It is no exaggeration to say that the digital transformation can be seen as both a paradigm shifts and a real technological revolution (Perez, 2010, Mergel, et al., 2019). In order to get to know the preparedness of the Hungarian automotive industry players in the topic, we conducted an empirical research in October - December 2020. The main goal was to determine the level of automotive actors in the digital transformation process. Company leaders were primarily asked about their progress in the digital transition process, its opportunities and challenges, organizational culture, and potential human resource management responses. This study focuses on the digital transition concentrating on the following dimensions: strategy and leadership, human resources, business processes, supply chain, manufacturing, products and services. Based on the results, we classified the examined Hungarian automotive industry actors into clusters.

Present-day consumer society increasingly satisfies its needs through digital channels, and financial products and services are no exceptions. The 4th industrial revolution is not only about the penetration of technology, but also the paradigm shift of business processes. The traditional members of the financial sector must adapt to the digitalized world to keep their positions in the market. The penetration of BigTech and FinTech companies influenced the expectations of consumers: customer experience became the main criteria of their decisions. In order to simplify and accelerate processes, banks use the methods of digitalization, and automatize the system to increase client satisfaction. In this article, we will introduce the three
bank types based primarily on the usage of innovative technology, the extension and depth of the cooperation with FinTech companies, and the status of a bank’s internal digital transformation. Also, we will introduce the current status of the banking sector evidenced by our SWOT-analysis and mention some of the existing payment solutions.
JEL Classification: G21, G23

The study aims to examine the ownership transmission strategies in the context of family firm succession in Hungary. The successful transfer of ownership, management and acquired experience at a family firm represents one of its greatest challenges; however, there is still a lack of understanding of the unique future strategies and succession outcomes of Hungarian family businesses. As a significant proportion of the founders of those family businesses established after the regime change (post-1989) are now reaching retirement age, a study of how such business organisations plan to survive the generational transition is highly relevant. This study applies a mixed methodology of quantitative and a qualitative analysis (e.g.,
in the case of IPOs). The results show that the average age of the examined family firm CEOs is higher than the global average and the majority of them plans to keep ownership and management within the family. Other exit strategies (i.e. initial public offerings, mergers and acquisitions) are not typical of the examined sample.

In our study, we examine consumer preferences for innovative online banking services among students in business and management education. To achieve our research goal, we conducted a discrete choice experiment with the target group. The alternatives of our hypothetical decision situations included in our experiment were characterized by the possibility of ATM smartphone integration, the availability of real-time banking, the availability of NFC payment, and the cost per transaction. Based on our model estimates, we found that all three examined services (ATM smartphone integration, real-time banking, NFC payment) have a positive perception among respondents, while the increase in cost has a negative effect on the respondents’ sense of utility. The results of the latent class model estimated in order to address the preference heterogeneity highlighted the existence of a consumer group with very strong preferences and thus a high willingness to pay (average HUF 70) towards the existence of the NFC service. Male students with a non-Debrecen resident in higher-level vocational training are more likely to be included in this class.

Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) countries are among the global leaders in the production and exports of agricultural and fisheries commodities, accounting for 15% of the world’s average agri-food export from 1995 to 2019. With rising global market competitiveness, considering the agri-food sector, it is important to assess if the region can compete against other global rivals, and in what products. Accounting for regional potential economic power, remarkable agricultural food export and market expansion, this paper explored the LAC agricultural trade patterns and export competitiveness through the analysis of the Revealed Comparative Advantage (RCA) index, and its modifications - SRCA (Symmetric Revealed Comparative Advantage), RTA (Relative Trade Advantage, and RC (Revealed Competitiveness) - in the agricultural sector for the period of 1995-2019. This paper contributes to the literature by presenting the export characteristics in Latin American developing countries, which can be an important instrument for decision-makers in the agricultural trade policy. Throughout the research period, the results indicated that Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico were the TOP agri-food exporters in LAC. The highest RCA, SRCA, and RTA were found in Guatemala, whereas the greatest RC was found in Argentina. At the product level analysis, oil seeds and oleaginous fruits, miscellaneous grains, seeds and fruit, industrial or medicinal plants, and straw and fodder (HS12) were the most exported items at the 2-digit level. Fruit and nuts, edible; peel of citrus fruit or melons (HS08) had the most competitiveness in the worldwide market, with the highest SRCA and RC indices, whereas coffee, tea, mate, and spices (HS9) had the highest BRCA and RTA values. The evidence suggests that among the TOP 10 exporters in LAC, all indices in the global agri-food trade are said to be relatively stable, whereas survival rates do not persist over time.

This paper reviews the theoretical and empirical literature on the impact of regional trade agreements on trade. The empirical literature is arranged based on the econometric
methods used to estimate the gravity model. Advantages and disadvantages of each method were highlighted. Papers covering RTAs from Africa, Asia, the Americas, and Europe were reviewed to gain a more representative understanding. The covered empirical literature suggests that the Poisson Pseudo Maximum Likelihood (PPML) estimator is more reliable than OLS in estimating gravity models, as it can deal with zero trade flows. The Fixed Effects (FE) approach produces more consistent estimates than the Random Effects (RE) approach when quantifying the effects of RTAs. This is because it allows one to control for the unobserved time-invariant variables. Surprisingly, the covered literature suggests that a great majority of African RTAs generated trade, regardless of the method of estimation used.

Journal of Economic Literature (JEL) codes: F13, F15