An Empirical Study on Determinants of Loan Repayment Behaviour of SMEs Towards Commercial Banks

India, as a developing economy even after five decades of planning, still has a long way to catch up with the advanced economies of the globe. The goal may be distant, but surely, the time needed to reach can be reduced by accelerating the pace of development. One way of doing this is by the development of industrial and business ventures. There exists a positive relationship between the growth of an economy and the growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). SMEs play a vibrant role in the development of an economy. Access to the formal source of credit by entrepreneurs is essential in a growing economy. Lending to SMEs is a risky activity for the banks as repayment of these loans are less guaranteed. The research article attempts to analyse the factors influencing the loan repayment behaviour of SMEs towards commercial banks. Data are collected using the convenience method of sampling from 80 registered SMEs belonging to the manufacturing and service sectors in the Bangalore region, and data are analysed using statistical tools such as correlation and logit regression analysis, conclusions are drawn based on these findings. The study reveals that characteristics of loan and lender influence the repayment to the maximum extent. The findings are helpful for commercial banks in redesigning suitable policies and schemes to reduce loan defaults.

No Country for Non-Graduate Men: The Childish Roots of Adult Job Tasks \& Employment

Male employment has declined across advanced economies as non-graduate men found it increasingly difficult to gain jobs in the wake of technological change and globalisation. This has led to rising earnings and, subsequently, income inequality. Female employment, by contrast, has risen in this period. Previous work has shown changing job task demands explain this pattern - with declining manual tasks penalising men and rising non-routine tasks benefiting women. In this paper, I test whether gendered differences in childhood \& adolescent cognitive, social, perseverance, and emotional-health skills can help explain why men are less adept at non-routine tasks using long-term longitudinal data from the United Kingdom. I find that childhood \& adolescent skills have a significant effect on adult job tasks and employment outcomes. Greater cognitive and childhood emotional-health skills lead to people performing more high-pay analytical and interactive job tasks as adults. Greater cognitive and non-cognitive skills are also associated with higher adult employment levels. Indicative calculations show that gendered differences in these childhood and adolescent skills explain an economically significant decline in the analytical and interactive job tasks performed by non-graduate men as well as their employment rates.

Working from home and long-term housing wealth inequality in large cities of advanced economies

Purpose The purpose of this study is to explain the potential long-term impacts of working from home on housing wealth inequality in large cities of advanced economies. Design/methodology/approach This study is descriptive research and It supports the arguments by providing some emerging evidence from property markets in developed countries. Findings The authors argue that due to the unique nature of the COVID-19 crisis, it will have a different and long-term impact on housing wealth inequality. Changes in the working arrangements of many professionals will change the housing demand dynamic across different suburbs and may lead to a reduction of the housing wealth gap in the long term. In this paper, the authors propose five mechanisms that may impact housing wealth inequality. Research limitations/implications Long-term data is required to test the proposed conceptual model in this study and the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on housing wealth across and within suburbs of large cities. Practical implications Policymakers and regulators may benefit from the discussions and suggestions provided in this study and consider the proposed avenues on how new changes in the working environment (remote working) may result in a reduction of housing wealth inequality. Originality/value This study presents a new perspective about the potential long-term impacts of working from home that is posed by the COVID-19 pandemic on housing wealth inequality in large cities of developed economies.

Developing Capabilities for Sustainability in Family Small Enterprises

Though literature in family perpetuity and sustainability is well documented from the advanced economies, there is scarcity of insights from emerging markets where this research relates. The study, therefore, sought to investigate, understand, and interpret the underlying drivers of sustainability in small family businesses using the stewardship theory paradigm in the Nigerian family business environment. A qualitative method with 41 in-depth interviews involving owners and managers of family-owned small and medium businesses was conducted. The study empirically shows that there is an interrelationship between family structure and business sustainability; hence, the practice of polygamy was found to be inimical to family business success and sustainability. Building on the stewardship theory, the paper develops a model of sustainability for small and medium family businesses. The study contributes to the theoretical literature on stewardship and family business sustainability.

Caribbean Quarterly Economic Bulletin: Volume 10: Issue 3, January 2022

This edition reviews the long-term performance of economic growth and productivity in the region. It then draws on research from the Inter-American Development Banks Connectivity, Markets, and Finance Division that estimates how much investment in digital infrastructure is needed for countries across Latin America and the Caribbean to reach the levels of advanced economies. This research also estimates both the potential economic benefits associated with that investment and its costs, highlighting the potentially large multipliers associated with closing digital infrastructure gaps. The highlights of the analysis are as follows. It is estimated that closing the digital access gap between Caribbean economies and members countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) could potentially increase the regions GDP by about 6 to 12 percent over the medium term, depending on the country. These gains are multiples of the estimated costs, ranging from about 2 times to nearly 50 times those estimated costs. Productivity gains represent about 80 percent of the estimated improvements in GDP. As is typical with the Caribbean Quarterly Bulletin, the Regional Overview is followed by country sections that provide more detailed analysis for each of the countries covered.

Asymmetric and threshold effects of public debt on economic growth in SADC: a panel smooth transition regression analysis

PurposeThis study aims to interrogate dynamic asymmetric relationships between public debt and economic growth in Southern African Developing Communities (SADC), over the period 2000–2018.Design/methodology/approachThe study employed a panel smooth transition regression (PSTR) technique to analyse dynamic asymmetric relationships between public debt and economic growth, and the threshold effect at which public debt hampers economic growth.FindingsThe findings indicate that there is a significant nonlinear effect of debt on economic growth in SADC. The study discovered a debt threshold of 60% to GDP at which debt beyond this threshold deteriorates long-term growth. The low-debt regime was found to be positive and statistically significant, while the high-debt regime is detrimental for long-term growth. Fiscal policymakers ought to consider the adoption of well-coordinated debt policies that aims to strike a balance between sustainable public debt and economic growth, within a reasonable threshold target.Originality/valueThe study focusses on asymmetric and threshold analysis of public debt on economic growth in SADC using sophisticated panel smooth transition regression (STAR). This study provides rigorous empirical evidence within the SADC perspective in which previous studies have predominantly been confined in advanced economies.