Rangelands of Central Asia:challenges and opportunities

Rangelands of Central Asia (referring to Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan in this study), the largest contiguous area of grazed land in the world, serve as an important source of livelihood for pastoral and agro-pastoral communities in this region. They also play an important role in absorbing CO2 as a global carbon sink. However, unsustainable management of rangelands has led to their degradation hugely by downgrading their potential agro-ecological, environmental and socio-economical roles. This paper reviewed the rangeland degradation in Central Asia, a topic which so far has received only scant coverage in the international scientific literature. It also provided examples of successful experiences and outlined possible options that land managers can adopt to enhance the sustainable management of these vast degraded rangelands. The experiences and lessons described in this paper may also be relevant for other degraded rangeland areas, especially in the developing countries. The causes of rangeland degradation within the Central Asian region are numerous, complex and inter-related. Therefore, while addressing the factors associated with improper rangeland management may shed some light on the causes of rangeland degradation, the scope of this paper would not be all-encompassing for the major causes of degradation. There is a need to develop and widely apply the viable and locally accepted and adapted packages of technical, institutional and policy options for sustainable rangeland management. Incentivizing the collective action of small-scale pastoralists who group together to facilitate access to remote pastures can reduce the degree of overgrazing within community pastures, such as those near the settlements. We also found that migratory grazing through pooling of resources among small-scale pastoralists can increase household income. After their independence, most Central Asian countries adopted various rangeland tenure arrangements. However, the building of enhanced capacities of pasture management and effective local rangeland governance structures can increase the likelihood, which will be sustainable and equitable. Finally, this paper presented several promising technical options, aiming at reversing the trend of rangeland degradation in Central Asia.

BAS-ADAM:An ADAM Based Approach to Improve the Performance of Beetle Antennae Search Optimizer

In this paper,we propose enhancements to Beetle Antennae search(BAS)algorithm,called BAS-ADAIVL to smoothen the convergence behavior and avoid trapping in localminima for a highly noin-convex objective function.We achieve this by adaptively adjusting the step-size in each iteration using the adaptive moment estimation(ADAM)update rule.The proposed algorithm also increases the convergence rate in a narrow valley.A key feature of the ADAM update rule is the ability to adjust the step-size for each dimension separately instead of using the same step-size.Since ADAM is traditionally used with gradient-based optimization algorithms,therefore we first propose a gradient estimation model without the need to differentiate the objective function.Resultantly,it demonstrates excellent performance and fast convergence rate in searching for the optimum of noin-convex functions.The efficiency of the proposed algorithm was tested on three different benchmark problems,including the training of a high-dimensional neural network.The performance is compared with particle swarm optimizer(PSO)and the original BAS algorithm.

Fintech,regtech,and financial development:evidence from China

This study investigates the influence of fintech on developments in China’s financial sector across 290 cities and 31 provinces between 2011 and 2018.Using a two-stage least squares instrumental variable regression approach and correcting for cross-sectional dependency,simultaneity,and endogeneity of regressors,the results establish a positive link between fintech and financial development.Our findings show that fintech supports financial sector development by enhancing access(loans),depth(deposits),and savings within China’s financial institutions.We also show that the emergence of fintech in the area of financial regulation(regulatory technology:regtech)can significantly improve financial development outcomes.Therefore,it is imperative for regulators to pursue policies that balance growth in the fintech sector while mitigating the associated risks.In addition,we use the difference-in-differences approach to show that policy measures such as interest rates liberalization also positively impacted finan-cial development during the analysis period.In our conclusion,we suggest a policy framework for balanced fintech sector growth in developing countries.

Is pork trade good for China's greenhouse gas emissions?

China produces the largest amount of pork in the world, which emits the largest amount of greenhouse gases （GHGs）. This paper calculates GHG emissions from China＇s hog production at the provincial level using newly published emission factors~ Empirical results show that GHG emissions from China＇s hog production mainly respond to the scale intensity~ Capital abundance and income contribute positively to GI-IG emissions from hog production. Pork trade increases GHG emissions from China＇s hog produc- tion with a significantly direct effect, reduces GHG emissions through indirect technique effects.

Economic Valuation of River Conservation towards International Tourists’ Preferences and Willingness to Pay for Ecofriendly Services of Hotel Industry: A Case Study of Namxong River in Vangvieng District, Laos

Using choice experiment, the objective of this study is to estimate international tourists’ preferences and willingness to pay for ecofriendly services which related to river and natural environment conservation of hotel industry in Vangvieng, a popular tourist town in Lao PDR. We used the mixed logit to take into account of preference heterogeneity by allowing coefficients to be normally distributed and assumed to vary among individuals. The result shows that all ecofriendly practices offered in this study are significantly preferred by tourists. Income, age, and education did not have significant effect on the probability of choosing ecologically friendly practices of hotel and attributes to support the ecotourism of the area;however, this study provides important information that female tourists are more receptive to a new alternative. These findings do not only support the provision of good and green services in Vangvieng Town, but will also be useful for policy maker to enhance the sustainability of ecotourism in Laos.

Despite shared rapid economic growth,BRICs have different development modes

Amid the current international financial crisis,the likes of which likely will never be met in a hundred years,BRICs outperformed developed economies and became an indispensable force in promoting global economic recovery.This paper made a comprehensive comparison of the characteristics,potential and weaknesses of the BRIC countries from the four perspectives of growth momentum,industrialization and urbanization,relationship between government and the market in economic development,and challenges in future growth.In the end,the article pointed out that whether the BRICs can exert greater impact in global development depends on their sustainable development.

Role of knowledge economy in managing demand-based environmental Kuznets Curve

Aggregate demand or supply at equilibrium is commonly used as a representative of the macroeconomic activity of an economy whereby aggregate demand denotes the behaviour of individuals and households.However,aggregate demand can also directly affect environmental deterioration via changes in aggregate production.This study tried to explore this relationship,known as the demand-based Environmental Kuznets Curve(Demand EKC)and the role of different knowledge economy indicators.Knowledge economy indicators are proposed to influence consumption patterns,altering the demand EKC that empirical studies have understudied.For this purpose,secondary data for 147 countries were collected from 2008 to 2018,also classified as development-wise.This study found that aggregate demand significantly affects carbon emissions.The long-run results are estimated using the Fully Modified Ordinary Least Square method.Controlling factors like renewable energy consumption,population density,and financial development significantly affect carbon emissions in sample countries.This study has incorporated four pillars of a knowledge-based economy and the results showed that these indicators helped reduce consumption-related CO_(2) emissions.

How would Capital Account Liberalization Affect China's Capital Flows and the Renminbi Real Exchange Rates?

In this paper we study the determinants of gross capital flows, project the size of China＇s international investment position in 2020, and analyze the implications for the renminbi real exchange rate if China liberalizes the capital account. We assume in this exercise that the renminbi will have largely achieved capital account convertibility by the end of the current decade, a timetable consistent with recent proposals by the People ＇s Bank of China. Our analysis shows that if the capital account were liberalized, China＇s gross international investment position would grow significantly, and inflows and outflows would become much more balanced. The private sector would turn its net liability position into a balanced position, and the official sector would reduce its net asset position significantly, relative to the country ＇s GDP. Because of the increasing importance of private sector foreign claims and the decreasing importance of official foreign reserves, China would be able to earn higher net investment income from abroad. Overall, China would continue to be a net creditor, with the net foreign asset position as a share of GDP remaining largely stable through this decade. These findings suggest that the renminbi real exchange rate would not be particularly sensitive to capital account liberalization as capital flows are expected to be two-sided. The renminb i real exchange rate would likely be on a path of moderate appreciation as China is expected to maintain a sizeable growth differential with its trading partners.

Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership and Trans-Pacific Partnership： Policy Options of China

As a result of deadlocked multilateral trade negotiations, many countries have embarked on the establishment of bilateral and regional trade agreements. Using the Global Trade Analysis Project database and a computable general equilibrium model, our paper focuses on the impacts of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership （TTIP） and the Trans- Pacific Partnership （TPP） on the Chinese economy under three scenarios. The results suggest that when only the TTIP is realized, Chinese economic variables are negatively affected. When both the TTIP and the TPP are realized and China is excluded, the combined damage to the Chinese economy is higher than the damage with the TTIP alone. However, the inclusion of China in the TPP has a positively effect on economic variables in China. This indicates that the impacts of China ＇s participation in the TPP compensate for the negative impacts of the TTIP. Therefore, China should consider being part of the TPP to offset the negative impacts of the TTIP.

Has China Crowded out Foreign Direct Investment from Its Developing East Asian Neighbors?

This paper applies a gravity model to investigate the determinants of foreign direct investment （FDI） in East Asia. Economic fundamentals, such as market size, per capita income and country risk indicators, economic and cultural ties, exchange rate volatilities and information asymmetry are found to be important determinants for FDL Globally, the inward FDI among high-income OECD economies declined significantly on average over the period of 1990-2003, whereas the inward FDI of the high-income OECD economies in emerging market economies gained substantially. In the East Asian region, the ASEAN-4 （Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand） received above-average inward FDI from the high-income OECD economies after controlling for their economic fundamentals. By contrast, China＇s FDl from the high-income OECD economies is below average relative to its economic fundamentals. Therefore, it is difficult to establish that China has crowded out FDI from its developing ASEAN neighbors.

The processes of financialisation and economic performance

The paper considers the relationships between financialisation and economic performance.Financialisation is a persistent feature of industrialised capitalism,the nature of which differs over time and space.The present era of financialisation(since circa 1980)has been a world-wide phenomenon proceeding from different starting points and developing at different speeds,and can be viewed through the lens of variegated financialisation.The major features of the present era of financialisation are outlined.The increased scale of the financial sector leads to the issue of the relationship between financialisation and economic performance,and whether the additional resources used in the financial sector have been socially beneficial.The paper is completed by some brief remarks on the possibilities of de-financialisation.