Studia Universitatis Babeș-Bolyai Negotia

Pre- and Post-pandemic Analysis of Portugal’s Accommodation and Food Services Sector: a Shift-Share Approach

Alcina NUNES, Jéssica ALVES — Mon, 23 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Portugal’s tourism industry is essential to the nation’s economy, significantly contributing to wealth creation and employment opportunities. However, the onset of the global COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 severely impacted this vital sector. The accommodation and food services were particularly hit, with many businesses facing widespread closures. By early 2022, Portugal’s economy faced additional hurdles. Geopolitical tensions and rising inflation created further disruptions on a global scale, complicating the recovery process. Despite these obstacles, Portugal’s accommodation and food services sector began to show promising signs of recovery. To gain a deeper understanding of these dynamics, this paper utilizes shift-share analysis to examine the post-pandemic business landscape of Portugal’s accommodation and food services sector, focusing on data from 2019 to 2022 for active businesses and the number of persons employed. This analytical method breaks down growth into national, sectoral, and regional components, providing a comprehensive view of the factors influencing recovery. The findings indicate that regional and industrial factors played a more significant role in driving recovery than national economic trends alone. Notably, regions such as the Algarve, Madeira, and Açores demonstrated remarkable resilience and growth. These areas benefited from their unique competitive advantages within the sector, which helped them navigate the challenging post-pandemic environment more effectively. The study’s insights are invaluable for policymakers and investors. By understanding the importance of regional policies and innovation, stakeholders can make targeted decisions that enhance the sector’s competitiveness and sustainability.

JEL classification: L83, R11, Z30

Article History: Received: May 24, 2024; Reviewed: July 31, 2024;
Accepted: September 17, 2024; Available online: September 23, 2024.

What Makes a Brand Successful? A Case-study of Musette Brand

Erika KULCSÁR, Borostyán Viktória FILIP — Mon, 23 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The study of gender differences has recently become a growing focus. Nothing is more evidence of this than the fact that in 2023 Claudia Goldin (who studied the position of women in relation to the labour market) was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics. Furthermore, internationally, there are numerous studies that examine the differences between women and men as leaders and managers. The question arises as to what factors play a significant role from the perspective of women managers in starting and managing a successful business. The present research focuses on the analysis of a Romanian brand - Musette - which is co-founded by a woman (through Cristina Bâtlan) and is represented internationally. Despite the considerable success of the Musette brand, there is a lack of literature in Romania on the study of this brand. Consequently, the objectives of our study are: (1) to identify the conditions that should be the pillars of a start-up business, (2) to identify the factors without which there is no possibility of further development and lasting success, and (3) to examine the brand personality characteristics of Musette.

JEL classification: M10, M31

Article History: Received: March 5, 2024; Reviewed: July 10, 2024;
Accepted: August 7, 2024; Available online: September 23, 2024

Prospects, Challenges and Implications of Deploying Artificial Intelligence in Tax Administration in Developing Countries

Favourate Y. MPOFU — Mon, 23 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Artificial intelligence (AI) can help transform tax administration in developing countries by automating certain functions, pinpointing patterns and irregularities, and forecasting future tax collections. AI can enhance the effectiveness, efficiency, and tax justice in tax administration. This paper discusses the development and deployment of AI in tax administration in developing countries. This paper outlines different AI technologies, the opportunities and challenges of using AI in tax administration, and the possible implications. The paper established that there is an increasing interest in harnessing AI in tax administration in developing countries. The challenges of deploying AI include a lack of quality data, inadequate technical expertise, and a paucity of clear legal and regulatory frameworks to govern the application of AI. The benefits of AI in tax administration were found to encompass increased tax revenue mobilisation and the attainment of sustainable development goals. Reduction in corruption, improved tax compliance, reduced tax avoidance and evasion among other benefits. The paper recommends that policymakers and tax authorities in developing countries improve data quality to support AI adoption, invest in AI research, innovation and development while supporting training in AI as well as the creation of a clear legal and regulatory framework.

JEL classifications: H20, H21, H26, O33, K3

Article History: Received: June 22, 2024; Reviewed: August 29, 2024;
Accepted: September 17, 2024; Available online: September 23, 2024.

Environmental Performance and Press Freedom Within an Economical Framework

Alexia-Raluca TURCENIUC — Mon, 23 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The purpose of this work is to investigate novel determinant factors of environmental performance such as press freedom and voice and accountability. Having reviewed the specialized literature in this field, one can observe and analyse the differentiated magnitude of the impact press freedom imprints on the Environmental Performance Index and the greenhouse gas emissions on the other, for a generous sample of countries, according to their development levels: high income, upper middle income, lower-middle income and low-income countries. The results support the positive effect of press freedom upon lowering greenhouse gas emissions and improving the overall environmental performance of nations, particularly for the subsample of low-income countries. The current findings are robust to several proxies and control variables.

JEL classifications: Q56, O44, K32

Article History: Received: June 22, 2024; Reviewed: August 29, 2024;
Accepted: September 17, 2024; Available online: September 23, 2024.