Politická ekonomie, 2021 (vol. 69), issue 4

Cenová konvergence zemí Evropské unie od východního rozšíření a její dopady na Českou republiku

Price Convergence of the EU Countries since the Eastern Enlargement and its Impacts on the Czech Republic

Martin Gorčák, Stanislav Šaroch, Josef Bič

Politická ekonomie 2021, 69(4):393-412 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.1318  

The article examines the factors of convergence of price levels among European countries, even regarding the time lag since previous research on the Czech Republic's accession to the EU. In addition to the factors included in the Balassa-Samuelson model, it has been found that certain structural factors contribute to price convergence, as could be expected especially in the transition economies after accessing the EU in 2004. It has also been confirmed that in the context of liberalization of the economies in Central and Eastern Europe, the enlarged internal market and harmonization from the EU level, it is not possible to clearly distinguish between...

Novodobá pozice zlata v bilancích centrálních bank

The Contemporary Role of Gold in Central Banks’ Balance Sheets

Iveta Polášková, Luboš Komárek

Politická ekonomie 2021, 69(4):413-434 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.1325  

The article focuses on the motives and trends in gold holdings by central banks in recent decades. It examines the correlation between the nominal and real price of gold and selected macroeconomic variables and financial assets over the financial and business cycles. In this context, it outlines gold investment opportunities for central banks and other investors. The paper also highlights differences in gold holdings between the central banks of advanced economies (including those with reserve currencies) and those of emerging market and developing economies. It concludes by presenting a rationale for the position of the Czech National Bank, which...

Elasticity of Substitution in the Manufacturing Sector in the Czech Republic

Cristina Procházková Ilinitchi, Anastasie Pustovalová, David Procházka

Politická ekonomie 2021, 69(4):435-456 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.1324  

The paper estimates the elasticity of substitution between capital and labour under biased technical change in the manufacturing sector in the Czech Republic. We use a dataset covering the period 1995-2019 and a 2-digit industry level, from NACE10 to NACE33. We find industry-level elasticities to be 0.19 and 0.94; therefore, labour and capital seem to be gross complements rather than substitutes across all manufacturing sectors. In the core industries of the Czech manufacturing sector, the elasticity is below average. Even if these core sectors have high and increasing labour costs (except NACE29, where the labour costs are below average), they do...

Moderating Effect of Institutional Quality on Relationship Between Foreign Aid and Economic Growth in Africa

Oliver E. Ogbonna, Jonathan E. Ogbuabor, Afamefuna A. Eze, Walter O. Ugwuoke

Politická ekonomie 2021, 69(4):457-478 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.1314  

Africa has received considerable amounts of external aid over the last two decades without significant improvements in socio-economic conditions on the continent. This study, therefore, examines the effects of foreign aid on growth in Africa, and how institutional quality can moderate these effects. The study used the system generalized method of moments estimation technique and a panel of forty-two African countries over the period 2010-2018. Interestingly, the study established that even though foreign aid impacts negatively on growth in Africa, improving the quality of institutions on the continent can reverse this negative effect. In fact, the...

Quo vadis, "nobelovské" ocenění za ekonomické vědy?

Quo Vadis, Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences?

Pavel Sirůček

Politická ekonomie 2021, 69(4):479-504 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.1321  

Quo Vadis, Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences? The so-called Nobel Prize in Economics is not one of the original Nobel Prizes according to the testament of A. B. Nobel. Although it has been the target of various critics since its inception in 1969, it has become the most prestigious economic award. The paper summarizes more than 50 years of the history of this award, including the focus of the laureates, and asks - sometimes provocative - questions about the perspectives of economic science in the 21^st century.

Tvorba škál ve společenských vědách

Ondřej Machek

Politická ekonomie 2021, 69(4):505-508 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.1323