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This study seeks to examine empirically import demand for total pulses, chickpeas and lentils in India based on the concept of unit root and cointegration.

The Stock‐Watson dynamic OLS (DOLS) model – which is robust to small sample and eliminates simultaneity bias – is used to derive the long‐run price, income and urbanisation elasticities of import demand. The data covers the period 1970‐2000.

Results indicate that real GDP, relative price and urbanisation are the key determinants of import demand for pulses in India. The estimated long‐run elasticities of import demand with respect to income (relative price) are 0.4 (−1.7) for chickpeas, 0.56 (−0.87) for lentils and 0.36 (0.00) for total pulses. The estimated long‐run elasticities of import demand with respect to urbanisation are 9.9 for chickpeas, zero for lentils and 7.2 for total pulses. The policy implications of the results are discussed.

Provides evidence that the response of import demand for pulses to key determinants differ substantially from product to product.

A growing number of studies have concluded that South Africa has one of the highest cases of HIV infections in the world. With the epidemic continuing to evolve at an alarming rate, the government of South Africa has regarded the HIV/AIDS epidemic as a developmental and socio‐economic policy issue. This study explores the impact of HIV/AIDS on food demand in South Africa. Food demand functions were estimated using time‐series data for the period 1970 to 2000.Simulation analyses were undertaken to examine “with AIDS” and “without AIDS” scenarios. Unlike previous empirical findings, which dwell on the major negative impact of HIV/AIDS on food demand patterns in South Africa, this study foreshadows a more mixed outcome of both negative and positive impacts on the demand patterns for specific food types in South Africa as consequences of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and recommends policy changes.

This paper investigates the inhibitors and enablers of supply chain integration (SCI) across multiple tiers in the supply chains of manufacturing-based small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Malawi.

Following a qualitative approach, data were collected through face-to-face interviews across three supply chains, each consisting of a focal manufacturer, a major supplier and a retailer.

The research identified interpersonal relationships, supplier cost transparency and joint supply chain management (SCM) investments as key enablers of SCI. Concerning the inhibitors of SCI, the study found that a lack of external integration inhibited internal integration by acting as a source of disruption to intra-firm processes and relationships. Further, the research found weaker links between manufacturer–-retailer dyads than in manufacturer–supplier dyads, which constrained the ability to achieve multi-tier supplier–manufacture–retailer integration. The study also revealed that resource and infrastructural deficiencies, a culture of fear and intimidation within and between firms, corruption in sourcing transactions and a lack of inter-firm trust inhibited SCI.

The paper extends earlier evidence that internal integration is a prerequisite for external integration demonstrating that a basic level of external integration is necessary to prevent disruptions to internal integration.

This study is one of the few to go beyond the focal firm perspective and explore the inhibitors and enablers of SCI across multiple supply chain positions, and provides new evidence on the role of external integration in achieving internal integration.

The purpose of this paper is to explain the interrelationships in internal and external supply chain integration (SCI) across multiple tiers of manufacturing-based small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in a developing country, Malawi.

Utilizing the resource-based view, resource-dependence and network theory perspectives, and drawing on a multiple embedded case-study approach, the research investigated the internal and external linkages within three-tier supplier, manufacturer and retailer SCs and described varying perspectives of SCI across supply chain positions.

Firms with strategic intra-firm resources were less committed to external integration, deploying their resources as a source of power to dominate and exploit their dependent partners. The SCI across multiple tiers was impaired by dependence but enhanced by interdependence strategies of firms. Although lack of trust, promotion of non-overlapping self-interests, corruption in sourcing processes and resource constraints negatively affected SCI, firm commitment to external integration promoted greater commitment among firms, thus having a positive effect on SCI.

Further analysis of SCI of SME triads and a more systematic longitudinal analysis across other market segments should be explored to generalize the conclusions of this study.

The external influences on dyadic relationships go beyond the interactions of heterogeneous firms in the network to encompass interpersonal interactions across the network, where individuals may potentially prioritize personal connections and sabotage the interests of their firms.

The research explored the internal and external dimensions of SCI in multi-tier SCs of SMEs, and provided for the first time new evidence to show that firm commitment to engaging with partners complements the mechanisms of SCI within a developing country context. It highlights the need to develop trust, eliminate corruption, promote greater commitment of SC partners and encourage greater investment in firms’ resource capabilities to enhance SCI among SMEs.

COVID-19 has made businesses increasingly dependent on technology to be competitive and efficient. Small and medium enterprises (SME) digitalisation and innovation research are widespread. SME digital transformation and innovation require government policies, initiatives and assistance. How the government can help SMEs achieve these goals is unclear. So, this paper aims to investigate how government policy may assist Vietnamese SMEs to boost innovation performance and digital transformation.

The study will take a quantitative approach, with questionnaires distributed to 659 respondents from SMEs in Vietnam through snowball and convenience sampling procedures. The structural equational modelling method is used for data analysis.

The study indicated that government policies supported Vietnamese SMEs’ innovation and information technology (IT) capabilities. Government policy assistance also boosted IT capabilities and innovation. Furthermore, mediation effects show that digital transformation fully mediates the relationship between innovativeness and firm performance, whereas IT capabilities partially mediate this relationship.

Further research that replicates the findings and analyses contextual heterogeneities between nations is advised because Vietnam’s pandemic setting was both similar and dissimilar.

The study demonstrated government-company interactions through supportive policy. It investigated whether SMEs seeking digital transformation and innovativeness might gain competitive benefits by implementing effective knowledge management and enhancing their IT capabilities.

A resource-based theoretical framework is extended to study how innovation, public policy and digital transformation for SMEs interact. The study confirms government policy strongly influences enterprises’ digital development. Specifically, the new mediating effects of IT capabilities and digital transformation are explored and provide new insights into the existing literature.

The aim of this research is to examine the effect of corporate sustainability performance on financial performance and the role of agency costs and business risk in determining this effect.

This study uses the data of 83 non-financial Turkish firms listed on Istanbul Stock Exchange during the period 2014–2021. Two-step system GMM models are applied to examine the study’s hypotheses.

The results indicate a positive effect of corporate sustainability performance on financial performance, and that this effect is significant only for firms that are more likely to suffer agency costs of equity, firms with R&D expenditures and firms with lower business risk.

The results of this study confirm the importance of regulations introduced by regulators to support the sustainability initiatives for firms that have less ability to access funds required for their investments. In addition, the findings provide important insight into the role of the persistence of corporate sustainability performance in enhancing financial performance through mitigating managers' opportunistic behavior.

To the author’s knowledge, this research is one of few that examine the effect of agency costs and business risk on the corporate sustainability–financial performance relationship in emerging markets.

This study assesses the impact of environmental, social and governance (ESG) certification on capital structure decisions considering the COVID-19 pandemic.

The study utilizes the annual Asset-4 and Datastream data of Thomson Reuters Eikon for non-financial firms in member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). Firm-fixed effects are used to avoid unobserved heterogeneity.

Firms with higher corporate sustainability have a higher leverage ratio. The positive impact of ESG scores on book leverage became more significant during the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings imply that ESG activities might serve as a signalling tool, especially considering the pandemic: ESG activities mitigate financial constraints when they are most pronounced and impactful.

Firms should invest in ESG activities to alleviate financial constraints. Researchers and practitioners are encouraged to explore how ESG and macro-specific factors jointly affect debt financing. Policymakers should incentivize ESG investment to reduce agency conflicts. Regulators in OIC countries should support firms that are encountering obstacles in obtaining ESG certification.

To date, the role of ESG investing in capital structure policy by considering the recent pandemic has not been assessed in OIC countries.

This study aims to investigate the “digitalization paradox” in manufacturing digital transformation, where significant investments in digital technology may not necessarily lead to increased returns. Specifically, it explores the intricate relationship between digital technology convergence, financial performance, productivity and technological innovation in listed Chinese manufacturing firms, drawing upon theories of digital innovation and knowledge networks.

Using a large panel data from 747 listed firms in China’s manufacturing sector and their 428,927 patents spanning from 2013 to 2022, this research first quantifies manufacturing firm-level digital technology convergence through patent network analysis. Furthermore, this study employs hierarchical regression analysis and the instrumental variable method to investigate the curvilinear relationship between digital technology convergence and financial performance. Furthermore, the moderating role of firms’ productivity and technological innovation is tested.

Three types of firm-level digital technology convergence (DTC) are delineated and quantified: local authority in digital convergence (DegreeDTC), convergence with heterogeneous digital knowledge (BetweenessDTC) and shortest-path convergence with digital technologies (ClosenessDTC, where a higher value signifies a more conservative and shorter path in adopting digital technologies). Network visualization shows that manufacturing firms' DTC has consistently increased over time. Contrary to traditional assumptions, our research reveals a U-shaped relationship between DTC (specifically, DegreeDTC and BetweenessDTC) and financial performance. This relationship is characterized by a negative correlation at lower levels and a positive one at higher levels. The joint effect of firms’ productivity and technological innovation significantly strengthens this relationship. These findings are robust across a series of robustness checks.

Our findings offer practical insights for both managers and policymakers. We recommend a balanced approach to digital innovation management within the technology convergence paradigm. Manufacturing firms can generate economic value by strategically choosing to either shrink or expand their digital technology application areas, thereby reducing uncertainties related to emerging convergent businesses. Additionally, the study underscores the synergistic strategy of combining innovation with productivity. Within the DTC business context, integrating productivity with technological innovation not only enhances cost flexibility but also improves problem-solution matching, ultimately amplifying synergistic benefits.

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to apply a digital technology co-occurrence network to unveil nuanced relationships in “DTC – finance performance” within the manufacturing sector. It challenges conventional thinking regarding the common positive effect of digital innovation and technological convergence. This study provides a comprehensive analysis of DTC, financial performance, productivity and technological innovation dynamics, as well as offers managerial implications for managers and policymakers.

• (1)

  We quantify manufacturing firm-level DTC through patent network analysis and find consistent increases over time.

• (2)

  A significant U-shaped relationship between DTC and financial performance, being negative at lower levels and positive at higher levels.

• (3)

  The joint effect of firms’ productivity and technological innovation reinforces this relationship by distributing costs and enhancing synergistic benefits.

• (4)

  We challenge existing literature by uncovering a complex relationship in “DTC – finance performance”, contrary to popular belief of a monotonic effect of digital innovation or technological convergence.

We quantify manufacturing firm-level DTC through patent network analysis and find consistent increases over time.

A significant U-shaped relationship between DTC and financial performance, being negative at lower levels and positive at higher levels.

The joint effect of firms’ productivity and technological innovation reinforces this relationship by distributing costs and enhancing synergistic benefits.

We challenge existing literature by uncovering a complex relationship in “DTC – finance performance”, contrary to popular belief of a monotonic effect of digital innovation or technological convergence.