Wavelet Analysis of the Bombay Stock Exchange Index

The fluctuations in the rate of returns of the Bombay stock exchange are analyzed through wavelet transform. The fluctuations, in various time scales, naturally separated by the wavelets, are subjected to statistical analysis. The localization and multiresolution properties of the wavelets enable one to identify collective behaviour in the stock market and the extent of their influence at various time scales. The Gaussian nature of the rate of returns at certain scales and the periodic nature of the same, at other scales, are clearly brought out by this analysis. The utility of this approach for modeling purpose is also elucidated.

     

The implications of private tutoring on the school education in LDCs

In many LDCs, we observe that the public school teachers receive low wages, expend less than their full effort at school, and provide private tutoring to the students for a fee. To capture this institutional arrangement, we develop a theoretical model which shows that in comparison with ‘no-tutoring’, ‘tutoring’ is welfare reducing for all students in the economy. However, if the government considers only the students in the public system, then ‘tutoring’ can be welfare improving. In that case, the government would set a lower tax rate to pay wages to the teachers and let them provide tutoring to the students for a fee.     

Impact of Online Reviews on Consumer’s Hotel Booking Intentions: Does Brand Image Mediate?

Abstract

The recent trend suggests that people are more inclined to online hotel reviews to take online hotel booking decisions. The present study argues that when consumers are exposed to online hotel reviews, it draws an impression of the hotel brand in the mind of consumers, resulting in influence their hotel booking intentions. The current study determines the mediation effects of brand image between credible online hotel reviews and consumers’ hotel booking intentions. To ascertain the uni-dimensionality of the scales, the present study executes exploratory factor analysis. The ensure the internal consistency of the variable scales, the study determines Cronbach’s alpha. To measure the mediation effects, the present study performs structural equation modeling bootstrapping method. Data analysis reveals that marketers should look at hedonic brand image, which ultimately influences consumers’ hotel booking intentions. This is a unique study that ascertains the type of brand image that actually mediates between the impact of online hotel reviews and consumers’ hotel booking intentions. In addition, the paper furnishes theoretical background on how people interpret online hotel reviews and its effects.     

Volatility–volume causality across single stock spot–futures markets in India

This study examines the causal relationships between volatility and volume across spot and futures market for the 50 constituent stocks of the CNX NIFTY Index. Granger non-causality tests implemented using vector autoregression (VAR) and asymmetric VAR models indicate the presence of significant causal relations from both the spot and futures volume to both the spot and futures volatility. Bidirectional causal relationships between spot and futures volume were observed for almost all stocks but few stocks displayed a similar relationship between volatilities. The results highlight the importance of volume in absorbing information and its behaviour as the conduit of information.     

Public Infrastructure and the Productive Performance of Canadian Manufacturing Industries

This article examines the effects of public infrastructure on the productive performance of 12 two-digit Canadian manufacturing industries. A flexible cost function incorporating public capital infrastructure is estimated for each industry separately using annual time series data for 1961-1995. The effects of public infrastructure on productivity are measured in terms of both cost-saving (dual) and output-augmenting (primal) measures. We also investigate how public capital influences the input demand and cost structure in each industry and calculate the rate of return to public capital. The empirical results provide strong evidence of the important role public infrastructure plays in the productivity of manufacturing industries. The public capital serves as a substitute for both private capital and labor in most industries. The rates of return to public capital are significant and vary over the years.