Editorial Introduction

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">The Bolsa Familia program of money transfers to the roughly 50 million poor at the bottom of the pyramid is internationally known but its success was grounded in a much wider set of 149 programs constituting an integrated and inter-sector policy. With inequality presently soaring not only in Brazil but throughout the world the aim of this paper is to understand how inclusive and sustainable policies can work both for society and the economy and assess their performance in Brazil as an illustration of institutional change as a key approach. Equally essential is understanding the power of the global financial interests which generated the drama of 1 percent having more wealth than the other 99 percent. Both mechanisms, of inclusion and exclusion, are analyzed here, on the basis of the Brazilian experience.</abstract>

Inequality and politics in Brazil: Bolsa Familia and beyond

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">The aim of this paper is to analyze the employment-related real income gaps according to the education level reached by the working population during the 1997–2017 period. Using a panel methodology (pseudo-cohorts) it sums up that throughout recession, employment-related real income gaps by education level are wider, amplifying income inequality. During the economic boom the narrowing of the gap was due to the weak growth in skilled employment that did not manage to recover the pre-crisis values. This phenomenon is typical of a labour market structure with less skilled employment demand than its increasing supply. The employment-related difference in reduction of the real income gaps is exclusively reflected by a decline in employees from the highest education segment. The whole of tertiary education although with less intensity, replicates its trend. Not only educational credentials increase future employment-related income but also starting then not completing a university degree provides a significant disparity. Gender control shows a sharp drop in its determination.</abstract>

Income gaps: Education and inequality

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Why do countries engage in Regional Financial Cooperation (RFC) initiatives and why they may give up on them? Under which conditions are those mechanisms born and how may changes affect their performance? Although comparative studies have been a prolific strategy to investigate RFC the focus on the experiences of a specific region may reveal new insights. Therefore the aim of this paper is to map the existing RFC mechanisms in Latin America, seeking to identify the demand, supply and conjectural conditions behind the processes of their creation and evolution. The theoretical framework provides concepts from International Relations’ theories concerning regional institution building. Empirically fourteen Latin American RFC initiatives are surveyed. As a result important variables explaining RFC mechanisms in Latin America are presented in the paper: demand for greater participation (sense of belonging), material and political capacity from a paymaster and macroeconomic coordination.</abstract>

Universidade Estadual de Campinas (Unicamp)

Financial cooperation initiatives in Latin America: Conditions of origins, subsistence and eventual vanishing

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">The purpose of this paper is to answer the question whether, despite the differentiation of the corporate income tax in the European Union, there are similarity patterns allowing for the harmonization of the bases of this tax. The analysed CIT static data both quantitative and qualitative concerns the years 2018 and 2020. The method of hierarchical cluster analysis allowed a grouping of EU countries according to their similarities. It also indicated the greatest tax differences between EU member states. In turn the affinity analysis made it possible to distinguish groups of countries which are similar in terms of CIT with the simultaneous identification of a pattern. Results show that despite significant differences in tax rates some EU states show convergence in tax bases. The geographical criterion still plays an important role in determining CIT structure and tax incentives are one of the tools that may be used in the approximation of the bases.</abstract>

Poznań University of Economics and Business

Searching for similarities in EU corporate income taxes for their harmonization

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">State-owned enterprises still play an important role in many countries around the world. The aim of this research is to indicate which factors had a significant impact on the scale of state ownership in enterprises in the group of twenty eight post-socialist countries. The large scale privatisation indicator from the EBRD and the novel microlevel-based SOE measure were regressed on sets of cultural, political, economic and control variables. The results show that cultural factors—represented by the dominant religion—had a substantial impact on the scale of state ownership in enterprises while the role of political and economic factors was less pronounced. These results emphasise the importance of cultural factors in shaping the scale of state ownership in enterprises. This study contributes to the literature by analysing factors influencing the scale of state ownership in enterprises in contemporary economic conditions which has been missing until now.</abstract>

What determines the scale of state ownership in enterprises? Some evidence from post-socialist countries

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">The aim of the paper is to identify determinants of the efficiency of service companies from two Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries4—Poland and Belarus. These transition economies represent different economic and systemic conditions. That is why it is worth analyzing whether external conditions determine internal efficiency factors in service companies. In order to achieve that aim quantitative research was conducted among 305 Polish and Belarusian service enterprises. The research results presented significant differences in responses between the two countries. For Polish enterprises the main determinants of efficiency were above all connected with competent and skilled staff. Belarussian companies regarded as efficiency factors which determine the demand level by means of access toward foreign markets and possibilities of internationalization. It proves that CEECs are not homogeneous and they represent different levels of economic development as well as the different conditions of running a business.</abstract>

Faculty of Engineering Management, Department of Management, Economics and Finance

Efficiency of services in CEE countries—case study of Poland and Belarus

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Economics and Business Review

The aim of Economics and Business Review is to provide a platform for academicians from all over the world to share, discuss and integrate their research in the fields of economics and finance, including both behavioural economics and finance, with a key interest in topics that are relevant for emerging market economies. The journal welcomes submissions of articles dealing with micro, mezzo and macro issues that are well-founded in modern theories or based on empirical studies and which are valuable for an international readership.   The journal is published in English. Texts are double-blind peer-reviewed by independent specialists from Polish and foreign academic centers. The journal is open for contributions from economists and management specialists both from Poland and abroad.  Economics and Business Review is scored 70 points in the Ministerial List of Journals.  The journal is edited and published in the paper form and also presented on-line.  This journal is the open access and non-profit enterprise.  The journal have no articles processing charges (APCs) nor article submission charges.  Archiving  Sciendo archives the contents of this journal in Portico - digital long-term preservation service of scholarly books, journals and collections.  Plagiarism Policy  The editorial board is participating in a growing community of Similarity Check System's users in order to ensure that the content published is original and trustworthy. Similarity Check is a medium that allows for comprehensive manuscripts screening, aimed to eliminate plagiarism and provide a high standard and quality peer-review process. 