Purchasing power

About: Purchasing power is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 2714 publications have been published within this topic receiving 36866 citations. The topic is also known as: adjusted for inflation.

System and method for providing a pre-paid commodity-based credit account

Abstract: This invention relates to a system and method that provides a pre-paid credit account, where the value of the account is based on the market price of an underlying commodity instrument. More specifically, this invention relates to a system and method for managing cash assets in the form of gold bullion that is maintained by a financial institution on behalf of an account holder, thereby allowing the account holder to utilize the purchasing power of the gold bullion assets in a convenient fashion.

State-Class Alliances and Conflicts: Issues and Actors in the Mexican Economic Crisis

Abstract: The world economic recession that began in the late 1970s has had devastating effects on the economies of most Third World countries. The drop in prices of primary commodities exported by Third World states, the decline in purchasing power of advanced industrial states, and in some cases protectionist measures enacted by the latter led to sharp declines in export earnings. The burden of Third World debt repayment for loans granted and in fact promoted by international banks during a period of excess liquidity was exacerbated by the subsequent contraction of financial resources and a 300 percent increase in interest rates in U.S. and London markets between 1977 and 1981. The external crisis has further debilitated weak internal economic structures, in many cases leading to cutbacks in production, unemployment, and the closing down of firms. Several countries have been forced to resort to loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to maintain their credit standing, which has required the implementation of a series of austerity measures resulting in further economic contraction and general misery for the population of these countries. The crisis inevitably raises questions regarding the models of economic development pursued by peripheral states, which, on the one hand, may be seen as causes of the crises (particularly in their vulnerability to external influences) and, on the other, may be jeopardized by it (for example, through enforced contraction of the role of the state, often a primary actor in peripheral economies). This raises the possibility of

World social health insurance: strengthening health systems in low-income countries.

Abstract: The paper by Ooms et al. [1] is very timely and stimulating. It launches the debate on how to finance globally the right to health care in low-income countries. This is a most welcome step, going beyond the usual aspirational rhetoric. I would like to contribute to the development of this idea. First: the name. I fear that “World Health Insurance” may create confusion. Health insurance can be a pure risk-sharing mechanism without built-in solidarity between rich and poor, healthy and less healthy, or between old and young. But the concept of social health insurance—as the statutory health insurance systems in much of continental Europe are usually referred to—is intrinsically based on such solidarity, which certainly is one of the values underpinning Ooms' proposal. I therefore propose the name “World Social Health Insurance.” Second: the contribution by low-income countries. Ooms et al. propose 15% of government budget as a fair contribution, the so-called Abuja target. I fear, however, that this target does not create the right incentive for governments in low-income countries, many of whom are reluctant or unable to tax their citizens, even the richer ones, and fail to create a decent tax basis. Consequently, some governments have extremely lean budgets, even below 20% of gross domestic product (GDP) [2], while the World Bank estimates that at least some 30% of GDP is needed to sustain a well-functioning state. I therefore think that calculating the contribution of low-income countries to their countries' health system as 4% or 5% of GDP would constitute a fairer burden sharing mechanism. Third: the contribution of high-income countries. Ooms et al. propose that rich countries adopt a burden sharing similar to their contribution to World Bank's IDA 14 (the 14th replenishment of the International Development Association). This normalizes the low commitment of donors such as the United States, contributing in absolute terms hardly more than the United Kingdom or Japan, while its total GDP is much larger. I therefore think that for high-income countries, a contribution linked to total GDP would be fairer: e.g., 0.15%, which would be a bit more than one-fifth of the 0.7% target that most OECD countries have committed to as total overseas development assistance. Alternatively, and more in line with the concept of social health insurance, high-income countries could dedicate a share of domestic health expenditure (e.g., 1%) to world social health insurance. With total health expenditure in the United States now reaching US$2,000 billion [3], this modest 1% would already come close to the total needs as estimated by Ooms. Lastly: operationalization. How to operationalize the massive scale-up of services proposed, given present human resource constraints and institutional capacities, is still a huge challenge. Whether it is best to take inspiration from the experience with rounds of competitive proposals, followed by performance-related disbursement, as the Global Fund uses, or whether the proposal of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI) to link disbursement to strategic government plans and sector-wide approaches would be more successful, remains to be explored. We sincerely hope that the idea launched by Ooms et al. catches on, so that health services in low-income countries can rapidly expand. This can be seen, as Garrett convincingly argues [4], as an expression of a moral duty, as a form of public diplomacy, or as an investment in self-protection. Whatever the drive, there are enough reasons to start preparing it backed by long-term reliable funding, fairly shared between all stakeholders, according to their purchasing power.

Trends in middle class as a driver for strategic marketing

Abstract: class and the spread of modern mass marketing has long been highlighted (Coleman 1983). The ever-increasing purchasing power of the middle class has stimulated the emergence of a mass-market consumer society (Blumin 1989). Nowadays, understanding the evolution of international strategic marketing in emerging countries calls for studying the middle class there. Formulating ‘profiles’ to describe the middle class in different geographic contexts in order to make comparisons between them is an important part of this process of market representation for strategic marketing. The relation between the emergence of a middle class and marketing involves multiple levels and its study is bound to lead to the creation of theory as well as practical applications. Brands aimed mainly at middle-class members, which represents a major objective of modern worldwide retail distribution. But what is ‘the middle class’? And what are the best parameters on which to base a definition of middle class? On the one hand, it is a segment of the population that has discretionary income at its disposal. So, it is a consuming class whose spending is not oriented solely to subsistence. Moreover, its emergence is quite closely related to urbanization. However, this is just one component of the phenomenon – the tip of the iceberg. The submerged bulk of the iceberg involves its members’ education levels and occupations, and at an even more basic level, their values and expectations. Observing middle class evolution in both advanced and emerging countries today is a fundamental issue in international strategic marketing. The ongoing mega-trends involving the middle class in traditional industrial power economies, as well as the newly developing ones, mirror the processes of globalization. Such trends present a two-faced ‘Janus’ aspect, leading, on the one hand, to the creation of a transnational market with converging purchasing power, but on the other, the simultaneous persistence of many cultural differences. By way of example, although the Chinese midTRENDS IN MIDDLE CLASS AS A DRIVER FOR STRATEGIC MARKETING