Issue 1, 2018

The aim of this study is to test the empirical validity of the non-satiation axiom in the consumer choice theory. And to achieve this aim, we decide to use statistical data providing information about the average amount of expenditure per capita in the USA for the consumption of several goods and services that we selected for this study throughout the period 1959-2016, and statistical data providing information about the level of the real disposable income per capita in the USA for the same period. Then, we build up a theoretical model that is based on the Engel curves presented in Luigi Pasinetti with three different shapes, each displaying satiation in the form of zero or even negative slope from a certain level of income onwards. We use this theoretical model as the methodology by which to conduct our empirical study and to obtain the best as possible results from it. And particularly in our empirical study, we conduct a non-linear regression curve fitting analysis between the independent variable level of real disposable income and the dependent variable amount of expenditure for the consumption of a particular good or service. The results from this study show empirical evidence that there is an upper limit on the amount of expenditure that is allocated by a consumer to anyone particular good or service, regardless of how much his income grows. Finally, we reach to the conclusion that this empirical study produces evidence which rejects the validity of the non-satiation axiom in the neoclassical consumer choice theory.
JEL:D11; D12

The article examines the possibility of creating, implementing and managing a culture of innovation in modern business organizations. The author did a brief review of innovation landscape included theories on unique resources and core competencies, the creation and dissemination of organizational knowledge, learning organization and organizational learning, the types of innovation and the emphasis on the concept of open innovation. Researchers have not fully elucidated the search for a link between corporate culture and innovation. For this study, the relationship between some of the main components of the organization – leadership, structure, strategy – is outlined to feature the main characteristics of the innovation culture domain, according to the views of the author. By previous theoretical and empirical studies, the author draws the main dimensions of the culture of innovation and emphasizing the trinity strategy-structure-culture and has created a model of the culture of innovation with concrete indicators. The conclusions are related to the complexity and varied manifestations of the impact of corporate culture on innovation in the company as well as on the complexity of defining a certain and very specific typology of the culture of innovation. The essence of the model represents the interrelationship between strategy and corporate culture, but with the appropriate structure, as well as leaders, for understanding the overall positive importance of the culture of innovation.
The guiding principle for managing the culture of innovation in the discovery of specific features to encourage members of the specific organization for framing, sharing and act by the values that support the realization of innovation and implementation of innovative processes.
One of the most important features of the culture of innovation identifies it as associated with change and perception, and as a set of possibilities. The culture of innovation is in line with the realization of experiments, risk-taking, the redefinition of parameters from the work activities. It is an interaction – amongst all the stakeholder groups, the conditions of maximum transparency, ensuring distribution, sharing, generating knowledge, like trust, as a construct that brings together the members of the organization in the realization of its future.
JEL: O30; M14

This article is about robotization and its consequences that are to become a precondition for serious social conflicts and contradictions. To prove this thesis, I first examine the process of robotization during past decades and especially during the past few years in order to illustrate the scale of the problem, which is on its earlier stage today, but is expected to change the economic and political reality of all societies in the years to come. After that, I examine two main views about the contradictions and conflicts that robotization brings. Firstly, attention is paid to the vision of techno-optimists, which corresponds mainly to the theories of neoliberalism and neoclassic. After that, the view of techno-pessimists is examined, related mainly to realistic and Marxist tradition in political economy. Several aspects of the contemporary discussion about the overcoming of the contradictions of robotization are addressed – mainly through reduced working hours, unconditional basic income and taxing robots instead of humans. The idea is that replacing people with robots will raise growing problems to all human societies, so steps must be taken to overcome the emerging contradictions. The important thing here is the need to address the education, innovativeness and the ability of the modern man for a fast reaction to the quickly changing economic and social environment. Everything now is about adjusting economies for the rising “Industry 4.0”, which brings the question about the need of a new political economy to mitigate the contradictions of the transition from the Third to the Fourth industrial revolution.
JEL: H2; I3; O3; L5

This article intends to analyze the performance and the efficiency of companies and to identify the key factors that may explain it. It was selected a sample with 15 enterprises: 7 Portuguese and 8 Ukrainian ones, belonging to several industries. Financial and non-financial data was collected for 6 years, during the period of 2009 to 2014. Research questions that guided this work were: Are the enterprises efficient/profitable? What factors influence enterprises’ efficiency/performance? Is there any difference between Ukrainian and Portuguese enterprises’ efficiency/performance, which factors have more influence? Which industrial sector is represented by more efficient/profitable enterprises?
The main results showed that in average enterprises were efficient with low level of profitability. According to gained results several indicators were highlighted so that companies would pay more attention to them.
JEL: D21; D24; D29; D 51; F15; F22

The paper presents the results of a study of the state and dynamics of the foreign trade of Bulgaria with some of the commodities of the country's trade list – the ones from class “Ores and concentrates”. It covers the period 2000-2016. Foreign trade situation is defined on the basis of processing and analyzing data published by national and international organizations. State and trends of Bulgaria's foreign trade with these strategic products of the mining industry are assessed in the context of the rapidly changing national, European and global market situation. The geographic concentration and sustainability of exports and imports are determined by developing specific coefficients. On this methodological basis, summaries have been made about the current foreign trade situation.
JEL: F14; F16; F50; L70

The hypothesis that sold commercial production was most elastic with respect to the Single Area Payment Scheme (SAPS) in Polish agriculture in 2011–2013 (1.074) has been confirmed.
This research was based on the Cobb-Douglas power model with one dependent variable, applied in order to identify the regression dependence for commercial production sold under the SAPS (direct payment) and for a separate payment for fruit, vegetables and sugar (indirect payment) in Polish agriculture in 2011–2013. The models were used to calculate marginal and average productivity as a measure of the effectiveness of financial security in the sector. The correlation of sold commercial production with direct/indirect payment(s) in terms of the financial security under discussion was also examined. It was determined that direct payments remain within the irrational management zone, while indirect payments are within the rational management zone.
JEL: G23, Q14, R51 

The paper investigates the process of providing financial security of non-governmental pension funds by the example of Ukraine. The theoretical basis of the research contains a review of existing approaches including the governmental methodology of Ukraine in ensuring the financial security of the funds. By conducting diagnosis of financial security of non-governmental pension funds in Ukraine, as empirical results, a methodical approach to the evaluation was formed. It was offered four groups of indicators (yield and profitability; investment risks; solvency and liquidity; funds development) implementation of which will help to improve risk system management of the non-governmental pension funds and accomplish risk-based prudential supervision.
JEL: G20; G23; G28; G31; G32

The article presents the findings of a social survey on generations at work, conducted in October-November 2016 and focused on the prewar/war generation of people born 1925-1944, the generation of transition from patriarchy to modernity of people born 1945-1964, the generation of growth comprising people born in 1965-1980, and the digital generation of people born in 1981-2000. The author argues that, due to the small degree of institutionalization of commercial insolvency in Bulgaria after 1989, generations at work tend to externalize rather than internalize the possibilities of insolvency as an institution and as a social process. The author identifies nine challenges facing the executive and legislative branches of government and outlines possible solutions for achieving the transition from externalization to internalization of insolvency in Bulgarian society.
JEL: A14; G33