Changes in the Information Efficiency of Stock Prices: Additional Evidence

Previous research shows, using data from three quarters after the implementation of regulation fair disclosure (Reg FD), that there is an improvement in the informational efficiency of stock prices after Reg FD. We compare the informational efficiency of stock prices in four pre-Reg FD quarters (1999–2000) and 12 post-Reg FD quarters (2002–2005). The improvement in the informational efficiency of stock prices previously reported in the immediate aftermath of Reg FD persists in later periods.     

Spread behavior around board meetings for firms with concentrated insider ownership

For a set of firms with concentrated insider ownership, we find that (a) the bidask spread changes significantly around the board meeting dates, and (b) the actual number of transactions by insiders increases following the board meetings. We also find that there is a statistically significant relationship between spread and the number of insider trades surrounding the board meeting dates. Furthermore, neither an increase in the number of insider transactions nor any significant relationship between insider trading and the spread is observed for the same set of firms around non-board meeting dates.     

Insidious Effects of Syntactic Complexity: Are Ads Targeting Older Adults Too Complex to Remember?

This research examines the role of syntactic complexity—complexity induced by the sentence structure of the text—on memory for print ads. The authors find that ads aimed at older adults contain significant complexity, which commonly used readability indexes fail to detect. Further, syntactic complexity adversely affects message recall in older (age 65 and up), but not younger, adults. This adverse effect of syntactic complexity on memory continues even when motivation to process the message is high. The authors discuss the implications of these findings.     

Institutional versus non-institutional credit to agricultural households in India: Evidence on impact from a national farmers’ survey

A goal of agricultural policy in India has been to reduce farmers’ dependence on informal credit. To that end, recent initiatives are focused explicitly on rural areas and have a positive impact on the flow of agricultural credit. Despite the significance of the above initiatives in enhancing the flow of institutional credit to agriculture, the links between institutional credit and net farm income and consumption expenditures in India are not very well documented. Using large, national farm household level data and IV 2SLS estimation methods, we investigate the role of institutional farm credit on farm income and farm household consumption expenditures. Findings show that, in India, formal credit does indeed play a critical role in increasing both net farm income and per capita monthly household expenditures of Indian farm families. Finally, we find that, in the presence of formal credit, social safety net programs like the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) may have unintended consequences. In particular, MGNREGA reduces both net farm income and per capita monthly household consumption expenditures. On the other hand, in the presence of formal credit, the Public Distribution System may increase both net farm income and per capita monthly household consumption expenditures.     

Effect of value perceptions on luxury purchase intentions: an Indian market perspective

India is witnessing a phenomenal growth in the luxury market segment. However, empirical studies in this domain are few and far between. The main objectives of this study are, firstly, to build and empirically test the theoretical framework designed to measure the effect of value perceptions on intention to purchase luxury fashion brands among Indian consumers. Secondly, to determine the role of gender in understanding the relationship between luxury value dimensions and purchase intention. This study employed researcher controlled sampling and questionnaires were administered through the personal interview from actual users of luxury fashion brands. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was applied to test proposed hypotheses using AMOS. The statistical analysis indicated that conspicuous value was the most significant predictor of purchase intention among Indian luxury consumers followed by hedonic value and social value. The results of the study also revealed that gender does not play moderating role in the relationship between luxury value dimensions and purchase intention among Indian consumers.     

What Lies beneath? A Sub-National Look at Okun’s Law in the United States

We find that Okun’s Law holds quite well for most U.S. states but the Okun coefficient—the responsiveness of unemployment to output—varies substantially across states. We are able to explain a significant part of this cross-state heterogeneity on the basis of the state’s industrial structure. Our results have implications for the design of state and federal policies and may also be able to explain why Okun’s Law at the national level has remained quite stable over time despite an enormous shift in the structure of the U.S. economy from manufacturing to services.     

Federal reserve monetary policy and the non-linearity of the Taylor rule

We propose and estimate a generalized Taylor rule for the monetary policy of the US Federal Reserve (Fed) to find out how the Fed funds rate is sensitive to changes in inflation and output gap variables in the post war period. We find that Fed's monetary policy has only reacted significantly to changes in inflation when they were between approximately 6.5–8.5%. However, the policy stance change on these changes was relatively small. The findings suggest that the US Fed has been too averse to change from its current monetary policy stance, and that it has not reacted noticeably to changes in the US economic activity, as measured by the output gap. The generalized functional form for the monetary policy rule suggests that similar non-linearity exists in the directional change of the Fed rate.     

New empirical evidence on the bid-ask spread

In this article, we model the determinants of spread for 734 firms listed on the NYSE over the period 1 January 1998 to 31 December 2008. We propose a panel data model of the determinants of spread. There are four main messages emerging from our work. We find a statistically significant effect of volume on spread inconsistent with the work of Johnson (2008). On price, we find mixed results, consistent with the literature. On the effect of price volatility on spread, our results are completely the opposite of the cross-sectional literature but sides with the relatively recent work of Chordia et al. (2001). We allow for persistence of spread as a determinant of spread and find significant evidence of spread persistence across all 16 sectors. Finally, we examine size effects and find statistically strong evidence of size effects based on the relationship between price and spread, persistence and spread, and volatility and spread.     

The Importance of “Consumer Type” in the Attribution of Crisis Responsibility: The Case of the Maggi Noodles Crisis in India

This study investigates a corporate crisis from the perspective of a consumer. Using in-depth interviews, it investigates the perceptions of mothers about the Maggi noodles lead crisis in India. The findings reveal three types of customers—the devotees, doubters and dropouts—who had different perceptions about the crisis and attributed different levels of responsibility to the corporation based on their attitude and affect toward the brand, attitude toward the corporation, attitude toward the regulatory institution, and levels of nationalism. The study recommends that corporate response strategies during a crisis should focus on the “customer type” and not just the “crisis type” in order to be effective. The theoretical implication and managerial implications for crisis and strategic communication are discussed.     

Identifying Customer Loyalty Supporting Factors in the Retail Banking Context: An Empirical Examination

This article aims to identify factors which support customer loyalty, either through dedication or by imposing constraints, and subsequently empirically analyzes the relationship between identified factors and the attitudinal and behavioral component of loyalty in the context of retail banking. Data collected from a sample of 293 retail banking customers have been analyzed through structural equation modeling. The study results suggested two constraint promoting factors and one dedication promoting factor which supported loyalty. The study contributes to knowledge by empirically testing the qualitative model and coming out with empirically proven dedication-promoting and constraint-promoting loyalty supporting factors.