scholarly journals Small firms and the COVID-19 insolvency gap

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian Oliver Dörr ◽  
Georg Licht ◽  
Simona Murmann
Keyword(s):  
Financial Distress ◽  
Small Firms ◽  
English Summary ◽  
Policy Support ◽  
Policy Response ◽  
Special Role ◽  
Current Crisis ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Large Wave ◽  
Using Data

AbstractCOVID-19 placed a special role on fiscal policy in rescuing companies short of liquidity from insolvency. In the first months of the crisis, SMEs as the backbone of Germany’s economy benefited from large and mainly indiscriminate aid measures. Avoiding business failures in a whatever-it-takes fashion contrasts, however, with the cleansing mechanism of economic crises: a mechanism which forces unviable firms out of the market, thereby reallocating resources efficiently. By focusing on firms’ pre-crisis financial standing, we estimate the extent to which the policy response induced an insolvency gap and analyze whether the gap is characterized by firms which were already struggling before the pandemic. With the policy measures being focused on smaller firms, we also examine whether this insolvency gap differs with respect to firm size. Our results show that the COVID-19 policy response in Germany has triggered a backlog of insolvencies that is particularly pronounced among financially weak, small firms, having potential long-term implications on entrepreneurship and economic recovery.Plain English Summary This study analyzes the extent to which the strong policy support to companies in the early phase of the COVID-19 crisis has prevented a large wave of corporate insolvencies. Using data of about 1.5 million German companies, it is shown that it was mainly smaller firms that experienced strong financial distress and would have gone bankrupt without policy assistance. In times of crises, insolvencies usually allow for a reallocation of employees and capital to more efficient firms. However, the analysis reveals that this ‘cleansing effect’ is hampered in the current crisis as the largely indiscriminate granting of liquidity subsidies and the temporary suspension of the duty to file for insolvency have caused an insolvency gap that is driven by firms which were already in a weak financial position before the crisis. Overall, the insolvency gap is estimated to affect around 25,000 companies, a substantial number compared to the around 16,300 actual insolvencies in 2020. In the ongoing crisis, policy makers should prefer instruments favoring entrepreneurs who respond innovatively to the pandemic instead of prolonging the survival of near-insolvent firms.

Economic Transformation in Africa from the Bottom Up

2019 ◽  
pp. 618-631
Author(s):  
Xinshen Diao ◽  
Josaphat Kweka ◽  
Margaret McMillan
Keyword(s):  
Productivity Growth ◽  
Small Firms ◽  
Labour Productivity ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
Business Training ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Access To Credit ◽  
Labour Productivity Growth ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Enterprise Survey

This chapter examines economic transformation in Tanzania, with a focus on the nature of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises. Between 2002 and 2012, Tanzania experienced economic growth more rapidly than at any other time in recent history. Labour productivity growth was largely accounted for by structural change and the rest by within sector productivity growth in agriculture. Using data from Tanzania’s Micro, Small and Medium Sized Enterprise Survey (MSME) 2010, the chapter analyses labour productivity, employment growth, and business owners’ self-reported motivations for owning a business, along with the productive heterogeneity and job creation of small firms. It also considers some policy lessons from the Tanzanian case, arguing that policies targeted at the MSMEs with potential for employment and productivity growth may have larger payoffs than blanket policies that offer assistance in the form of business training and access to credit. The chapter concludes with recommendations for policy makers.

scholarly journals Environmental modelling of building stocks – An integrated review of life cycle-based assessment models to support EU policy making

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Röck ◽  
Elena Baldereschi ◽  
Evelien Verellen ◽  
Alexander Passer ◽  
Serenella Sala ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Policy Support ◽  
Special Role ◽  
Environmental Modelling ◽  
Building Stock ◽  
Hotspot Analysis ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Eu Policy ◽  
Trade Offs

Abstract Various environmental challenges, particularly the rising severity of the impacts of climate change, require a systematic shift in and decarbonization of the global economy. Due to their high environmental impacts, buildings and construction have a special role in decarbonization. Environmental modelling of building stock dynamics can help policy makers and inform decision making. This study presents a systematic review of both the latest scientific literature on environmental modelling of building stocks and related EU policy initiatives. Our findings illuminate the strengths and limitations of existing approaches as well as the potential of such modelling and the required directions for future development to provide effective policy support. Based on the assessment of 104 scientific papers, our study shortlisted and analysed 22 environmental building stock modelling approaches. While promising, these show various limitations on their effectiveness in supporting decarbonization efforts while avoiding burden shifting. Future building stock models should offer extended system boundaries and comprehensive life cycle assessment, improved hotspot analysis and impact monitoring across spatiotemporal scales. A long-term perspective on the entire building stock covering climate and other environmental impacts is needed, as outlined in the latest standards. By linking existing studies to related EU policy objectives, we identify various studies that investigate scenarios and strategies relevant to EU policy makers and highlight research gaps. Future research should enable comprehensive environmental assessment of building stocks across scales and emphasize the monitoring of multiple environmental impacts of building stock development to ensure compliance with environmental targets and minimization of trade-offs.

scholarly journals Fintech Credit Risk Assessment for SMEs

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (193) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yiping Huang ◽  
Longmei Zhang ◽  
Zhenhua Li ◽  
Han Qiu ◽  
Tao Sun ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Big Data ◽  
Credit Risk ◽  
Small Firms ◽  
Policy Support ◽  
Medium Size ◽  
Information Costs ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Exogenous Shocks ◽  
Loan Defaults

Promoting credit services to small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) has been a perennial challenge for policy makers globally due to high information costs. Recent fintech developments may be able to mitigate this problem. By leveraging big data or digital footprints on existing platforms, some big technology (BigTech) firms have extended short-term loans to millions of small firms. By analyzing 1.8 million loan transactions of a leading Chinese online bank, this paper compares the fintech approach to assessing credit risk using big data and machine learning models with the bank approach using traditional financial data and scorecard models. The study shows that the fintech approach yields better prediction of loan defaults during normal times and periods of large exogenous shocks, reflecting information and modeling advantages. BigTech’s proprietary information can complement or, where necessary, substitute credit history in risk assessment, allowing unbanked firms to borrow. Furthermore, the fintech approach benefits SMEs that are smaller and in smaller cities, hence complementing the role of banks by reaching underserved customers. With more effective and balanced policy support, BigTech lenders could help promote financial inclusion worldwide.

scholarly journals Co-benefits associated with public support for climate-friendly COVID-19 recovery policies and political activism

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (05) ◽  
pp. A08
Author(s):  
Jagadish Thaker ◽  
Brian Floyd
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Environmental Protection ◽  
Collective Efficacy ◽  
Public Support ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
National Sample ◽  
Policy Support ◽  
Sample Survey ◽  
Infectious Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Using Data

Scientists highlight that actions that address environmental protection and climate change can also help with reducing infectious disease threats. Results using data from a national sample survey in New Zealand indicate that perceptions of co-benefits of actions to address environmental protection that also protect against infectious disease outbreaks such as the coronavirus is associated with policy support and political engagement. This association was partly mediated through perceived collective efficacy. Local councils with higher level of community collective efficacy were more likely to declare climate emergency. Communication about potential co-benefits is likely to shape public engagement and enact policy change.

scholarly journals Central banking, protectionism and globalization

2019 ◽  
Vol 69 (s1) ◽  
pp. 121-140
Author(s):  
Jacob A. Frenkel
Keyword(s):  
Global Financial Crisis ◽  
The United States ◽  
Central Banking ◽  
Policy Response ◽  
Implicit Assumption ◽  
Economic Policies ◽  
New Paradigm ◽  
Macroeconomic Policies ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Macroeconomic Theory

The recent global financial crisis has resulted in a new creative set of economic policies. The justifi- cation for the unconventional policy response was based on the implicit assumption that the departure from the norms of macroeconomic policies would be temporary. This detour has lasted longer than expected. Now that the process of normalization has started in the United States and is likely to be followed (albeit in some delay) in Europe, it would be important for policy makers to emphasize that the unconventional set of economic policies were just a detour from the longstanding convention rather than representing a new paradigm. The experience of the crisis and the post-crises years should be recorded in history as refl ecting a period during which new and important policy chapters were drafted. These chapters should be added to the corpus of knowledge of macroeconomic theory and policy. The new chapters contain important lessons that should definitely not be forgotten once the crisis is over. They should be added to, but not replace, the old textbooks.

scholarly journals Airline Financial Distress and Customer Satisfaction

2011 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dina Ribbink ◽  
Christian Hofer ◽  
Martin Dresner
Keyword(s):  
Customer Service ◽  
Airline Industry ◽  
Financial Distress ◽  
Service Levels ◽  
The Third ◽  
Time Performance ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

An investigation is conducted on the effect of financial distress on customer service levels in the U.S. airline industry. Using data from the first quarter of 1998 to the third quarter of 2006, we employ a seemingly unrelated regressions (SUR) model to analyze the impact of financial distress on three measures of customer service. We find that higher financial distress is associated with better on-time performance of airlines and fewer lost bags. The relationship of airline financial distress to the number of bumped customers, however, is insignificant.

scholarly journals Adoption of Natural Gas Vehicles – Estimates for the U.S. and the State of Texas

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chen (Sarah) Xu ◽  
Liang-Chieh (Victor) Cheng
Keyword(s):  
Natural Gas ◽  
Financial Incentives ◽  
Fossil Fuel ◽  
Diffusion Models ◽  
The State ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Fuel Taxes ◽  
Natural Gas Vehicles ◽  
Using Data ◽  
The U.S

Natural gas vehicles (NGV) have attracted more and more attention from policy makers since natural gas is a clean substitute for traditional fossil fuel that is also readily accessible. In some areas such as the state of Texas, vehicles that do not use traditional fossil fuel (e.g., NGVs) are exempt from paying fuel taxes. Government financial incentives have motivated substantial adoption of NGVs. This paper studies NGV adoption behavior in both U.S. and Texas markets to estimate the dynamics of NGV diffusion. This research employs well-known Bass diffusion models applied to NGV adoption, using data from both the U.S. and Texas. Among several interesting results, we find that NGV adoption through an imitation effect appears to be significant for the U.S. NGV market.

scholarly journals Cochrane i Norge - Hvordan formidler vi resultatene fra Cochrane-oversikter?

2013 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire Glenton ◽  
Sarah Rosenbaum
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Reviews ◽  
Information Structure ◽  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Cochrane Collaboration ◽  
English Summary ◽  
Plain Language ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Cochrane Reviews ◽  
Other Information ◽  
The Cochrane Collaboration

<p>Cochrane-systematiske oversikter oppleves ofte som lite tilgjengelige. En av hovedaktivitetene til det norske Cochrane-miljøet er å utvikle måter å presentere resultatene fra Cochrane-oversikter på for at de lettere tas i bruk. Vi beskriver her fire hovedprinsipper for dette arbeidet, og gir eksempler på dokumentformater vi har vært med på å utvikle. De overordnete prinsippene er: 1) Informasjonen bør være forståelig for personer uten ekspertkunnskap om forskningsmetodikk. Vi har erfart at når det gjelder forståelsen av resultater fra systematiske oversikter går det største skillet mellom forskere og ikke-forskere og i mindre grad mellom ulike grupper som helsepersonell, pasienter og byråkrater. 2) Informasjonen bør presenteres på en mest mulig nøytral måte. 3) Informasjonen bør være brukertilpasset. Det innebærer at vi innhenter tilbakemeldinger fra sluttbrukere i utviklingsarbeidet og gjør nødvendige tilpasninger i flere omganger. 4) Informasjonsstrukturen bør følge ”1:3:25-prinsippet”. Her presenteres informasjonen både summarisk (1 side), kort oppsummert (3 sider), og mer utdypende (25 sider). I artikkelen beskriver vi flere presentasjonsformater vi har utviklet, blant annet ”Summary of Findings” der resultatene av Cochrane-oversikter presenteres i lettfattelige tabeller; ”plain language summaries”, som er tekstbaserte oppsummeringer rettet mot en bred lesergruppe; ”SUPPORT summaries” rettet mot byråkrater og ”policymakers”; og ”DECIDE Frameworks” der resultatene presenteres sammen med annen informasjon som er relevant i en beslutningsprosess.</p><p>Glenton C, Rosenbaum S. <strong>Cochrane in Norway – How do we disseminate findings from Cochrane reviews?</strong> <em>Nor J Epidemiol</em> 2013; <strong>23</strong> (2): 215-219.</p><p><strong>ENGLISH SUMMARY</strong></p><p>Cochrane systematic reviews are often perceived as inaccessible. One of the main activities of the Norwegian branch of the Cochrane Collaboration is to develop ways to present the results of Cochrane reviews so that they are easier to use. In this paper we describe four main principles that underlie this work, and several of the document formats we have helped produce. Our overarching principles: 1) Information should be understandable for people who do not have expert knowledge about research methodology. When it comes to understanding the results of systematic reviews, we have experienced that the biggest difference is between researchers and non-researchers and to a lesser extent between health personnel, patients and policy makers. 2) Information should be presented in a neutral form. 3) Information should be developed using a user-oriented approach. This involves us collecting responses from the end users in our developmental work and making the necessary adjustments in several phases. 4) The information structure should follow the “1:3:25 principle” where the information is structured in several layers, with increasing level of detail. In this paper, we describe several of the document formats that we have helped develop, including Summary of Findings tables, where we present the results of Cochrane reviews in tables; a plain language summary format where the results are presented as text-based summaries written for a broad user group; SUPPORT summaries written for policy makers; and DECIDE Frameworks, where the results are presented together with other information that may be relevant in a decision making process.</p>

Knowledge Co production and Behavioural Change, Collaborative approaches for promoting low carbon mobility

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stewart Barr ◽  
Gareth Shaw
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Behavioural Change ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Productive Process ◽  
Emergent Literature ◽  
Using Data ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Personal Travel

Behavioural change has become regarded as a key tool for policy makers to promote behavioural change that can reduce carbon emissions from personal travel. Yet academic research has suggested that promoting low carbon travel behaviours, in particular those associated with leisure and tourism practices, is particularly challenging because of the highly valued and conspicuous nature of the consumption involved. Accordingly, traditional top-down approaches to developing behavioural change campaigns have largely been ineffectual in this field and this chapter explores innovative ways to understand and develop behavioural change campaigns that are driven from the bottom upwards. In doing so, we draw on emergent literature from management studies and social marketing to explore how ideas of service dominant logic can be used to engage consumers in developing each stage of a behavioural change campaign. Using data and insights from research conducted in the south-east of the UK, we outline and evaluate the process for co-producing knowledge about low carbon travel and climate change. We illustrate how behavioural change campaign creation can be an engaging, lively and productive process of knowledge and experience sharing. The chapter ends by considering the role that co-production and co-creation can have in developing strategies for low carbon mobility and, more broadly, the ways in which publics understand and react to anthropogenic climate change.

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