Josep Maria Raya

Pricing the time and location of a stay at a hotel or apartment.

This paper presents a comparative study of the price component of the physical characteristics and the location of apartments and hotels in order to compare their effect on the final price of both types of accommodation. In addition the authors carry out a comparative study of the price component of the point in time at which the stay was offered. For the price component of the actual place, substantial variability can be observed in the case of hotels, whereas little variability can be observed in the case of apartments. When seasonality is compared, slightly lower seasonality can be observed for hotels in relation to apartments throughout the period under study, and higher seasonality observed in the case of Spanish resorts (particularly the Balearic Islands) in comparison with French ones.

The impact of repeated cost containment policies on pharmaceutical expenditure: experience in Spain

The growth in expenditure on the financing of pharmaceuticals is a factor that accounts for a large part of the increase in public health spending in most developed countries. In an attempt to kerb this growth, many health authorities, particularly in Europe, have introduced numerous regulatory measures that have affected the market, especially on the supply side. These measures include the system of reference pricing, the reduction of wholesale distributors’ and retailers’ markups and compulsory reductions of ex-factory prices. We assess the impact of these cost containment measures on expenditure per capita, prescriptions per capita and the average price of pharmaceuticals financed by the public sector in Catalonia (Spain), from 1995 to 2006. We apply an autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) time series model using dummy variables to represent the various cost containment measures implemented. Twelve of the 16 interventions analysed that were intended to contain the overall pharmaceutical expenditure were not effective in reducing it even in the short term, and the four that were effective were not so in the long term, thus amounting to a moderate annual saving.

Which Are the Real Determinants of Tenure? A Comparative Analysis of Different Models of the Tenure Choice of a House:

Tenure choice is closely bound to other vital individual decisions of great importance not only for the individual but also for the country in which he or she resides. The present paper includes a comparison of the different approaches that have been used in the economic literature in the analysis of the individual’s housing tenure choice. According to their dependent variable, the different models can be divided into: those whose dependent variable is tenure (classical models, ‘recent movers’ models and sequential models) and those in which the dependent variable is transition from renting to the position of ownership (duration models and ‘choice-based’ models). Results show the best performance for the models in which the variable to be explained is the transition from renting to ownership and highlight real determinants of tenure (life-cycle variables) and transition (life-cycle variables, prices and transaction costs). Finally, marital status stands out as the variable with the highest incidence.

Local Public Expenditures and Housing Prices

This paper estimates a hedonic price model which makes it possible to determine how the price of a unit varies with the set of attributes it possesses, in the Spanish housing market. Concretely, and by means of capitalisation, hedonic price models can be used as an instrument to capture how local public expenditures influence housing prices and, by extension, how homeowners can indirectly receive benefit from local public investment. Using individual data for dwellings from the city of Barcelona (Spain) for the period 1998—2001, it is found that local policies aimed at enhancing the quality of life or the location-specific characteristic of the city of Barcelona have a positive impact on housing values.

The effect of strategic resting in professional cycling: evidence from the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España

Research question: The aim of this paper is to find evidence for the effect of strategic resting in cycling. This is the first attempt made to this end in the sports economics literature. Two hypotheses were addressed. H1: Non-participation in previous Grand Tours results in being more successful in the following Grand Tour. H2: Sparing effort in stages before a stage in which the likelihood of a successful breakaway is higher increases the probability of being part of the breakaway. Research methods: We use the whole sample of riders who finished two Grand Tours: the 2010 Tour de France and the 2009 Vuelta a España. For H1, ordinary least squares (OLS) is used to estimate a model in which the dependent variable is the cyclists position in the final ranking. For H2, a discrete choice model was estimated to explain the probability of a rider being a member of the successful breakaway in stage X. Results and findings: In the case of H1 no significant evidence was found. In terms of H2, poorer performance in the preceding stage increased the likelihood of being a member of a successful breakaway. This effect is insignificant if the previous stage was flat and/or was in the first week of the competition, is clearly discernible in medium mountain stages and becomes greater as the competition progresses and in the Tour de France. Implications: This paper presents the first evidence of strategic resting in cycling. Other incentives can be analysed by future researchers (secondary classification, Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) points system).Research question: The aim of this paper is to find evidence for the effect of strategic resting in cycling. This is the first attempt made to this end in the sports economics literature. Two hypotheses were addressed. H1: Non-participation in previous Grand Tours results in being more successful in the following Grand Tour. H2: Sparing effort in stages before a stage in which the likelihood of a successful breakaway is higher increases the probability of being part of the breakaway. Research methods: We use the whole sample of riders who finished two Grand Tours: the 2010 Tour de France and the 2009 Vuelta a Espana. For H1, ordinary least squares (OLS) is used to estimate a model in which the dependent variable is the cyclists position in the final ranking. For H2, a discrete choice model was estimated to explain the probability of a rider being a member of the successful breakaway in stage X. Results and findings: In the case of H1 no significant evidence was found. In terms of H2, poorer performance i...

The effect of time on hotel pricing strategy

Tourist product distribution over the Internet is encouraging companies to implement dynamic pricing policies. The aim of this article is to present an empirical model of the dynamics of room prices in tourist resorts on the Catalan coast. We estimate a discrete time duration model for the probability of a price change occurring at any particular time and a count model for the number of price changes occurring over the period. The results suggest that the largest marginal effects are caused by a change in the location, the hotel category and the market share.

Boycott or buycott?: Internal politics and consumer choices

Abstract Does politics affect economic relations? In particular, do political tensions significantly affect consumer choices? The main objective of the paper is to study the consequences of political conflicts between Spain and Catalonia (a region of Spain) and the subsequent boycott calls on sales of Catalan sparkling wine (cava) in the Spanish market. We use data from sales of sparkling wine in supermarkets and similar outlets. To determine with precision the boycott period we use data on the number of news on the issue that appeared in the main national Spanish daily newspapers. The results of our econometric analysis indicate that the boycott calls triggered different consumers’ reactions in different territories. While consumers in some Spanish regions followed them and reduced their purchases of Catalan cava, there was also an anti-boycott reaction of Catalan consumers which led them to increase their consumption of the product. As a consequence of this, the boycott calls had an insignificant impact at the Spanish aggregate level. These results can be rationalized by the predictions of theoretical models of boycotts that include both the free riding and animosity motives.

A study of traveller decision-making determinants: prioritizing destination or travel mode?

This paper focuses on how travellers prioritize their choices in making a final decision on their holiday destination and travel conditions, especially on how they consider the ‘all-inclusive’ travel mode. The authors use 1,065 observations from a visitor exit survey (in two waves: 2006 and 2012) to examine the determinants of prioritizing destination choice or travel mode in the holiday decision-making process. Estimating a multinomial model, they find that the decision structure of those individuals who prioritize destination is different from that of those who prioritize the travel mode. The paper also contributes to research on the intention to return to a destination related to the intention to repeat the same holiday formula. The authors distinguish between those tourists who prioritize destination choice and those who prioritize the travel mode. Through an estimated sequential model, they present the results of the revisiting patterns for these two groups.

Living in a Smart City Affects the Value of a Dwelling

From 1998 to 2007, Spain has experienced one of the most important housing booms among developed economies. In this line and against the background of economic and technological changes caused by the globalization and the integration process, the cities face the challenge of combining competitiveness and sustainable urban development simultaneously. Smart cities are those that have a system of innovation and networking to give cities a model for improving economic and political efficiency by allowing the social, cultural, and urban development. The aim of this chapter is double: first, to know if the physical characteristics and location of a dwelling affect the selling price of the same, and second, to know if living in a smart city affects the value of a dwelling, and if the buyer is willing to pay more for a dwelling if it is located in a smart city.