Despite increasing attention to Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) performance, evidence on how board governance characteristics influence ESG outcomes in emerging markets remains limited. This study examines the impact of board governance attributes on ESG performance in publicly listed firms across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region. Using a balanced quarterly panel of 67 firms from 2017 to 2024, the analysis combines fixed- and random-effects estimations with a dynamic panel Vector Autoregressive (PVAR) framework. A composite ESG index is constructed using Principal Component Analysis and Factor Analysis. Model selection is supported by Hausman and Pesaran–Yamagata tests, while dynamic relationships are explored through local projection impulse response functions and panel causality analysis. The results show that board tenure, board independence, and board meeting frequency exert significant positive effects on ESG performance, highlighting the importance of experience, monitoring quality, and board engagement. In contrast, board size and the proportion of women in senior management are negatively associated with ESG outcomes, suggesting that formal governance mechanisms may be ineffective when substantive influence is constrained. Overall, the findings underscore the importance of context-specific governance structures for advancing ESG performance in emerging markets.

This study examines the effects of adjustment costs on investment and the under-utilization of maximum installed capacity within the South Korea using a New Keynesian business cycle with Bayesian approach. The New Keynesian business cycle model that incorporates both investment frictions as well as capital under-utilization. The model has been calibrated specifically for South Korea economy. The model estimation uses Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods along with the Metropolis-Hastings algorithm to draw samples from the posterior distributions parameters of the model. The fitness of the model is rigorously validated through several tests. It includes likelihood ratio tests, out-of-sample forecasting test. Policy metrics coefficient reveals that productivity shock has immense effects on investment dynamics and capacity utilization. The research includes a thorough examination of policy response coefficients, correlations among economic variables and variance decomposition. By examining these studies, it is clear that adjustment costs have a significant impact on economic fluctuations and it becomes crucial to consider these effects in policy formulation. The model’s robustness is verified through sensitivity analysis, which involves checking the convergence and efficiency of various MCMC simulations and varying degrees of mark-up price and wage shocks. This research provides valuable insights into how adjustment costs and policy responses shape the South Korean business cycle and provides implications for economic policy and management.

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted household consumption, savings, and income across Europe, with Hungary, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic among the most affected. This study investigates the effectiveness of fiscal policies in mitigating these impacts, focusing on key government interventions such as spending, subsidies, revenue, and debt. Utilizing a Markov Switching Vector Auto regression (MS-VAR) model, the analysis covers data from 2000 to 2023 and distinguishes three economic regimes: the initial shock, the peak crisis, and the recovery phase. To enhance forecasting accuracy and capture complex nonlinear relationships between fiscal variables and household behaviour, the study also employs the Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) machine learning algorithm.The results show that the COVID-19 shock caused a sharp decline in household consumption and income in all three countries, with Slovenia experiencing the most severe immediate impact. Hungary demonstrated the strongest recovery, supported by effective fiscal measures such as subsidies and increased government spending, which significantly improved household outcomes. The Czech Republic followed a more gradual recovery path, with notable improvements in forward-looking consumption behaviour (IMPC). The XGBoost model provides out-of-sample forecasts that reinforce these findings, showing Hungary with the most favourable projected recovery path.Overall, the study highlights the importance of timely and targeted fiscal interventions in managing the effects of economic crises. The findings suggest that governments should prioritize flexible, data-driven fiscal policies to protect household financial stability during downturns and promote sustainable recovery.Copyright© 2025 The Author(s). This article is distributed under the terms of the license CC-BY 4.0., which permits any further distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted household consumption, savings, and income across Europe, particularly affecting countries like Hungary, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic. This study investigates the effectiveness of fiscal policies in mitigating these impacts, focusing on government interventions such as spending, subsidies, revenue, and debt. Utilizing a Markov Switching Vector Auto regression (MS-VAR) model, the study examines data from 2000 to 2023, considering three economic regimes: the initial shock, the peak crisis, and the recovery phase. The results indicate that the COVID-19 shock led to a sharp decline in household consumption and income in all three countries, with Slovenia facing the most severe immediate impact. Hungary, however, showed the strongest recovery, driven by effective fiscal measures such as subsidies and increased government spending, which significantly boosted both household consumption and income. The Czech Republic demonstrated a more gradual recovery, with improvements observed in future-oriented consumption (IMPC). In conclusion, the study underscores the critical role of targeted fiscal interventions in mitigating the adverse effects of crises. The findings suggest that governments should prioritize timely and targeted fiscal policies to support household financial stability during economic downturns and ensure long-term recovery.