Advancement in Management and Technology (AMT)

Geopolitical Risk and Global Oil Price Volatility Effects on Energy Sector Returns: Evidence from Asia–Pacific Markets

Raktim Ghosh, Debipreeti Dandapat, Bhaskar Bagchi — Thu, 01 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Introduction: The present study takes into account the geopolitical risk index, OVX, and monthly closing returns of energy stock indices from important countries located in the Asia Pacific region: Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, the Philippines, South Korea, Thailand, the United States, and Vietnam. Method: The MS-GARCH estimation results reveal that, with the exception of countries like Australia, Japan, and Hong Kong, all other countries demonstrate significant volatility and volatility clustering in their energy stock returns against OVX across the different regimes during the study period. Results: The MS-GARCH estimation results between energy stock returns and geopolitical risks of the select countries show that, except Australia, Hong Kong, and Vietnam, all other countries are affected significantly due to the presence of volatility and volatility clustering arising from geopolitical risks. Originality: The study takes an integrated, region-specific approach to comprehending how global oil price volatility and geopolitical risk interact to affect energy sector returns in the Asia-Pacific area. It simultaneously evaluates both geopolitical risk and oil market uncertainty using sophisticated econometric techniques that capture regime shifts, non-linear dynamics, and cross-market heterogeneity. Also, it offers new insights into how external shocks spread differentially across net-oil-importing and exporting economies by concentrating on Asia-Pacific markets. The study also presents comparative evidence from several Asia-Pacific markets, revealing structural variations influenced by market maturity, policy frameworks, and energy reliance. Conclusion: This study has successfully captured volatility clustering through various econometric mechanisms.

Driving Circular Economy Performance through Green Logistics Infrastructure: The Mediating Roles of Recycling Efficiency and the Moderating Role of Waste Segregation and Collection Policy

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Purpose: This study evaluates the effect of green logistics infrastructure on the functioning of the circular economy in the Pakistani context. Methods: These data were collected using a cross-sectional survey that was carried out on logistics experts, production engineers, and leaders from various private and public manufacturing sectors in Pakistan. A total of 356 valid responses were used for analysis. The study, based on structural equation modeling, attempted to identify ways in which the practice of green logistics infrastructure influences different measures of circular economy performance. Results: This empirical study indicates that there is a strong, statistically significant positive relationship between green logistics infrastructure and corporate performance in the supply chain context. In particular, the increase in recycling efficiency, which is the degree of integration of waste recycling activities and the creation of process systems with generative capacity, has a positive impact on the metrics of improved performance. This study contributes to the existing literature by demonstrating how recycling efficiency mediates the relationship between green logistics infrastructure and circular economy performance, while waste segregation and collection policy strengthens this relationship within the context of Pakistan. Conclusion: This study suggests that the development of a circular economic system in the developing setting is not facilitated by individual efforts but rather by the coordinated structuring of infrastructure, operations, and governance. In practice, the findings can be useful to policymakers and the stakeholders of the industry when it comes to improving sustainability outcomes by using the policy of integrated infrastructure development and waste management planning.

Human Capital and Entrepreneurial Antecedents of Sustainable SME Performance: The Mediating Role of AI Adoption and the Moderating Role of Government Support

Dorris Yadewani, Salamiah Muhd Kulal, Reni Wijaya — Sat, 10 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

What causes small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with similar resources to have such a variance in success in harnessing the power of artificial intelligence (AI) for long-term gain? This article presents some initial ideas to answer this question. Among the causes, this work identifies human capital, which denotes the firm’s capabilities, and entrepreneurial precursors, which include self-efficacy and orientation and are the motivational and dispositional aspects of the decision maker and the firm’s posture. This article's central claim is that these causes do not directly correlate with long-term gain. AI adoption is the mediating mechanism through which the firm’s capabilities and the decision maker’s disposition are converted into a digital capability, and the extent of this change is determined by the level of government support. The framework is built on the ability-motivation-opportunity synthesis and the microfoundations of dynamic capabilities. It yields seven propositions and an integrated model. The contribution is to reposition AI adoption from a dependent variable, as the adoption literature usually treats it, to a mediating mechanism; to derive the moderating role of government support from a multiplicative interaction logic rather than asserting a direct effect; and to bring the capability-based and agency-based accounts of small firm digital transformation into a single explanatory structure. The article closes with an agenda for empirical testing.