Banking Competition and SMEs Bank Financing. Evidence from the Italian Provinces

This work investigates whether local differences in banking competition impact on the amount of bank debt used by Italian small and medium sized manufacturing firms. Sample selection and Double Hurdle models are adopted as the process, which results in the choice of bank financing may differ from that determining its amount. Our main finding is that more competitive banking markets seem to be associated with relatively higher usage of bank debt by less transparent firms. On the other hand, a higher banking competition seems to have no effect on the probability of receiving bank loans.

Exchange Rate Exposure and its Determinants: Evidence from Indian Firms

This article examines the determinants of the exchange rate exposure by comparing both manufacturing and service sector firms in India over the period of 2000 to 2013. First, the study finds that service sector firms are more exposed to exchange rate changes than manufacturing firms in India. Second, the results indicate that the market-to-book ratio and export are significant and positively related; however, size is negatively related to the exchange rate exposure of both the manufacturing and service sector firms. These results are robust with the estimation using a trade-weighted exchange rate.     

Determinants of Bank Profitability in a Developing Economy: Empirical Evidence from the China Banking Sector

The Chinese banking sector has undergone noteworthy financial reforms, which significantly metamorphosed the banking system. This article seeks to examine the determinants of the profitability of the Chinese banking sector. The empirical analysis is confined to the four State Owned Commercial Banks (SOCBs) and the 12 Joint Stock Commercial Banks (JSCBs) during the postreform period of 2000–2007. The empirical findings of this study suggest that size, credit risk, and capitalization are positively related to the profitability of China banks, whereas liquidity, overhead costs, and network embeddedness have negative impacts. However, the impact of liquidity is not uniform across bank types. We find that the SOCBs with higher level of liquidity tend to be relatively more profitable, which could be vindicated by the significant amount of lending to the State Owned Enterprises. The impact of economic growth and inflation are always positive whether we examine the SOCB or the JSCB.     

The nexus between competition and efficiency: The European banking industries experience

In this paper, we investigate competition in banking systems in the EU27 as a whole for the period 2004–2010, but also for old members’ banking systems compared with new members’ banking systems and for banking systems from countries member of euro zone compares with banking systems from countries non-member of euro zone. In order to investigate this issue, we estimate a non-structural indicator of banking competition, using the H-statistic indicator that is estimated using bank-level data. Also, we apply two tests of convergence, β- and σ-convergence, for assessing competition evolution during the specified period. We want to fill the gap in the banking literature testing the validity of the Competition–Efficiency Hypothesis, analysing the impact of the banking competition measures on two alternative measures of efficiency, cost and profit efficiency, in the European banking systems in a Granger-causality manner. The results confirm us that in the EU the convergence process occur from the banking systems with higher competition level than the mean score of all countries. The evidence for all groups of countries, except non-euro zone group, where results are not statistically significant, confirm the Competition–Efficiency Hypothesis in terms of cost and profit efficiency.     

Adaptive Market Hypothesis: Evidence from the Ghanaian Stock Market

This study examines the return predictability of two indices – the GSEALSH index and the GSEFSII index on the Ghana stock market. We compare results from analyzing the return series between January 4, 2011 and August 28, 2015 using the generalized spectral test, the automatic portmanteau Box-Pierce test and the wild-bootstrapped automatic variance ratio test. A rolling window approach is used to track whether returns are predictable or not through time. It was observed that the GSEALSH index was more highly predictable than the GSEFSII index in all the three tests. The results obtained are consistent with the Adaptive Market Hypothesis.     

Demand Shifts and Changes in Competition: Evidence from the Movie Theatre Industry

In this paper, I empirically examine how demand shifts affect firm behaviour. In particular, I study how competitive behaviour between firms changes across different demand states. For this purpose, I use price and concentration data from the Spanish movie theatre industry in 1995 and 2000. The evidence suggests that demand shifts change the competitive nature of the industry under study, and that this change differs across different demand shifts. Firms deviate less from tacit collusive behaviour when gains of deviation are smaller.     

Spatial Interaction,Spatial Multipliers and Hospital Competition

The hospital competition literature shows that estimates of the effect of local market structure (concentration) on pricing (competition) are sensitive to geographic market definition. Our spatial lag model approach effects smoothing of the explanatory variables across the discrete market boundaries, resulting in robust estimates of the impact of market structure on hospital pricing, which can be used to estimate the full effect of changes in prices inclusive of spillovers that cascade through the neighboring hospital markets. The full amount, generated by the spatial multiplier effect, is a robust estimate of the impacts of market factors on hospital competition. We contrast ordinary least squares and spatial lag estimates to demonstrate the importance of robust estimation in analysis of hospital market competition. In markets where concentration is relatively high before a proposed merger, we demonstrate that Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) can lead to the wrong policy conclusion while the more conservative lag estimates do not.     

Economic Issues in the Antitrust Assessment of Hospital Competition: Overview

Rapid consolidation in the hospital industry, as health care markets respond to consumer pressures for more cost-effective delivery of health care services, has focused increased attention on antitrust enforcement theories and actions. This paper reviews the Federal agency challenges of four recent hospital mergers that have all been denied by the courts, but for varying reasons. Questions raised include the appropriate definition of the product and geographic markets, the extent of realizable merger-specific efficiencies and the influence of non-profit status on hospital behavior. The lack of conclusive empirical economic evidence on these topics undoubtedly contributes to the current divergence of opinion among regulators, courts and hospitals. This paper also identifies how each of the subsequent papers in this special issue contributes valuable findings to inform the lively debate.     

Unrestricted Entry and Nonprice Competition: The Case of Technological Adoption in Hospitals

Medical technology adoption is a major contributor to rising health care expenditures in the US. Multiple market failures provide incentives for hospitals to adopt technologies. Unrestricted entry may result in excess capacity and reductions in output that are inefficient with respect to cost and quality. We analyze the effects of hospital entry in the market for coronary artery bypass graft surgery on the number of procedures performed at both the market and firm levels, using California data from 1983 to 1990. We test the hypothesis that entry has differential effects on hospital output in a market with nonprice competition, depending on market structure. Results show that as the proximity of the nearest competitor increases with entry, hospital output declines. Holding distance to the nearest competitor constant, increasing the number of competitors results in a smaller, but still significant, decrease in output. When there are few incumbents nearby, however, output does not change significantly with entry, suggesting "business-augmenting" effects that result in increased physician referrals offset much of the conventional "businessstealing" effects.     

财政支配假说、铸币税与中央银行独立性

鉴于发展中国家发展比较落后,经济总量不强,政府的财政行为影响了社会生活的各个方面,它支配并决定了中央银行独立性的程度,铸币税问题相应也显得尤为突出.本文据此以财政支配假说为理论基础,结合铸币税问题,在介绍发展中国家中央银行独立性概况后就中国中央银行独立性问题做一分析.     

Polarisation and Reversion under Competition: Profitability of Indian Firms

We analyse profitability dynamics in a large emerging economy, India, over the two-and-a-half decades since economic liberalisation began in earnest. We find that the average rate at which Indian firms reverted to normal profitability increased significantly, particularly for firms earning supernormal profits. In contrast, firms earning below-normal profitability have been marked by little reversion to normal. Inducing underperforming firms to improve their profitability is of great policy importance. The pattern in profitability dynamics of Indian firms in the early years was consistent with a polarised long-run profitability distribution. The polarisation tendency was reversed in later years, but the projected long-run profitability distribution has a substantial underperforming tail.     

Bank Debt Use and Firm Size: Indian Evidence

The paper employs a sample of listed Indian manufacturing firms over the period 1995–2004 to examine the factors influencing the concentration of bank debt in total debt. The results indicate that the factors vary by firm size. Small to medium-sized firms have a high concentration of bank debt. The results support the reputation view that firms face differential debt choice as they grow larger. When evaluating bank regulations, policymakers need to consider the importance of the reputation-building service which banks provide to businesses.     

The Determinants of Firm Exit from Exporting: Evidence for the UK

This study seeks to understand to what extent new exporters are able to survive in international markets and whether exit from exporting is more likely to be associated with firm-level heterogeneity or more general factors such as trade costs and/or barriers to entry and exit (such as sunk costs). This study presents the first analysis undertaken for a nationally representative group of UK firms on the determinants of exit from exporting, using panel data covering all market-based sectors of the UK during 1997–2003. Our findings suggest that the probability of a firm ceasing to export is directly influenced by its productivity and other attributes associated with firm-level productivity differences (such as size and foreign ownership). Micro-finance factors, such as profitability and the ability to finance through long-term debt, play an additional role. Lastly, sectoral differences (e.g. industrial concentration) also help explain the firm’s exit decision, whilst trade costs lead to a higher probability of exiting from selling internationally.     

Bank Profitability and Capital Regulation: Evidence from Listed and non-Listed Banks in Africa

This study investigates the determinants of African bank profitability while controlling for bank capital regulation. Using static and dynamic panel estimation techniques, the findings indicate that bank size, total regulatory capital, and loan loss provisions are significant determinants of the return on assets of listed banks compared to non-listed banks. Also, regulatory capital has a more significant (and positive) impact on the return on assets of listed banks than non-listed banks particularly when listed banks have sufficient regulatory capital ratio. We also find that higher regulatory thresholds have a negative impact on the return on asset of non-listed banks.     

全球交易所的竞争:市场结构的变化

本文运用国际金融市场特别是期货市场的统计数据和案例材料,从横向竞争、纵向竞争、会员资格的开放和会员的多样化、竞争的资本密集程度的提高这几个方面,总结了交易所面临的竞争挑战.对美国占全球期货市场份额变化的分析表明,传统金融市场强国逐步丧失了绝对的垄断地位.但全球期货期权交易市场集中度的提高,却揭示了当前交易所服务市场竞争格局的复杂性.     

出口相似度与贸易竞争:中国与东盟的比较研究

本文从商品域和市场域两个纬度测算了中国与东盟在自由贸易区之外的第三方市场(或世界市场)上的出口相似度指数.研究表明,中国与东盟出口结构(产品结构和市场结构)趋同态势越来越显著,它反映的是双方在产业转移和传递的国际分工格局调整中相似的演化路径,这意味着中国与东盟在出口上越来越强劲的竞争具有长期性.最后对中国-东盟自由贸易区前景进行了初探.     

我国造纸业国际竞争力的实证分析与发展对策

本文通过测算1997—2002年的市场占有率、RCA指数、TC指数和MI指数,对我国造纸业的国际竞争力进行了评估和实证分析,得出了我国造纸业出口缺乏竞争力的结论。在分析我国造纸业发展现状和存在问题的基础上,提出了提升我国造纸业国际竞争力的对策与思路。     

公允价值会计信息对银行贷款契约有用吗——基于上市公司数据的实证检验

本文以2007-2009年上市公司财务会计信息为样本,实证检验新会计准则引入的公允价值会计信息是否以及如何影响公司获取银行贷款,以探讨公允价值会计改革是否有利于提高会计信息的债务契约有用性。研究结果发现,银行贷款与公司核心盈利能力、偿债能力和贷款需求显著相关,企业取得的短期贷款规模与公允价值变动损益相关,但显著水平较低;长期贷款与公允价值变动损益信息无显著相关性;银行能够区分公允价值变动损失与资产减值损失稳定性不同。     

比较优势理论与期货市场竞争发展格局

期货市场是以现货市场为基础的衍生市场.根据比较优势及相关理论,期货市场的比较优势主要来自于所在国家或地区的要素条件、需求状况、竞争对手及产业政策.世界期货市场以及美国、欧洲、日本等国家或地区内期货市场竞争格局的变迁充分证明,具有比较优势的国家和地区或以具有比较优势的产业为基础的期货市场,在竞争中将因此而形成相应的比较优势.不同国家或地区间、一个国家或地区内期货市场所处的环境各不相同,因此发展期货市场必须根据所在国家或地区的环境特点,推行与之相适应的发展模式和产业政策,以形成自身的比较优势,在竞争中获取有利地位.     

Competition, herd behavior, and credit cycles: evidence from major Swiss Banks

I use time-series analysis to investigate the dynamic interdependence of the credit supplies of the three major Swiss banks from 1987 to 1996. The statistical results document that all three banks reacted to their competitors’ changes in lending. The estimated individual credit supply functions are then used in counterfactual experiments to study the total lending of these three banks (which is roughly half the bank lending in Switzerland) under different assumptions regarding leader/follower behavior. These simulations highlight the role of competitive behavior for the persistence of aggregate credit cycles.