Estimating income and price elasticities of imports for Fiji in a cointegration framework

This paper estimates an import demand model for Fiji using the recently developed bounds testing approach to cointegration for the period 1972 to 1999. To estimate the long-run elasticities, we use three approaches: the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model, the dynamic ordinary least squares (DOLS) approach and the fully modified ordinary least squares technique. Our results indicate a long-run cointegration relationship among the variables when import volume is the dependent variable. We find that the coefficient on income is elastic while the coefficient on relative prices (import price relative to domestic price) is unitary elastic in the long run. The error correction mechanism reveals that after any shock(s) to the determinants of import demand equilibrium is attained after 2 1/2 years.

The ripple effect in house price fluctuations in Australia

The differences in economy, society, demography and geography in different regions are main reasons which cause disparities in regional house prices. Three theories, namely ripple effect hypothesis, convergence and efficient market hypothesis, are used to examine price fluctuations in spatial dimension amongst eight housing markets in Australian state capital cities.

Empirical applications of economic principles in producer price index analysis

The research analyses economic linkages of producer price indices of the construction industry in Australia and relationships between construction and house prices. A range of econometric techniques are applied to analyse construction and house prices. The economic equilibrium and dynamic relationships among regional markets are investigated based on producer price index analysis.

Portfolio diversification and share price behavior : some evidence from the Taiwan Stock Exchange

This dissertation consists of four separate but closely related studies which investigate different aspects of share price behavior on the Taiwan Stock Exchange over the period 1980-89: 1.The benefits of diversification available to investors using the Markowitz model and the Single Model Index. 2. The applicability of the CAPM to the TSE over the decade. 3. Regularities in proce sequences. 4. Market reaction to the announcements of stock dividends, right issues and combinations of both.

Futures for teachers? Unravelling global agencies development agendas in education and training and lifelong learning

This 20-page paper was presented in June 2001 at an invitational conference hosted by the Education Policy Research Group at Keele University. The theme of the conference was “travelling policy/local spaces: globalisation, identities and education policy in Europe“. Linked from the events page at http://www.keele.ac.uk/depts/ed/events/conf papers.htm, this document is one of 22 papers from the conference that are presented in full text. The paper is organised in three sections, firstly examining the local impact of the application of a global development agenda on educational practices in Victoria, Australia, then analysing policy texts issued by the OECD, Unesco, and the Word Bank, and finally interpreting the data in the light of interagency politics and the authors‘ reading of the global-local dynamics of the educational restructuring in Victoria.

Efficiency and unbiasedness in the Indian stock index futures market

This paper explores potential efficiency and unbiasedness as well as the degree of efficiency in stock index futures of an emerging market using both monthly and daily data. Besides analyzing efficiency and unbiasedness with cointegration and error correction model, the degree of efficiency is further investigated after explicitly modeling the underlying state of the market (expansion or contraction) through the first-order Markov switching set-up. The results show that a relatively longer two-month horizon is more effective in eliminating arbitrage opportunities than the short run (one-month and daily) futures.

Building equitable literate futures : home and school computer-mediated literacy practices and disadvantage

This paper examines the complex connections between literacy practices, the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) and disadvantage. It reports the findings of a year-long study which investigated the ways in which four families use ICTs to engage with formal and informal literacy learning in home and school settings. The research set out to explore what it is about computer-mediated literacy practices at home and at school in disadvantaged communities that make a difference in school success. The findings demonstrate that the 'socialisation' of the technology - its appropriation into existing family norms, values and lifestyles - varied from family to family. Having access to ICTs at home was not sufficient for the young people and their families to overcome the so-called 'digital divide'. Clearly, we are seeing shifts in the meaning of 'disadvantage' in a globalised world mediated by the use of new technologies. New definitions of disadvantage that take account not only of access to the new technologies but also include calibrated understandings of what constitutes the access are required. The article concludes that old inequalities have not disappeared, but are playing out in new ways in the context of the networked society.

Building equitable literate futures : home and school computer-mediated literacy practices and disadvantage

This article examines the complex connections between literacy practices, the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) and disadvantage. It reports the findings of a year-long study which investigated the ways in which four families use ICTs to engage with formal and informal literacy learning in home and school settings. The research set out to explore what it is about computer-mediated literacy practices at home and at school in disadvantaged communities that makes a difference in school success. The findings demonstrate that the 'socialisation' of the technology--its appropriation into existing family norms, values and lifestyles--varied from family to family. Having access to ICTs at home was not sufficient for the young people and their families to overcome the so-called 'digital divide'. The article concludes that old inequalities have not disappeared, but are playing out in new ways in the context of the networked society.