In light of developing and industrialized nations, the G20 economies account for a whopping two-thirds of the world's population and are the largest economies globally. Public emergencies have occasionally arisen due to the rapid spread of COVID-19 globally, impacting many people's lives, especially in G20 countries. Thus, this study is written to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on stock market performance in G20 countries. This study uses daily stock market data of G20 countries from January 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020. The stock market data were divided into G7 countries and non-G7 countries. The data were analyzed using Long Short-Term Memory with a Recurrent Neural Network (LSTM-RNN) approach. The result indicated a gap between the actual stock market index and a forecasted time series that would have happened without COVID-19. Owing to movement restrictions, this study found that stock markets in six countries, including Argentina, China, South Africa, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and the United States, are affected negatively. Besides that, movement restrictions in the G7 countries, excluding the United States, and the non-G20 countries, excluding Argentina, China, South Africa, Turkey, and Saudi, significantly impact the stock market performance. Generally, LSTM prediction estimates relative terms, except for stock market performance in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Korea, South Africa, and Spain. The stock market performance in the United Kingdom and Spain countries has significantly reduced during and after the occurrence of COVID-19. It indicates that the COVID-19 pandemic considerably influenced the stock markets of 14 G20 countries, whereas less severely impacting 6 remaining countries. In conclusion, our empirical evidence showed that the pandemic had restricted effects on the stock market performance in G20 countries.
In the last 2 years, there has been a significant upswing in oil prices, leading to a decline in economic activity and demand. This trend holds substantial implications for the global economy, particularly within the emerging business landscape. Among the influential risk factors impacting the returns of shipping stocks, none looms larger than the volatility in oil prices. Yet, only a limited number of studies have explored the complex relationship between oil price shocks and the dynamics of the liner shipping industry, with specific focus on uncertainty linkages and potential diversification strategies. This study aims to investigate the co-movements and asymmetric associations between oil prices (specifically, West Texas Intermediate and Brent) and the stock returns of three prominent shipping companies from Germany, South Korea, and Taiwan. The results unequivocally highlight the indispensable role of oil prices in shaping both short-term and long-term shipping stock returns. In addition, the research underscores the statistical significance of exchange rates and interest rates in influencing these returns, with their effects varying across different time horizons. Notably, shipping stock prices exhibit heightened sensitivity to positive movements in oil prices, while exchange rates and interest rates exert contrasting impacts, one being positive and the other negative. These findings collectively illuminate the profound influence of market sentiment regarding crucial economic indicators within the global shipping sector.
Today, the spread of the Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic continues to impact on world public health and bring about considerable human suffering partly due to government policies on reducing the spread. COVID-19 has significantly affected human health and it has impacted on the occupation of vulnerable groups such as tour guides, drivers and shop assistants. Of these, the present study aims to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 self-isolation policy on the occupation of vulnerable groups in Semarang City, Indonesia. To achieve this objective, this study uses a qualitative method with an ethnography approach considering a rational or non-rational thinking model. The binary opposition thinking pattern pioneered by Lévi-Strauss was used in the interview process with 25 informants in Semarang City, Indonesia. The data analyzed the response pattern of informants through the taxonomy analysis. Three levels of vulnerability among groups relating to occupation were identified; jobs lost, income decreased, and delayed salary. The result of the analysis found that the group who obeyed self-isolation was categorized as a rational thinking; these groups stay at home, do not go to work, and have no income. Besides that, the group who ignored self-isolation is categorized as non-rational thinking; they work, as usual, get their salary, and believe that the COVID-19 pandemic is a disaster and they pray for their safety to God. In conclusion, COVID-19 brings a significant impact on occupation in the forms of postponing, declining, and missing income besides the health effects among vulnerable groups in Semarang city, Indonesia. In avoiding COVID-19 infection, the circumstances of vulnerable groups are worse when self-isolation is required. Thus, this study suggests that the government needs to assist vulnerable groups by focusing on strategic policies, such as strategies for survival, providing access to basic needs, including health, and offering livelihood plans by providing access to medical services and other source of income.
Due to unpredictable and demanding working circumstances and the significant potential for dangers and accidents, seafaring has been characterised as one of the world's riskiest and stressful vocations that lead to physical and mental health problems. However, very few instruments measure work-related stress, particularly in a seafaring context. None of the instruments are psychometrically sound. Therefore, a valid and reliable instrument to measure seafaring work-related stress is indispensable. This study aims to review work-related stress instruments and to explore the work-related stress construct among seafarers in Malaysia. This study uses a systematic review and semi-structured interviews across two phases. In Phase 1, we conducted a systematic review of several databases: Academic Search Ultimate, Emerald Journal Premier, Journal Storage (JSTOR), ScienceDirect, Springer Link, Taylor and Francis Online, and Wiley Online Library based on Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analyses (PRISMA). In 8975 articles, only 4 (four) studies used psychological instruments and 5 (five) studies used survey questionnaires to measure work-related stress. In Phase 2, we conducted a semi-structured interview with 25 (twenty-five) seafarers, online due to COVID-19 restrictions. The semi-structured interview indicated 6 (six) themes, namely, physical stress, personal issues, social living onboard, technostress, work factors, and the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic. In conclusion, the present study has identified three psychometric instruments for measuring work-related stress among seafarers: The Psychological General Well-Being Index, Perceived Stress Scale, and Job Content Questionnaire. We also found psychometric elements in some of the instruments are questionable, such as theoretical basis, construct development, and inadequate internal consistency value. In addition, this study also found that work-related stress is a multidimensional construct that needs to be studied based on work contexts. The findings of this study can contribute to the body of knowledge of a work-related stress construct in a seafaring context and could help to inform policy makers in the maritime industry. This study suggests a psychological instrument to measure work-related stress among seafarers in future studies.
Nowadays, the issue of teachers' psychological well-being causes serious concern, especially in Malaysia. Many studies related to psychological well-being have focused on students rather than on the health and well-being of teachers. Thus, the current study investigated the determinants of psychological well-being (depression, anxiety and stress) from the psychosocial work environment (job control, job demands and social support), and examined the moderating role of job control and social support in the relationship between job demands and psychological well-being among teachers. The design of this study was quantitative research through a survey questionnaire. The sample consisted of 335 high school teachers (23.3%-male; 76.7%-female) who responded to measuring scales of job demands, job control, social support, depression, anxiety and stress, and socio-demographic profile. The data were analyzed using two statistical methods, namely descriptive and inferential statistics. The hierarchical linear regression model was used to analyze the data by assisting the statistical software, i.e., SPSS-23. The results showed that job demands, job control and social support significantly predicted teachers' psychological well-being. Furthermore, the effect of job demands on teachers' depression and anxiety was partially moderated by job control and social support. In conclusion, this study has successfully identified the significant predictors of teachers' psychological well-being and the role of job control and social support as a moderating variable to teachers' psychological well-being in Malaysia. The result provides insights and contributes to the literature of teachers' psychological well-being determinants and involves Malaysian respondents with a collectivistic eastern culture.