PurposeThe purpose of this research is to evaluate the impact of adopting the principles of corporate governance on the financial performance of companies listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BSE). To assess the implementation of corporate governance principles, the authors built an index based on the principles specified in the BSE Corporate Governance Code (CGC).Design/methodology/approachAn econometric analysis was conducted to estimate the impact that the authors’ corporate governance indicator had on financial performance, measured successively through Tobin's Q, return on equity (ROE), economic value added (EVA) and total shareholder return (TSR).FindingsFollowing the regression model, the authors noticed the absence of a significant impact of corporate governance practices on performance measured by ROE, EVA and TSR but instead, a significant and positive relationship for Tobin's Q rate was found.Research limitations/implicationsDue to the lack of data before the implementation of the BSE Code of Corporate Governance, the research period is limited to 2010–2015, but the authors’ future studies will try to extend the research period.Originality/valueAlthough numerous studies have been conducted to analyze the empirical relationship between corporate governance and financial performance, no conclusive results have been obtained. The diversity of these findings can refer to methods used in the construction of a corporate governance measure as well as to the accuracy of financial reporting.

The contemporary demands for massive reductions in industrial pollution caused by the transport sector, especially in large urban agglomerations, compel local and national authorities to propose, develop, and implement programs and policies that have the ultimate goal of significantly reducing (or eliminating) pollution. The aim of this article is to provide a primary analysis of the effectiveness of Romanian government policies in terms of reducing pollution (CO2 emissions) caused by transportation (due to the “Rabla Plus” (RP) program, through which financial subsidies are granted for the purchase of a new plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) or battery electric vehicle (BEVs)). After analyzing the justification for the use of low-emission and electric vehicles in traffic (as a major solution to eliminate pollution), a comparative analysis of energy-efficient transport for Romania and Europe is presented in order to identify the directions in which it is necessary to develop and implement government policies specifically in Romania, considering a series of indicators chosen and considered by the authors to be important, including CO2 emissions compared with the size of the road infrastructure, the number of registered vehicles, the number of passengers transported, and the quantity of goods transported. With the identification of the ability of government programs to encourage the acquisition and use of low-emission and electric vehicles in traffic, the efficiency achieved is calculated in terms of the net CO2 emissions eliminated (average values of 1949.23 CO2 tons/year and 1.71 CO2 tons/vehicle). Furthermore, this aspect is also beneficial for analyses in terms of the economic costs involved (the associated costs are estimated to be 7034.17 EUR/ton of CO2 eliminated from the transportation sector), identifying new directions of action that are more cost-effective and sustainable and on which government policies should focus in the future.

This research explores the impact of environment, life expectancy, and real GDP per capita on health expenditures in a sample of 27 EU member states over the 2000–2018 period through causality and cointegration analyses. The causality analysis revealed a significant unilateral causality from variables of greenhouse gas emissions, life expectancy, and real GDP per capita to health expenditures. In other words, greenhouse gas emissions, life expectancy, and real GDP per capita had a significant impact on health expenditures in the short run. The cointegration analysis indicated that life expectancy and real GDP per capita had a significant positive impact on health expenditures at the overall panel. On the other side, the country level cointegration coefficients revealed that life expectancy had a considerable positive impact on health expenditures, real GDP per capita had a moderate positive impact on the health expenditures in most of the countries in the panel, but the environment proxied by greenhouse gas emissions had a low positive or negative impact on the health expenditures in a limited number of countries.