Sunday, May 17, 2020
Emission Trade schemes - Free Essay Example
Sample details Pages: 11 Words: 3305 Downloads: 7 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Statistics Essay Did you like this example? [LITERATURE REVIEW: EMISSION TRADE SCHEMES] This literature review compares the two main emission trade schemes: the cap-and-trade scheme and the performance standard scheme. The advantages and disadvantages are compared after which the author presents his view which of the two is more desirable. 1. INTRODUCTION Nowadays everyone is, to some extent, aware of the effect that greenhouse gasses and other forms of pollution have on our environment. This increase in awareness over the past few decades has led to increasing public pressure to reduce pollution, but at the same time to do so without harming the economy. This entails the need for a subtle instrument to coax polluters into reducing emissions without impeding economic growth. The solution that is currently favored by many nations is the emission trading scheme, mainly because it is less restrictive and damaging to the economy than other solutions. There are two main types of emission trading schemes: the so-called cap-and-trade scheme and the performance standard scheme. The ongoing debate on this subject is centred on the two variations on the scheme and which of the two is more desirable on the whole. Questions that have been raised are, amongst others, which is more economically efficient, practical to implement and which will reduc e emissions the most. This paper will examine available literature on the subject. Donââ¬â¢t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Emission Trade schemes" essay for you Create order In this review, we will start by providing the theoretical background to pollution regulation and emission trading. After this, a general introduction to emission trading schemes will be provided following which each of the two schemes will be examined more closely. During this examination we will explain the schemes particular features and then highlight the advantages and disadvantages that each scheme entails. Finally, the findings will be summarized in the conclusion and the authors opinion will be offered as to which of the two schemes is more desirable. 2. THE THEORY OF POLLUTION In order to understand why one should prefer one system to another, it is first necessary to investigate the underlying theory on externalities, pollution regulation and emission trading. How would an emission trading scheme work? Our starting point is the Coase theorem, which is often described as the fundamental theorem in the area of externalities. Pollution is a case of what some describe as the tragedy of the commons. Because the good that is being destroyed (the environment) cannot be identified as belonging to anyone, no one has an incentive to act. The obvious solution is to give someone the ownership of the good, but that is hardly practical in the case of the environment. We can however give someone the right to live in a pollution free environment or to pollute. This is described as internalizing an externality and it is where the Coase theorem becomes important. The Coase theorem implies that the best way to regulate externalities (such as pollution) is to allow for bargaining between the polluter and the victim of pollution. The theorem does assume that it is possible to identify victim and perpetrator (e.g. that the externality has been internalized to some extent), but in the case of emissions, the perpetrators (producers) and victims (the inhabitants of the affected area) can often be readily identified. Coases the orem is therefore applicable to emissions. Coases point is that so long as property rights are clearly defined, externalities are best settled by what we now call: Coasean bargaining. As mentioned, a central part of the theorem is that it is possible to identify those with rights. But it does not matter who has those rights from an efficiency point of view, the end result in any case would be that the party that values the right to commit, or be free of, the externality the most will end up with that right. Irrespective of who owns the right to pollute (or the right to be free of pollution), the two sides will strike a bargain and the side that values the right the most will compensate the other side. Thus, the effect of the negative externality is not influenced by the allocation of property rights, but the allocation of property rights does determine who must compensate whom. This concept is best illustrated by an example. A factory entitled to emit pollution would, in theory, be willing to reduce that pollution if properly compensated. In economics terms, the factory will cease polluting if the marginal profits are smaller than the compensation offered. Those willing to provide that compensation could, for example, be the population of the towns surrounding the factory. The population would then pay the factory to stop, or limit, its emissions. Vice versa, if the population owned the right to be free of pollution, the factory would have to compensate the population in order to be allowed to pollute. The problem arises however, when the transaction costs are too high. Taking our example from before, the bargaining costs would be very high when negotiating with every single inhabitant of the area around the factory. The bargaining process would be time consuming and expensive. This would lead to a rise in the costs of reducing pollution to such an extent that the population of the surrounding towns would no longer be willing to pay that price. The Coase theorem is thus very relevant to the system of emission trading. Essentially, in the case of emission trading, the government creates a market whereby the polluters can negotiate and buy the right to pollute, in effect keeping the transaction costs of Coasean bargaining low. The question that rises however, is whether the market should be limited or controlled by the government. Should the government retain control over the total amounts of pollution or should the market define the total amount of pollution? When the government determines the total amounts of pollution it is described as a command and control system, while if the market defines the total amount it is a market-based system. These two systems have been implemented in emission trading schemes, and will be examined in depth in the following chapters. 3. EMISSION TRADING SCHEMES Emission trading in general is based on the idea that the scheme influences the amount of pollution that is produced. The way in which this is done is dependent on the type of scheme used. The central concept is that the creation of market forces will make pollution expensive enough that the opportunity costs of investing in less polluting production processes will decrease to a level that it is worth the polluters while to pollute less. The way in which an emission trading scheme functions is that if a company wishes to expand its volume of emissions, it must bargain with other emission rights owners and buy the rights. Companies that produce less pollution than they are entitled to can then sell these rights to others. As mentioned in the introduction of this review, there are two types of emission trading schemes. The first is the cap-and-trade scheme and the second is the performance standard scheme. In the following two sections, each of these schemes, as well as their advantage s and disadvantages, will be explained. 4. THE CAP-AND-TRADE SCHEME The cap-and-trade scheme involves the government setting an absolute limit on the amount of pollution and then distributing the pollution rights amongst polluters. The government can distribute these rights either via an auction, by granting them free of charge (known as grandfathering) or a combination of these methods. Cap-and-trade systems are characterized by: i. A mandatory upper limit. This so-called cap is defined per pollutant per sector. So, for example, for the steel sector the maximum amount of sulphur dioxide emissions will be defined at one level while the maximum amount of sulphur dioxide for the paper mill sector will be at another level. ii. The number of permits or allowances is, in total, equal to the sum of the caps. For example, for every kiloton of emissions there will be one permit. iii. The allowances are freely tradeable on the emissions market. It is permitted to bank unused allowances from previous years. iv. There are no caps for new sources of emission. A new industry, for example, will not be subject to the scheme. New entrants to existing markets are not subject to the scheme until the cap is redefined. v. The total amount of emissions in a year must equal the total number of allowances used in that same year. 4.1 ADVANTAGES The main advantage of the cap-and-trade system is the extent to which it can be controlled by the government. Because of its command and control principles, the government can set targets and enforce these. That means that the government can reduce or increase the amounts of pollution in absolute terms so that if the situation requires a less stringent limit (for example during a recession), the government can adjust the supply of allowances. Furthermore, polluters have a strong financial incentive to produce less, the allowances that are distributed (under the current European Emission Trading Scheme ETS) are free. Effectively that means that if a companys marginal costs are very high, it will be more likely to choose to shut down production than without an emission trading scheme. This is because the sale of allowances will be more profitable than producing. In terms of international agreements, the cap-and-trade scheme has an obvious advantage. Because the scheme limits the absolute amounts of pollution, it allows for governments to determine, and more importantly, control the absolute amounts of pollution. The last advantage of a cap-and-trade system is political. The cap-and-trade system is less restrictive so that there is more room for economic growth and more freedom to develop industries. This means that market participants are more likely to accept the scheme. 4.2 DISADVANTAGES There are severe disadvantages to the cap-and-trade system. Many of these have come to light over the past few years that the European ETS has been in place. First of all, the command and control element means that the amount of allowances is determined by the government. The government projects the required amount of allowances on, amongst other variables, the future fuel prices, the weather conditions and any other variables that may affect CO2 emissions. In essence the government is making an educated guess every year that can have potentially disastrous consequences. If the government does not predict the correct amount of emission rights required by the market, the market will rapidly become saturated with cheap emission rights, defeating the entire point of the system: the idea is that pollution becomes a scarce right and therefore costly. An example of this is the crash in European ETS forward prices in 2006. Part of the problem lies in the presumption that ETS allowances are finite, while the EU and national governments have the ability to increase supply at any given moment. This makes the prices of ETS allowances volatile. The European Commission was forced to announce stricter measures from 2008 onwards to ensure that the forward markets for emission rights in 2008-2012 did not collapse. Another drawback of the governments strong involvement is that a lack of ambition on the governments part could easily mean that the cap is not adjusted downwards each year, but simply kept at the same level as before. Should this happen, the point of the scheme is also defeated. The idea behind emission trading is to reduce the amount of pollution. In a cap-and-trade system an inactive or ineffective government will not achieve this. But not only from the governmental side is the cap-and-trade scheme potentially problematic. This is because the incentive that is offered to companies can at times be perverse. Since the amount of emission allowances a company receives is determined by the amount of emissions the company produced in the preceding years, companies are in fact rewarded for producing large amounts of emissions in previous years. In the same vein, companies can reap windfall profits because they have been given an allowance which is too large. This essentially boils down to a handout from the government. In recent years, cases have been brought before the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in which competitors have claimed that some companies have benefitted unfairly from a covert state subsidy in the form of excess emission rights. 5. THE PERFORMANCE STANDARD SCHEME The performance standard scheme operates on a government set standard of pollution production. The standard will often be based on the average amount of pollution created by a certain production process. The government compares the amount of pollution produced by the least efficient producers and the amount of pollution created by the most efficient producers and sets the standard accordingly. As such, the performance standard scheme sets emission limits in relative terms, while the cap-and-trade scheme sets emission limits in absolute terms. Producers who pollute more than the standard are required to buy excess pollution rights from producers who pollute less. The characteristics of a performance standard scheme are: i. A flexible absolute upper limit. There are no limits, except the limits imposed by the increasing marginal costs, in the form of the need to buy more allowances, for producers when they exceed the performance standards. ii. The number of allowances is, in total, equal to the sum the emission standards. For example, if there are twenty steel factories, and the performance standard is one kiloton of emissions per factory every hour, the amount of allowances will be equal to twenty kilotons of emissions per hour. iii. The allowances are freely tradable on the emissions market. It is permitted to bank unused allowances from previous years. iv. New entrants to existing markets are treated in the same manner and subjected to the same requirements as established players. v. As with the cap-and-trade system, the total amount of emissions in a year must equal the total number of allowances used in that same year. 5.1 ADVANTAGES: The main advantage of the performance standard scheme is that, theoretically, it should automatically reduce pollution due to increases in efficiency on the part of the worst polluters, leading to a lower (i.e. more efficient) performance standard the following year as the average amount of emissions declines. In this manner the market will force producers to continually improve their production processes. A second advantage is that newcomers to the market using innovative greener technology are favored by the system. In effect, a company that enters the market is given an immediate subsidy for achieving a better emission standard in the form of excess emission rights. The performance standard scheme therefore stimulates innovation more strongly than the cap-and-trade scheme. The performance standard does not offer the perverse incentive of the amount being based on a companys previous emission amounts. Every year the company will have to become more efficient or suffer the penalty of having to buy more emission rights. One final advantage to the system is the allocation: the government is not required to estimate the amount of emission allowances available, the market determines this. The market cannot be artificially oversaturated due to an excess amount of emission allowances made available. 5.2 DISADVANTAGES The main disadvantage of this system is that it does not set a cap on absolute amounts of pollution, meaning that the government has less influence on the total amount of pollution produced. If there is a sudden surge in the number of emitting factories then the government is largely powerless to intervene. The new factory will automatically receive the performance standard amount of allowances. This problem also means that internationally agreed emission limits are hard to achieve since these are set in absolute amounts. A performance standard scheme cannot be used by governments to reach those targets. The second serious drawback is that the scheme depends on market actors to reduce emissions and produce more efficiently. If the producers all produce the same amount of emissions, they all receive exactly the amount of emission allowances they require. This means there will not be a market at all. Under the cap-and-trade system the government could simply reduce the amount of allowances and force the market actors to produce more efficiently. Finally the performance standard scheme creates political difficulties. Older companies are seriously disadvantaged in the system and are forced to either invest in new technology or to buy more allowances. This leads to potentially serious problems for companies and possibly to bankruptcy. Politicians are not willing to put voters jobs at risk in the name of the climate. The performance standard scheme has that inherent risk. 6. CONCLUSION To conclude, a review of the literature regarding the subject of emission trade schemes has shown that both the cap-and-trade scheme and the performance standard scheme have advantages and disadvantages The main advantage of the cap-and-trade schemes is that the government retains ultimate control of the absolute amount of emissions. This is an important fact, since emission rights are intended to control and, eventually, reduce emissions. The main disadvantage of the scheme is that it depends heavily on a capable government with the right information at hands, which is nearly never the case. The performance standard scheme is, in terms of the advantages and disadvantages of the schemes, the exact opposite of the cap-and-trade schemes. The performance standard has as its strong point that it does not depend on the government. It is self-regulating and should reduce emissions through market forces. The downside this entails however is that its functioning is wholly dependent on the polluters. If the market is not functioning optimally or worse, not functioning at all, the point of the entire scheme is defeated. What emerges from this literature review is that the choice between the two is very difficult. Essentially the choice depends on how much faith one has in the ability of a market to reduce emissions by itself. The authors opinion is that a performance standard scheme is the most desirable. The market should function; the only reason why the European ETS markets are not functioning optimally is because there is an abundant supply. In a performance standard scheme there should be very little excess supply. The problem of the lack of control over the absolute amounts of emissions can be resolved by the government taking a small role in stimulating green behavior by companies. 7. BIBLIOGRAPHY Ali, P., K.Yano, Eco-finance, the legal design and regulation of market-based environmental instruments, (The Hague: Kluwer Law International) 2004. Anger, N., e.a., Linking the EU emissions trading scheme: economic implications of allowance allocation and global carbon constraints, in: Mitigating adapting, strategies for global change, vol. 14, 2009, p. 379-398. Berends, J., Emissiehandel moet en kan beter, in: Het Financile Dagblad, 22 november 2005. Berends, J., Europees gekibbel over emissierechten, in: Het Financile Dagblad, 7 august 2008. Blanken, J. den, Stop pakjesavond met CO2 rechten, in: Het Financile Dagblad, 15 may 2006. Covrey, F.J., Origins and development of the EU ETS, in: Environmental Resources Economics, vol. 43, 2009, p. 391-412. Dunn, R. J.Mutti, International economics, 6th ed. (London: Routledge) 2005. Kip Viscusi, W., e.a., Economics of regulation and antitrust, 4th ed. (London: MIT press) 2005. Koopmans L., A. Wellink, Overheidsfinancien, 11th ed. (Groningen: Stenfert Kroese) 2005. Kuik, O., F. Oosterhuis, Economic impacts of the EU ETS: preliminary evidence, in: Climate change and European emissions trading, (London: Edward Elgar publishing) 2008, p. 208-222. Nello, S., European Union, economics, policies and history, 2nd ed. (London: McGrawHill) 2009. Stevenson, S., Europese klimaatpolitiek creert vooral onzekerheid, in: Het Financile Dagblad, 27 august 2009. Teuben, R., Verhandelbare emissierechten, juridische aspecten voor CO2 in Nederland en de Europese Unie, (Deventer: Kluwer) 2005. Weishaar, S., CO2 emission allowance allocation mechanisms, allocative efficiency and the environment: a static and dynamic perspective, in: European Journal for Law and Economics, vol. 24, 2007, p. 29-70.
Wednesday, May 6, 2020
Star Essay example - 850 Words
Summarize the case in one or two paragraphs. Polar Sports, Inc is located in Littleton, Colorado where it manufactures fashion skiwear. The production of skiwear has a unique design where they use special synthetic material that improves insulation and durability. In order to develop market share in a competitive industry Polar Sports, Inc must develop new fabrics and use innovative patterns. Between September and January the company generates over 80% of sales and they depend on seasonal production to respond on time to customers orders. Throughout these months Polar Sports, Inc must quickly increase production by hiring and training additional workers, meaning that they often pay them overtime. There have been some concerns fromâ⬠¦show more contentâ⬠¦Due to the 30 days payment term the monthly payment of $495,000 will go to accounts payable for one month. Also, another factor to think about is that end inventory is calculated as; End Inventory=Beginning Inventory+ (Units Produced-Units Sold)* Cost per Unit. This means that under a level production the units produced is constant each month. Mr. Weir predicted that profits, inventories, accounts receivable and accounts payable would change as a result of a move to level production, however he was not sure about the overall impact on funds inflows and outflows would be. Also, another factor to consider is that there would be an increase in storage and handling cost. This will be deducted from net income in pro forma income statement. 3. Prepare pro forma income statement, balance sheets and cash flow statement to estimate the amount of funds required and the timing of the needs under level production. Does Polar need more than $4 million in short-term financing in any given month? Only pro forma balance sheet and income statement not cash flow 4. 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Middle Ages Economy Essay Example For Students
Middle Ages Economy Essay Middle Age EconomyThe economy mostly seen in the early middle ages was feudalism, Europes form of government in the Middle Ages, was developed in the fifth century to meet the changing needs of the time. It was based heavily on the honor system. The king had overall power, then the lord, then the vassals, or landowners, and finally down to the peasants, known then as the villeins. The fiefs, or estates, could be rented out to one vassal who would then rent portions of the fief to three more, and so on. Each person would give their peer a fee (called the guild) and goods in return for protection. As an old medieval saying states, No land without the lord, no lord without the land. The system became outdated in the 1400s. During the eleventh and twelfth centuries, Europe enjoyed an economic and agricultural boom. A slight warming of the climate and improved agricultural techniques allowed lands that had previously been marginal or even infertile to become fully productive. In the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries, however, the climate once again began to cool and agricultural innovations could not maintain the productivity of frontier lands that again became marginal or were abandoned entirely. The decreased agricultural output could no longer support the same level of economic activity and, as early as the middle of the thirteenth century, the economy was beginning to weaken. By early in the fourteenth century and continuing well into that century, a declining population, shrinking markets, a decrease in arable land and a general mood of pessimism were evidence of deteriorating economic conditions. This trend was far from universal and it was certainly less severe in northern Italy. Also, n orth of the Alps, some communities quickly rebounded and thrived on their commercial and manufacturing ventures. Coventry, England, for example, flourished with its woolen cloth industry while Bruges, in modern-day Belgium, was one of the major commercial centers of the North. In the early fourteenth century, Florences textile industry and banking catapulted the city-state into the forefront of European enterprise and, eventually, into the Italian Renaissance. Significant private international banking and commercial ventures provided the foundation for many fortunes but even they succumbed to the recession that began in the fourteenth centuryWith the increased economic activity of the Middle Ages, there was a growing need for money exchange and the conversion of coins. Money changers were soon holding and transferring large sums of money and extending loans to merchants. As the demand increased, so did the number of services. Common financial activities came to include granting loan s, investing, as well as most of the deposit, credit and transfer functions of a modern bank. A major obstacle to the growth of banks in the Middle Ages was the Churchs prohibition of usury, the charging of interest on loans. As economic activity expanded, however, the papacy became one of the first to insist that interest should be paid on investments made at a risk. Because they were forbidden to hold land or engage in more acceptable sources of economic enterprise, money changers in the Middle Ages were typically Jews. After the shift in Church policy regarding usury, it became more acceptable to be a financier and attempts were made to expel Jews from their commercial role. The international luxury trade was centered in Rome during the Middle Ages. By the end of the thirteenth century, Florentines, as papal treasurers and tax collectors, spurred Florence to become the banking centre of Europe. Large numbers of families invested capital in commercial and industrial developments. In the 1290s, the Bardi and Peruzzi families had established branches in England and were the main European bankers by the 1320s. By 1338, there were more than eighty banking houses in Florence with operations across Europe. The financial success of Florentine banking activities led others to break the monopoly. During the fifteenth century, municipal banks became established, including one at Barcelona in 1401 and one a few years later at Valencia. One of the longest and most stable banks was the Bank of Saint George in Genoa, established in 1407 by state creditors and run by a board of directors. .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd , .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd .postImageUrl , .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd , .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd:hover , .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd:visited , .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd:active { border:0!important; } .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd:active , .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .uf3e847f5ce42c91a57405f819dee99fd:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Buddhism And Hinduism In Usa: Origins And Examples EssayThe greatest danger to Medieval banking was in granting loans to European monarchs to finance wars. The use of mercenary armies and field artillery increased the costs of mounting military operations. To finance these activities, rulers were often willing to repay loans at extremely high rates of interest sometimes as high as 45 to 60 percent. Yet if they were unable to repay the loans, they simply did not. Most of the bank failures of the late Middle Ages and Renaissance were the result of large loans to rulers who refused to pay their debts. The Bardi and Peruzzi banks suffered greatly when Englands monarchs refused to pay for loans acquired to finance the Hundred Years War. The first half of the fourteenth century saw Europe burdened by overpopulation and the agricultural enterprises of northern Europe had reached the limits of their productivity. A lowered standard of living for the peasantry resulted from the ongoing subdivision of their land holdings or expansion into marginally productive areas. Poor weather in the early 1300s created meager harvests and mass starvation was the result in some areas, eliminating as much as 15 percent of the population. Warfare had been virtually continuous and pauses in major international conflicts, such as the hundred years war were replaced with local confrontations. The expansion of long-distance trade and commerce seen in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries also began to dwindle at the end of the Middle Ages although some trade links, especially those in the Mediterranean and in northern Europe, had become sufficiently well established to resist shri nking markets. Trade continued across the Mediterranean from Venice, Florence and Genoa. Italian trade diasporas also existed in the Byzantine Empire as well as dotting North Africa and the Middle East. In northern Europe, the Hanseatic league dominated trade around the Baltic and North Seas from the late fourteenth century. Innovations in commercial accounting also continued to develop and double-entry bookkeeping spread from Genoa in the early fourteenth century. While the arrival of the Black Death through ports and major trade centres tended to restrict commercial contacts, trade links were not entirely severed. The first sweep of the black death struck in 1347-1349, eliminating between one-third and one-half of Europes population. Economic and social institutions were crippled by the severe depopulation. The immense loss of life cut across all levels of society and had a profound emotional effect on the survivors as outbreaks continued well into the seventeenth century. The dev astation wrought by the Black Death on the people of Europe created a severe shortage of labour. Where land had previously been overworked in order to support large populations, there was now an abundance of land for the survivors. The peasant and working classes were no longer populous and were able to demand higher wages. Landlords, faced with the prospect of crops rotting in the fields or idle machinery, had no choice but to pay the increased prices. Caught between rising production costs and falling grain prices, many landlords rented out their lands and, as more serfs became tenant farmers, manorialism came to an end. In the cities of Europe, urban populations tended to recover more quickly from the plague than rural communities. This led to large migrations into cities after plague outbreaks but many of these immigrants remained unemployed. The gap between the rich and the poor widened as the elite closed ranks to protect their holdings and positions. Close-knit and exclusive guilds were organized by occupation to regulate workers and eliminate outside competition. Attempts by the nobility and mercantile elite to legislate the wages and services of the peasantry and to protect their market monopolies led to violent revolts that were often ruthlessly suppressed. The French Jaquerie of 1358 was followed by the Florentine Ciompi revolt in 1378 and the English peasants revolt in 1381. Similar popular uprisings occurred in Germany, Spain and the Netherlands. Still, the ruling classes managed to maintain their power. Slowly, the economy began to recover from the devastations of the late 1300s and early 1400s, and by 1500, the economic crisis had passed, setting the stage for the flourishing of the Renaissance.
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