Economics

This paper proposes that the gas economics in East Asia (including Southeast Asia and Northeast Asia) is different from standard economics due to its exogenous oil-indexed pricing and certain region-specific and industry-specific factors. Based on a hypothesis of distinctive economics, this paper proposes an analytical framework that studies East Asian gas markets. This paper demonstrates this framework through a case study of the effects of a low oil prices.

Energy prices are often distorted by government control, which is justified on the grounds that such control will help mitigate the negative impact of price volatility from oil imports, and thus positively affect the domestic economy. This paper shows in a two-sector growth model that regulatory price distortion can negatively affect the economy, and then, based on the model, empirically estimates the impact of the price distortion on output growth in China, using monthly, time series data from 2005M1 to 2012M12.

This paper examines the uncertainties in Chinese gas markets, analyses the reasons and quantifies their impact on the world gas market. A literature review found significant variability among the outlooks on China's gas sector. Further assessment found that uncertainties in economic growth, structural change in markets, environmental regulations, price and institutional changes contribute to the uncertainties.

This paper summarises the four papers in the special issue on ‘Gas and LNG pricing and trading hub in East Asia’ in Natural Gas Industry B.

China is making significant progress in developing and reforming its energy sector.

On March 14 2017 the Australia-China Relations Institute (ACRI)’s new Principal Research Fellow Dr Xunpeng Shi discussed the complexities of the Chinese energy market and its implications for Australia's growth prospects.

By James Laurenceson

Note: This article appeared in the Australian Financial Review, February 7 2017.

It's time for Australia to get ready for a trade war between the United States and China.

By James Laurenceson

Note: This article originally appeared on The Conversation, January 18 2017.

When it comes to offering global economic leadership, the divergence in narrative and optics coming from the US and China could hardly be starker.

By James Laurenceson

Note: This article originally appeared in the Sydney Morning Herald, November 30 2016.

One of the more bizarre sights in Australian politics in the coming months may be watching local Donald Trump wannabes trying to use our economic ties with China to fan popular discontent. 

ACRI’s Professor James Laurenceson discusses issues surrounding new estimates of productivity change in China calculated by Professor Harry X. Wu. He makes two points of reflection on a well-constructed and thought-provoking paper that presents a sombre view of China’s productivity performance. First, living standards are ultimately reflected in labour productivity and China’s labour productivity has continued to increase at a rapid rate.

By James Laurenceson

Note: This article originally appeared on The Conversation, October 28 2016.

China has a debt problem. But research shows that it’s not the industrial sector or state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to blame but the booming private property market.