Exploring and Evaluating the Impact of ICTs on Culture and Tourism Industries’ Convergence: Evidence from China

Information and communications technologies (ICTs) have been driving the digital revolution of all industries worldwide. Industrial convergence constitutes a new feature and trend of contemporary industrial development and has received extensive attention from the media and public. However, the interrelationship between the two concepts—industrial convergence and ICTs—remains under-researched. This paper aims to explore and evaluate the ICTs’ impact on industrial convergence by focusing on the interrelationship between culture and tourism. The study takes an industrial economics perspective with a specific focus on the multi-dimensional (direct, moderated, and threshold) effects. A research framework was suggested synthesizing three econometric models and encompassing three hypotheses. The research model was then empirically tested and validated through quantitative research using China’s provincial panel data from 2004 to 2018. The study’s findings indicate a positive influence/relationship between ICTs and market-oriented reforms in the culture and tourism industries’ convergence. Moreover, a positive labor-convergence relationship was found, while the negative government–convergence relationship was uncovered in control variables. Regarding the moderating effect, the interaction of ICTs and market-oriented reforms is positively correlated with industrial convergence. In addition, there is a single-threshold effect of consumer demand on the ICTs–convergence relationship. This article extends our knowledge in two ways by addressing the knowledge gap regarding the interrelationship between culture and tourism and by providing new insights into the influence of ICTs on this industrial convergence that has theoretical and practical implications.

DEA-Based PROMETHEE II Distribution-Center Productivity Model: Evaluation and Location Strategies Formulation

The current era of industrial economics necessitates warehouse and logistic distribution centers (DCs) to contribute productively toward an organization’s success. Playing such a critical productive role implies that logistics activities must be practiced effectively and efficiently. However, the indistinguishability between effectiveness and efficiency leads to a somewhat shallow interpretation, and consequently, a diluted evaluation. Hence, this paper aims to develop a productivity evaluation model for nine DCs belonging to an international automotive vehicles and spare parts company. The developed model was set up based on two multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) approaches: the Preference Ranking Organization Method for Enrichment of Evaluations II (PROMETHEE II) and data envelopment analysis (DEA). PROMETHEE II was employed to evaluate the effectiveness, while the DEA was utilized in order to measure the efficiency of the investigated DCs. The resulting hybrid model collectively creates what can conceptually and practically be considered a productivity evaluation model. The results also provide six different strategies through which distribution center locations can be evaluated in order to implement potential future initiatives.

EUROPEAN RESEARCH AREA: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF INSTITUTIONAL PREREQUISITES AND INTEGRATION APPROACHES FOR UKRAINE

The paper is dedicated to the issues of Ukraine’s integration into the European Research Area (ERA) – a single research and innovation space open to the world and based on the internal market, which ensures the free exchange of researchers, scientific knowledge and technology. A comparative analysis of the institutional prerequisites for the creation of a single European research and innovation area has been conducted. The legislative basis of the European integration vector of Ukraine’s development in the science, technology and innovation sector is substantiated, while the flaws in the organisational and institutional support for euro-integrational reforms are identified. The idea and phases of ERA development are considered, the problems of implementing the Roadmap of Ukraine’s integration of into ERA are defined. The main European programs of scientific, technological and innovative cooperation are systematized and Ukraine’s participation in them is analysed. The case of cooperation between the Silesian Technological University «Silesian Polytechnic in Gliwice» and the Institute of Industrial Economics of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine is considered as a positive example of establishing collaboration in research and development between Ukrainian and European partner organizations. The authors propose the framework for creating institutional conditions that would ensure proper functioning and cohesion of the scientific, technological and innovative sector of Ukraine, as well as its effective integration to ERA in compliance with the strategic interests of international cooperation.

The Effect of Policymaking Improvement in the Energy Field on the Security of Iraq

Energy plays an underlying role in the life of industrial economics of societies. This means that whenever energy is available sufficiently and timely, economic development will also be possible. Moreover, foreign and international policies can be shaped by various factors and have different orientations in relation to these factors. One of the requirements for growth and development in the country is the adoption of appropriate policy and diplomacy to ensure energy security. To the awareness of each other energy security policy, countries can follow cooperative relations and participation by adopting appropriate policy and sophisticated diplomacy, which will result in more profits. The important point is that the regional developments have a significant impact on energy and its security, including sanctions. The current study, using descriptive-analytical method, attempts to investigate the impact of policy improvement in the energy field on the security of Iraq.

Market Structure and Bank Conduct in the MENA Region

The Middle East North Africa (MENA) region is witnessing a wave of bank consolidations, with many mega-mergers taking place in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. These will result in creating large banks, reducing the number of market players and increasing market concentration; which is already high. A further increase in concentration may raise concerns about the resulting dominance of large banks and the consequences on their pricing behaviour. The interrelationships between market structure and pricing behaviour is summarised by the popular model of industrial economics called the structure–conduct–performance (SCP) model. Consequently, we test the prevalence of this model in a sample of 15 MENA banking sectors to detect the possible existence of an impact running particularly from the structure of banking markets to the pricing behaviour (power) of banks in order to predict a possible emergence of oligopolistic behaviour following bank consolidations. Using a two-stage least squares model, we found a positive and significant impact of market concentration on bank pricing, suggesting that an further increase in MENA banking markets’ concentration may boost banks pricing power and persuade them to increase their returns at the expense of their customers.

A Magyarországra érkező külföldi működőtőke gazdasági kapcsolatrendszer-vizsgálatának elméleti alapjai

The aim of the study is to systematize the Hungarian literature (1960–2004) on working capital coming into Hungary. A special role is given to the identification of the trends and topics, as well as the separation of the criteria systems shaping the paradigms. In the content analysis, we focused on not only quantitative but mainly qualitative aspects related to working capital. We interpreted the trends in two periods: the era between the 1960s and 1990, as well as the period between the 1990 and Hungary’s accession to the EU, by evaluating articles mainly on macroeconomics, industrial economics and economic geography. Before 1990, the emphasis was placed on the economic effects related to foreign direct investment. From the 1990s, first the quantitative aspects, then from the middle of the decade again the qualitative elements – specifically the economic and regional integration of working capital and the additional effects arising from it – came to the focus of scientific inquiry.

Research on the Integration of Ideology, Political Courses into the Teaching Reform of "Industrial Economics"

Ideological and political ideas continue to promote the curriculum reform, the ideological and political education and talent training in colleges and universities put forward new requirements, refresh the objectives and tasks of subject teaching. The ideological and political education carried out in colleges and universities cannot only rely on the ideological and political class, but should be permeated and popularized in the courses of other subjects. Industrial economics is a subject that studies industrial organization, industrial structure, industrial association, industrial layout, industrial policy and industrial regulation. This paper integrates the ideological and political ideas of course into the teaching of industrial economics, and puts forward the countermeasures of teaching reform, aiming at realizing the ideological and political education of students in a subtle way and improving students' ideological and political literacy. As far as the ideological and political development of industrial economics courses in colleges and universities is concerned, some problems exist, such as the strong class nature of economics courses and their separation from ideological and political education. Based on industry economics teaching objectives and content characteristic, the political education into the industry economics course puts forward Suggestions on three aspects: one is based on classroom, the ideological elements into industry economics teaching and the second is based on practice channels, guiding values to develop through class activities, three is based on the network media, through the practical teaching ideological education.

Economic and legal regulation of economic activity in the formation of Industry 4.0

Problem setting. The development of the digital economy, taking into account international experience, provides a comprehensive analysis of the regulation of economic activity in relation to the application of Industry 4.0 technologies. Conditions for the development of the digital economy and society provide a thorough analysis of economic and legal regulation of economic activity on the use of innovations in Industry 4.0. Actualization of processes is enhanced by the practical actions of various stakeholders, which emphasizes the need for economic and legal support of this process. Therefore, there is a need to develop recommendations for identifying changes in the economic and legal regulation of the actions of economic entities to develop technologies in Industry 4.0. Analysis of resent researches and publications. OECD conducted a study on the development of digital economy and new business models (2014), Polish scientists R. Pukala, M. Ratajczak, Wozniak Jechorek B. consider the problems of communication in the context of digitalization and startups, recommendations for enterprise development in Industry 4.0 on the basis of their intellectualization provided by researchers of the Institute of Industrial Economics of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine N. Bryukhovetskaya and O. Chorna. Plakitkin by Yu. and L. consider programs of Industry 4.0 and digital economy. Target of research. Development of theoretical provisions and practical recommendations for determining changes in the economic and legal regulation of the actions of economic entities to develop technology 4.0 Industry. Article’s main body. The current changes in the regulation of economic activity that occur during the development of Industry 4.0 are considered. An innovative approach to the use of modern search engine Google Trends to determine the interest in the digital economy in the world, the results of a survey to understand the concept of Industry 4.0 and determine the potential level of interest of businesses in Ukraine to invest in the industry 4.0 Conclusions and prospects for the development. To regulate economic activity in the context of the development of Industry 4.0 requires developments in the field of law, the results of the survey indicate the need for further analytical and organizational activities to increase the interest of different categories of businesses in the development of Industry 4.0.