_____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ Z E W - N E W S L E T T E R E N G L I S H E D I T I O N Nr. 2011-04 vom 06.05.2011 (Beatrix Immig, newsletter-en at zew.de ) http://www.zew.eu _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ Content 1. NEWS 2. STAFF 2.1. Visiting Researchers 3. PRESS RELEASES 4. RECENT PUBLICATIONS IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE 4.1. Financial Market Report Switzerland 4.2. Financial Market Report CEE 4.3. Discussion Papers IN GERMAN LANGUAGE 4.4. ZEWnews 4.5. ZEW Finanzmarktreport (ZEW Financial Market Report) 5. NEW RESEARCH PROJECTS 6. EVENTS 6.1. Scientific Events _____________________________________________________________________ 1. NEWS 20.04.2011 Conference on Competition and Innovation: In March 2011, ZEW, the Mannheim Centre for Competition and Innovation (MaCCI), the University of Mannheim and the WHU - Otto Beisheim School of Management hosted the conference "Public and Private Enforcement of Competition Law - Legal and Economic Perspectives". Around 60 lawyers and economists from Germany and other European countries attended the conference in order to discuss and to learn about the current challenges of public and private enforcement of competition law. The report about the first MaCCI conference can be found here: http://www.zew.de/news1713 15.04.2011 Q&A: How well Do Rating Agencies Perform? - A Government Agency Should Be Formed as a Competitor to Private Credit Rating Agencies as soon as Possible: Credit rating agencies are powerful. Their judgements determine the conditions under which a country can borrow money on international capital markets. Prof. Dr. Michael Schröder, head of the department of International Financial Markets and Financial Management at ZEW, explains how rating agencies work and how they can be better monitored. Read the complete interview here: http://www.zew.de/news1700 13.04.2011 ZEW President Wolfgang Franz on the Topic of the Future of Nuclear Power: The horrific news reports and images from Japan's nuclear disaster are disturbing, yet it would be unwise to rely on the advice of the Cassandras in our midst. What is needed instead is a reassessment of nuclear energy in light of the following two questions: What lessons can be drawn from the catastrophe in Japan with regard to the safety of nuclear power plants closer to home? Moreover, what alternatives to nuclear power do we have, and how viable are they both technically and economically? Read the complete opinion here: http://www.zew.de/news1696 07.04.2011 Joint Economic Forecast Spring 2011: Continuing Upswing - European Debt Crisis Still Unresolved: In the spring of 2011, the global economy is on the upswing, in particular due to the momentum in emerging economies. Germany is also experiencing a strong economic recovery. The institutes expect that the German Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will increase by 2.8 per cent this year and by 2.0 per cent in 2012. For 2011 and 2012, an unemployment rate of 6.9 per cent and 6.5 per cent, respectively, is expected. Read more: http://www.zew.de/news1692 News can also be found here: http://www.zew.de/news 2. STAFF 2.1. Visiting Researchers Van Anh Vuong Visiting Researcher at ZEW: >/From 6 April to 24 May 2011, Van Anh Vuong is a visiting researcher /at the ZEW research department "Industrial Economics and International Management". Miss Anh Vuong is a PhD student at the Pennsylvania State University, USA. Her main research topics cover the fields of applied microeconomics and industrial organisation. She was a visiting researcher at ZEW last year and now resumes her position to continue working on a joint research project on the relationship between innovation, export, and productivity in German companies. Additional information on Van Anh Vuong can be found here: http://econ.la.psu.edu/people Andrea Cocchi Visiting Researcher at ZEW: >/From 1 May to 30 September 2011, Andrea Cocchi is visiting researcher /at the ZEW research department "Industrial Economics and International Management". He is a PhD student at Newcastle University Business School, UK. His research focus lies on innovation intermediaries in the regional innovation systems. The comparison of the Emilia-Romagna region and Baden-Wuerttemberg is a focal point of his research activities. During his stay at ZEW, Mr. Cocchi will work on the analysis of the comparison region Baden-Wuerttemberg, including collecting relevant information and conducting interviews. Additional information on Andrea Cocchi can be found here: http://newcastle.academia.edu/AndreaCocchi Prof. Mark J. Roberts, PhD, Visiting Researcher at ZEW: >/From 18 to 24 May 2011, Mark J. Roberts is a visiting researcher at /the ZEW research department "Industrial Economics and International Management". Mark J. Roberts is professor of economics at the Pennsylvania State University, USA, and research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER). His main fields of research interests are applied microeconomics and industrial organisation, in particular, export, trade, and productivity. During his research stay, he is working on a joint research project on the relationship between innovation, export, and productivity in German companies. Additional information on Prof. Mark J. Roberts, PhD, can be found here: http://econ.la.psu.edu/~mroberts 3. PRESS RELEASES 18.04.2011 - ZEW/Creditreform (msu/ggr) Service Providers of the Information Society - Firms Employ E-Commerce to a Greater Extent in Procurement than in Sales and Marketing: Among the service providers of the information society it has become increasingly common to make use of e-commerce in the procurement of inputs rather than in sales and marketing of one's own products and services. Roughly 64 per cent of all firms in this sector confirm having ordered products and services over the internet in 2010. However, only 29 per cent of all firms sold their products or services over the internet in 2010. This is the result of the March 2011 survey conducted by the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) Mannheim in cooperation with Creditreform Neuss. Read more: http://www.zew.de/press1703 18.04.2011 - ZEW (tzw/ggr) "Twisted" Wages Make Hiring of Young Women and Older Job Hunters Unattractive: Some firms in Germany still prefer hiring young male applicants to young women; and they hardly hire older job hunters either. The main reason for this personnel strategy, which is not very sustainable in view of the demographic change and the feared shortage of skilled workers, are strong seniority wage increases in these firms. These result from the fact that in the first few years in the firm employees are paid below their productivity and in the last few years above their productivity. These "twisted" wages lead to a strong and long loyalty of motivated employees to the firm, but simultaneously make the hiring of young women and older job hunters unattractive. These are the findings of a survey conducted by the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) Mannheim. Read more: http://www.zew.de/press1702 15.04.2011 - ZEW/Erste Group Bank (mbo/kbo) ZEW-Erste Group Bank Economic Sentiment Indicator for Central and Eastern Europe Including Turkey (CEE) - Economic Expectations for Central and Eastern Europe Recover Slightly: The ZEW-Erste Group Bank Economic Sentiment Indicator for Central and Eastern Europe including Turkey (CEE) has increased by 4.8 points to 18.7 points in April 2011. The economic sentiment indicator for the CEE region and further financial market data have been surveyed monthly since 2007 by the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) Mannheim, with the support of Erste Group Bank, Vienna. Read more: http://www.zew.de/press1701 14.04.2011 - ZEW (vni/kbo) Upturn for Mergers and Acquisitions in Germany: The German economy is developing well in 2011, causing an upturn of the mergers and acquisitions (M&A). The negative trend observed in Germany during the last two years appears to be overcome. This is the result of a forecast by the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) Mannheim. Read more: http://www.zew.de/press1697 14.04.2011 - ZEW/CS (gla/kbo) ZEW-CS Financial Market Test Switzerland - Economic Expectations Brighten up Again: Economic expectations for Switzerland brightened up again in April 2011, with the relevant ZEW-CS-Indicator edging up 22.3 points to the 8.8 threshold, moving into positive territory again for the first time since August 2010. The ZEW-CS-Indicator is calculated monthly by the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) in cooperation with Credit Suisse (CS). The indicator reflects the expectations of the surveyed financial market experts regarding the economic development in Switzerland on a six-month time horizon. Read more: http://www.zew.de/press1698 14.04.2011 - ZEW/Creditreform (msu/ggr) Service Providers of the Information Society - Deterioration of the Business Situation Discourages Economic Sentiment: The overall sentiment in the sector of service providers of the information society has tarnished in the first quarter of the year 2011 in comparison to the quarter immediately prior to it. To a significant extent, this is due to the deterioration of the business situation. Accordingly, the ZEW-IDI drops by 4.4 points in the first quarter of 2011 to a level of 62.4 points. Even though the direct contrast with the previous quarter suggests a lower value, a ZEW-IDI above 50 points indicates an arguably improved economic sentiment with respect to the previous quarter. This is the result of the business survey conducted by the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) Mannheim in a collaborative effort with Creditreform, Neuss, in March 2011 in the sector of service providers of the information society. Read more: http://www.zew.de/press1699 12.04.2011 - ZEW (cdi/mfo/kbo) ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment - Cautious Expectations: The ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment for Germany has dropped by 6.5 points in April 2011. The indicator now stands at 7.6 points. This value is below the indicator's historical average of 26.6 points. Read more: http://www.zew.de/press1694 11.04.2011 - ZEW/gif (fsr/kbo) ZEW/gif Office Market Forecast - Rents for Offices in Prime Locations Strongly Increase: Prime rents at the five largest German office real estate markets Berlin, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Duesseldorf, and Munich will considerably increase by the end of 2012. At the same time, the vacancy rate will hardly be reduced - with the exception of Duesseldorf and Frankfurt. These are the findings of the second survey among real estate market experts, which was conducted by the gif-Arbeitskreis "Marktanalysen und Bedarfsprognosen" (gif market analysis and demand forecasting working group) in cooperation with the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) Mannheim. Read more: http://www.zew.de/press1693 All press releases can be found here: http://www.zew.de/en/press/latest 4. RECENT PUBLICATIONS IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE 4.1. Financial Market Report Switzerland Financial Market Report Switzerland May 2011: * Economic expectations brighten up again * Eurozone: Further interest rate hikes anticipated * USA: Economic expectations hold steady * Japan: Assessment of economy noticeably gloomier * Great Britain: Inflation expected to continue to climb * Special question: Consequences of the earthquake and nuclear catastrophe in Japan Download as PDF-file (*): http://www.zew.de/en/publikationen/finanzmarktreportschweiz/legalnote.php?target=FMTSchweiz052011.pdf 4.2. Financial Market Report CEE Financial Market Report CEE May 2011: * Economic expectations for Central and Eastern Europe recover slightly * Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovakia: Currencies expected to appreciate * Croatia, Hungary, and Romania: Inflation concerns slow down * Turkey: Assessment of current situation improves * Special question: Consequences of the disasters in Japan Download as PDF-file (*): http://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/fmt_cee/FMTCEE052011.pdf 4.3. Discussion Papers 11-029 Richard Kneller; Florian Misch What Does Ex-Post Evidence Tell Us About the Output Effects of Future Tax Reforms? Download as PDF-file (*): ftp://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/dp/dp11029.pdf 11-028 Tim-Alexander Kroencke; Felix Schindler; Andreas Schrimpf International Diversification Benefits with Foreign Exchange Investment Styles Download as PDF-file (*): ftp://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/dp/dp11028.pdf 11-027 Jens Horbach; Christian Rammer; Klaus Rennings Determinants of Eco-Innovations by Type of Environmental Impact. The Role of Regulatory Push/Pull, Technology Push and Market Pull Download as PDF-file (*): ftp://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/dp/dp11027.pdf 10-026 Mila Beyer; Dirk Czarnitzki; Kornelius Kraft Managerial Ownership, Entrenchment and Innovation Download as PDF-file (*): ftp://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/dp/dp11026.pdf 11-024 Christof Ernst; Christoph Spengel Taxation, R&D Tax Incentives and Patent Application in Europe Download as PDF-file (*): ftp://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/dp/dp11024.pdf 11-023 Bernd Fitzenberger; Grit Muehler Dips and Floors in Workplace Training: Using Personnel Records to Estimate Gender Differences Download as PDF-file (*): ftp://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/dp/dp11023.pdf 11-022 Tereza Tykvova; Andrea Schertler Geographical and Institutional Distances in Venture Capital Deals: How Syndication and Experience Drive Internationalisation Patterns Download as PDF-file (*): ftp://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/dp/dp11022.pdf 11-021 Dirk Czarnitzki; Katrin Hussinger; Bart Leten The Market Value of Blocking Patent Citations Download as PDF-file (*): ftp://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/dp/dp11021.pdf IN GERMAN LANGUAGE 4.4. ZEWnews ZEWnews April 2011: * Regional transfers enhance positive attitude of citizens towards European Union * Leniency policy stimulates competition * Increasing returns due to international research and development activities * Q&A: How well do rating agencies perform? * Interest rate restrictions - A European comparison * International kick-off conference of the research programme SEEK at ZEW * Opinion regarding nuclear power Download as PDF-file (German only) (*): http://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/zn/zn0411.pdf This edition contains the additional feature "M&A Report", which includes the following articles: * Recovery of the German M&A market * China's interest in financial sector remains strong * Merger plans between stock exchange operators * Speculation about acquisition of ProSiebenSat.1 * Collapse of cartels and M&A activity * No increased insolvency risk for businesses from private equity investors Download as PDF-file (German only) (*): http://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/zn/schwerpunkte/ma-report/MA-Report0411.pdf 4.5. ZEW Finanzmarktreport (ZEW Financial Market Report) ZEW Financial Market Report May 2011: * Expectations slightly more modest * ECB: Experts expect further increase in interest rate * USA: Economic expectations diminished slightly * Japan: Expectations decline considerably * Great Britain: Expectations suffer a setback * Special question: Consequences of the strong earthquake in Japan Download as PDF-file (German only) (*): ftp://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/frep/052011.pdf (*) Please note: PDF-files can be displayed by using Acrobat-Reader. The software can be downloaded for free: http://www.adobe.de/products/acrobat/readstep2.html 5. NEW RESEARCH PROJECTS The Effect of Broadband Infrastructure on Entrepreneurial Activities: The Case of Germany http://www.zew.de/project1076 Development of a Partial Equilibrium Model for Mineral Resources http://www.zew.de/project1067 Risk-Taking in the Banking Sector: Are Retail Banks and Wholesale Banks Different? http://www.zew.de/project1069 6. EVENTS 6.1. Scientific Events 12.05.2011 ZEW Research Seminar: Academic Performance and Single-Sex Schooling: Evidence from a Natural Experiment Speaker: Dr. Zohal Hessami, The University of Konstanz Location of the event: ZEW, Mannheim Additional information: http://www.zew.de/event1447 19.-20.05.2011 Conference: 4th ZEW Conference on Economics of Innovation and Patenting & Finale Conference COST Network STRIKE Location of the event: ZEW, Mannheim Additional information: http://www.zew.de/event1401 23.-28.05.2011 Conference: Competition and Innovation Summer School (CISS) Location of the event: Turunç/Marmaris (Turkey) Additional information: http://www.zew.de/event1371 24.-25.06.2011 Conference: Economic Methods in Competition Law Enforcement Location of the event: ZEW, Mannheim Additional information: http://www.zew.de/event1429 27.-28.06.2011 Conference: 9th ZEW Conference: The Economics of Information and Communication Technologies Location of the event: ZEW, Mannheim Additional information: http://www.zew.de/event1412 28.-30.06.2011 ZEW Summer Workshop: International Business Cycles Location of the event: ZEW, Mannheim Additional information: http://www.zew.de/event1375 _____________________________________________________________________ IMPRINT Publisher: Centre for European Economic Research GmbH (ZEW) Mannheim L 7, 1 . 68161 Mannheim / P.O. Box 10 34 43 . 68034 Mannheim . Germany Internet: www.zew.de . www.zew.eu Seat of the company: Mannheim Local Court Mannheim HRB 6554 Chairman of the Supervisory Board: Gerhard Stratthaus, MdL, Minister, ret. Executive Directors: Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. mult. Wolfgang Franz, Thomas Kohl Editor: Beatrix Immig, Phone +49/621/1235-135, Fax +49/621/1235-222, E-mail: newsletter-en at zew.de Editorial assistant: Laura Piotter Responsibility: Gunter Grittmann, Phone +49/621/1235-132, Fax +49/621/1235-222, E-mail: grittmann at zew.de Legal note: http://www.zew.de/en/impressum/ You can subscribe or cancel your subscription to the newsletter service at any time via the online form at: http://www.zew.eu/newsletter or by sending an e-mail to: zew-newsletter-englishedition-request at mx-assp2.zew.de - Subject: (leave blank!) - Text: subscribe zew-newsletter-englishedition or unsubscribe zew-newsletter-englishedition _____________________________________________________________________ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ * *Messages sorted by:* [ date ] [ thread ] [ subject ] [ author ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------ More information about the Zew-newsletter-englishedition mailing list