The Portuguese Hub of Companies in 1973 – Discussing the Corporate Concentration in the Portuguese Economy on the Eve of the April Revolution

The network of Portuguese companies in 1973 has been identified as a relevant element for understanding the economic structure of the country in the decade of 1970–1980. This network had been formed before 1974, during the dictatorship, but it remained after the Carnation Revolution. In spite of such research, this network has not yet been properly analysed, especially through adequate tools from network analysis. This work will detail this network, the different scores of centrality of each company, and their modular structures; it will also discuss estimates from exponential random graph models to identify significant attributes that explain the discovered flows of investment. This work will also detail the processes of vertical integration as well as the specificities of the identified oligopolies.

On the Spillover Effects of CO2 Taxation on the Emissions of other Air Pollutants

In this paper, we compare and contrast the environmental, macroeconomic and distributive effects of CO2 taxation with the effects of taxing a variety of air pollutants at their external costs. We do so using a multi-sector and multi-household dynamic computable general equilibrium model of the Portuguese economy. We find that a carbon tax of 114 euros per ton of CO2 is necessary to achieve the IPCC 2030 targets. It does so, however, at a high macroeconomic and distributional cost. In turn, the macroeconomic and distributional effects of taxing different pollutants at their external costs in line both qualitatively and quantitatively with the effects of the CO2 taxation. In absolute terms, however, better environmental results in terms of GHG and air pollutants emissions are achieved through the level of CO2 taxation necessary to achieve the IPCC targets than through direct taxation of such emissions at their external costs. Ultimately, the benefits of complementing the CO2 taxation with the taxation of other air pollutants at their external costs does not seem significant from either efficiency, fairness, or environmental perspectives to justify the practical complexity of considering it.

Growth formula: economy of Portugal after the “Carnation Revolution”

This article provides an overview of the Portuguese economy in the last quarter of the 20th and early 21st centuries. Assessing several key indicators of economic development within a historical perspective, the author highlights the most important factors that set the dynamics of national socio-economic growth. For more than four decades, since the “Carnation Revolution” (April 25, 1974), the Portuguese Republic has undergone profound changes in the economy and the socio-political sphere. In the country, there are new, as well as modernized traditional industries, a modern structure of production and consumption; GDP has increased six times, exports of goods and services have grown dramatically. In general, Portugal organically blended in the world economic system, took its rightful place in the global division of labor. One should take into account the effects of the global crisis of 2008-2009, when the Portuguese economy found itself in the epicenter of the “perfect storm” (pairing internal and external negative factors) and was pushed back in practically all key macroeconomic indicators. Despite such a system failure, in the second half of the 2010s, Portugal managed to cope with the peak of the crisis, overcame the general effects of the recession and began to show some of the highest rates of economic growth among the states of the euro zone. However, preservation of the positive economic dynamics is currently threatened by external challenges that require timely and effective response. Such challenges of global nature include the COVID-19 pandemic, the economic impact of which appeared to be a real shock for Portugal, as well as for many other countries in the world.

Fire takes no vacation: impact of fires on tourism

Many Mediterranean-type climates around the world will face increased risks of wildfires as a consequence of climate change. In this study we consider the case of Portugal and estimate the impact of the increasing risk of forest fires on tourism. Using data for 278 municipalities for the 2000–2016 period, we find a considerable negative impact of burned areas on the number of tourist arrivals, both domestic and inbound. We go beyond the traditional impact analysis and provide predictions for 2030 and 2050. The estimated annual costs to the Portuguese economy due to the impact of burned areas in 2030 range between €17.03 and 24.18 million for domestic tourist arrivals and between €18.26 and 38.08 million for inbound ones. In 2050, those costs will increase at least fourfold. These findings underscore the importance of taking the forest fire risks into account when planning local investments.

Financing Future Feed-in Electricity Tariffs from Currently Installed RES-E Generating Capacity

This paper addresses the issue of financing the excess costs of electricity generation from currently installed renewable energy production capacity. We use a dynamic computable general equilibrium model of the Portuguese economy. We consider three issues: the effects of the excess-costs; the effects of annuitizing the costs; and, the effects of different financing mechanisms. Following the logic of the tariff deficit, we recommend the annuitizing of these excess costs. This strategy is justified on distributional grounds. We also find that financing through carbon taxation is a better alternative than passing these excess costs to electricity consumers in the form of higher future prices. This is consistent with the idea that renewable production is not an issue pertaining to the electricity market but rather a part of the national quest for decarbonization. Finally, we show that there is little reason to extend such preferential financing to future renewable capacity installation.

Financialisation and the slowdown of labour productivity in Portugal: A post-Keynesian approach

The aim of this paper is to conduct a time series econometric analysis in order to empirically evaluate the role of financialisation in the slowdown of labour productivity in Portugal during the period from 1980 to 2017. During that time, the Portuguese economy faced a financialisation phenomenon due to the European integration process and the corresponding imposition of a strong wave of privatisation, liberalisation and deregulation of the Portuguese financial system. At the same time, Portuguese labour productivity exhibited a sustained downward trend, which seems to contradict the well-entrenched mainstream hypothesis on the finance–productivity nexus. Based on the post-Keynesian literature, we identify four channels through which the phenomenon of financialisation has impaired labour productivity, namely weak economic performance, the fall in labour’s share of income, the rise of inequality in personal income and an intensification of the degree of financialisation. The paper finds that lagged labour productivity, economic performance and labour income share positively impact labour productivity in Portugal, while personal income inequality and the degree of financialisation negatively impact labour productivity in Portugal. The paper also finds that the main triggers for the slowdown of labour productivity in Portugal are the degree of financialisation and personal income inequality over the last decades.

Does the Capital Structure of New Ventures Differ as a Response to a Financial Crisis?

The Portuguese economy has experienced a recent economic recession that forced firms to look for different ways to finance themselves in order to be able to respond and overcome the crisis. This study investigates whether the capital structure of new ventures differ as a response to the crisis. Drawing on a panel of 75,826 Portuguese new ventures (241,284 venture-year observations) established between 2006 and 2015 and followed until 2017, the results show that new ventures capital structure responds to economic downturns. New ventures founded during the crisis have higher values of debt-ratio, for both total and short-term debt ratio, higher profitability, higher growth, and lower tangibility. Furthermore, ventures that are financed mainly with equity resort to less short-term debt have higher profitability and liquidity but experience lower growth. This study informs managers, practitioners, and policymakers that new ventures' capital structure is responsive to an economic downturn and has implications for the establishment of ventures during recessionary periods.

Appropriation, Integration, and Nation Building: Portuguese Railways in the Second Half of the Nineteenth and Early Years of the Twentieth Century

In 1850, after three decades of political turmoil, Portugal started investing in major public works, particularly, in the construction of a national railway network. This strategy followed closely the suggestions of the Saint-Simonian technocrats with whom Portuguese engineers had been engaging since the 1820s. Additionally, it came in response to the longtime neglect suffered by the Portuguese transportation system, which hindered communications and trade between different areas of the kingdom and with neighboring Spain. The main goal of the investment was to modernize the national transport system, attract to Portuguese harbors a large portion of the traffic between Europe, Africa, and America, and, in general terms, put the nation on the path of progress. By the end of the nineteenth century, total mileage of the Portuguese rail network exceeded 2,300 km. This article analyzes the role of railways in the improvement of communications between the Portuguese provinces, their appropriation in a unified nation-state, the degree of integration of the Portuguese economy with the Spanish and European economies, and the construction/reinvention of Portugal as a modern and technological nation. To achieve these goals, I will use three key concepts: territorial appropriation, circulation, and globalization. Sources include statistics of railway operation and previous works analyzing the impact of railways on the Portuguese transport system and economy, the outcomes of operating transnational lines, and the importance of technology for the reinvention of Portugal during the second half of the nineteenth century.

Current and Historical Application of Knowledge Management in Economy

Objectives: The paper tries to analyse the current and historical application of Knowledge Management in the Portuguese Economy, particularly since the democratic revolution of 1974. Methods/Analysis: Study is based in theories about the impacts of knowledge in countries at a micro and a macro scale. A three levels mode is used, related to context (namely 1) Historical background; 2) basic economic and social data: 3) broad vocational education and training (VET) systems; 4) institutional actors; 5) political context), intervention (namely 1) basic legislative documents, 2) guidelines on eligibility, 3) programs, 4) evaluation procedures) and outcomes (namely 1) stocks, investment, and outcomes; 2) price, quantity, supply, demand, equilibria; 3) needs). Data used are statistical published data and other published documents. Findings: The context changed for the better, because after 1974 the country rulers installed a regime in which knowledge was not seen like a luxury but as a basic need; the change in context was also helped by the adhesion to the EU, which in turn led to massive interventions supported by funds like the ESF and the Regional fund; as a result outcomes are finally seen, as the increase in supply and demand of knowledge and also in the income and employability of the Portuguese attests. Novelty/Improvement These findings are important because they depict the slow but sure transformation of Portugal into a Knowledge Economy. Should be complemented by a more detailed analysis, with a larger group of researchers. Doi: 10.28991/esj-2020-01245 Full Text: PDF