Mapping global sustainability report scoring: a detailed analysis of Europe and Asia

This study maps the General Reporting Initiative (GRI) relations for a set of global enterprises. Enterprise interrelationships are built using the Mutual Information (MI) of the data reported by enterprises. From the MI topology, we describe interrelationships among the enterprises using chord diagrams to represent the inter- and intra-connectivity between geographical regions and economic sectors globally, by continent and country. Detailed maps are presented for European and Asian regions/sectors, including the relationship between Europe and Asia’s top reporting countries. Our findings reinforce previous research regarding the role of Europe as a driver of sustainability and its influence worldwide. We also determined that Spain is a major player in Europe and that Northern Europe does not have the assumed leading role mentioned in related studies. Eastern Asia is, by far, the leader of the region, and the GRI maps demonstrate the preponderant role of China in the region and the minimal role of India. MI topology maps outline the behavior of the economic sectors, for all the studied regions. Furthermore, a measure that relates the inter- to intra-connections is presented to describe the internal an external relationships among regions/sectors.     

低热硅酸盐水泥在特高拱坝中的应用

针对中热硅酸盐水泥在水化过程中释放的热量相对较多,难以满足特高拱坝温控防裂要求的问题,本文从研究低热硅酸盐水泥性能的角度出发,结合其在等特高拱坝中的应用情况,得出:相比于中热硅酸盐水泥,低热硅酸盐水泥在水化过程中释放的热量相对较小,有利于控制混凝土最高温度和温升速率,低热硅酸盐水泥的综合抗裂性能更好.目前,在溪洛渡、白鹤滩等特高拱坝应用低热硅酸盐水泥后并未发现任何裂缝,为在其他300级特高拱坝建设中使用低热硅酸盐水泥提供依据.     

Foreign inflows and economic growth: An emiprical study of the SAARC region

The study examines and highlights the impact of selected foreign inflows (aid, trade, FDI, debt and remittances) on the economic growth of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries. The existent literature lacks a comprehensive analysis of the SAARC countries as countries like Afghanistan, Bhutan and the Maldives have largely been ignored due to the shorter time periods of available data. The study is empirical in nature and utilizes panel data techniques on macroeconomic data for the period 2008–2015. Foreign aid and foreign direct investment are found to impact economic growth positively. Foreign debt and trade flows are found to adversely affect economic growth. No relationship is established between the flow of remittances and the economic growth of these countries. The obtained results are robust to different proxy variables and the addition of macroeconomic variables. For the first time, the study provides policy implications based on the data of all SAARC countries. The study recommends focusing on increasing the inflows of resources in the form of aid and foreign direct investment (FDI) from the developed world to achieve higher economic growth.     

Magic mirror in my hand … How trade mirror statistics can help us detect illegal financial flows

Misreporting tricks of different sorts applied to the transfer of goods between different countries are typically exploited by criminals worldwide for money laundering ends. The main international anti‐money laundering organisations started paying attention to this phenomenon, dubbed “trade‐based money laundering” (TBML), a long time ago, but the failure to develop appropriate analytical tools has reportedly dogged preventive actions. Nonetheless, literature has widely advocated the possibility that the analysis of inconsistencies in mirrored bilateral trade data could provide some help. By building on previous contributions in the field, this work sets up a model factoring in the main structural determinants of discrepancies between mirrored data concerning Italy's 2010 to 2013 external trade at a highly detailed (6‐digit) level of goods classification for each partner country. Point estimates of freight costs are used to net each observation of the corresponding cif/fob discrepancy. The regression estimates are then deployed in order to compute TBML risk indicators at a country/4‐digit product level. Based on the indicators, rankings of countries and product lines can be compiled, which may be used for a risk‐driven search of potential illegal commercial transactions.     

“济南就是我的家”——济南外商服务月侧记

5月下甸,又是一个烈日炎炎的夏日,杰克·史密斯先生按照惯例早早就起了床。但与平日不同的是,作为公司行政总监的他并没有直接去自己的办公室开始一天的工作,而是手拿一份查体表来到了济南市中医院,成为济南市第二届外商服务月活动中的首项内容“为济南市外企员工查体活动”的第一批受益者。在经过非常细致的心、脑、血液等项目的     

诚实守信是构建和谐社会的前提--中国社会信任危机成因分析

诚实守信是构建和谐社会的前提.信任危机是当代中国构建和谐社会的最大障碍,其产生于社会的转型变革,形成于社会制度性体制的缺失,加深于人的存在危机.而消除的唯一途径只能是积极地构建一种新型的社会信任保障制度体制,以强化人们对制度性承诺的信任理念意识,为构建和谐社会创造条件.     

新巴塞尔协议与我国的银行风险管理

新巴塞尔协议代表了国际银行业风险管理的发展方向,已经成为世界银行业风险管理的国际准则。文章分析了巴塞尔协议的制度变迁,结合新巴塞尔协议的基本框架,分析了新巴塞尔协议对我国的影响,提出了新巴塞尔协议下我国银行风险管理的制度选择原则。     

Spatial Metrics of the Technological Transfer: Analysis and Strategic Management

The Triple Helix thesis states that research laboratories and universities can play an enhanced role in innovation in increasingly knowledge-based societies. In fact the locus of industrial innovation is shifting towards networks focused on technological transfer from public research laboratories to firms. This scenario presents challenges for investigating the new behaviour of research laboratories and the measurement and evaluation of their scientific and technological activity. This study analyses how the variable 'space' affects an important activity carried out within these laboratories: the technological transfer. The purpose of this research is to: (1) construct indicators, called sensors, starting from the geographical neo-classical approach based on physical distance, for measuring and studying the spatial dynamics of technological transfer;(2) apply the metrics to case studies using data from three institutes of the Italian National Council of Research operating in an industrialised region in the north-west Italy. The sensors are useful for understanding the spatial behaviour both of the technological transfer process, and the strategy of research laboratories. Some management implications conclude the research.     

Optimal Lending Contracts and Firm Dynamics

We develop a general model of lending in the presence of endogenous borrowing constraints. Borrowing constraints arise because borrowers face limited liability and debt repayment cannot be perfectly enforced. In the model, the dynamics of debt are closely linked with the dynamics of borrowing constraints. In fact, borrowing constraints must satisfy a dynamic consistency requirement: the value of outstanding debt restricts current access to short-term capital, but is itself determined by future access to credit. This dynamic consistency is not guaranteed in models of exogenous borrowing constraints, where the ability to raise short-term capital is limited by some prespecified function of debt. We characterize the optimal default-free contract—which minimizes borrowing constraints at all histories—and derive implications for firm growth, survival, leverage and debt maturity. The model is qualitatively consistent with stylized facts on the growth and survival of firms. Comparative statics with respect to technology and default constraints are derived.     

Regulation Fair Disclosure and Earnings Information: Market, Analyst, and Corporate Responses

With the adoption of Regulation Fair Disclosure (Reg FD), market behavior around earnings releases displays no significant change in return volatility (after controlling for decimalization of stock trading) but significant increases in trading volume due to difference in opinion. Analyst forecast dispersion increases, and increases in other measures of disagreement and difference of opinion suggest greater difficulty in forming forecasts beyond the current quarter. Corporations increase the quantity of voluntary disclosures, but only for current quarter earnings. Thus, Reg FD seems to increase the quantity of information available to the public while imposing greater demands on investment professionals.