Greve dos caminhoneiros tem forte repercussão nas redes sociais

A greve de caminhoneiros, que já atinge 12 estados, começa a impactar o abastecimento nas principais cidades do país, alcançando forte repercussão nas redes sociais. Os protestos, iniciados no fim de semana, provocam também congestionamentos nas rodovias e prejuízos à exportação. As reivindicações dos caminhoneiros, no entanto, encontram respaldo de parte dos usuários das redes, sobretudo o aumento nos preços dos combustíveis. As hashtags mais usadas são #apoiocaminhoneiros e #caminhoneiros.

Modelo de projeção de demanda de diesel no Brasil: uma análise nacional e regional

Este estudo objetiva estimar a demanda regional de diesel para os próximos 10 anos no Brasil através de uma abordagem top down. Foram testadas as variáveis que mais contribuem com a projeção do consumo de diesel, chegando-se à conclusão de que o PIB e o preço são bastante relevantes. Os melhores modelos econométricos com resultados mais aderentes às projeções dentro e fora da amostra foram: (i) com correção de erros e (ii) com as variáveis em diferença. Concluímos ao longo desta dissertação, que o acionamento das térmicas com geradores a óleo diesel em períodos específicos, como os últimos anos, afetam substancialmente o consumo do combustível. Para a desagregação do consumo nacional foram analisados modelos regressivos congruentes na totalização, como o utilizado por Moreira (1986), modelos com fatores proporcionais fixos baseados no crescimento histórico de 5 anos e modelos mais simples de médias proporcionais - estes últimos com resultados inferiores. Na projeção de um Cenário Base, com PIB crescendo 2,5% ao ano nos próximos 10 anos, em algumas regiões do Brasil, como o conjunto dos estados do Maranhão, Tocantins e Piauí, deverá crescer o consumo de diesel em 40%, enquanto no Rio Grande do Sul, apenas 21%.

How resource rich countries attract foreign direct investments: a study of Western Asian countries and strategies of industrialization and diversification

Fuel is a self-depleting resource and long term dependency on this commodity alone will not suffice. An export trade oriented approach can lead to faster industrialization while diversification leads to economic sustainable growth. This research seeks to understand how countries compete for foreign direct investments, and how certain activities have the most impact in the competitive global marketplace. Research suggests that when companies decide to invest abroad, they seek only to find countries that facilitate their strategic objectives. The results conclude with appropriate levels of government accountability, credibility and visibility with the private sector, foreign direct investment is attracted by policy advocacy and policy reform. By reviewing countries such as United Arab Emirates in direct comparison to Western Asian countries, including Kuwait and Iraq with high levels of fuel exports, along with Qatar with optimistic marketplace indicators and plentitude of skills and capabilities – research seems to suggest that despite high capabilities and attractive GDP, promotional investment activities yield the highest returns using policy advocacy and reform.

Exclusivity contracts and competition : the case of the Brazilian fuels market

Exclusivity contracts can help stations by providing brand-value that allows them to obtain higher profits, relative to unbranded retailers. However, branded retailers may have a stronger negative effect over its competitors’ profits. It is not clear which one of these two effects dominates (brand-value vs competition effect). Therefore, the impact of exclusivity over the number of participants in the downstream market is not determined. In this paper, I empirically study the effects of exclusivity agreements on competition in the Brazilian gasoline sector. In order to do so, I estimate an entry model of endogenous product-type choices using data of retailers’ locations and contract choices along with data from the 2010 Brazilian Census. I use my estimates to simulate entry decisions under two counterfactual scenarios: i) mandatory exclusivity and ii) no exclusivity.

Essays on cartels and market distortions

This dissertation is a conjunction of three essays on the Industrial Organization field, this empirical work is applied to the Brazilian retail gasoline market. The first essay investigates the existence of spillover effects from cartel activity. The second essay relates the well-known economic puzzle of asymmetric cost pass through to prices with the existence of horizontal coordination - cartels - in the relevant market. Finally, the third essay investigates the effectiveness of antitrust interventions inside the offenders and the consequences of its disclosure in related markets.