Corporate bond market interdependence: Credit spread correlation between and within U.S. and Canadian corporate bond markets

This study investigates the correlation and interdependence between and within the U.S. and Canadian corporate bond markets. The empirical framework adopted allows credit spreads to depend on common systematic risk factors derived from structural models and incorporates dynamic conditional correlations (DCC) between spreads. Results show that there is a surprisingly weak correlation between the two markets in normal times. However, during crises, there is a sudden and strong increase in the correlation between U.S. and Canadian credit spreads. The analysis of credit spread correlation within each market also shows an unusual increase in credit spread correlations between sectors and between risk classes in the U.S. during the 2007–2009 global financial crisis. This increase persists over the post-crisis period. By contrast, in Canada, credit spread correlations between sectors remain remarkably stable over time, suggesting an interdependence of credit spreads within the Canadian market.     

Development and transformation of collaborative networks in events

This study examines the mechanisms by which and the reasons that leaders of non-profit organizations transform interorganizational collaborative networks through event attendance. Drawing from a two-wave survey, this study examines the interorganizational networks of 30 individuals who participated in both waves, along with the reported activities of 121 individuals who participated in the second wave of the survey. This mixed methods study found that events transformed participants’ weak ties into strong ties and promoted development of collaborative networks. Further, the study found that participants’ motivations for attending the event and following up with contacts afterward focused on sharing resources and deepening connections. Implications for understanding how events promote formation and transformation of collaborative networks are discussed.     

Entrepreneurial intention and startup preparation: A study among business students in Malaysia

Intention, as the starting point of pursuing self-employment and creating new ventures, is crucial before actually establishing a business enterprise. Entrepreneurship is understood to be an essential ingredient for enhancing a country's economic competitiveness, growth, and sustainability while confronting the escalating challenges of globalization, such as increasing unemployment. This study provides empirical evidence on the factors influencing entrepreneurial intention and startup preparations among university students in Malaysia. The findings provide scholars and academic policymakers with insights into the effectiveness of Malaysia's entrepreneurial education as designed and practiced by public universities. The Malaysian government should apply these findings to fortify existing policies and programs and formulate new ones to support graduate entrepreneurs, while universities and other higher education institutions should provide high-quality entrepreneurial courses and programs to young Malaysians to foster an inclination toward entrepreneurship.     

The European refugee crisis and the natural rate of output

The European Commission follows a harmonized approach for calculating structural (potential) output for EU member states that takes into account labour as an important ingredient. This article shows how the recent huge migrants’ inflow to Europe affects trend output. Due to the fact that the immigrants immediately increase the working population but effectively do not enter the labour market, we illustrate that the potential output is potentially upward biased without any corrections. Taking Germany as an example, we find that the average medium-term potential growth rate is lower if the migration flow is modelled adequately compared to results based on the unadjusted European Commission procedure.     

构建与普及理性低碳生活方式——人类文明社会演进的应然逻辑

人类的生活方式是与其社会的文明状态相适应的。原始文明社会中人类的生活方式是“朴素无碳”的，农业文明社会中人类的生活方式是“适应性低碳”的，工业文明社会中人类的生活方式是“发展性高碳”的，而生态文明社会中人类的生活方式应是“理性低碳”的。理性低碳生活方式是人类可持续发展的自我选择，是要在提高生活水平和质量的进程中实现低碳化，是生活方式的革命性发展。构建和普及理性低碳生活方式，需要树立和强化低碳生活理念，实现衣食住行等多方面的低碳化改造；需要全人类的共同努力，各个国家和地区应根据实际情况选择和普及各具特色的理性低碳生活方式；需要各生活主体的协同配合，政府、企业与居民等要全方位地、积极地、广泛地践行理性低碳生活方式。     

生态女性主义视角下苔丝的命运及女性意识的觉醒

从生态女性主义的视角来看，在托马斯·哈代作品《德伯家的苔丝》中的主人公苔丝的悲剧命运是由当时父权制社会的政治、经济、文化等方面因素所致，作品中苔丝的反抗则表现出了其女性主义意识的觉醒。     

江苏省虚拟水贸易结构调整研究

基于江苏省2012年投入产出表及水资源公报的统计数据,运用修正后的投入产出模型,定量计算江苏省贸易用水强度、虚拟水净输出量,并通过调整贸易结构,最大化实现节水效应。研究表明:2012年江苏省虚拟水贸易整体上呈现净流入,有利于节约省内水资源;从贸易额调整来看,在设定的5%、10%、15%3个调整幅度的基础上改变传统的贸易输出、输入结构,化学产品、煤炭采选产品部门出现大规模节水效应,随着调整幅度的增加,净输出量大的部门节水效应越来越大。江苏省虚拟水贸易是当前实现资源节约与经济发展的重要方式。     

Accounting quality,information risk and the term structure of implied volatility around earnings announcements

We examine the association between accounting quality, which is used as a proxy for firm information risk, and the behavior of the term structure of implied option volatility around earnings announcements. By employing a large sample of US firms having options traded on their equity during 1996–2010, we find that lower (higher) accounting quality is significantly associated with stronger (weaker) changes in the steepness of the term structure of implied volatility curve around quarterly earnings announcements. This finding (which is robust to controls for business-stemming uncertainty regarding future firm performance) is consistent with a stronger differential of short vs. long-term uncertainty for higher information risk firms, indicating greater uncertainty on the future economic performance of poorer vs. stronger accounting quality firms. We also establish the trading implications of these findings by demonstrating a (profitable in-sample) self-financed option trading strategy that is based on the quality of the accounting information released on earnings announcement days.     

Tax avoidance and ex ante cost of capital

This study examines the association between tax avoidance and ex ante cost of equity capital. Based on prior research, we develop two proxies for investors’ expectations of tax avoidance and explore whether deviations from those expectations result in higher ex ante cost of equity capital. We find that the ex ante cost of equity capital increases with tax avoidance that is either below or above investor expectations and that the increase is larger for tax avoidance that exceeds investors’ expectations. We then examine whether firms that alter their future tax avoidance exhibit a lowering of their ex ante cost of equity capital and find that tax avoidance decreases (increases) from the prior year for firms that were above (below) investors’ expectations in the prior year. These results are consistent with the trade‐off suggested by the Scholes and Wolfson framework and reinforce the notion that balancing tax benefits and non‐tax costs is an important feature of firms’ tax planning.     

以政府职能转变推动收入分配改革

收入和财富分配的不平等一直是中国改革发展中的重要问题。针对中国经济的特点,可以从政府改革的角度来研究如何更好地进行收入分配改革。地方政府主导推动地方经济的做法对收入不平等的扩大起了重要作用,加快政府职能转换,是使收入分配改革真正落到实处的破局之处,也是实现收入分配合理化可行的第一步。要改变地方政府的经济职能,降低它直接参与基础设施的程度,改革地方土地财政,建立垂直管理机构,以分散它的一部分经济管理职能,为收入分配改革打开空间。