This study is conducted to examine the concerns of the foreign direct investment (FDI) causing environment degradation and also to test the validity of the traditional Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) in the context of emerging markets in the Asian region. Data of these countries from 1980–2016 are utilised. This study employs panel cointegration Fully Modified Ordinary Least Squares (FMOLS), which treats the endogeneity problem, and its estimators are adjusted for serial correlation. Moreover, this study also uses panel Dynamic Ordinary Least Squares (DOLS), which includes contemporaneous value, leads and, lags of the first difference of the regressors to correct endogeneity problems and serial correlations. Findings from this study indicate that the pollution heaven hypothesis and the EKC curve are generally valid in the region. In addition, FDI has a strong impact on the environment.

Over the past three decades, China and India have attained economic power close to that of Japan and the U.S. During this period, the importance of the derivatives market within the financial market has been widely recognized. However, little supporting evidence is available on its economic effects. This paper investigates the dynamic relationship between the derivatives markets and economic development in these four large economies, which we consider together as the CIJU (China, India, Japan, and the U.S.) group. We use a Granger-causality test in the framework of a vector error correction model (VECM) to examine this causal and dynamic relation with data for the period 1998Q1 to 2017Q4. Derivative markets are found to positively contribute to economic development in the short run in the U.S., Japan, and India, but the effect disappears in the long run. In China, the derivatives market has a negative effect on economic development in the short run. However, in the long run, we observe a positive effect from the derivatives market on economic development based on two long-run estimation techniques, namely, dynamic ordinary least squares and fully modified ordinary least squares. Also, the development of derivative markets causes growth volatility in India, both in the short run and long run.

Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths among women in the US.¹ Biological and behavioral determinants of breast cancer mortality are generally known and have guided successful interventions and prevention programs that target individuals at risk.^2-4 However, due to the complex interrelation between individual and contextual determinants, geographic disparities in breast cancer mortality remain difficult to address.^5,6

Financial development has been considered an efficient and effective mechanism for the sustainable economic growth and development of emerging markets in past decades. However, various concerns have emerged in relation to the influences of financial sector development on income inequality. It is the claim of this paper that findings from the current literature are incomplete. This is because various proxies have been utilized inconsistently for both financial development and income inequality in previous empirical studies. This study extends the current literature on this important finance–inequality nexus by examining a sample of 21 emerging countries for the period of 1961–2017. Various estimation techniques were employed with the aim of ensuring robust findings. Findings from this paper confirm the existence of an inverted U-curve relationship between financial development and income inequality, implying that income inequality may rise at the early stage of financial development and fall after a certain level is achieved. Policy implications have emerged from the findings of this study.

This article examines the determinants of financial inclusion in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEANs), with a particular focus on the role of financial technology (fintech). We constructed an extensive and up‐to‐date Global Financial Inclusion database (2011, 2014, 2017, and 2021) to generate 26,185 observations for seven ASEAN countries over a decade, and conducted a separate case study for Singapore, the region's most financially developed member. The results reveal that financial inclusion and financial technology have experienced robust growth in ASEAN but to varying degrees amongst the member countries. Fintech has a significant impact on financial inclusion over the specified period. The relationship between age and financial inclusion follows an inverted U‐shaped pattern, with the turning point occurring between the ages of 29 and 45. Surprisingly, gender does not appear to be a determining factor. These results align with the aspirations of ASEAN policymakers to promote financial inclusion in line with the sustainable development goals.