Trademarks that will never be used can be ‘bad faith’ business – a UK case has lessons for NZ and Australia

12/03/2024 The Conversation News & Comments

According to New Zealand’s Trademarks Register, the name Red Bull has been registered for everything from “varnishes” to “sausage machines”. And, of course, energy drinks.

All have been registered by the maker of the eponymous energy drink, but this doesn’t necessarily mean Red Bull will be branching out into new products.

One of the purposes of trademark law is to protect names, words and logos so that when consumers see a product they know where it has come from.

IFDP Paper: Foreign economic policy uncertainty and U.S. equity returns

12/03/2024 Federal Reserve Central banks

Mohammad R. Jahan-Parvar, Yuriy Kitsul, Jamil Rahman, and Beth Anne WilsonWe document that foreign economic policy uncertainty (EPUF) has significant incremental predictive power for excess U.S. stock returns in the presence of domestic EPU, both in aggregate and for returns of portfolios constructed on firm characteristics, for 6 to 12-months-ahead horizons.

Monetary policy pass-through to consumer prices: evidence from granular price data

12/03/2024 European Central Bank Central banks

We document that about 33% of the core inflation basket in the euro area is sensitive to monetary policy shocks. We assess potential theoretical mechanisms driving the sensitivity. Our results suggest that items of a discretionary nature, as reflected in a higher share in the consumption baskets of richer households, and those with larger role of credit in financing their purchase, tend to be more sensitive.Non-sensitive items are more frequently subject to administered prices and include non-discretionary items such as rents and medical services.

Tip pressure might work in the moment, but customers are less likely to return

12/02/2024 The Conversation News & Comments

Nobody likes feeling pressured. lechatnoir/E+ via Getty ImagesHave you ever hesitated at the register, uncomfortable as an employee watched you choose a tip? It’s not just you. The rise of digital tipping systems – from point-of-sale devices held by employees to countertop screens that clearly display your selection – is changing the dynamics of tipping, often in ways that make customers feel scrutinized.

The macroeconomic effects of liquidity supply during financial crises

11/28/2024 European Central Bank Central banks

Negative economic shocks can cause waves of investor pessimism about the resilience of banks, which, in turn, generate additional adverse macroeconomic effects. This is commonly cited as an explanation for the economic havoc wrought by the global financial crisis of 2007-08. We introduce the notion of pessimism in a real business cycle model, which is a standard framework for business cycle analysis. The possibility of waves of pessimism generates countercyclical demand from banks for liquid assets (e.g., bank reserves).

Going NUTS: the regional impact of extreme climate events over the medium term

11/27/2024 European Central Bank Central banks

The projected increase in extreme climate events in the coming decades is likely to exacerbate the existing productivity and demographic challenges facing Europe. We study the dynamic, medium-run macroeconomic effects of heatwaves, droughts and floods in 1160 EU regions through the lens of a local projections, difference in difference framework. Summer heatwaves and droughts lower medium-term output, but the impact from floods depends on regional income levels. High-income regions witness reconstruction activity, less wealthy regions do not.

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