A comparative analysis of perception of dividends by financial managers

This paper is a report about the perception of dividends by Chief financial officers (CFOs). The research encompasses five countries, on three continents, and covers three types of economies. Our cross-sectional study is concerned with both inter- and intra-societal differences that may or may not exist regarding the perception of dividends by those who are in charge of making such decisions in the firm. Using a survey instrument, we find that both similarities and dissimilarities exist inter- and intra-culturally. Perhaps the most important conclusion we reach is that dividend research must take a different track than it has been following so far.     

Market Reforms and Commodity Price Volatility: The Case of East African Coffee Market

The goal of this paper is to examine the impact of commodity market reforms on producer price volatility using evidence from the East African coffee market. The results, based on time‐varying volatility models and key summary statistics, show that coffee market reforms in the East African Community (EAC) are associated with changes in producer price volatility and volatility persistence at both country and regional levels. However, reforms were not the only cause of changes in price volatility. The study further shows that reforms had different effects on prices volatilities of Arabica and Robusta varieties of coffee grown in individual EAC countries. These findings have wider implication for commodity market reforms and producer price stabilisation policies in the EAC and coffee producing countries in sub‐Sahara Africa.     

Key Managerial Accounting Skills for Lodging Industry Managers: The Third Phase of a Repeated Cross-Sectional Study

This study is the third phase of a repeated cross-sectional study that explores the current rankings of important accounting skills to lodging managers and the changes in the importance of accounting skills to lodging managers over time. In this study, as with two prior studies, financial executives were asked to rate the importance of a list of managerial accounting skills used by hotel general managers. The top three managerial accounting skills were the operating budget, the income statement, and analysis of variances. This study can provide a better sense of the perception of importance of accounting skills utilized by lodging managers. It will be useful for hospitality educators in designing the curriculum for managerial accounting courses to meet the expectations of the current hospitality industry.     

Consumer microflow experiences

This research explores relatively short, low‐intensity flow states, called microflow and demonstrates that they differ from their longer, more complex deepflow variants with regards to antecedents. As an advancement to flow theory, we demonstrate that the ideal condition to elicit microflow is when skills are slightly higher than the difficulty of the task. Importantly, despite being relatively shorter, microflow experiences still have a strong positive influence on consumer attitudes. Our research also advances theory by demonstrating that the two dimensions of microflow have different relationships with the level of difficulty and consumer attitudes. We discuss both theoretical and practical implications.     

Labour market adjustment to third-party competition: Evidence from Mexico

China's exports reduce wages in importing countries, but few studies have looked at competition in third-party markets. We examine labour market outcomes in Mexico's apparel and textile sectors associated with US apparel and textile imports from China. Using data on US imports in conjunction with quarterly Mexican labour force surveys, we show that US imports from China are associated with a reduction of employment in Mexico's apparel and textile sectors. These effects are the most pronounced for the least educated. Wages were not impacted on net except for possibly the poorest which would indicate stronger local labour market ties in the left tail of the wage distribution. Finally, the effects of trade-induced demand shocks dissipate after about two quarters indicating low firm-level adjustment costs.     

An empirical study of voluntary transfer pricing disclosures in China

This paper empirically investigates the factors that affect the management’s voluntary disclosures of the transfer pricing details of related-party transactions. Using Chinese data from 2004 and 2005, we hypothesize and find that firms that make voluntary disclosures of the pricing methods of related-party transactions are negatively associated with (i) a higher level of earnings management (as captured by abnormal related-party transactions) and (ii) its underlying incentives (as captured by the management’s performance-linked bonuses and the firm’s incentives to achieve earnings targets); further, they are positively associated with (i) a higher percentage of independent directors and (ii) a higher percentage of government ownership. Overall, our findings suggest that earnings management and its incentives, board composition, and ownership structure significantly influence the voluntary disclosure decisions of managers.     

横向并购背景下的品牌整合——以美的集团为案例

国内外专门针对横向并购背景下的品牌整合问题鲜有研究.在文献综述的基础上,本文以美的集团为研究对象,采用规范的案例研究方法对其品牌整合战略、影响战略决策的关键因素以及品牌整合绩效进行了深入分析.在案例研究的基础上,进一步提出了四种品牌整合战略类型,结合案例分析中得到的六个影响因素及两个调节变量,将品牌整合绩效作为结果变量...     

Distance measures between free trade and autarky for the world economy

We develop a methodology to determine numerically how globalized the world economy is. We present a global general equilibrium model capturing major OECD economies and a residual rest of world for which alternative metrics of distance between observed, free trade and autarky equilibria can be developed. We use data for 2000 and report a number of distance measures between the 2000 observed trade restricted equilibrium and both free trade and autarky equilibria noting the absence of prior literature on metrics of distance between equilibria. The measures are used to determine the degree to which the world economy is globalized.