{"title":"Can e-commerce mitigate the negative impact of COVID-19 on international trade?","authors":"Kazunobu Hayakawa, Hiroshi Mukunoki, Shujiro Urata","doi":"10.1007/s42973-021-00099-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s42973-021-00099-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study aims to empirically investigate the role of E-commerce (EC) on the trade impacts of COVID-19. To this end, we estimate gravity equations for bilateral trade among 34 reporting countries and their 145 partner countries during January-August in 2019 and 2020. Our major findings can be summarized as follows. A larger number of confirmed cases or deaths in both importing and exporting countries significantly decrease international trade. However, we found that EC development in importing countries contributes to mitigating this negative effect of COVID-19 on trade while that in exporting countries does not. These results are robust for our use of multiple measures of EC development.</p>","PeriodicalId":45642,"journal":{"name":"Japanese Economic Review","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2023-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8478635/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9645241","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Ambiguity and self-protection: evidence from social distancing under the COVID-19 pandemic.","authors":"Daiki Kishishita, Hans H Tung, Charlotte Wang","doi":"10.1007/s42973-022-00120-3","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s42973-022-00120-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This paper studies how people make decisions over preventive behaviors under ambiguity (i.e., Knightian uncertainty) where they do not even know the probability of a loss. In the context of the current COVID-19 pandemic, scientific uncertainty makes it hard to evaluate not only whether one will be infected, but also probabilities such as the infection rate. We constructed a simple model and demonstrated how its effect was heterogeneous depending on ambiguity-attitudes. Motivated by the model, we further conducted a survey experiment in Japan where we manipulated the information regarding scientific uncertainty on COVID-19. We found that higher ambiguity induced by scientific uncertainty increased the level of social distancing among ambiguity-loving people, but such evidence was nonexistent for ambiguity-averse counterparts.</p><p><strong>Supplementary information: </strong>The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s42973-022-00120-3.</p>","PeriodicalId":45642,"journal":{"name":"Japanese Economic Review","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2022-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9525947/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33497359","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Tourism infrastructure and the environment: how does environmental regulation affect welfare, tourism industry, and domestic wage inequality?","authors":"Takanori Shimizu, Hisayuki Okamoto","doi":"10.1007/s42973-021-00109-4","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s42973-021-00109-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study presents a general equilibrium model of a small open developing economy with pollution generated by the tourism industry. The national government issues emission permits and constructs tourism infrastructure for the tourism sector. We examine the effects of a stricter environmental regulation on welfare, production, and income distribution. If the elasticity of substitution in the tourism sector is sufficiently low, a stricter environmental regulation paradoxically expands the tourism sector and narrows domestic wage inequality, even under constant tourism terms of trade. In this model, in addition to the two traditional channels, there is a new channel through which a stricter environmental regulation affects the tourism terms of trade and domestic welfare. The new channel, which arises from the difference between the marginal value product of tourism infrastructure and its price, improves the tourism terms of trade and domestic welfare if (1) the marginal value product of tourism infrastructure is greater than its price, (2) the output of tourism infrastructure is increased by a stricter environmental regulation, and (3) the excess supply of a tourism service decreases with a stricter environmental regulation.</p>","PeriodicalId":45642,"journal":{"name":"Japanese Economic Review","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8736332/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39812518","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Racers' attractive looks, popularity, and performance: how do speedboat racers react to fans' expectations?","authors":"Eiji Yamamura, Ryohei Hayashi, Yoshiro Tsutsui, Fumio Ohtake","doi":"10.1007/s42973-020-00064-6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s42973-020-00064-6","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Using a large sample of individual-level records in Japan speedboat racing where men and women racers participate, we investigated how racers' performance meets fans' pre-race expectations. To control for endogeneity bias, we measured the order of racers' attractiveness randomly determined in each race and then used this order as instrument for measuring racers' popularity. The fixed-effects IV estimations revealed the following. (1) Racers who are more attractive than their competitors tend to be more popular even after controlling for the condition of the race, racer ability, and other characteristics. (2) More popular men show better performance in the race even if the reward does not vary according to popularity; such tendency is not observed for women. This study contributes a novel setting for determining the expectation-enhancing effects of physical attractiveness.</p>","PeriodicalId":45642,"journal":{"name":"Japanese Economic Review","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1007/s42973-020-00064-6","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"38640605","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Japanese Economic ReviewPub Date : 2022-01-01Epub Date: 2021-10-04DOI: 10.1007/s42973-021-00103-w
Fuhito Kojima, Hiroaki Odahara
{"title":"Toward market design in practice: a progress report.","authors":"Fuhito Kojima, Hiroaki Odahara","doi":"10.1007/s42973-021-00103-w","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s42973-021-00103-w","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In recent years, many developments have been made in matching theory and its applications to market design. This paper surveys some selected topics from this research area and describe our own work. We also describe the newly established University of Tokyo Market Design Center (UTMD), which works as a vehicle for practical implementation.</p>","PeriodicalId":45642,"journal":{"name":"Japanese Economic Review","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8487759/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39527023","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Japanese Economic ReviewPub Date : 2022-01-01Epub Date: 2022-01-24DOI: 10.1007/s42973-021-00110-x
Hiroyuki Kubota, Mototsugu Shintani
{"title":"High-frequency identification of monetary policy shocks in Japan.","authors":"Hiroyuki Kubota, Mototsugu Shintani","doi":"10.1007/s42973-021-00110-x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s42973-021-00110-x","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>We identify monetary policy shocks in Japan during the unconventional monetary policy period using high-frequency data for interest rate futures. Following the empirical strategy of Gürkaynak et al. (Int J Cent Bank 1: 55-93, 2005), we conduct an event-study analysis to estimate the effects of the monetary policy surprises on asset prices around the timing of policy announcements made by the Bank of Japan between 1999 and 2020. We find that a monetary policy shock can be described by two factors that have statistically significant effects on the financial market. A surprise monetary tightening has negative effects on stock returns and positive effects on government bond yields, even in the low-interest environment. We also find that the responses of the longer term yields tend to be larger than those of the shorter term yields. The response is the largest for the 10-year government bond yield, which has, in the last 2 decades, been effectively targeted by the Bank of Japan. This finding contrasts with those of previous studies of the conventional monetary policy period, in which responses are larger for the shorter term yields.</p>","PeriodicalId":45642,"journal":{"name":"Japanese Economic Review","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8785384/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39871374","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Japanese Economic ReviewPub Date : 2022-01-01Epub Date: 2021-10-14DOI: 10.1007/s42973-021-00104-9
Daisuke Fujii, Taisuke Nakata
{"title":"Correction to: COVID‑19 and output in Japan.","authors":"Daisuke Fujii, Taisuke Nakata","doi":"10.1007/s42973-021-00104-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s42973-021-00104-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1007/s42973-021-00098-4.].</p>","PeriodicalId":45642,"journal":{"name":"Japanese Economic Review","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8514277/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39555233","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Japanese Economic ReviewPub Date : 2022-01-01Epub Date: 2022-02-01DOI: 10.1007/s42973-022-00111-4
Haruko Noguchi
{"title":"Mari Tanaka awarded for the 2021 Japanese Economic Association award for young female researchers sponsored by the Nippon Life Insurance Company.","authors":"Haruko Noguchi","doi":"10.1007/s42973-022-00111-4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s42973-022-00111-4","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":45642,"journal":{"name":"Japanese Economic Review","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8803457/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39893366","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Japanese Economic ReviewPub Date : 2022-01-01Epub Date: 2021-09-07DOI: 10.1007/s42973-021-00095-7
Fumio Ohtake
{"title":"Can nudges save lives?","authors":"Fumio Ohtake","doi":"10.1007/s42973-021-00095-7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s42973-021-00095-7","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>To assess the promotion of life saving behaviors and determine the sustainability of nudge message effects, this paper examines nudges that promote evacuation during heavy rainfall, preventative COVID-19 infection behaviors, and COVID-19 vaccination. The results showed that altruistic gain messages may have more sustained effects than others in promoting both evacuation during heavy rainfall and contact reduction behaviors as a measure against COVID-19 infection. Specifically, social influence nudges that use a gain frame to convey that a person's behavior promotes the behavior of others are effective for both heavy rainfall evacuations and encouraging COVID-19 vaccination.</p>","PeriodicalId":45642,"journal":{"name":"Japanese Economic Review","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8421189/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39411103","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Japanese Economic ReviewPub Date : 2022-01-01Epub Date: 2021-09-24DOI: 10.1007/s42973-021-00087-7
Kiyotaka Yageta
{"title":"Watching, being watched, and human interactions: evidence from trust games.","authors":"Kiyotaka Yageta","doi":"10.1007/s42973-021-00087-7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s42973-021-00087-7","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Face-to-face communication increases human trust, which is crucial for making important decisions with others. Due to technological breakthroughs and the COVID-19 pandemic, human interactions now predominantly occur online, leading to two situations: other peoples' faces cannot be seen, but yours can, and vice versa. However, the relationships among watching, being watched, and face-to-face interaction are unclear in existing papers. This paper separately measures the effects of both watching and being watched on human interactions using a trust game. I derive the optimal behaviors of senders and receivers in the trust game and empirically validate it through a controlled experiment. The results show that more than half of the participants perform the optimal behavior. They also indicate that both watching and being watched enhance human trust and reciprocity, while the synergy effect of face-to-face is not observed. Additionally, women reciprocate more when they are watched, and trust increases when participants are paired with the opposite gender and can watch their partner. This paper theoretically concludes that the former comes from women's social pressure that they should be reciprocators, and the latter from participants' beliefs that the opposite gender reciprocates more than the same gender does. These results propose a framework based on watching and being watched affecting human behaviors and emphasize the importance of face-to-face communication in online human interactions.</p>","PeriodicalId":45642,"journal":{"name":"Japanese Economic Review","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8460397/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39467291","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}