China will see off challengers in EV batteries

Significance The battery is the most expensive and performance-critical element of an electric vehicle (EV). China's dominance in the sector therefore has strategic implications, because the global transition towards EVs is key to achieving international targets to mitigate climate change, and to individual nations’ wealth generation prospects. Impacts The car industry worldwide will increasingly depend on access to cost-effective batteries, which in the short term means Chinese suppliers. China’s dominance of the battery supply chain and fast-growing EV market ties foreign automotive leaders to Chinese partners and markets. Extensive government support would be needed to compete with Chinese firms’ dominance in the battery and critical mineral supply chains.

Proverbs 28:19–22 and proliferation of sports betting amongst African youths

Work is integral to human existence, and a veritable means for both individual and societal development. Over time, human prosperity and societal advancement have been credited to application of both physical and mental abilities into resourceful ventures that resulted in wealth and prosperity. When this approach to wealth generation is negated and one resorts to shortcuts, the adverse implication is glaring on both the individual and society at large. The problem that necessitated this study is the quest for quick riches devoid of hard work amongst many African youths. In recent times, sports betting has high patronage amongst youths as it is considered a fast means to alleviate poverty. This research study analysed the importance of hard work as a panacea to poverty against the backdrop of sports betting proliferation amongst African youths. The study was carried out in the light of a Biblical wisdom literature text in Proverbs 28:19–22. This pericope was considered to be appropriate because it includes explicit sayings that extol hard work and bring to light the dangers of unrealistic ventures and haste to riches. The research design adopted was exegetical, whilst the methodology was rhetorical analysis. Exegesis refers to critical explanation or interpretation of a given biblical passage; rhetoric is the art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing. The data were collected from primary (Bible) and secondary sources (books, journals, online resources and Bible commentaries). This study beckoned on African youths to engage their physical and mental ability into resourceful enterprises and shun anti-work ventures.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The article unequivocally challenges the involvement of African youths in worthless pursuits and the inordinate desire for quick riches, and thus, advocates youths to embrace hard work. The study contributes to Old Testament modern discourses on youths and sustainable wealth creation. Its related disciplines are exegesis or hermeneutics, entrepreneurial economics and practical theology.

Optimization method applied to decision-making on intermodal alternative for soybean outflow in the State of Pará-Brazil

In Brazil, the sector of agribusiness suffers with the lack of infrastructure for the production outflow and as transportation costs increase, they affect its competitiveness in the world scenario. In this work, an optimization model was developed to support decision-making to soybeans transport for export, in regions in the state of Para (Brazil) near to Tocantins-Araguaia waterway. The study applied a Linear Programming model, adopting the transport problem, in search of minimizing the costs of alternative routes, restricted to the respective supply and demand limitations. The model aimed to minimize the transport costs from the production centers to the exporting port, through the current infrastructure and suggesting the road and waterway intermodal alternative by means of the interior navigation, considering diverse points for transshipment. The results showed a cost reduction for production outflow in the base year of the study when the intermodal transport was used. Furthermore, the new routes only by waterway created a new transport network configuration, decreasing the road distances for the municipalities production outflow, supporting the increasing of competitiveness of the state, as well as providing wealth generation in the region.

WEALTH: THE ECONOMIC PREREQUISITES OF TAXATION

The purpose of the paper is to study the economic issues of wealth, which is the rationale and basis for the introduction of a wealth tax. This is due to current sustainable trends in wealth growth and an increase in the number of wealthy individuals. The aim is to determine the economic content, preconditions for the emergence and spread of wealth, to reflect the historical aspects of the development of wealth and its current state, to determine market conditions for the availability of wealth. At the same time, the goal is also the economic justification of wealth from the standpoint of the possibilities of its taxation. The topic of the article is due to the need to reveal the modern market infrastructure for the formation and growth of wealth, its economic status in the context of tax opportunities. In this regard, the economic essence of wealth as a potential subject of taxation is considered, the specifics of the functioning of the wealth tax in a market economy, the most important features of the functioning of the wealth tax are determined. Methodology. Economically adequate and objective justification of wealth in terms of the effectiveness of market conditions for its formation and growth allows us to assess the effectiveness of the economic system and the possibilities of public policy in the context of its taxation. This partially ensures the redistribution of public revenues, public goods and wealth. The survey is based on a theoretical generalization and analysis of empirical data on the market economy, wealth generation and its taxation. Results. The issue of wealth and its economic nature is studied. The importance of wealth for society and the state is determined. The economic specifics of wealth for its taxation are substantiated. Practical implications. Market requirements and opportunities for the formation and increase of wealth are studied. Adequate assessment of the preconditions for taxation is carried out. On this basis, the content of the wealth tax and the preconditions for its introduction are studied. The specifics of the functioning of the wealth tax in a market socially oriented economy are considered. Wealth taxation is considered from the standpoint of economic, social and fiscal efficiency. Value/originality. It was found that wealth – a comprehensive, multi-faceted category, which can be characterized as a specific feature of the socio-economic structure of society, which determines its condition, results, dynamics and development tendencies. Wealth characterizes the ability to achieve a positive result in market conditions of managing and using the existing social and economic potential in the community, as evidenced by its level of civilization development. The peculiarities of the functioning of the wealth tax in different countries of the world are considered. The using of the wealth tax as a fiscal instrument in the state tax system is suggested.

Eco-Efficiency and Stock Market Volatility: Emerging Markets Analysis

Climate change, the accelerated industrialization of emerging countries, as well as the growing demand for transparency from stakeholders, are all factors that influence the environmental performance of companies. Thus, eco-efficient behavior can improve financial performance by increasing wealth generation and decreasing the volatility of listed financial assets. There is a lot of previous literature showing diverse results of the effect of eco-efficiency on corporate profitability, but this is not the case when we refer to risk. This study analyzes the relationship between eco-efficient behavior and the share price volatility of companies traded in emerging markets. For this purpose, a sample of 346 companies listed in 24 countries was studied for the period between 2010 and 2017. The results show a positive effect. Thus, the recommendation is that a clear commitment to eco-efficient investment can improve the environmental impact of companies, from the private, public, and institutional spheres.

Oil Exploitation, Neglect of Coal and the Ngwo Society, 1909 - 1987

Coal was one of the catalysts of the Industrial Revolution which started in England and spread to other parts of Europe. It provided the main source of primary energy for industry and transportation. The spread of coal mining to Africa was as a result of European conquest and subsequent colonization. The conquest of Ngwo in 1908 led to the discovery and eventual mining of coal in Enugu-Ngwo from 1915. In the period exploitation lasted, coal from the town furnished the energy needed for transportation, industrialization and urban development in Nigeria. It also provided direct and indirect employment to people across Europe and Africa and as well facilitated international trade between Nigeria and her partners across the world. Since petroleum was discovered in Nigeria in 1956 and as was found a better alternative to coal in terms of energy and wealth generation, the coal industry suffered neglect and gradually collapsed. How the collapse of the coal industry as a result of the rise of petroleum affected Ngwo people is the central theme of this paper. It contends that, though petroleum is regarded as a source of wealth to Nigeria, it is, nonetheless a source of poverty to Ngwo people. The British colonialists dispossessed them of massive farmlands upon which they operated their local economy to set up the colliery and other facilities. Also, more than 8,000 of the people who contributed their youthful years mostly as miners lost their jobs without compensation. The development prospects especially under corporate–social responsibilities and employment generation which the people ought to benefit from with the continued existence of the coal exploitation were lost with the demise of the industry. Primary sources constitute greater percentage of the sources deployed for this historical reconstruction. They include oral tradition granted by reliable informants and source materials acquired from the National Archives Enugu. They are be augmented by secondary sources which include books, journal articles and other un-published materials. Available facts will be analyzed using qualitative research methodology.

Entrepreneurship, Sport, Sustainability and Integration: A Business Model in the Low-Season Tourism Sector

The global tourism reality is changing, and not only because of the COVID-19 pandemic. This reality is especially representative in countries such as Spain, which are highly dependent on the income generated by the tourism sector. In these destinations, it is necessary to seek innovation and specialization in the sector in order to achieve new business models. This need is even more pressing in destinations overcrowded by the sun and beach effect, as is the case of Mallorca. The proposed work combines the concepts of sports tourism with the development of a wealth-generating business model that will contribute to promoting a tourism that is sustainable, environmentally friendly and deseasonalized. On the other hand, the proposed work will contribute to promoting integration and equality in the participation of women in sports through the development of a model based on the promotion of women’s football. Using the methodology of case analysis, the results of all the approaches outlined are provided, and we obtained a wealth-generation model that is easily replicable and sustainable over time. This work provides a solution to the combination of a sustainable business model that links responsible tourism, the promotion of women’s sport and the generation of wealth.

Investigation of some Properties of Bio-coal Briquettes Produced using Beniseed (Sesame seed) Stalks as Biomass

This study evaluated the properties of bio-coal briquettes made by blending coal with beniseed (sesame seed) stalks in order to determine the optimum composition. The briquettes were produced using a hydraulic compression machine at 5, 10 and 15 bar applied to coal:biomass compositions of 100:0, 80:20, 60:40, 40:60, 20:80 and 0:100% by weight of mixture and particle sizes of 212, 300 and 600 µm. The physical, ultimate and proximate properties of the briquettes were then measured and analyzed. The results indicated that the optimum composition for producing the briquettes lies between 60:40% and 40:60%. These ranges of composition of briquettes had the lowest ignition time of 57.6s, highest percentage volatile matter of 42.7% and low percentage sulphur content of 0.38%. Furthermore, the 40:60% briquettes had the highest mean calorific value of 26.67 MJ/kg. These indicate good potentials for briquettes using coal and beniseed stalks as an alternative energy source while contributing to a friendly environment and wealth generation.

Paradise Found?

This chapter conceptualizes a process for cryptocurrency to diversify traditional methods of higher education funding in the United States. Cryptocurrency funding augments traditional revenue streams and shifts the discussion of education costs from expenses to a more robust conversation about innovative avenues to wealth generation as a potential solution to fund the mission of American higher education. This chapter acknowledges the central concerns of higher education funding as it explores these arguments as legacy discourses rooted in career preparation, accessibility and affordability, and arguments about the need for a broad-based education vs. more technical skills training. Further, an alternative model to current higher education funding models is presented, and if deployed, this asset class could help to serve education needs by funding research, students, and the academy through an illustrated conceptual framework for funding.

A Call for Second-Generation Cryptocurrency Valuation Metrics

This chapter builds on the body of work that has depicted cryptocurrency as a model for science and higher education funding. To that end, this work examines the degree to which one or more cryptocurrencies would need to be adopted and achieve a network effect prior to implementation of such a funding model. Empirical data from three different cryptocurrencies were examined. The current work deploys generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity (GARCH) to analyze stochastic volatility. This work contends that the examined coins are likely overdistributed and too volatile, thereby limiting the wealth generation possibilities for funding science or higher education. Additionally, based on the GARCH analysis, this work highlights that cryptocurrency pricing metrics and valuation models, to this point, may be insufficiently complex to persuade institutional investors to seriously allocate capital to this ecosphere.