To see the other types of publications on this topic, follow the link: International economics, business finance, applied economics.
Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'International economics, business finance, applied economics'
Create a spot-on reference in APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, and other styles
Consult the top 50 dissertations / theses for your research on the topic 'International economics, business finance, applied economics.'
Next to every source in the list of references, there is an 'Add to bibliography' button. Press on it, and we will generate automatically the bibliographic reference to the chosen work in the citation style you need: APA, MLA, Harvard, Chicago, Vancouver, etc.
You can also download the full text of the academic publication as pdf and read online its abstract whenever available in the metadata.
Browse dissertations / theses on a wide variety of disciplines and organise your bibliography correctly.
1
Brüniche-Olsen, Lau. "Perceived risk and entry mode strategies of Danish firms in Central and Eastern Europe." Lincoln University, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10182/1427.
Full textAbstract:
In his assessment of the theory development within international market entry mode, Cumberland (2006) outlines the importance of devoting more attention to the research linking the theoretical level and the operational level. Other researchers have shown the performance of a firm is highly affected by its internationalisation process and selecting the right entry mode is one of the most critical managerial decisions. Despite many years of interest from researchers, the entry choice strategy area is still considered a frontier issue. Researchers have suggested that managing risk is one of the major strategic objectives for managers of multinational firms. Furthermore, risk is regarded as a key determinant in relation to entry mode choice. Research has found that the various risk variables should be regarded as an integrated measure in relation to entry mode choice and not single measures. By looking at a single risk variable, the firm might analyse the situation incorrectly, which may lead to an incorrect entry mode. This study investigates the relationship between entry mode choice, perceived risk and risk tolerance for Danish firms entering Central and Eastern Europe by using a probabilistic model. The results indicate risk should be regarded as an integrated measure in relation to entry mode. Despite not all risk variables showing significant correlation with entry mode, some relations were found. The preferred model for predicting entry mode included years of CEE experience, number of competitors, cultural difference, consumer taste and future market potential. In addition, the analysis showed that Danish firms generally are relatively risk averse. Regardless of entry mode, the analysis showed that Danish firms regard CEE as politically stable and do not see a potential risk in government involvement in their activities. Furthermore, Danish firms experience relatively high and increasing competition in CEE, however, they indicate the same methods are available for marketing in CEE as in Denmark.
2
Cao, Mengyi. "Labor, Trade and Finance : Essays in Applied Economics." Doctoral thesis, Stockholms universitet, Nationalekonomiska institutionen, 2017. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:su:diva-148536.
Full textAbstract:
Essay I: Credit Constraint and College Attendance. This paper shows that housing wealth alleviate credit constraints for potential college attendees by enabling home owners to extract equity from their property and invest it in the education. Using a large US individual-level survey dataset over the 1996-2011 period, I find that one standard deviation increases of housing prices translate into approximately 72,000 more students enrolled in college each year. My results stay significant when I use proxies for aggregate housing demand shocks and for the topological elasticity of housing supply to generate variation in home equity that is assumed to be orthogonal to decision of going to college. Essay II: Income Inequality and Trade. Does trade with unskilled labor-abundant countries reduce the relative wages of U.S. unskilled labor and consequently cause increased income inequality across industries and regions? Empirical studies in the 1990s found only a modest effect. In this paper, I re-consider the question by using the income inequality measures constructed from Current Population Survey (CPS) data and analyzing the effect of rising Chinese import competition between 1993 and 2007 on US local labor markets. I find that areas which are more exposed to China imports competition have larger changes in income inequality. In my main specification, a $1,000 exogenous decadal rise in a MSA's import exposure per worker leads to a 1.5% increase in the logistic Gini. This re-distributive effect is more profound among non-college educated workers in manufacturing sectors. Essay III: Employee as Creditor: Evidence from Defined Pension Plans. In this paper, I show the role of pension plans in shaping the firms' labor market decision. By employing the loan covenants violation and consequently transferring of control rights to creditors, I examine the strategic use of pension underfunding by firms and the resultant wage cuts. I also find that the wage concession is less severe for firms from industry with bigger bargaining power. This study sheds light on how firms strategically renegotiate labor contracts to extract concessions from labor. The evidence suggests that credit contracts between debt-holders and shareholders have spillover effects on non-financial stakeholders.
3
Lee, Hoan Soo. "Essays on Applied Microeconomics." Thesis, Harvard University, 2013. http://dissertations.umi.com/gsas.harvard:10837.
Full textAbstract:
Empirical and theoretical topics in applied microeconomics are discussed in this dissertation. The first essay identifies and measures managerial advantages from access to high-quality deals in venture capital investments. The underlying social network of Harvard Business School MBA venture capitalists and entrepreneurs is used to proxy availability of deal access. Random section assignment of HBS MBA graduates provides a key exogenous variation for identification. Being socially connected to peer venture capital firms and private equity seeking startups leads to more deal flow, larger asset under management and better performance in the inaugural funds of HBS-executive run venture capital firms. The second essay presents a two-stage model of competing ad auctions. Search engines attract users via Cournot-style competition. Meanwhile, each advertiser must pay a participation cost to use each ad platform. Advertiser entry strategies using symmetric Bayes-Nash equilibrium that lead to the Vickrey-Clarke-Groves outcome of the ad auctions are derived. Consistent with the model predictions, empirical evidence shows that multi-homing advertisers are larger than single-homing advertisers. Comparative statics on consumer choice parameters, quality, and user welfare are used to analyze the prospect of joining auctions to mitigate participation costs. The analysis provides conditions when such joins do and do not increase welfare. The third essay develops and computes a dynamic model of search in internet advertising. Micro-level browsing data from Microsoft's Bing.com (formerly known as Live.com) is used for structural estimations. The model predicts that users do not click on any ad with weak signals due to accumulating search cost and monotonicity of the value function. Rational search reveals a cascading pattern: the user clicks on a sufficiently high, highest-signal ad first, then moves on to the ad with the next highest conditionally expected probability of match once his assessment on the current ad degrades over time. The user exits when maximum assessment of likelihood of match over all ads is below a threshold value. The essay provides a novel approach to understanding rational herding behavior when product quality is only partially unraveled.
4
Yan, Shuang Shuang. "How does business group affiliation affect firm performance? An empirical study in China." Thesis, University of Macau, 2008. http://umaclib3.umac.mo/record=b1951100.
Full text
5
Kent, William A. "A study of the impact of a coaching program on customer perceptions and company financial performance." Thesis, Keiser University, 2015. http://pqdtopen.proquest.com/#viewpdf?dispub=3689008.
Full textAbstract:
<p> In this world of globalized business, corporate training programs are based on the common belief that better-trained employees will enhance business performance. Early research was focused on the impact of training on company performance in the business- to-business (B2B) environment. All of the early studies included employee opinions to measure what is called internal market orientation (IMO) as well as identification of the key constructs of trust, commitment, and relationship satisfaction, which affect performance. Later, survey-based research on external (customer) market orientation (EMO) in an international business also expanded the cultural complexity of the supplier- buyer relationships. Targeted coaching, rather than generic training programs, became appropriate. No empirical evidence in the literature provided quantitative measurement of the results of coaching programs on either EMO or company financial results. This research served to analyze the impact of an ongoing salesperson coaching program on both customer perceptions (EMO) and the financial results of the company. Two surveys of two different customer populations, with a 6-month time span between surveys, provided data to quantify any shifts in EMO. No significant shifts were found in either the domestic or the international customer populations. However, the company financial data confirmed a positive impact on profitability and a strong return on investment (ROI). Further research is needed which takes into consideration different parameters, including longer time spans between customer surveys, deeper interview-based analysis of customer perceptions and buying habits, and the different coaching strategies employed during the study.</p>
6
Li, Qiang. "A study of the effects of technology, international trade and consumption on individual income and income discrepancy in China." Thesis, University of Macau, 2008. http://umaclib3.umac.mo/record=b1951102.
Full text
7
Lao, Chi Chi. "International issues in taxation : Macau perspective." Thesis, University of Macau, 1997. http://umaclib3.umac.mo/record=b1636236.
Full text
8
Yu, Zhou. "Globalization and environment in China : an empirical study on the Pollution Haven Hypothesis." Thesis, University of Macau, 2008. http://umaclib3.umac.mo/record=b1950753.
Full text
9
Lao, Iok Son. "The relationship between FDI, Wage, Human Capital and GDP : a study on China market." Thesis, University of Macau, 2008. http://umaclib3.umac.mo/record=b1951099.
Full text
10
Li, Yu Fei. "Legal system and market timing effect on capital structure : an international experience." Thesis, University of Macau, 2008. http://umaclib3.umac.mo/record=b1950300.
Full text
11
Boriraj, Jumpoth. "Analysing and modelling international trade patterns of the Australian wine industry in the world wine market." Thesis, full-text, 2008. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/2037/.
Full textAbstract:
Since the mid-1980s, trade liberalisation has encouraged the growth of Australia’s international trade. The Australian wine industry has been successful in the world wine market, achieving a significant growth in production and export sales since the 1990s. In this context, this thesis attempts to provide a comprehensive analysis of the patterns and determinants of Australia’s international trade in wines for the period 1980-2004. The general aim of this thesis is to analyse the Australian wine industry based on the economic theories of inter-industry trade and intra-industry trade and to model wine export and import relationships.
Indicators of Australia’s trade performance in wines in terms of trade specialisation index, export propensity, import penetration, and the ratio of exports to imports indicate that Australia has become a net-exporter and has experienced a specialisation in wine trade since 1987. This signifies a high degree of international trade competitiveness in Australia’s wines. The results of Balassa’s revealed comparative advantage index and Vollrath’s revealed competitive advantage indexes suggest that, among the wine producing countries, Australia has a comparative advantage and competitive advantage in wines. The significant year was 1987 when Australia first experienced comparative and competitive advantage. The important explanation for this turning point is Australia’s trade liberalisation policy in the mid-1980s.
Based on econometric concepts of unit root and cointegration, the unrestricted error correction model is applied to analyse the determinants of Australia’s wine exports and imports separately in the models of export supply, export demand, and import demand. The results suggest that the relative price of wine exports and the long-run production capacity have had a positive influence on the supply of wine exports. However, Australia’s wine exports are not very responsive to changes in export price. Although the trade liberalisation shows a positive impact on the supply of wine exports, it is not statistically significant. Foreign demand for Australia’s wine exports has had a significant negative response to changes in the relative price of exports and a significant positive response to the depreciation of the Australian dollar in both the short run and long run. A low value of the price elasticity of foreign demand may reveal that Australia has some market power in relation to its exports of differentiated or unique wines to the world market. The demand for wine imports by Australia is inelastic with respect to the relative price of wine imports but more elastic to Australia’s income.
The standard Grubel-Lloyd index is used to examine the extent of intra-industry trade of Australia and major world-wine trading countries. The index is also applied to Australia’s bilateral intra-industry trade in wines with its major trading countries. To measure the growth of intra-industry trade for Australia’s wines, the concept of marginal intra-industry trade is applied, together with Menon-Dixon’s approach. The results indicate that the world wine industry is more likely to be characterised by inter-industry trade which is based on the significance of comparative advantage and factor endowments rather than intra-industry trade. Australia has a relatively small intra-industry trade in wines. This is due to the fact that the values of Australia’s wine exports are very much higher than those of its imports. The extent of bilateral intra-industry trade in wines between Australia and its major trading partners is also small. However, the levels of bilateral intra-industry trade between Australia and New Zealand are relatively high. The growth of intra-industry trade in wines between Australia and most of the major wine-producing countries is due to the contributions of export growth to the growth in intra-industry trade, which imply that Australia is a net importer of wines from these countries. On the other hand, the percentage growth of intra-industry trade in wines between Australia and Germany, the U.S., the U.K., New Zealand, Canada, and Japan is due to the contributions of import growth to the growth in intra-industry trade, which imply that Australia is a net exporter of wines to these countries.
The extent of Australia’s intra-industry trade with the rest of the world will be higher when the industry gains more scale economies. Contrary to the theoretical suggestions, product differentiations, degree of trade openness, and exchange rate have had negative relationships with Australia’s intra-industry trade in wines. With regard to Australia’s bilateral intra-industry trade with its nine major wine trading partners (France, Italy, Spain, Germany, the U.S., South Africa, New Zealand, the U.K. and Japan), the intensity of intra-industry trade in wines is statistically and positively related to the ratio of capital to labour, trade openness, common culture, and the regional trade arrangements.
The policy implications of the analysis of the determinants of Australia’s intra-industry trade in wines are that the government policy should be oriented towards increases in the production capacity of the Australian wine industry in order to achieve higher economies of scale. In addition, the Australian government should promote regional economic integration and trade liberalisation involving wine trade between close and economically similar economies.
12
Watugala, Sumudu Weerakoon. "Essays on interconnected markets." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2015. http://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:50c12fb0-a354-40bb-9d07-9174ad1f594a.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis consists of three essays that explore the dynamics of interconnected markets and examine the relationships between markets, investor behavior, and fundamental characteristics of the firm and the economy. In the first essay, we investigate the role of trade credit links in generating cross-border return predictability between international firms. Using data from 43 countries from 1993 to 2009, we find that firms with high trade credit in producer countries have stock returns that are strongly predictable based on the returns of their associated customer countries. This behavior is especially prevalent among firms with high levels of foreign sales. To better understand this effect we develop an asset pricing model in which firms in different countries are connected by trade credit links. The model offers further predictions about this phenomenon, including stronger predictability during periods of high credit constraints and low uninformed trading volume. We find supportive empirical evidence for these predictions. The second essay investigates the dynamics of commodity futures volatility. I derive the variance decomposition for the futures basis to show how unexpected excess returns result from new information about expected future interest rates, convenience yields, and risk premia. Using data on major commodity futures markets and global bilateral commodity trade, I analyze the extent to which commodity volatility is related to fundamental uncertainty arising from increased emerging market demand and macroeconomic uncertainty, and control for the potential impact of financial frictions introduced by changing market structure and index trading. I find that a higher concentration in the emerging market importers of a commodity is associated with higher futures volatility. Commodity futures volatility is significantly predictable using variables capturing macroeconomic uncertainty. The third essay investigates the differential explanatory power of consumer (importing countries) and producer (exporting countries) risk in explaining the volatility of commodity spot premia and term premia using trade-weighted indices of GDP volatility. Using data for major commodity futures markets, bilateral commodity trade, exchange rates, and GDP for countries trading these commodities, I test hypotheses on the heterogeneous impact of consumer and producer shocks, potentially driven by differences in hedging preferences and investment planning horizons. Producer risk is significant for both short-dated and long-dated maturities, while consumer risk has greater explanatory power for the volatility of the term spread.
13
Kim, June. "The Rise of Private Equity in China: A Case Study of Successful and Failed Foreign Private Equity Investments." Scholarship @ Claremont, 2014. http://scholarship.claremont.edu/cmc_theses/921.
Full textAbstract:
China's transition from a planned economy to a market economy has brought about remarkably rapid economic growth. Year after year, China boasted of double-digit growth rates since the early 1990s. Attracted by China's so-called "economic miracle," foreign investors began entering the Chinese market hoping to benefit from the country's vast array of financial opportunities. Private equity, particularly a leveraged buyout, was an unfamiliar concept in China until late 1990s. Now China has become the most attractive destination among emerging markets for private equity investment. Global private equity firms are currently raising billions of dollars for funds focusing on China because of the potential for exceedingly high returns. In the early 2000s, there were several instances of the Chinese government approving large foreign private equity deals with a state-owned enterprises in industries deemed strategically sensitive. This is highly unusual because the Chinese government has been traditionally protective of sectors related to national or economic security. However, there were also cases when foreign private equity deals failed to gain regulatory approval even though the Chinese firm was not in a sensitive industry. This paper aims to illuminate the reasons behind this anomaly. By investigating the factors that Chinese regulators consider when reviewing private equity proposals through an analysis of four case studies, this paper will reveal a facet of China's evolving market economy. Based on the parallels drawn from the case studies along with other formidable challenges, this paper proposes that the future of China's private equity market may not be as promising as anticipated by foreign investors.
14
Miller, Laura Savory. "TWO ESSAYS ON GOVERNANCE AT THE NATIONAL AND CORPORATE LEVEL." NSUWorks, 2014. http://nsuworks.nova.edu/hsbe_etd/2.
Full textAbstract:
ESSAY 1We examine the effect of governance environment on the composition of a country's external capital structure, specifically foreign equity investment. In addition to the absolute quality of the host country's governance environment, we consider the host country's governance quality relative to that of the source (investor) country. Unlike previous studies, which utilize country totals, we examine foreign investment positions between pairs of individual countries. Our sample includes 3,891 bilateral investment positions among 49 source countries and 69 host countries for years 2009 through 2011. We find that relative governance, rather than absolute governance, plays a role in foreign investment. Specifically, a host country with lower governance quality relative to the source country (a greater difference) attracts less FDI as a share of foreign equity investment. Our results suggest that prior studies, which identified absolute governance as a significant factor, were evaluating an incomplete picture. When the focus is solely on the host country, the policy prescription appears rather straightforward--all countries should pursue higher governance quality to attract more foreign investment from all sources. We challenge this notion by showing that: a) different source countries evaluate host-country governance differently; and b) this evaluation is influenced by the difference between the governance environments of the two countries.
ESSAY 2Highly publicized governance failures in recent years have renewed research efforts to investigate the consequences of specific governance mechanisms. A better understanding of executive compensation contracts, specifically golden parachutes, is especially critical given their notorious status in the corporate governance debate. Instead of examining the explicit incentive role of golden parachutes (GPs) in influencing managerial behavior, we study their role as a tool for screening and recruiting reputable CEOs in a situation where recruitment would otherwise be difficult--severe financial distress that eventually leads to Chapter 11 bankruptcy. If GPs enable distressed firms to recruit reputable CEOs, there should be an observable link between the presence of GPs in employment contracts for newly hired CEOs and value-preserving firm outcomes. For our sample of firms, all of which filed for bankruptcy, this can be measured by the outcome of the bankruptcy proceedings, specifically the avoidance of liquidation. Thus, we hypothesize a negative relationship between the presence of GPs for newly hired CEOs and the probability of liquidation in bankruptcy. Consistent with this hypothesis, we find that firms led by newly hired CEOs with GPs are liquidated less often than other firms. This suggests that, regardless of their efficacy as corporate governance mechanisms, GPs can create value for shareholders.
15
Sene, Seydina Ousmane. "FOOD IMPORTS UNDER FOREIGN EXCHANGE CONSTRAINTS IN THE CFA’S FRANC ZONE OF SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA (SSA)." UKnowledge, 2014. http://uknowledge.uky.edu/agecon_etds/26.
Full textAbstract:
To respond to the high imported food prices in their domestic markets, net food importing countries in the Communauté Financière Africaine (CFA) zone[1] are adjusting their import tariffs and homologate domestic prices of imported commodities such as rice, wheat, maize, and sugar. This research uses a multivariate specification of error correction model (VECM) of estimation to investigate the link between food imports, world price index of rice, wheat, maize and sugar, real effective exchange rates, domestic food production, GDP, and trade openness in the short and long run. The data are on each homogenous commodity from 1969 to 2012. This research finds a long-run relationship between world price index, domestic production, GDP, real effective exchange rates and trade openness. Under fixed exchange rates regime, GDP, domestic food production, world price index of food, and trade openness are the determinants of food imported in the CFA zones. Policy options focusing on long-term investment in domestic food production of rice, wheat, maize and sugar, and trade openness are the fundamental factors to curtail the increasing food import volume/bill under fixed exchange rate regime in the CFA zones.
[1] The CFA zone in Sub-Saharan Africa is the WAEMU and CEMAC Countries, which are listed and represented in figure 1.
16
Andersson, Linda. "Essays on job turnover, productivity and state-local finance." Doctoral thesis, Umeå universitet, Nationalekonomi, 2002. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-141096.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis consists of four self-contained papers on job turnover, productivity and state- local finance. Paper [I] deals with the determinants of the rate of job turnover defined as the change in distribution of employment between and within industries in Swedish manufacturing. The rate of inter-industry job turnover is driven by the dispersion of profit changes among industries. Shifts in international competitiveness among industries seem to play a central role in the explanation of this pattern. The rate of intra-industry job turnover has been higher in industries with many small plants, low profit margins and high import penetration. Paper [II] analyzes the impact of openness on total factor productivity (TFP) growth. Using Swedish industry level data the results show that economically integrated industries tend to be more engaged in research and development (R&D) and have more entry and exit activity than other industries. The domestic R&D intensity does not contribute to the TFP growth rate. Instead, the results imply that openness to international markets, which helps facilitate technology spillovers, has a significant impact on the growth rate. There is also some evidence suggesting that producers exiting the market are less productive, implying that such exits will increase the average productivity of the industry concerned. The purpose of Paper [III] is to design and implement a test of whether the external effect from tax base sharing among local and regional governments is internalized via the intergovernmental transfer system. The test is based on the observation that if the external effect is internalized, an increase in the income tax rate at one level of government will induce the other level to reduce its income tax rate by the corresponding amount, leaving the effective tax rate unchanged. By using panel data for the Swedish local and regional public sectors, we estimate the reaction function for the local income tax rate. The results imply that an increase in the regional income tax rate induces the municipalities in the region to decrease their income tax rates. In addition, we are able to reject the null hypothesis that the external effect from tax base sharing is internalized. Paper [IV] concerns risk-sharing, in terms of how the central government smooths personal income among municipalities via the tax and transfer systems. Using Swedish panel data, the results show that the national tax and transfer systems mitigate an adverse shock to income of one krona so that disposable income falls by 67 öre, on average. However, there are large differences across regions, where the effect on disposable income varies between 32 and 78 öre in the krona.<br>digitalisering@umu
17
Bizzotto, Magalhaes Garcia Rafael. "International Market Assessment and Entry – United States’ Fast Casual Firm Entering the Brazilian Food Market." Ohio University / OhioLINK, 2019. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1560964690816666.
Full text
18
Thanyakhan, Sutana. "The Determinants of FDI and FPI in Thailand: a Gravity Model Analysis." Phd thesis, Lincoln University. Commerce Division, 2008. http://theses.lincoln.ac.nz/public/adt-NZLIU20080429.102238/.
Full textAbstract:
Thailand has been one of significant recipients of foreign direct investment (FDI) among
developing countries over the last 30 years, and has recorded rapid and sustained growth
rates in a number of different industrial categories. Thailand has shown a clear policy
transition for foreign investment over time from an import-substitution regime to an
export-oriented regime. Before the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis (1985-1996), Thailand had
the fastest growing level of exports in manufactured goods among Asian economies. FDI
plays a significant role in the Thai economy. Thailand has been pursuing different foreign
investment policies at different times depending on the development objectives and
economic situation in the country.
The main objective of this research is to evaluate the determinants of FDI and foreign
portfolio investment (FPI) in Thailand using the extended Gravity Model. Panel data is
used to estimate and evaluate the empirical results based on the data for the years 1980 to
2004. It also examines the FDI flows between different locations and their geographical
distances in Thailand. The primary research question addresses what factors motivate,
attract, and sustain the FDI and FPI in Thailand. In addition, this study also examines the
effects of the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis on the inflows of FDI and FPI into Thailand.
The results show that the inflows of FDI in Thailand, which are supply-driven, are
significantly influenced by its 21 largest investing partners. The 1997 Asian Financial
Crisis has no impact on the determinants of the inflows of FDI into Thailand, but positively
influences the inflows of FPI into Thailand. Our results also show that increases in GDP
and trade between investing partners and Thailand potentially attract more FDI and FPI
into Thailand. Investing partners closer to Thailand draw more portfolio investment into Thailand than distant partners emphasising that distance has a negative impact on the
portfolio investment but a negligible impact on the FDI.
19
Ozkan, Bora. "Six Sigma, Firm Performance and Returns Predictability In Emerging Real Estate Market." ScholarWorks@UNO, 2013. http://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/1756.
Full textAbstract:
This dissertation consists of two essays. First essay investigates Fortune 500 companies that implemented Six Sigma. Since the 1980s, industrial organizations have adopted practices such as Six Sigma to maintain and enhance competitiveness. The purpose of this study is to look at the long run stock price and the operating performance of Fortune 500 companies that were identified to have implemented Six Sigma compared to the overall market performance as well as the performance of industry and size matched firms. Even though our sample firms improved several variables after implementing Six Sigma, their operating performances were not quite close to the performances of the matching firms. After implementing Six Sigma, compared to the industry and size matched firms, the only variable that improved out of 14 variables we looked at, is the growth in staff levels. The findings may contribute to understanding the reasons that underlie the so-called jobless recovery.
Second essay investigates the real estate price indices in 19 emerging markets. The main objectives of the central banks are not necessarily in line with the goals for asset prices, particularly house prices; however house price changes can have important implications for economic activity and inflation. The consequences of excess changes in house prices also should be watched carefully by central banks and other government agencies that regulate financial institutions for the purpose of financial stability. This essay searches for a link between house prices, broad money, private credit and the macro-economy among 19 emerging markets. We are also trying to explain which variables predict the emerging markets real estate index returns. Our results show that money market rate, growth in GDP and CPI as well as log of private credit and money supply have significant predictive power on growth in real estate price indices a quarter ahead. We also show that there is multidirectional causality among all of the variables. A unique data is being used for the emerging markets real estate price indexes in this study. The data is provided by aDubaibased private company which offers emerging markets real estate information to its customers.
20
Vermandel, Gauthier. "Essays on cross-border banking and macroprudential policy." Thesis, Rennes 1, 2014. http://www.theses.fr/2014REN1G036/document.
Full textAbstract:
L'objectif de cette thèse est d'évaluer la conduite des politiques macroprudentielles dans une union monétaire hétérogène, comme la zone euro, en s'appuyant sur les très récents développements théoriques et empiriques des modèles en équilibre général dynamique stochastique (DSGE) et de l'économétrie Bayésienne. Dans notre analyse, nous considérons deux faits majeurs caractérisant l'Eurosystème: la divergence des cycles économiques entre le cœur et la périphérie de la zone et l'intégration bancaire à l'origine de spillovers lors de la mise en œuvre de politiques macroprudentielles. Voici les résultats que nous tirons de nos expérimentations. D'abord, la mise en œuvre des mesures de politique macroprudentielle améliore le bien-être au niveau de l'union. Les gains de bien-être plus élevés sont observés lorsque les pays utilisent plusieurs instruments et lorsque la politique macroprudentielle est mise en œuvre de manière granulaire. Cependant, la conduite de la politique macroprudentielle n'est pas forcément bénéfique pour tous les pays participants: dans la plupart des cas, les pays périphériques sont gagnants tandis que les pays du cœur enregistrent des faibles gains de bien-être voire parfois des pertes. Dans nos simulations, nous constatons qu'il existe un équilibre favorisant le bien-être à la fois aux niveaux mondial et national pour tous les participants mais sa réalisation nécessite une intervention d'une autorité fédérale telle l'ESRB. Enfin, l'introduction de prêts transfrontaliers ouvre un nouveau canal de transmission international important qui tend à augmenter les gains de bien-être associées à des mesures macroprudentielles. Ignorer ces prêts bancaires transfrontaliers peut conduire à des résultats fallacieux dans le classement des différents plans d'instauration de la politique macroprudentielle<br>The aim of this thesis is to evaluate the conduct of macroprudential policies in an heterogenous monetary union, such as the Eurozone, by borrowing on the very recent theoretical and empirical developments of Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium (DSGE) models and Bayesian econometrics. We account for two main patterns of the Eurosystem: the business cycles divergence between core and peripheral countries and the globalization of banking and its spillovers when implementing macroprudential policies. As a main result, the implementation of macroprudential policy measures improves welfare at the global level. The highest welfare gains are observed when countries use multiple instruments and when macroprudential policy is implemented in a granular fashion. However, the conduct of macroprudential policy is not a free lunch for participating countries: in most situations, peripheral countries are winners while core countries record either smaller welfare gains or even welfare losses. In many policy experiments, we find that there exists an equilibrium that combines welfare increases at both the global and national levels for all participants but its enforceability requires a federal action, thus justifying the existence of a coordination mechanism such as the ESRB in the Eurozone. Finally, the possibility of banks to engage in cross border lending introduces an important spillover channel that tends to increase the welfare gains associated to macroprudential measures. Ignoring this phenomenon may lead to fallacious results in terms of the welfare ranking of alternative implementation schemes
21
Badia-Bellinger, Jordan Jose. "Hosting the Olympics: A Cost-Benefit Analysis of the Economic and Social Effects of the Olympic Games." Scholarship @ Claremont, 2012. http://scholarship.claremont.edu/cmc_theses/509.
Full textAbstract:
This paper attempts to provide a cost-benefit analysis of the economic and social effects of hosting the Olympic Games. I provide an overview of the economic and social impacts of the Games and analyze their effects. I focus the economic effects of the Games on tourism, trade, corporate sponsorship and the sale of television rights. I also look at the social effects of the Games on infrastructure and employment. Finally I assess why the Olympics remain an appealing venture for cities, despite evidence that demonstrates how they produce more actual harm than good for the host city. In addition, I provide predictions for two alternative directions that the Olympics could take in the future: to either continue in the current trend of immense growth and commercialization, or alternatively, implement a new Olympic bidding process that establishes stricter criteria for candidate cities.
22
Haile, Yohannes. "Sustainable Value And Eco-Communal Management: Systemic Measures For The Outcome Of Renewable Energy Businesses In Developing, Emerging, And Developed Economies." Case Western Reserve University School of Graduate Studies / OhioLINK, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=case1459369970.
Full text
23
Qiu, Lily Lin. "International market entry strategy and performance: an empirical study of Australian business ventures in the People's Republic of China." Thesis, 2000. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/15239/.
Full textAbstract:
This study examines the relationship between a firm's external and internal factors, international market entry strategy, and long-term performance. The purpose of the
study is to test if foreign entry strategy into China by Australian companies has an effect on a firm's long-term performance, and to what degree. A conceptual model is
developed based on extensive literature review and using modified constructs, to develop new constructs from variables not previously measured.
24
Havrila, Inka Irena. "Patterns and determinants of Australia's international trade in textiles and clothing." Thesis, 2004. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/15335/.
Full textAbstract:
Structural change of textile and clothing industries in Australia has intensified in recent years due to a range of factors including reductions in protection, import
competition, shifts in consumer spending, and technological change. This thesis provides a comprehensive analysis of patterns and determinants of international trade in textiles and clothing (TAC) during the period 1965 to 1999.
25
Cabrera, Glenn Ymballa. "Essays on demand for international reserves." Thesis, 1998. http://hdl.handle.net/1911/19246.
Full textAbstract:
This dissertation consists of four chapters. In the first chapter, a review is made of the research on international reserve demand in the last decade. The next three chapters offer alternative models of reserve demand. One motive for why foreign currencies are held by national central banks (NCBs) is to intervene in the foreign exchange market. A primary goal of the last three chapters is to incorporate such an intervention motive in modeling demand for foreign exchange reserves by the public sector. Another goal--more fully studied in the last chapter--is to assess the effects of exchange controls on demand for reserves. Disequilibrium regime-switching econometrics is the modeling framework employed. This methodology allows for the possibility that a different demand regime may be in effect in periods when the NCB is a net buyer of foreign currencies as compared to periods when it is a net seller. To deal with the effects of constant changes in the exchange control environment--which could alter demand behavior--a robust method is used which weighs down observations from periods where the standard model performs poorly.
Some evidence is found that market intervention changes the response of demand for foreign reserves with respect to trade and the opportunity cost. This effect is not uniform across countries however. National demands for foreign reserves are also found to vary. Furthermore, the period where the model performs poorly are not characterized chiefly by heavy exchange controls but by political/economic shocks and uncertainty. Shocks and uncertainty alter demand for foreign currency reserves while exchange controls appear to be ineffective.
26
Kamiryo, Hideyuki 1930. "Furthering the role of corporate finance in economic growth." 2004. http://wwwlib.umi.com/dissertations/fullcit/3135938.
Full textAbstract:
Whole document restricted, see Access Instructions file below for details of how to access the print copy. Subscription resource available via Digital Dissertations<br>My research question is: Why do countries with similar rates of saving differ in economic growth? My thesis addresses this question by formulating an endogenous growth model using the Cobb-Douglas production function. My model disaggregates the rate of saving into the retention ratio and the household saving ratio and connects these ratios with three new parameters representing respectively the efficiency of financial institutions, the decision-making of managers, and barriers to technology diffusion. These three financial parameters make it possible to distinguish between quantitative and qualitative investments and to measure the growth rates of output, capital, and technological progress. Endogenous growth in technology neutralizes diminishing returns to capital. The Cobb-Douglas production function assumes diminishing marginal productivity under constant returns to scale. My model, however, measures the growth rate of per capita output under the balanced growth state/constant returns to capital situation. This situation is guaranteed when the relative share of profit is within the critical relative share of profit. A set of combination of the three financial parameters holds under diminishing returns to capital, yet the diminishing returns to capital situation turns to the balanced growth state situation by using delta defined as the elasticity of quality improvement with respect to effective labour units attached to a machine. An extreme case corresponds with the Solow and O'Connell (including Harrod-Domar) models, where the three financial parameters are all 1.0, with no technological progress. Simulation results demonstrate several new fact-findings. These fact-findings come from the characteristics of my model or the relationships between the growth rate of “per capita” output in the long-run (hereunder the growth rate) and the three financial parameters and delta, where the growth rate converges by setting delta = the relative share of profit. First, if the rate of saving increases, the growth rate also increases linearly. This is more definitely evident than the result of Mankiw, Romer, and Weil [1992]. Second, under a fixed rate of saving, the growth rate changes significantly differently if each of three parameters changes: the relative share of profit, the growth rate of population, and the retention ratio. In particular, the change in the retention ratio influences the growth rate positively or negatively depending on the relationship between the three financial parameters that reflect corporate behaviour and the nature of financial institutions. In this respect, I cannot find literature that relates the retention ratio or dividend policy to the growth rate in the Cobb-Douglas production function. Also the change in the growth rate of population does not influence per capita growth at all. This finding is also more definite than that found in the literature. In short, the three financial parameters play an important role in economic growth. When we divide saving into corporate saving and household saving, the rate of saving as a whole is not independent of the growth rate. A proportion of corporate saving and a proportion of household saving are used for investment in quality, which accelerates productivity enhancement. Consequently, the characteristics of the corporate sectors and financial institutions of a country play a significant role in determining its long run growth rate of per capita income (even under a fixed rate of saving).
27
"Essays In Financial And International Macroeconomics." Doctoral diss., 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/2286/R.I.8887.
Full textAbstract:
abstract: I study the importance of financial factors and real exchange rate shocks in explaining business cycle fluctuations, which have been considered important in the literature as non-technological factors in explaining business cycle fluctuations. In the first chapter, I study the implications of fluctuations in corporate credit spreads for business cycle fluctuations. Motivated by the fact that corporate credit spreads are countercyclical, I build a simple model in which difference in default probabilities on corporate debts leads to the spread in interest rates paid by firms. In the model, firms differ in the variance of the firm-level productivity, which is in turn linked to the difference in the default probability. The key mechanism is that an increase in the variance of productivity for risky firms relative to safe firms leads to reallocation of capital away from risky firms toward safe firms and decrease in aggregate output and productivity. I embed the above mechanism into an otherwise standard growth model, calibrate it and numerically solve for the equilibrium. In my benchmark case, I find that shocks to variance of productivity for risky and safe firms account for about 66% of fluctuations in output and TFP in the U.S. economy. In the second chapter, I study the importance of shocks to the price of imports relative to the price of final goods, led by the real exchange rate shocks, in accounting for fluctuations in output and TFP in the Korean economy during the Asian crisis of 1997-98. Using the Korean data, I calibrate a standard small open economy model with taxes and tariffs on imported goods, and simulate it. I find that shocks to the price of imports are an important source of fluctuations in Korea's output and TFP in the Korean crisis episode. In particular, in my benchmark case, shocks to the price of imports account for about 55% of the output deviation (from trend), one third of the TFP deviation and three quarters of the labor deviation in 1998.<br>Dissertation/Thesis<br>Ph.D. Economics 2011
28
Zuo, Zhi. "Foreign direct investment in China: locational choices and backward linkages." 2007. http://arrow.unisa.edu.au/vital/access/manager/Repository/unisa:37688.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis investigates the factors that influence the locational choices of foreign firms investing in China and the factors that influence the level of intermediate goods produced by domestic suppliers in China. It finds that some characteristics of the domestic economy are associated with both, and that foreign enterprises? activities are particularly important in determining the output of domestic suppliers.<br>PhD Doctorate
29
Shi, Song. "Monthly house price indices and their applications in New Zealand : a thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Department of Economics and Finance, College of Business, Massey University." 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10179/1136.
Full textAbstract:
Developing timely and reliable house price indices is of interest worldwide, because these measures influence consumer behaviour, inflation targeting, and spot and futures markets. Several techniques for constructing a constant quality price index are available in the literature, but these methods are difficult to apply in localities where market transaction data is limited. Since house price movements are a local phenomena, improving the timeliness of a quality controlled price index at local housing market levels in small countries like New Zealand is a challenge. This thesis comprises three essays that focused on improving the timeliness of reported house price indices at the local market levels. The timeliness issue examined in this thesis has not previously been rigorously investigated and this makes the results of this thesis both important and unique for the benefit of both academic research and practical application. Essay One reviews the sale price appraisal ratio (SPAR) method, which has been applied since the 1960s for producing local house price indices at a semi-annual and quarterly basis in New Zealand. Utilizing a variety of statistical tests and comparing this index with the repeat sales and median price index result in the study highlighting the potential of, as well as the problems associated with, a price index produced by the SPAR method at a monthly level. In the following two essays, monthly price indices are tested using empirical real estate research methods in order to examine their usefulness in exploring the research questions as well as revealing the statistical differences between them. Essay Two studies the relationship between sale price and trading volume, and the ripple effect of local house price comovements. The results show that the trading volume generally leads the sale price in the long-run and the ripple effect is most likely constrained within regions. In Essay Two, the monthly SPAR index produces similar statistical results to those estimated by the repeat sales index for large cities. Essay Three is a study on the market efficiency of housing markets. It is found the local housing market is neither weak-form nor semi-strong form efficient. Local house price movements are strongly correlated and are mean reverting towards their long-run equilibrium. It is further concluded that monthly price indices for small cities are problematic due to the problem of small sample size. Overall, the findings in this thesis show monthly house price indices can be generated by using the SPAR method at local market levels. However, this potential is limited to large cities. Further research can focus on improving the quality of monthly price indices for large cities.
30
Lung, Sidney Mankit. "The impact of international migration on international trade: an empirical study of Australian migrant intake from Asian countries." Thesis, 2008. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/1460/.
Full textAbstract:
In the context of established international economic theory, it is well known that international trade of commodities is effectively trading factors of production such as labour and capital. It follows that if factors of production can be moved internationally, then the need for commodity trade is eased, and trade of commodities and movements of factors of production can be substituted for each other. From this, the conclusion can be reached that factor movement is a substitute for commodity trade. Allowing people to migrate from one country to another country involves migration of labour – the movement of a factor of production. The conclusion that factor flows are a substitute for commodity-trade can be re-stated as international immigration is a substitute for international trade. However, this conclusion does not explain the real world in which both international trade and international immigration have increased over time. Thus, established theory of immigration and trade may not be a reliable policy guide for formulating immigration and/or trade policy. It is the purpose of this thesis to formulate an alternative theory, which more effectively explains the relationship between immigration and trade. For the purpose of distinguishing the impact of immigrants on trade from the impact of other factors on trade, this thesis employs a two-step approach. The first step lays down the theoretical foundations by arguing that immigrants contribute to the economy of the immigrant receiving country in two areas: Firstly, immigrants supply labour to the immigrant receiving country and increase demand for goods and services, hence increase the size of the economy in the immigrant receiving country. Secondly, immigrants bring in intangible social capital and human capital with them (in addition to any tangible capital they bring with them). Both contributions have impacts on international trade. The increasing labour supply could reduce trade, but increasing the market size, and bringing in social capital, in the form of foreign market information, could facilitate trade. The second step employs the latest econometric techniques to test empirically the theory that is developed in the first step, using real world data. The main empirical technique employed in this thesis to analyse the effect of immigration on trade is the gravity model that is estimated using cross-section and time series (panel) data. The case of Australia’s immigration and trade with ten major Asian trade partner countries is selected for the study. The panel cointegration test is conducted to investigate the possible long run equilibrium relation between immigration and trade. The short-run relation between immigration and trade is also examined. This thesis successfully distinguishes between the impact of immigrants on trade and the impact of other influential factors on trade. A strong long run relation between immigration and exports is established. Within a certain range of immigrant intakes, immigrants have positive and significant impact on Australia’s exports to the immigrant home countries. The long run impact is found to be double the strength of the short run impact. However, a long run relation between immigration and imports cannot be clearly established by the panel cointegration test, and the impact of immigrant intake on imports is not strong. Since the long run relation between migrant intake and exports can be established, it is possible that an underlining causation exists. Therefore, a panel causality test on immigration and exports is conducted. The results show that migrant intake “Granger causes” exports, but exports do not Granger cause immigration. This thesis demonstrates that international labour immigration, unlike the movement of other factors of production, is not necessarily a substitute for international trade in the manner described by established international economic theory. In the case of Australia’s immigration and trade with Asian immigrant home countries, immigrants have long run and short run positive impacts on exports, although immigrants do not have a strong impact on Australia’s imports from Asian migrant home countries. Moreover, migrant intake 'causes' exports. The main policy implication of these findings is that Australia can use immigration as a long-term strategy to promote exports to Asian countries.
31
"Comprehensive Cost Factor Based Analysis of Chinese Tire Industry: An International Comparative Study." Doctoral diss., 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/2286/R.I.29860.
Full textAbstract:
abstract: The current study combines field study, survey study, and public financial reports, and conducts an in-depths comprehensive study of the cost of the global tire industry. By comparing the price and the total cost structure of standardized tire products, we investigate Chinese tire industry’s global competitiveness, especially in light of China’s fast increasing labor cost. By constructing a comprehensive cost index (CCI), this dissertation estimates the evolution and forecasts the trend of global tire industry’s cost structure. Based on our empirical analysis, we provide various recommendations for Chinese tire manufacturers, other manufacturing industries, and foreign trade policy makers.<br>Dissertation/Thesis<br>Doctoral Dissertation Business Administration 2015
32
Papadopoulos, Theo. "The economics of copyright, parallel imports and piracy in the music recording industry." Thesis, 2002. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/15661/.
Full textAbstract:
Australia has been at the forefront of trade-related copyright reform having, after almost a decade of debate and controversy, amended the import provisions of the
Copyright Act 1968 to allow parallel imports of sound recordings. This thesis begins with an investigation of the economics of the music recording industry, encompassing the nature of demand and supply of sound recordings, profit
maximising price strategies for a multi-product firm, and an investigation into the market structure and international distribution of sound recordings. This is followed by an investigation of the economics of copyright with respect to sound recordings and the evolution of international intellectual property rights law. This leads to a critical evaluation of the controversy surrounding the exhaustion of copyright and the case for copyright owner control over parallel imports.
33
Vu, Minh Duc. "The economic impact of international tourism on Vietnam's economy." Thesis, 1995. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/15398/.
Full textAbstract:
The general objective of this study is to measure and analyse the impact of tourism development on Vietnam's economy. The study will concentrate on the activities of the
tourist industry in 1994 in Vietnam as a whole. The measurement will be done by using the latest input-output tables for Vietnam, which were developed for the year 1989. However, during the five-year period it has been assumed that the input-output structures have been unchanged significantly, therefore, the results of the analysis are expected to be applicable to the current situation. Moreover, if they do change, or if the direction of the changes is known, the economic outcomes of the analysis can be interpreted to indicate current conditions.
34
Gupta, Ruchi. "Derivatives markets and real economic activity." Thesis, 2004. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/15599/.
Full textAbstract:
Arguably, the single largest innovation in global financial markets in response to financial deregulation and financial innovation over the past two decades has been the emergence
and spectacular growth of derivatives markets. The dramatic emergence of derivatives has caught many Central Bankers unaware and only recently has the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) started investigating seriously the impact of derivatives on policy issues. However, what is needed is further insight into and analysis of the impact of
derivative growth on macroeconomic policy and the macroeconomy. Such insights should enable policy makers to use derivatives to their best advantage. Therefore, the purpose of the study is to examine how monetary policy transmission changes in the presence of derivative markets.
35
Belicka, Samuel. "Trade patterns and determinants in selected trade deficit categories in Australia: 1990-2006." Thesis, 2010. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/16005/.
Full textAbstract:
The Australian Trade Deficit (TD) has been increasing in the past 50 years, and this deficit has become more significant in the last few decades. This rising TD level in Australia has brought the national debt level to a new height, making this country one of the world‟s highest debt-ridden countries. The most alarming fact associated with these trends is that Australia‟s ability to service the increasing debt levels in the future has been diminishing since the increasing debt levels in Australia have been predominantly used for Consumption (C) rather than for gross capital formation. The diminishing ability to service the increasing debt levels in Australia is due to the fact that the TD level is increasing as a proportion of the Australian Gross Domestic Product (GDP), while the Australian gross capital formation as a proportion of the Australian debt is one of the lowest amongst the major debtor countries in the world.
36
Zhang, Christabel Ming. "Valuing Cultural Diversity: the academic adjustment experiences of undergraduate Chinese international Business students at Victoria University." Thesis, 2002. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/229/.
Full textAbstract:
International students have diverse needs when undertaking education in Australian universities. It is in the interest of both international students and the host institution to ensure these students achieve success in their studies. This study builds on previous research and explores, from the students' perspective, the academic adjustment experiences of undergraduate international Business students from Chinese Confucian heritage cultural backgrounds at Victoria University, Australia. A qualitative methodology, using principles of grounded theory, was used for the study. Individual in-depth interviews were conducted for data collection. The transcribed data was analysed under focus questions and themes identified in the literature review using open and fixed grids. The dissertation documents the academic experiences of the cohort of students studied, focusing on the significant cultural factors which impinged on their adjustment; and discusses the emerging patterns, processes of the adjustment, strategies for future students to adjust well, and implications for curriculum development and delivery. The results of this study have suggested that cultural and educational backgrounds play a significant role in students' adjustment. The systematic building by academics and administrators of formal and informal mechanisms in Australian universities, which value students' cultural diversity and develop inclusive curricula, is to enrich the learning experiences of all students.
37
Muktiyanto, Ihda. "Determinant Factors of Market Liquidity in the Indonesian Equity Market." Thesis, 2015. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/29790/.
Full textAbstract:
Liquidity refers to the ability of a financial market to trade large volumes of assets quickly at low cost, and it covers a wide range of market dimensions including size, time and cost. Prior studies have found that liquidity is one of the most significant of an efficient financial market and that it affects costs of equity, returns and valuations, market stability, and economic growth. Although studies and discussions on various aspects and dimensions of liquidity have been well documented, the sources of liquidity variation vary greatly across markets. The main research question of this thesis is: What are the determinant factors of liquidity at market and at firm levels in Indonesia?
38
McCrohan, Declan. "Modelling the economic impact of overseas students' social networks on Australia/Thailand bilateral trade flows." Thesis, 2004. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/15402/.
Full textAbstract:
The exporting of education has become an integral part of the Australian economy and is now Australia's third largest export industry valued at over A$3.2 billion. The
impact that these large flows of students into the Australian economy (for significant periods at a time) is having on Australia's bilateral trade relationships with these source countries, is now a pertinent issue. As the literature on immigration flows has identified, social network theory is an important tool in explaining how cross border flows of people can stimulate international trade activity. What impact are overseas students' social networks playing in stimulating trade activity between Australia and
their home countries? This research on the economic impact of Thai overseas students on Australia/Thailand bilateral trade flows is a timely study undertaken to answer such
questions.
39
Ly, Amadú. "Behavioral finance approach to resource allocation." Doctoral thesis, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10071/18747.
Full textAbstract:
The three essays that comprise this thesis address the behavioral factors that impact resource allocation, more specifically trade and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), around the globe.
The first essay analyses the impact of language similarity on trade, measuring the effect on specific types of products. It extends earlier research on common language network externalities by measuring language similarity effect on bilateral trade from the point of view of the 10 most influential global languages. The findings provide evidence that the impact of language similarity is greater than that of language commonality, and both have a significant impact on bilateral trade. The results also show that language effect on trade varies within the 10 languages, and that this impact is product-specific: culturally sensitive products benefit from a greater language effect.
The second essay is a macro level study of foreign direct investment (FDI). It uses an extended gravity model, data spanning 12 years (2000–2012), to shed new light on the impact on FDI of linguistic and technological similarities between countries. The model includes technological commonality, as measured by the aggregate production of intellectual property, at the country level. An analysis of 71 309 pairs of FDI relationships showed that language is positively associated with a high level of FDI. Technological differences do impede the flow of FDI between countries, and information flow is crucial for large flows of FDI. Information flow diminishes the negative impact of distance. The results also show different attitudes toward investment among high income and low income countries’ multinational corporations (MNCs).
The third essay address Chief Executive Officer’s (CEO’s) demographic characteristics (e.g. age, education) which impact greenfield investment location decisions. Using a hierarchical model (e.g. binomial and linear), data spanning 10 years (2003–2012), the analysis of 49 138 global firm-level greenfield investments shows that CEO’s level of education is crucial to the decision of which country to select and the amount invested. The more educated a CEO is the more likely to invest in developing countries. The results also show that CEOs from developing and emerging countries (DECs) are more risk-prone than their peers from developed countries. They are also more likely to invest in countries considered risky. In addition, the results show that CEOs’ power is associated with less risky choices, that is, the more powerful a CEOs the more likely to invest in developed markets.<br>Os três artigos que compõem esta tese analisam os factores “comportamentais” que influenciam a alocação de recursos (e.g., comércio e investimento directo estrangeiro (IDE)) a nível global.
O primeiro artigo analisa o efeito da similaridade linguística no comércio mundial e em particular em certos produtos. Esta análise é feita do ponto de vista das 10 línguas mais influentes a nível global. Os resultados desta análise oferecem uma interpretação inequívoca sobre o positivo efeito da língua no comércio. E ainda nos permitiu aferir da superioridade da similaridade linguística sobre a língua comum. Os resultados também demonstram que o efeito da língua é diferenciado entre as 10 línguas globalmente mais influentes e que este impacto é específico a certos produtos. Também verificamos que os produtos “culturais” são mais sensíveis ao efeito da língua.
O segundo artigo é uma análise a nível macro do IDE. Para a análise referida utilizamos o modelo gravitacional, dados de 2000 – 2012 para analisar o efeito da assimetria de informação, similaridade linguística e tecnológica. Para índice de similaridade tecnológica utilizamos dados de propriedade intelectual a nível do país. A análise de 71309 pares de IDE entre países revelou o efeito positivo da língua sobre IDE. Verificamos que a diferença tecnológica impede o elevado fluxo de IDE e que o fluxo de informação é crucial para um elevado nível de IDE. Mais, verificamos que elevado fluxo de informação diminui o efeito negativo da distância. Ainda verificamos que a atitude em relação ao investimento varia consoante o nível de recursos dos países de origem.
O terceiro artigo analisa o impacto das características demográficas dos gestores sob a decisão de IDE (i.e. greenfield). Usando modelos hierárquicos, dados de 2003 – 2012, a análise de 49138 dados de greenfield empresarial revela que o nível de educação dos gestores determina a escolha do país e o montante a investir. Também verificamos que quanto mais educado o gestor mais provável é investimentos nos países emergentes e em vias de desenvolvimento. Mais, também verificamos que os gestores originários dos países emergentes e em vias de desenvolvimento assumem mais riscos, i.e., é mais provável investirem em países emergentes ou em vias de desenvolvimento. Também verificamos que os gestores mais poderosos tendem a ter uma atitude mais conservador e assumir menos riscos.
40
Chuankamnerdkarn, Prasit. "Patterns and determinants of Australia's international trade in pharmaceuticals." Thesis, 1997. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/16072/.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis reports the results of a comprehensive analysis of the patterns and determinants of Australia's international trade in pharmaceuticals during the period
1975 to 1992. The thesis provides a thorough review of the theories, measurements and determinants of international trade. Thus, the thesis synthesises the theoretical
framework and econometric methodology for analysing international trade patterns and their determinants. This synthesis will be beneficial to those wishing to undertake research in the area of international trade.
41
Al-Tally, Hasan Ahmed. "An investigation of the effect of financial leverage on firm financial performance in Saudi Arabia's public listed companies." Thesis, 2014. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/24843/.
Full textAbstract:
Since the development of the Saudi Arabian stock market in 2003, corporations have been able to substitute equity for debt more freely. However, new banks have entered the financial market, giving corporations more opportunity to borrow funds. Both fund resources (loan and equity) have experienced their own crises. This research was conducted to investigate the effect of the debt and equity mix, as measured by financial leverage, on a firm’s financial performance. It focuses on profitability, specifically in the Saudi Arabian capital market. This study was developed to extend understandings in the literature of how financial leverage operates in a no-interest based financial system, and how it may affect financial performance. This research examined 57 publicly trading firms listed in the Saudi Arabian stock market between 2002 and 2010. This study extends the understandings previously reported in the literature of how financial performance is linked to financial structure, zakat (Islamic tax), and the ages and sizes of Saudi Arabian firms in a no-interest based financial system. A great motivator of this study was the 2006 Saudi Arabia stock market collapse and the 2008 global financial crisis (GFC) which lowered the businesses’ trust in bank loans as a source of funds.
The overall results of this study were that, in the long term, in the absence of acute economic downturns, lower leverage levels tend to lead to higher profit margins and returns on both assets and equity. It also provides evidence to recommend that, under normal economic conditions, Saudi Arabian firms could attempt to improve their financial performance by balancing their zakat liabilities with their leverage borrowing levels. Another recommendation made by this study is that more studies are needed to examine zakat calculation standards and zakat’s effect on firms’ capital structure and society. The way zakat is calculated and presented in firms’ financial statements is currently vague. Thus, a separate study to examine the effect of zakat on capital structure and financial performance for each sector may provide more in-depth knowledge about this relationship.
42
Alshammary, Meshaal Jasem M. "An Investigation of the Relationship between Capital Market Development and Economic Growth : the Case of Saudi Arabia." Thesis, 2014. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/25918/.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis investigates the long-term and short-term relationships between capital market
development and economic growth in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) for the period
from 1970 to 2010. It employs a wide range of vector autoregression (VAR) and Vector Error
Correction (VECM) models, Unit roots tests, optimal lag tests, Johansen-Juselius
cointegration tests and Granger causality testes to evaluate the importance and impact of
capital market development on economic growth. Using real GDP growth rate (RGDPR) and real non-oil GDP growth rate (RNOIL) as
proxies for economic growth and LM1, LM2 and bank credit to private sector (LBCP) as
proxies for the capital market development. The vector-autoregression models (VAR)
indicates significant long-term causal relationship among all the variables in the system.
Granger causality tests show a bidirectional causal relationship between the economic growth
variable RGDPR and the capital market when proxied by the bank credit to private sector
(LBCP). However, Error-correction models results show no relationships in the short-run.
The thesis implications are as follows. Firstly, investment in real economic activities leads to
economic growth. Secondly, the stock market might hinder economic growth due to its
volatile and international risk sharing nature, low free-floating share ratio, number of listed
companies, the domination of Saudi Individual Stock Trades (SIST) characteristics and the
small size of the least active and limited bond and ETF markets. Thirdly, policymakers
should seek to minimise stock market volatility and fluctuations, increase all the free-floating
share ratio, number of listed companies, size and offering in the bond and ETF markets and
shift investment domination toward corporate investors by considering its effect on economic
growth when formulating economic policies. Fourthly, the banking sector might hinder
economic growth due to its lack of small and medium enterprises lending and shareholder
concentration issues. Finally, policymakers should seek to encourage banks toward more
involvement in small and medium enterprises SMEs’ lending, which will strengthen the
private sector role.
43
Tang, Candy Mei Fung. "Hotel occupancy rate volatility and its determinants." Thesis, 2011. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/21348/.
Full textAbstract:
In the hotel industry, the occupancy rate, which is the number of rooms occupied by inbound tourists in proportion to the total number of rooms available for occupation, is an indicator of a hotel’s availability. For planning purposes, it is useful for hotel management to know well in advance the expected occupancy rates. However, since the hotel industry is among the most volatile and is influenced by local and international economic and political factors, it is difficult to predict exact occupancy rates. To manage risks associated with this volatility and uncertainty, the hotel industry considers it sufficient to be able to know in advance the turning points in occupancy rates, which are the periods in time when increasing occupancy rates change to decreasing occupancy rates and, subsequently, decreasing occupancy rates change to increasing occupancy rates.
The present study aims to develop models that could predict the turning points of the upward and downward trends in hotel occupancy rates so that hoteliers would know in advance when the current trend would change for the better or worse. These models are developed not for individual hotels but for groups of hotels that have similar tariffs or pricing levels, as occupancy rates vary according to prices charged. Given that there is no evidence of past research using non-linear models for predicting occupancy rates in the hotel industry, the present study predicts the turning points that indicate the directional change in the hotel occupancy rate by estimating logistic and probit regression models with a composite leading indicator and hotel demand determinants.
44
Albahooth, Bayan. "Interdependence of oil prices and global factors affecting the stock market performance: a sectoral analysis of GCC countries." Thesis, 2020. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/41775/.
Full textAbstract:
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries are the major world suppliers of petroleum and petroleum products. Therefore, their stock markets are likely more vulnerable to changes in petroleum product prices. Moreover, the volatility of GCC stock markets is also influenced by other important global factors, such as the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) World index; as well as movements in international financial markets, particularly the United States (US) S&P 500 index. This thesis aims to investigate the independent relationship between oil prices and other global factors— including MSCI and US S&P 500 indices—among three major GCC stock market sectors (consumer discretionary, financial and real estate) in the period 2010–17 in which a major oil price decline directly affected the growth of GCC financial markets as GCC countries held 30% of the world’s proven oil reserves. The objective of the research is to identify to what extent oil prices along with other global factors affect GCC stock market volatility at the sectoral level. Studying the volatility transmission behaviours of GCC stock markets at the sectoral level gives a better understating of the volatile behaviour of GCC equity markets. It also eliminates the masking of individual sector reactions that may result in the case of studying stock markets as a single block.
This research adopts various advanced econometrics quantitative methods to test hypotheses regarding the nature of volatility transmission behaviours involving GCC stock markets and a set of global factors, by using daily stock return of the selected variables under study. The methods applied include an exponential generalised autoregressive conditional heteroscedastic (EGARCH) model, vector autoregressive (VAR) model, Granger causality model, cross-correlation function (CCF) and multivariate GARCH- BEKK model. These models provide a comprehensive and in-depth view of how various selected sectors in GCC equity markets respond to volatility transmission with a set of the most influential global factors. The key research findings on volatility transmission effects between GCC stock markets and three global factors (West Texas Intermediate [WTI] oil price, MSCI and US S&P 500 index) suggest that the WTI oil price has a major influence on various selected sectors of GCC stock markets, while the MSCI and S&P 500 indices show less of an impact on the GCC sectors under study. The analysis findings are then used to obtain optimal weights and hedge ratios for building optimal, diversified portfolios that contain both oil and non-oil assets in the equity markets under study. Using advanced analysis techniques, this research aims to derive practical, in-depth implications for both GCC stock market investors and government policy makers about volatility patterns for oil prices and global factors that affect GCC stock markets.
45
Alharbi, Mohanned. "Identifying an Optimal Foreign Currency Reserve Composition to Mitigate the Volatility Spillover Effect of Declining Oil Price: The Case of Saudi Arabia." Thesis, 2020. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/41774/.
Full textAbstract:
Saudi Arabia, one of the Group of Twenty (G20) economies, has fascinated the world with its increase of foreign currency reserve based on oil revenues. The sharp rise in Saudi foreign currency reserves is one of the most important features of the nation’s rapid wealth accumulation. Foreign reserves are viewed as a national source of economic growth security and financial stability. However, since the 2014–2016 oil price decline, foreign reserves have largely been spent; the depletion has been attributed to sustained government expenditure and declining oil revenues.
This study addresses the financial management of the composition of Saudi Arabia’s foreign currency reserve (SFCR) during the 2014–2016 oil price decline. During this period, the Saudi government used its foreign currency reserve to cover government expenditure. Therefore, there is a need to develop a financial management strategy to mitigate foreign currency reserve depletion. The aim of this study is to identify the optimal foreign currency composition that provided a higher return during the examined period. Two approaches are considered regarding foreign currency reserve composition: univariate and multivariate generalised autoregressive conditional heteroscedasticity (GARCH) models for institutional management.
The focus of this work is the portfolio composition management viewpoint during the 2014–2016 oil price decline; it considers the suggested distribution of SFCR only during this period. In particular, the research examines SFCR allocation across three groups of currency pairs: major currencies; commodity currencies; and emerging countries’ currencies. The currency groups are analysed and simulated to identify the optimal foreign currency reserve composition. Optimal weights and hedging ratios are used in this study to mitigate risk exposures of oil price volatility by adding currencies that negatively correlated with oil in the SFCR portfolio. This study provides recommendations as general comprehensive guidelines for strategic asset allocation options for consideration by Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA) portfolio management authorities.
The study uses the GJR-GARCH model, proposed by Glosten, Jagannathan and Runkle (1993) and Lamoureux and Lastrapes (1990), to understand the dynamic behaviour for each currency pair and estimate the persistence in variance using the univariate mean-variance analysis. Further, it employs the multivariate VAR(1)-GARCH(1,1) model, including the Baba, Engle, Kraft and Kroner, constant conditional correlation and dynamic conditional correlation models, to understand the interaction between oil prices and foreign currencies. In addition, cross-correlation function, introduced by Cheung and Ng (1996), also incorporates the univariate GARCH model in two steps to confirm the results of multivariate GARCH and test for the causes in variance between oil and currency pairs. Third, and finally, the optimal weight of the foreign currencies in this study is determined as suggested by Kroner and Ng (1998). The hedge ratio follows Kroner and Sultan’s (1993) approach as a policy recommendation to the SAMA to rebalance the composition foreign currency reserve portfolio. Using the above econometric models, this study will identify and select the possible currencies that can be combined with existing currencies in SAMA’s foreign currency reserve portfolio.
Using the result of univariate GARCH analysis for oil and each currency will help SFCR portfolio managers in SAMA to understand the dynamic behaviour of oil and currency exchange rates. Further, it will allow SAMA to introduce an efficient currency-selection strategy that mitigates the risk of depletion by investing in foreign exchange markets. Moreover, it enhances SFCR portfolio composition and maximises dynamic asset allocations when estimating the effect of volatility spillover between oil and the currencies. In this research, SAMA seeks to protect its foreign currency reserve portfolio against price fluctuation by investing in chosen foreign currencies. In addition, the results of the multivariate GARCH models estimate portfolio weights and hedge ratios by using variances and covariances matrices. The results of the multivariate analysis reveal that based on the optimal weights and hedge ratios estimation, SAMA portfolio diversification should increase its focus on some commodities and emerging countries’ currencies to rebalance SFCR composition. This study recommends that, for example, the Japanese yen, Swiss franc, Swedish krona and Polish zloty be added to the current major currencies to reduce the impact of oil volatility.
46
Alshelfan, Ayman Ibrahim. "Maslaha: a New Approach for Islamic Bonds." Thesis, 2014. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/25079/.
Full textAbstract:
Islamic finance is inextricably linked to Islamic law, or sharia, which is richly detailed
and difficult to distil into simple rules. In particular, it invokes the concept of maslaha to
prohibit or permit actions and choices on the basis of whether or not it serves the best interest
of the community at large. This aspect of Islamic finance has not been addressed and the
purpose of this thesis is to fill this gap in knowledge.
This thesis conducts a comprehensive investigation of application of the concept of
maslaha as a new approach for Islamic bonds in theory and practice. Integrated into this is a
comprehensive analysis of sharia auditing where knowledge in the areas of Islamic
economics, finance, and law are brought together to articulate a holistic framework for
Islamic finance. The thesis argues that the concept of maslaha must be applied in its entirety
in determining sharia compliance of financial contracts in order to avoid increasing the level
of risk faced by the participants in the Islamic finance sector. Impaired contracts, apart from
increasing the level of risk, increase the probability of costly litigations and diminish the
degree of market competitiveness of Islamic financial products.
47
Ridwan, Deni. "An empirical analysis of market discipline imposed by stakeholders in the Indonesian banking sector." Thesis, 2017. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/34836/.
Full textAbstract:
Financial sector authorities have incorporated market discipline as an integral part of their banking regulatory frameworks. Accordingly, in Indonesia, the Basel II Capital Accord has institutionalized the market discipline as Pillar 3 to complement requirements under Pillar 1 (risk-based calculation of capital) and Pillar 2 (supervisory review process). In addition, the provision of a financial safety net (FSN) has been a key element of the policy response to recent financial crises. This provision, however, might potentially lead to moral hazard outcomes that could impair the incentives for market players to monitor and discipline financial institutions. In turn, this could incite more risky bank activities and increase the likelihood of a financial crisis. Therefore, a further investigation of the presence of market discipline and the impact of a FSN is imperative to develop a more credible policy to safeguard financial system stability, especially in developing economies such as Indonesia.
This study investigates the presence of market discipline in the Indonesian banking sector as imposed by depositors, bond holders, and equity holders. The discipline by depositors is measured through the impact of bank fundamentals on the changes in the amount of deposits. Whereas, discipline by bond and equity holders is measured through the impact of bank fundamentals on bond yield spreads and equity returns, respectively. Bank fundamentals, in this study, are associated with the Capital Asset Management Earning and Liquidity (CAMEL) financial indicators that are commonly used by banking authorities to assess bank soundness. This study employs a dynamic panel data model using a sample of 95 banks, 70 bonds, and 11 equities.
Regardless of the lack of ideal conditions for an effective market discipline in a developing market, the present study has identified the presence of market discipline imposed by depositors and bond holders, but no significant evidence of discipline by equity holders. Moreover, this study identified moral hazard implications of the provision of a FSN. These include the lessening of discipline by large and institutional depositors and the existence of the “too big to fail” (TBTF) perception among stakeholders.
48
Ramadyanto, Widodo. "Fiscal Risks and Impacts Assessment on the Renewable Energy Policies in Indonesia." Thesis, 2019. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/38647/.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis tries to assess the Indonesia fiscal risk because of government guarantees for renewable energy development, particularly the development of geothermal power plants. These plants in Indonesia can be developed either by the PLN (a state-owned enterprise) or by private investors. When the plants are developed by private investors, they have to sell the electricity to PLN as it is the only electricity retailer in Indonesia. If PLN build power plants, it needs loans from financial institutions, but due to its financial condition, those financial institutions need government guarantees which ensure PLN’s ability to service the debts. Meanwhile, when the power plants are developed by private investors, the investors need to be guaranteed that PLN will be able to pay for the purchased power. These guarantees might create a fiscal risk for the government. The government has been stating fiscal risks in its national budget, but it only focuses on the risk exposures without estimating their probabilities. Therefore, this study tries to complete the current budget statement which provides both exposures and probabilities of fiscal risks from government guarantees for renewable energy projects. Furthermore, the government has been applying a simulation model to assess the fiscal risks but it is in a definite number which does not incorporate uncertainties. Whereas uncertainties can alter the government policy. Moreover, the government model to assess fiscal risk on the power sector incorporates general power plants which may not suitable for the renewable energy power, particularly geothermal power. It is then forecasted that it is likely there will be no government guarantee for geothermal projects for 2018 and 2019. However, with less than 10% probabilities of an exposure of up to IDR 18.8 trillion and IDR 25.2 trillion for 2018 and 2019 respectively. Under 90% certainty, the maximum guarantee exposure will be up to IDR 1.9 trillion and IDR 4.1 trillion. As results, these exposures are categorised as low risk because they are below the threshold value of 0.5% of GDP but the government will have a sufficient cash to pay the maximum possible guarantee amounts. These forecasted figured are based on a Monte Carlo simulation model, a stochastic simulation model, for renewable energy power plants. In practical, this model can act as a tool for analysing guarantee proposals, to estimate fiscal risk and economic impacts of the guarantees, to design fiscal risk control policies. Therefore, this study can be applied for decision making regarding government guarantee in Indonesia. In academic point of view, this study explains the transmission of fiscal risk from government guarantees on geothermal projects in Indonesia to the fiscal risk. It also enrich academic perspective on fiscal risk management which is differ from other literatures as it explains fiscal risk from the Indonesian government guarantees, adds knowledge on the relationship between government expenditure, government guarantees on renewable energy development and fiscal sustainability in Indonesia, and provides knowledge through a practical and applicable fiscal risk assessment approach on government guarantees. It is concluded that there will be no government guarantee exposure for geothermal projects in 2018 and 2019, so the government need not to allocate the guarantee expenditures in the national budget for the years.
49
Qadri, Hussain Mohi-ud-Din. "An analysis of trade flows among ECO member countries and potential for a free trade area." Thesis, 2012. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/21475/.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis analyses the trade flows among the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) member countries themselves, and with the major trade partners of each ECO member country under reference (Pakistan, Iran, Turkey and Kazakhstan). This research seeks to identify the potential for expansion of trade flows and the potential for a Free Trade Area (FTA) among the ECO countries. The movement towards greater policy openness in the ECO region provides the context for this, under various ECO agreements.
The thesis reviews the theoretical and empirical literature on regional economic integration with special focus on the experience of regional integration arrangements in Europe and North America. It then undertakes a discussion of the economic structure and the trade patterns of Pakistan, Iran, Turkey and Kazakhstan, the four major countries of ECO, which constitute the focus of this thesis. This discussion leads to an examination of economic and political factors, which influence the potential for greater regional integration.
50
Aldahoum, Abdulaziz. "The Effect of Royal Decrees and Economic Announcements on the Saudi Stock Market: A High-Frequency Data Analysis." Thesis, 2021. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/42260/.
Full textAbstract:
Significant economic, social and cultural progress has taken place in Saudi Arabia since Saudi Vision 2030 was initiated in 2016. This progress has been accelerated by a number of royal decrees that aim to reform the structure of the government and support social, political and economic development. This thesis investigates the effects of Saudi royal decrees and economic announcements on stock market returns based on the assumptions of the efficient market hypothesis. This specialised empirical study considers four industrial sectors in the Saudi stock market: banking, energy, materials and telecommunications. The effects of royal decrees on the Saudi financial market have not been studied in the literature.
High-frequency stock market data provide a clearer and more accurate view of the market’s behaviour than low-frequency data. The primary objective is to determine how market return volatility responds to royal decrees and Saudi and US economic announcements. Realised volatility of the TASI at 5-minute intervals is used for the period 2014–2019 were obtained for the selected sectors. A multiple linear regression model was employed to examine the selected variables affecting Saudi stock market volatility.
The estimation results confirmed that Saudi stock market responds positively to royal decrees, Saudi economic announcements and the Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 500 Index movements. In addition, a significant relationship was identified between the volatility of Saudi stock returns and Saudi economic announcements. However, there is no significant relationship between Saudi stock market returns and US economic announcements. These results have important implications for domestic and foreign investors in the Saudi stock market. This study fills a knowledge gap regarding the importance of Saudi royal decrees to the Saudi stock market. The findings of this study will provide policymakers, market participants, market regulators and academic researchers with important insights into the behaviour of the stock market.