{"title":"Will irresistible force overcome immovable object?","authors":"John Quiggin","doi":"10.1111/1467-8489.12571","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8489.12571","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Looking at the role of solar photovoltaics in the energy transition is reminiscent of the paradox arising from the clash of an irresistible force and an immovable object. In this note, it will be argued that the irresistible force of low-cost solar generation will win out over the apparently immovable obstacles.</p>","PeriodicalId":55427,"journal":{"name":"Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics","volume":"68 3","pages":"535-540"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-05-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/1467-8489.12571","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141584136","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Alexandra L. Egan, B. Louise Chilvers, Sue Cassells
{"title":"Expected direct costs of an oil spill in a UNESCO World Heritage area in New Zealand","authors":"Alexandra L. Egan, B. Louise Chilvers, Sue Cassells","doi":"10.1111/1467-8489.12569","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1467-8489.12569","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Fiordland National Park is a UNESCO site located in the remote, southwest of New Zealand's South Island, which attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. One of its leading attractions is Milford Sound. An oil spill in this area could not only impact the industries that operate in Milford Sound but also impact all of the park. To improve the knowledge base about this area in regard to oil spills and policies regarding ship visitation, this study aimed to estimate the costs of clean-up, impacts to fisheries, tourism, recreation and the wildlife/environment under three oil spill scenarios in Milford Sound. Minimum costs are estimated at NZD 140–154 million. These results demonstrate the need for proper planning and response measures, and appropriate domestic and international policies to help minimise the potential damages that may occur in the event of an oil spill in a remote and pristine area of New Zealand.</p>","PeriodicalId":55427,"journal":{"name":"Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics","volume":"68 3","pages":"608-627"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-05-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141123278","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The Bitcoin-agricultural commodities nexus: Fresh insight from COVID-19 and 2022 Russia–Ukraine war","authors":"Hongjun Zeng, Abdullahi D. Ahmed, Ran Lu","doi":"10.1111/1467-8489.12570","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1467-8489.12570","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This paper investigates the volatility connectedness and dynamic time–frequency relationship between Bitcoin (BTC) and 15 major agricultural commodity markets during the COVID-19 and 2022 Russia–Ukraine war periods. We employ the TVP-VAR-based extended joint connectedness method, minimum connectedness investment portfolio, and wavelet coherence (WC) method. The results indicate that the sudden outbreaks of the two crises brought about increased volatility connectedness between BTC and agricultural commodity markets. Throughout the entire sample period, BTC remained a net transmitter of volatility. Moreover, in terms of the total connectedness index (TCI), the overall volatility correlation surged rapidly after the outbreak of COVID-19 and the 2022 Russia–Ukraine war. The portfolio results demonstrated that BTC exhibited a low correlation with the agricultural commodity markets, suggesting diversification potential. Additionally, only Feeder Cattle served as an effective hedging asset for BTC throughout all periods. The WC analysis confirmed that during the COVID-19 period and the 2022 Russia–Ukraine war, most of the linkages were primarily concentrated at medium- to long-term frequencies. Our analysis will contribute to a deeper understanding of the interconnection between these markets, enabling market participants to consider risk mitigation measures and support portfolio diversification when formulating policies and regulations involving relevant markets in the future.</p>","PeriodicalId":55427,"journal":{"name":"Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics","volume":"68 3","pages":"653-677"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-05-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/1467-8489.12570","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141124930","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Using artificial intelligence for economic research: An agricultural odyssey","authors":"Andrew Leigh","doi":"10.1111/1467-8489.12567","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1467-8489.12567","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Generative artificial intelligence tools have been shown to substantially increase productivity in a range of different contexts. I discuss the potential and limitations of the current models, and the evidence on how economic researchers can best make use of generative artificial intelligence in their work. To illustrate these points, I show how the data analysis tools of ChatGPT can be used to address a specific question: the accuracy of agricultural forecasts—and discuss the strengths and weaknesses of artificial intelligence in data cleaning, data analysis and producing graphs and illustrations.</p>","PeriodicalId":55427,"journal":{"name":"Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics","volume":"68 3","pages":"521-529"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140990233","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The impact of repayment obligations arising as a by-product of input use on partial inefficiency: Evidence from Western Australian farm businesses","authors":"Steele C. West, Amin W. Mugera, Ross S. Kingwell","doi":"10.1111/1467-8489.12568","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1467-8489.12568","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Farm businesses often use debt to finance the purchase inputs and meet operational costs. Selected studies have investigated the impact of debt use on farm performance as measured using technical efficiency. However, no prior studies in agriculture have considered treating the debt repayment obligation created as a by-product of production when benchmarking farm performance. This study employs nonparametric directional distance function models to quantify the impact of debt repayment as a by-product of input use purchased on credit on farm-level partial inefficiency using a panel data of 54 mixed enterprise broadacre farms in Western Australia from 2002 to 2011. The study finds that omitting repayment obligations created in the production process in analysis results in underestimating partial inefficiency scores. Farm size, production diversification and rainfall zone are significant drivers of partial inefficiency. The implication of the study's findings is that failure to account for repayment obligations created in the production process may result in erroneous policy suggestions that undermine the efforts of farm businesses to minimise or avoid financial stress.</p>","PeriodicalId":55427,"journal":{"name":"Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics","volume":"68 3","pages":"678-700"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/1467-8489.12568","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140990337","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Estimating the productivity of US agriculture: The Fisher total factor productivity index for time series data with unknown prices","authors":"Thanh Ngo, David Tripe, Duc Khuong Nguyen","doi":"10.1111/1467-8489.12565","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1467-8489.12565","url":null,"abstract":"<p>In this paper, we propose a straightforward way to estimate the Fisher ideal total factor productivity (TFP) index (FI) in cases where price information is unavailable, using ‘shadow prices’ derived from data envelopment analysis (DEA). A Monte Carlo experiment shows that the shadow price Fisher ideal TFP index (SPFI) can effectively estimate the ‘true’ FI with relatively small (and stable) errors. The empirical application to the US agriculture sector (1948–2017) further suggests that the SPFI is a (superior) alternative to the traditional Malmquist DEA, especially in dealing with unbalanced panel or time series data when price data are unknown.</p>","PeriodicalId":55427,"journal":{"name":"Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics","volume":"68 3","pages":"701-712"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/1467-8489.12565","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140990743","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Why trade matters—How policy shapes who eats what where and how it is produced","authors":"Jenny Gordon","doi":"10.1111/1467-8489.12566","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8489.12566","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Rising uncertainty due to climate change and the failure of globalisation to improve security is threatening trade. As trade matters for prosperity, and ultimately security, policy makers need to resist protectionist responses to perceived security risks.</p>","PeriodicalId":55427,"journal":{"name":"Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics","volume":"68 3","pages":"530-534"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-04-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/1467-8489.12566","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141584128","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The impact of ocean warming on selected commercial fisheries in New Zealand","authors":"Hanny John Mediodia, Ilan Noy, Viktoria Kahui","doi":"10.1111/1467-8489.12564","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1467-8489.12564","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Warming oceans affect the growth, reproduction and location of fish species. Using a bioeconomic framework, we estimate the relationship between sea surface temperature (SST) and the catch of de facto open-access commercial fisheries of flatfish, trevally and jack mackerel in New Zealand. Assuming either a logarithmic or quadratic relationship between the SST and the carrying capacity of the fish stock, we consider three fishing methods (bottom trawl, set net and midwater trawl) and two measures of effort (count and duration). We show that ocean warming results in an increase in catch for all species if we assume a logarithmic relationship, with the highest marginal product of SST (<span></span><math>\u0000 <semantics>\u0000 <mrow>\u0000 <msub>\u0000 <mi>MP</mi>\u0000 <mi>SST</mi>\u0000 </msub>\u0000 </mrow>\u0000 </semantics></math>) for jack mackerel caught using midwater trawl. The highest marginal revenue product (computed by the <i>MP</i><sub><i>SST</i></sub>, current price and fished area) is found for flatfish caught by set net. However, when assuming a quadratic relationship, there is a threshold above which catch starts to decrease, with the maximum catch of species ranging between 10 and 12.2°C. These results also vary spatially, with higher values of <i>MP</i><sub><i>SST</i></sub> observed in areas closer to the South Pole. Our findings are relevant for any review of fisheries management systems in response to ocean warming.</p>","PeriodicalId":55427,"journal":{"name":"Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics","volume":"68 3","pages":"587-607"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-04-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/1467-8489.12564","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140701064","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Beyond anthropocentrism in agricultural and resource economics","authors":"Romain Espinosa, Nicolas Treich","doi":"10.1111/1467-8489.12560","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1467-8489.12560","url":null,"abstract":"<p>We argue that it is both possible and timely to relax the assumption of anthropocentrism in agricultural and resource economics. We advocate for the incorporation of sentientist principles by including the welfare of sentient animals within the social welfare function. To exemplify this non-anthropocentric stance, we build on our recent works that incorporate the intrinsic value of farmed animals into food production and consumption. By recognising the externalities affecting animals, we justify the implementation of specific policies, such as a meat tax, which redistributes welfare from consumers and producers to farmed animals. Furthermore, we delve into the quantitative assessment of animal welfare and demonstrate its application to food policy, revealing the substantial economic and welfare impacts at stake. Expanding on our earlier model, we also emphasize the importance of introducing a ‘sentience premium’ within species conservation policies. This additional consideration ensures that the conservation efforts appropriately account for the intrinsic value of sentient beings living in the wild.</p>","PeriodicalId":55427,"journal":{"name":"Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics","volume":"68 3","pages":"541-566"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-03-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140232687","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Options on temporary water allocation rights and their pricing","authors":"Geoff Lee, Wenfeng Dong, Zili Zhu","doi":"10.1111/1467-8489.12562","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1467-8489.12562","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This paper presents a methodology for defining the spot price of temporary water allocation rights for trading zones within the water market in the southern Murray–Darling Basin situated in Australia. The historical spot price is then used to calibrate a stochastic process depicting the dynamics of the water price, allowing the computation of prices of options on the underlying water price with the aim of producing reference prices to catalyse an options trading market. The most suitable stochastic model representing the water price dynamics is selected through comparing the option prices generated from four different models. Using the selected stochastic model, the most liquid trading zone in the Murray–Darling Basin water market (Zone 7) is used to demonstrate how the methodologies developed in the paper are used to calibrate the log-mean stochastic model representing the stochastic spot price dynamics and compute prices for call and put options on the underlying water spot prices. Sensitivities of the water options prices to market input data can be calculated from the formulae provided in the paper. The results presented in this work can serve as a reference tool by industry practitioners and the farming community in using options for effective risk management of water resources.</p>","PeriodicalId":55427,"journal":{"name":"Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics","volume":"68 2","pages":"335-348"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2024-03-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/1467-8489.12562","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140243280","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}