Trade

In more recent years, it has become increasingly recognized that R&D (research and development) is a key driver of economic growth, a source of innovation and change, and as such stimulates improvements in productivity and economic competitiveness. It is closely associated with knowledge and flexibility, two factors that have gained new significance as a source of competitiveness in an increasingly globalized world economy. In this paper the relationship between bilateral trade and R&D differences among selected east and west Asian countries is investigated, specifying a semi-parametric gravity model over 1990-2013. Despite the majority of empirical analysis, we explore the relationship between trade and R&D differences through a nonparametric analysis. The results confirm that there is a nonparametric relationship between bilateral exports and R&D differences for both. The implication is that countries with various levels of R&D activities, namely arising from entrepreneurial activities, can affect widely and substantially international trade flows.

The first season of survey at Qeshm, carried out during the winter of 2006, resulted in the identification of nine sites from the Parthian and Sasanian periods. The surface pottery from these sites suggests their trade and cultural relations with contemporary sites in the southern Persian Gulf and other areas. For instance, the Parthian and Sasanian glazed types in Qeshm Island are closely related materials found from Khuzestan as well as northern and southern coasts of the Persian Gulf, including ed-Dur, Suhar, Kush, Failaka and Qalat Bahrain. Parthian painted ware reveals close similarities to monochrome and bichrome painted pottery of southeastern Iran, Oman coasts and the southern Persian Gulf, specifically ed-Dur, Suhar, Kush and Tel-i-Abrak. The so-called Indian Red Polished Ware is the other diagnostic type widespread in the northern and southern coasts of the Persian Gulf from the middle Parthian up to the early Islamic period. The material was being widely produced in the Indian region (Gujarat) and Indus, and exported to different places around the Persian Gulf. The Coarse Black Ware (ceramic noir epaise) with decorative raised bands recorded in Qeshm compares with coarse-black material from the southern Persian Gulf, also occurring at sites such as ed-Dur and Abu Dhabi Islands. Plain, common Parthian and Sasanian pottery from Qeshm shows parallels with known materials of this period in the northern and southern Persian Gulf.

Kassites were an Iranian ethnic group and lived in the Zagros Mountains. Although the origin of Kassites is not certain, many scholars, according to archaeological, linguistic studies, and ancient written sources, have tended to target the Zagros Mountains (it is probable Luristan province) as their original homeland. They ruled Babylonia almost continuously from 17/16th to c.1155 BC. The Elamites conquered Babylonia in the 12th BC. Individual Kassites occupied important positions in the kingdom of Babylonia and even Karduniash. In accordance with the history, archaeology, and art of the Kassites, significant studies have been conducted outside Iran and the results have been published in books and articles, but no appropriate research has been done in Iran during this period. The discovery of a Kassite group of seals in Greece probably indicates cultural-political exchanges in that region. This paper studies the Kassite seals reflecting on the so-called Thebes treasure (Greece) and its findings referred to the Kassite group of the Late Bronze Age. The research method is descriptive-analytical (content) which is based on library studies. Many questions are addressed in this research, but the main questions are consisting of 1- Why and how were the Near Eastern Seals imported to Thebes into an Aegean palatial centres? 2 - How were the chronology and the usage of the seals? 3 - Were they also intended to be used as raw material? 4 - Was it because they were considered to be simple jewellery or because of their amuletic character? The seals are coming from various regions (Mesopotamia, Syria, Hittite Anatolia, Cyprus) and perhaps preserved all together in a wooden box. The meaning of this collection is enforced because of the other precious objects found with the seals revealing how this treasure represents the most important finding of Kassite archeology outside the Mesopotamia and its strong impact on the Greek culture.

This paper utilizes an approach that combines studies of Samanid period artifacts and textual accounts with modern genetic studies to explore the identity of the people who were involved in long distance trade from the far eastern regions of the Central Asia into Northern Europe. Although this study does not analyze the Samanid works, it reiterates and illustrates how important Iran/Persia was in the history of Europe as well as Central Asia. The information contained in the artifacts and texts gives us the evidence needed to understand the vast trade network and the people who were responsible for the movement of these goods, people and ideas. This study reconfirmed recent genetic studies that the people, collectively termed Rus or Vikings, were a mixture primarily of Scandinavians, Slavs, and Turks, with additional admixing with local populations. The importance of the Persian and Arabic sources addressing contact between the Rus and Eastern people has been thoroughly discussed by Thorir Jonsson Hraundal. In these texts, the Rus were referred to by different names including Majus, Northmanni, Urduman, Warank as well as by other names. One of his many observations is the unmistakable influence of Turkic culture on that of the Rus. This complex ancestry is supported by recent genetic studies and will be discussed in more detail below in light of archaeological evidence. Thus, the term Rus refers to a way of life rather than a homogenous ethnic or cultural group. However, this study refined the identity of the people responsible by observing a correlation between the distribution of the genetic haplogroup R1a sub-clade and the long-distance trade routes across Central Asia to Northern Europe, with the central focus in Eastern Europe. Despite the vast distance, the evidence indicates that there were cultural contacts between people with linked ancestry. The study is important because it begins to reveal the unexpected influence of Eastern cultures on those of Northern Europe.

This study employs a quantitative approach, utilizing the gravity model and FMOLS estimation, to examine how economic sanctions affect the trade relationship between Iran and Nigeria. Additionally, it explores the influence of factors such as GDP, exchange rate, strong sanctions, and weak sanctions. By doing so, this research contributes to the existing knowledge on bilateral trade between these two nations and provides valuable insights into areas that require attention for fostering trade development between them. The research findings reveal that in the bilateral trade relationship between Iran and Nigeria, there exists a positive correlation between GDP and weak sanctions (LIM) with trade. An increase of 1% in GDP leads to a 7.79% increase in trade, while a 1% increase in weak sanctions contributes to a 3.91% increase in trade. Conversely, strong sanctions and exchange rate have a negative impact on trade, with a 1% increment in strong sanctions resulting in a 1.18% decrease in trade, and a 1% increment in exchange rate leading to a 1.96% decrease in trade.