The Impact of Owner’s Identity on Banks’ Capital Adequacy and Liquidity Risk

In this article, we test the potential impact of the owner’s identity on banks’ capital adequacy and liquidity risk as defined by the Basel III regulatory framework. Using a unique dataset on a sample of banks domiciled in the Middle East and North Africa region, we find that the ownership structure is an important driver of banks’ regulatory capital and liquidity risk. Private and foreign investors exhibit a stronger preference for higher levels of capital, whereas the impact of government ownership on banks’ risk remains inconclusive. Moreover, privately-owned banks evidenced lower levels of liquidity risk compared to the other groups during the last financial crisis because of tighter budget constraints and more compelling liquidity needs.     

A two-stage model for the design of supply chain networks

This research aims to develop an analytical model of the supplier selection process in designing a supply chain network. The constraints on the capacity of each potential supplier are considered in the process. The assumed objective of the supply chain is to minimize the level of customer dissatisfaction, which is evaluated by two performance criteria: (i) price and (ii) delivery lead time. The overall model operates at two levels of decision-making: the operational level and the chain level. The operational level concerns decisions related to optimizing the manufacturing and logistical activities of each potential supplier in order to meet the customer's requirements. At the chain level, all the bids from potential suppliers are evaluated and the final configuration of the supply chain is determined. The structure of the chain depends on the product specifications and on the customer's order size. An optimal solution in terms of the models for the two levels can be obtained by using a mixed-integer programming technique.     

Mispricing and risk of R&D investment in European firms

We study whether R&D-intensive firms earn superior stock returns compared to matched size and book-to-market portfolios across several financial markets in Europe. Mispricing can arise if investors are not able to correctly estimate the long-term benefits of R&D investment or whether R&D firms are more risky than others. The results confirm that more innovative firms can earn future excess returns. Stocks listed on continental Europe markets and operating in high-tech sectors are more prone to undervaluation. This can be caused in the first case by information asymmetries that are more severe in bank-based countries. No evidence is found for a different risk pattern of R&D-intensive stocks.     

主导音对自然保护地声景感知情绪的影响——以武陵源世界遗产地为例

声景情绪感知的研究是自然保护地声景研究的重要方面。已有研究表明了不同声源与情绪感知之间的关系,主导音与主成分情绪之间的关系。目前在中国的自然保护地研究中,尚无将声景中主导音和情绪感知进行关联。以武陵源世界遗产地的声景为对象,通过4段声景的听音实验,共收集有效样本80份。并通过相关性分析、因子分析等总结出武陵源声景的总体特点、主导音的可接受度等,继而进一步分析主导音的可接受度与情绪感知之间的关系,主导音与主要情绪感知的一致性关系。结论包括：主导音的可接受度与整段声音的情绪感知基本一致;鸟鸣声、流水声与放松的、舒服的等情绪显著正相关;小贩叫卖声、汽车行驶声较容易引起人工的、嘈杂的情绪感受。基于研究结论,提出了武陵源世界遗产地声景控制及保护管理的措施及建议。