire of politicians to stay in office -- by making taxes invisible. 1 Table, 1 Figure. Modified HA.

AbstractEmpirical studies of bilateral foreign direct investment (FDI) activity show substantial differences in specifications with little agreement on the set of included covariates. We use Bayesian statistical techniques that allow one to select from a large set of candidates those variables most likely to be determinants of FDI activity. The variables with consistently high inclusion probabilities include traditional gravity variables, cultural distance factors, relative labour endowments and trade agreements. There is little support for multilateral trade openness, most host‐country business costs, host‐country infrastructure and host‐country institutions. Our results suggest that many covariates found significant by previous studies are not robust.