• R. Kapeliushnikov — Russia’s Human Capital: What Is It Worth? Part I
• B. Porfiriev — Economic Evaluation of Human Losses from Disasters

• V. Popov — Global Imbalances: An Unconventional View
• A. Apokin — The Role of Technological Change in the Long-run Global Economy Forecasting
• L. Evstigneeva, R. Evstigneev — The Mystery of Catch-up Development
• A. Akaev, U. Dzhamakeev, A. Korotayev — Economic Dynamics of the United States in 1990—2011: Keynesian Analysis

• M. Storchevoy — Theory of the Firm and Strategic Management
• М. Latukha, T. Tsukanova — Talented Employees in Russian and Foreign Companies

• Pogosov I. A. Trends of Reproduction in Russia and Problems of Modernization of the Economy

Abstracts

The paper provides an overview of major results in the theory of two-sided markets that brought the 2012 Nobel Memorial Prize in economics to Lloyd Shapley and Alvin Roth. We describe the celebrated Gale & Shapley deferred acceptance algorithm and Shapley & Scarf top trading cycles algorithm in applications to marriage and college admissions markets, and provide simple examples to illustrate the basic mechanics of these algorithms. We also explain how Gale & Shapley algorithm can be used to improve efficiency of college admission in Russia.

JEL classification: B21, B31, C78, D47.
Keywords: two-sided markets, Gale — Shapley algorithm, labor market, mechanism design.

The paper provides monetary estimates for Russia’s human capital. In its first part the two main methods for estimating the value of the stocks of human capital are discussed — cost based and income based, or the retrospective and prospective ones. Particular emphasis is placed upon the works by Jorgenson and Fraumeni (1989, 1992). Recently a lifetime income approach pioneered by Jorgenson and Fraumeni has been selected as the preferred methodology for the OECD Human Capital Project which made available monetary estimates of the stocks of human capital for 15 countries. A special section summarizes major findings of this Project and highlights its methodology which in the second part of the paper is used for estimating the value of human capital in Russia.

JEL classification: J17, J24, O15, O53.
Keywords: Russia, human capital, monetary value, lifetime earnings.

The paper overviews the existing methodologies for evaluating economic losses incurred by untimely and additional deaths provoked by natural and technological disasters. It also reveals the improved methodology of such an assessment based on welfare theory and international comparisons approach, and outcomes of the case study using this methodology for calculating economic value of human losses from heat waves and wildfires’ impact on the Moscow region. Special attention is paid to substantiation and recommendations to provide correctness of such evaluation to improve its legal and methodological bases in Russia using international experience of calculation of statistical life value.

JEL classification: A13, C1, C4, I1.
Keywords: human life value, economic evaluation, human losses, emergency, disaster.

Maintaining today’s global imbalances would help overcome the major disproportion of our times — income gap between developed and developing countries. This gap was widening for 500 years, since the XVI century, and only now, in recent 60 years, there are some signs that this gap is starting to decrease. The chances to close this gap sooner rather than later would be better, if the West goes into debt, allowing developing countries to have trade surpluses that would help them develop faster. Previously, in the XVI—XX centuries, it was the West that developed faster, accumulating surpluses in the trade with "the rest of the world" and using them to buy assets in developing countries, while "the rest of the world" was going into debt. Now it is time for "the rest" to accumulate international assets and for the West to go into debt.

JEL classification: F02, F34, F43, F59, O11.
Keywords: global imbalances, China, USA, economic growth, accumulation of foreign exchange reserves, external debt.

The author compares several quantitative and qualitative approaches to forecasting to find appropriate methods to incorporate technological change in long-range forecasts of the world economy. A?number of long-run forecasts (with horizons over 10 years) for the world economy and national economies is reviewed to outline advantages and drawbacks for different ways to account for technological change. Various approaches based on their sensitivity to data quality and robustness to model misspecifications are compared and recommendations are offered on the choice of appropriate technique in long-run forecasts of the world economy in the presence of technological change.

JEL classification: C53, E17, F61, O33.
Keywords: technological change, technical progress, global economy, long-run forecasting, economic modeling.

The paper takes notice of an ever growing inadequacy of the aims and outcomes of catch-up development. Contrary to the widespread approach to catch-up policy as following up the path passed by the developed countries, the authors consider catch-up development as an immanent feature of the global rather than domestic market. Arguing this standpoint they analyze some modern catch-up theories and other corresponding issues including synergetic model of growth. The latter assumes that all economic actors, from the state and to an individual, act as creative partners and competitors on the national and global levels. Thus they obtain the equal prospects for success.

JEL classification: F63, N10, O10, P51.
Keywords: catch-up development, globalization, growth theories, economic synergetics.

In this work a Keynesian analysis of economic development of the USA in 1990—2011 has been carried out. At the beginning, on the basis of the simple Harrod — Domar growth models, it has been shown that in this period the economic policy of the government did not provide balanced and sustainable economic growth. Then, in-depth analysis of economic growth with the use of Tobin’s monetary dynamic model has been carried out and it has been shown that recession in the U.S. economy, observed in 2007—2009, was the result of an explosive growth in the money supply caused by the need to finance the huge budget deficit. It has also been concluded that if the current trend of money emission persists, the implementation of the next quantitative easing program QE3 as early as in 2013 will lead to a new recession.

JEL classification: E12, E32, E44, E52, E62.
Keywords: US economy, Tobin model, Harrod — Domar model, crowding-out effect, economic crisis.

The paper considers the approaches to the theory of the firm developed by strategic management scholars: positioning theory, resource-based view, dynamic capabilities approach, knowledge-based view, strategic theory of the firm, as well as open innovations theory. The author shows how the ideas of these scholars correspond to the economic theory of the firm and demonstrates that there is little ground for existence of an autonomous “strategic theory of the firm”, but some concepts from strategic management literature may expand and enrich the economic theory of the firm.

JEL classification: B41, B52, D02, D21, D23, L24, L25.
Keywords: theory of the firm, positioning theory, strategic management, resource-based view, dynamic capabilities, knowledge-based theory, strategic theory of the firm, open innovations.

The study investigates talent management practices in Russian and foreign companies. The inquiry of Russian and foreign companies (working in Russia) showed that perceived and dedicated talent management practices contribute to better companies performance. The study results can be used in talent management practice development.

JEL classification: М10, М12, М16.
Keywords: labor quality, talents, talent management practices, Russia, company’s management.