- Aix-Marseille University, CERGAM-CAE, Adjunctadd
This article investigates the nonlinear relationship between corruption, imported innovation (imports of high technology), and economic growth in developing countries from 2009 to 2018. We used a sample of 38 countries divided into two... more
This article investigates the nonlinear relationship between corruption, imported innovation (imports of high technology), and economic growth in developing countries from 2009 to 2018. We used a sample of 38 countries divided into two subsamples. The first covers 21 African countries, and the second covers 17 non‐African countries. The empirical results from the panel smooth transition regression model indicate that there is a threshold effect in the two relationships: corruption–imported innovation and corruption–growth. Specifically, we found that corruption exerts a significant effect only for non‐African countries. However, no significant effect was found for the whole sample and African countries. Furthermore, we found that below certain thresholds, corruption significantly decreases the level of growth for both the whole sample and the two subsamples. Above these thresholds, the effect of corruption becomes positive and significant.
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The purpose of this study is to define the optimal threshold of financial development that might affects human development in a panel of 13 MENA countries that are divided into two sub-samples: oil-exporting and oil-importing countries.... more
The purpose of this study is to define the optimal threshold of financial development that might affects human development in a panel of 13 MENA countries that are divided into two sub-samples: oil-exporting and oil-importing countries. Results of the panel smooth transition regression (PSTR) model show that the threshold of financial development is 0.389 in oil-exporting 0.588 for oil-importing countries. Hence, below these thresholds, financial development acts negatively and significantly on human development and above them its effect become positive.
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Research Interests: Business, Finance, Computer Science, Financial Economics, Mobile Technology, and 15 moreEconomic Growth, Virtual Worlds, Institutional Investors, Less developed countries, Financial Instruments, Mobile Payments, Mobile Device, Payment System, Mobile phone, Mobile Payment, Financial Sector, Technological Progress, Payment, Mobile Network, and Payment Service Provider
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International audienc
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Tunisia went through a turbulent 1980s and 1990s, characterized by the introduction of the IMF's Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs) in 1986 and the modernization of the Stock Market Exchange. These changes and reforms in the... more
Tunisia went through a turbulent 1980s and 1990s, characterized by the introduction of the IMF's Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs) in 1986 and the modernization of the Stock Market Exchange. These changes and reforms in the monetary policy seek to control the supply of money and contribute to the achievement of price and financial stability. Over the period 1973–2013, this paper presents an empirical investigation into the stability of money demand using the Smooth Transition Autoregressive models (STAR) which is characterized by switching regimes through continuous transition functions. The instability of the money demand is explained by the fragility of the Tunisian economy to world shocks and by the implementation of the IMF's Structural Adjustment Programs.
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The purpose of this article is to investigate the relationship between credit risk, liquidity risks and bank profitability within the Middle East and North African (MENA) countries. We selected data related to a sample of conventional... more
The purpose of this article is to investigate the relationship between credit risk, liquidity risks and bank profitability within the Middle East and North African (MENA) countries. We selected data related to a sample of conventional banks observed during the period 2004–2015 and we performed the Seemingly Unrelated Regression (SUR) method in the empirical section. The overall results suggest that profitability of MENA banks is negatively and significantly sensitive to an increase in credit and/or liquidity risks. This negative effect was confirmed for either the separate or the interaction effects of these two risks. Furthermore, the findings indicate that bank profitability decreases significantly the level of credit and liquidity risks. We also found that the law and order as institutional quality increases the profitability of MENA banks and decreases both credit and liquidity risks.
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ABSTRACT This article analyzes whether trade openness and foreign direct investment are driving factors for human development in the Middle East and North African region. We used data of 13 MENA countries over the period of 2002 to 2015.... more
ABSTRACT This article analyzes whether trade openness and foreign direct investment are driving factors for human development in the Middle East and North African region. We used data of 13 MENA countries over the period of 2002 to 2015. We employed the panel cointegration analysis and vector error correction model to test the short- and long-run relationships as well as the causality between the variables. Findings indicate that in the long run the coefficients of trade openness and foreign direct investment are statistically significant. However, in the short run, the results show that only foreign direct investment and domestic investment exert a significant impact on human development.
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The aim of this paper is to analyze the effect of monetary policy on stock returns and stock return variability in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Countries namely; Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia (United Arab Emirates... more
The aim of this paper is to analyze the effect of monetary policy on stock returns and stock return variability in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Countries namely; Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia (United Arab Emirates was excluded for non-availability of the data). The empirical results reveal that the impact of policy interest rates on stock markets varies among GCC countries. These results have an important policy implication for the single market project and monetary union between GCC countries. Keywords: Stock Market, Monetary Policy, Gulf Cooperation Council Countries JEL Classifications: G17, G18, E43, E47
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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effects of corruption on investment and growth in 15 Middle East and North African (MENA) countries during the period 1985-2013. The authors used the International Country Risk Guide... more
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effects of corruption on investment and growth in 15 Middle East and North African (MENA) countries during the period 1985-2013. The authors used the International Country Risk Guide (ICRG) corruption index and conducted a panel cointegration analysis and Granger causality procedure to detect the dynamic relationships between the variables. Results indicate that corruption is a serious hurdle to economic growth in MENA countries since it affects investment activities and foreign direct investment inflows. In this case, policymakers have to implement effective anti-corruption strategies to avoid the epidemic of corruption. Design/methodology/approach The authors used the ICRG corruption index and conducted a panel cointegration analysis and Granger causality procedure to detect the dynamic relationships between the variables. Findings The main findings of this paper show that corruption is a serious hurdle to economic growth in MENA countries since it affects investment activities and foreign direct investment inflows. In this case, policymakers have to implement effective anti-corruption strategies to avoid the epidemic of corruption. Research limitations/implications Unfortunately, in this study the authors did not use institutional variables to see their role and to judge whether governments should enhance the quality of institution and improve the corporate governance. This would be an opportunity to expand the sample and to conduct a new research in the near future to assess the real costs of corruption in the MENA region. Practical implications Governments and policymakers need to apprehend and admit that corruption is an important issue that deters foreign direct investment and threats the economic development and growth. Corruption can also deteriorate the infrastructure and increase the cost of doing business for both government and private sector which in turn will lower the growth (Tanzi and Doovi, 1997). It is worth recalling that during the past five years, a large part of the MENA region has witnessed multiple social upheavals. Hence, corruption must be tackled effectively and coherently to avoid further social tensions. It is the proper time to take serious steps and strict policy actions within a zero-tolerance framework to fight corruption and its widespread. New rules, laws, and anti-corruption procedures are among the most important initiatives that governments should implement. The governments should also increase the public awareness of the multiple drawbacks of corruption by publishing official reports and data on the most corrupted sector in the country. In this case, media will have a key role to diffuse the necessary information. Originality/value While most of the previous studies have employed GMM and OLS techniques, the authors opt a panel vector error correction model and cointegration technique to detect causality between the variables used in the model for the present study.
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This paper examines the export-led growth hypothesis in Tunisia and Morocco using a multivariate time-series framework. The two selected countries present an interesting case study in terms of their growing outward orientation and... more
This paper examines the export-led growth hypothesis in Tunisia and Morocco using a multivariate time-series framework. The two selected countries present an interesting case study in terms of their growing outward orientation and adoption of export promotion policies as part of their growth priorities. Since the eighties, both countries have integrated themselves into the world economy and have continuously improved their growth prospects. As a result, they have experienced an outstanding economic performance during the past decade. Despite the multiple similarities between Morocco and Tunisia; our empirical model based on the Toda and Yamamoto (1995) procedure reveals two conflicting results. Firstly, there is evidence for export-led growth in Tunisia while the results for Morocco reveal an import-led growth policy oriented. Secondly, results show no evidence of bidirectional causality between imports and exports for both countries. Therefore, new structural reforms are needed for...
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The purpose of this study is to examine whether the liberalization of the financial sector has deteriorated the quality of the environment in Tunisia. To this end, we used data which covers the period from 1971 to 2011 and we applied an... more
The purpose of this study is to examine whether the liberalization of the financial sector has deteriorated the quality of the environment in Tunisia. To this end, we used data which covers the period from 1971 to 2011 and we applied an econometric model based on cointegration analysis and error correction techniques. The empirical results reveal strong evidence of the existence of a bidirectional causal relationship between per capita carbon emissions and per capita real income. On the one hand, this interdependency indicates that Tunisia needs more carbon dioxide emissions to realize prosperity and buoyant economic growth. On the other hand, more carbon dioxide emissions also stimulate higher economic growth. Therefore, policy makers should take the right decision on how to preserve environment quality without hampering economic growth.
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The financial liberalization policy was undertaken in several countries like in Tunisia in order to have modern and dynamic financial system. However, the consequences of this program are completely divergent from it's waitings. On... more
The financial liberalization policy was undertaken in several countries like in Tunisia in order to have modern and dynamic financial system. However, the consequences of this program are completely divergent from it's waitings. On the basis of data relating to 9 Tunisian banks over the period 1980-2009, and by adopting the panal data analysis, the aim of this paper is to check the effect of financial liberalization on the Tunisian banking profitability. The results of our study show a negative and significative relation between financial liberalization and banking profitability. JEL Classification : E44, G21, L51, N24
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ABSTRACT: Technological progress in mobile industry makes mobile phones the most adopted technology of the last decade by the rich as well as poor. Mobile phones were at first intended for voice communication; nowadays they are used for... more
ABSTRACT: Technological progress in mobile industry makes mobile phones the most adopted technology of the last decade by the rich as well as poor. Mobile phones were at first intended for voice communication; nowadays they are used for sending and receiving information providing many advanced services to their users. Recent generation of mobile phones allows consumers to carry out transactions in the real and the virtual world by the use of mobile devices through mobile networks. It is done by using mobile device such as mobile phone or PDA which is connected to payment access using mobile operator network. The aim of this paper is to analyze the technological evolution of mobile phones and to identify the macroeconomic consequences of their introduction into the financial sector.
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This study examines the consequences of banks and stock markets developments on economic growth for eleven Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries for the period from 1995 to 2010. We perform dynamic panel data estimation and we... more
This study examines the consequences of banks and stock markets developments on economic growth for eleven Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries for the period from 1995 to 2010. We perform dynamic panel data estimation and we use GMM estimator as suggested by Arellano and Bond (1991). The overall results suggest a positive relationship between banking and financial developments and economic growth. The results reveal that stock markets in MENA countries are still at an early stage of development and the sector needs the implementation of deep policy reforms to attract investors and to promote the contribution of the financial market in economic development.
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This study examines the causal relationship between carbon dioxide emissions, energy consumption and real output within a panel vector error correction model for six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries namely Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi... more
This study examines the causal relationship between carbon dioxide emissions, energy consumption and real output within a panel vector error correction model for six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries namely Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and United Arab Emirates over the period 1980–2009. In the long-run, there is a dynamic relationship between carbon emissions and income, which confirms the presence of the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) for GCC countries. The short-run dynamics results reveal a bi-directional causality between carbon and energy usage but reject the existence of EKC.
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The aim of this paper is to study the effect of the credit quality information and the guarantees strength on the level of nonperforming loans in some MENA countries. To this end we apply a dynamic panel modelling and we use annual data... more
The aim of this paper is to study the effect of the credit quality information and the guarantees strength on the level of nonperforming loans in some MENA countries. To this end we apply a dynamic panel modelling and we use annual data which covers the period 2004-2011. The empirical results show that the information credit collected by the private or the public agencies affects negatively the level of nonperforming loans. The same result was found between the level of guarantees and the level of NPLs.
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The aim of this paper is to empirically examine the relationship between saving and investment for 6 Middle East and North African Countries for the period 1980-2008. To this end, we use panel cointegration analysis and Error Correction... more
The aim of this paper is to empirically examine the relationship between saving and investment for 6 Middle East and North African Countries for the period 1980-2008. To this end, we use panel cointegration analysis and Error Correction Model techniques. The long run estimation reveals causality between investment and saving for the entire sample. The Granger causality tests confirm this result and validate the presence of bidirectional causal relationship between investment and saving. However, the short run estimation shows no causality between the two variables for the entire sample. At the individual level, saving Granger cause investment for Bahrain and Saudi Arabia only.
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The present study explores the relationship between economic growth, electricity consumption, urbanization and environmental degradation in case of United Arab Emirates. The study covers the quarter frequency data over the period of... more
The present study explores the relationship between economic growth, electricity consumption, urbanization and environmental degradation in case of United Arab Emirates. The study covers the quarter frequency data over the period of 1975-2011. We have applied the ARDL bounds testing approach to examine the long run relationship between the variables in the presence of structural breaks. The VECM Granger causality is applied to investigate the direction of causal relationship between the variables. Our empirical exercise reported the existence of cointegration among the series in case of United Arab Emirates. Further, we found an inverted U-shaped relationship between economic growth and CO2 emissions i.e. economic growth raises energy emissions initially and declines it after a threshold point of income per capita (EKC exists). Electricity consumption declines CO2 emissions. The relationship between urbanization and CO2 emissions is positive. Exports seem to improve the environmenta...
Research Interests: Electricity and Growth
The aim of this paper is to investigate the role of non-interest income as an important determinant of the total bank revenue for the Tunisian context. Our sample is based on 10 deposit banks observed during the period 1998-2009. By... more
The aim of this paper is to investigate the role of non-interest income as an important determinant of the total bank revenue for the Tunisian context. Our sample is based on 10 deposit banks observed during the period 1998-2009. By applying the panel data estimation our results indicate that only the information technology, the size of bank and the banking strategy affect significantly the non-interest income. However, the impact of macro factors appears to be insignificant.
Cette A©tude vise A tester empiriquement la relation entre la diversification des revenus et le pouvoir de marchA© ainsi que la relation entre le pouvoir de marchA©, la diversification des revenus et la stabilitA© financiA¨re bancaire. En... more
Cette A©tude vise A tester empiriquement la relation entre la diversification des revenus et le pouvoir de marchA© ainsi que la relation entre le pouvoir de marchA©, la diversification des revenus et la stabilitA© financiA¨re bancaire. En se basant sur une base de donnA©es de 10 banques commerciales Tunisiennes sur la pA©riode allant de 1990 A 2013, on dA©montre qu'il existe une relation significative et positive entre le pouvoir de marchA© et la stabilitA© financiA¨re. Ceci vient renforcer les rA©sultats des recherches antA©rieures portant sur diffA©rents systA¨mes bancaires dans plusieurs pays.This study analyses the relationship between income diversification and market power and also studies the relationship between market power, income diversification and bank financial stability. Based on a database of 10 Tunisian commercial banks over the period from 1990 to 2013, our results show that there is a significant positive correlation between market power and financial stability. These results support the results of previous researches on various banking systems in several countries.
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The main purpose of this study is to investigate the interaction between financial liberalization, banking crisis and economic growth by taking into consideration the role of institutions. Our sample covers ten Middle East and North... more
The main purpose of this study is to investigate the interaction between financial liberalization, banking crisis and economic growth by taking into consideration the role of institutions. Our sample covers ten Middle East and North African (MENA henceforth) observed during the period 1990-2013. Using a dynamic panel data framework, our findings reveal that financial liberalization increases the likelihood of systemic banking crisis at the initial stages of financial reform, but there is a threshold level after which financial liberalization can have a positive impact on economic growth by reducing the probability of crisis. The results also suggest that all indicators of institutions play a less significant role in economic growth.