Contratos de riesgo de petróleo,patrones de conducta y desempeño de empresas: Análisis de panel de datos

Using data from financial and economic performance of International Oil Companies (IOCs) in the exploration-extraction (E&E) business, along with institutional and market orientation of governments and National Oil Companies (NOCs) that receive project offers, the international E&E market is analyzed in both institutional development and behavioral patterns of type of E&E contract following an agency theory approach. Additionally, given Mexico's recent energy reform being launched between 2015 and next 2019, the various types of E&E contracts are analyzed, comparing license contracts with production sharing and risk service ones. Next, using panel data methods an analysis of 17 enterprises between 2005 and 2015 is presented, where so-called global IOCs show higher returns and commitment than specialized ones, demonstrated by their net income and return on equity, or ROE.     

The Impact of Bank Credit on Employment Formality: Evidence from Uruguay

This article examines the effect of bank credit on employment formalization in Uruguay. Using a difference-in-differences methodology the article finds that financial deepening decreases informality, especially in more financially dependent sectors. In addition, the effect is found to be greater among women and older workers. In the period under analysis the economy underwent a severe economic crisis and bank credit contracted sharply, but we find no evidence that the effect of bank credit on employment formality changed over time.     

Risk aversion and inequity aversion in demand for unemployment benefits

This paper is an empirical study of what motivates net contributors to support redistributive policies. While studies in the area have tended to consider broad measures of inequality and support for redistribution in general, we focus on a single, salient relationship between local unemployment rates and demand for spending on unemployment benefits. Using a particularity of the Spanish labour market, we estimate how workers’ stated preferences for unemployment benefits spending respond to changes in the local unemployment rate. We then decompose this response into the part explained by risk aversion, and thus demand for insurance, and the part explained by inequity aversion. Our results suggest that increases in local unemployment rates lead to increased demand by workers for unemployment benefits spending. Moreover, our results are consistent with an insurance motive driving this relationship but provide little support for inequity aversion. Our results suggest that studies of the relationship between inequality and demand for redistribution might benefit from considering both the source and measure of the inequality and the instrument of redistribution.     

Using Artificial Neural Networks to forecast Exchange Rate,including VAR‐VECM residual analysis and prediction linear combination

The Euro US Dollar rate is one of the most important exchange rates in the world, making the analysis of its behavior fundamental for the global economy and for different decision‐makers at both the public and private level. Furthermore, given the market efficiency of the EUR/USD exchange rate, being able to predict the rate's future short‐term variation represents a great challenge. This study proposes a new framework to improve the forecasting accuracy of EUR/USD exchange rate returns through the use of an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) together with a Vector Auto Regressive (VAR) model, Vector Error Corrective model (VECM), and post‐processing. The motivation lies in the integration of different approaches, which should improve the ability to forecast regarding each separate model. This is especially true given that Artificial Neural Networks are capable of capturing the short and long‐term non‐linear components of a time series, which VECM and VAR models are unable to do. Post‐processing seeks to combine the best forecasts to make one that is better than its components. Model predictive capacity is compared according to the Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) as a loss function and its significance is analyzed using the Model Confidence Set. The results obtained show that the proposed framework outperforms the benchmark models, decreasing the RMSE of the best econometric model by 32.5% and by 19.3% the best hybrid. Thus, it is determined that forecast post‐processing increases forecasting accuracy.     

Smiles over Frowns: When Curved Lines Influence Product Preference

The present research examined the possibility that subtle face‐like features (a smile‐ or a frown‐like line) on a product can influence evaluations of and preferences for that product. The same within‐participants experiment was conducted twice, once in the United Kingdom and once in Colombia: participants viewed four variants (concave [smile‐like] line, convex [frown‐like] line, straight line, line absent) of three different products (tea, shampoo, juice) and both evaluated the products on visual analogue scales and completed a forced choice decision task. The results revealed a general tendency across scales, products, and countries for the participants to rate products more positively and to choose products more frequently when they displayed a concave line relative to a convex line; comparisons with the straight line and absent line conditions suggested that the effects were present for both concave and convex lines, but were stronger in the concave instance. These findings provide both a deeper theoretical understanding of the influence of subtle cues on evaluation and decision making, and concrete, practical information for both product designers and marketers.     

Determinants of website traffic: the case of European fashion apparel retailers

The globalization process together with the extraordinary growth in the use of Internet offer firms new growth opportunities. Retail firms are using a multichannel approach, involving the Internet, in their internationalization strategies. Website traffic as measured by unique users and online awareness is among the measures for assessing the success of the online channel. There is little evidence, however, linking website traffic and the characteristics of the retail multichannel internationalization process. In order to fill this gap, this paper analyses the factors explaining the retailer's international website traffic. Website traffic data for a sample of European fashion apparel retailers are modelled as dependent on characteristics of the organization and of its physical and virtual internationalization strategy. Following the results of several linear regression models, we infer the complementarity of online and offline channels in the international operation, as well as the contribution of social networks as traffic generators.     

Would You Choose Your Preferred Option? Comparing Choice and Recoded Ranking Experiments

Previous research has shown that results from a choice experiment are statistically different from those obtained from a ranking experiment that is recoded and treated as a choice experiment using only the first rank. By avoiding some of the shortcomings of previous comparisons, we obtain the opposite results using data from the valuation of a cork oak reforestation program in the south of Spain. Structural models and welfare estimations are statistically indistinguishable irrespective of the use of parametric or bootstrapping tests. Further, we employ follow-up questions and subsample analysis to test whether divergences appear when potential effects are isolated.     

The Territorial Dimension: The Component of Business Strategy that Prevents the Generation of Social Conflicts

Taking advantage of economic opportunities has led to numerous conflicts between society and business in various geographies of the world. Companies have developed social responsibility programs to prevent and manage these types of problems. However, some authors comment that these programs lack a strategic vision. Starting with the Working with People model, created for the field of rural development planning, this paper proposes a methodology to prevent the generation of social conflicts from business strategy: the territorial dimension. The proposal emphasizes that local development support prevents the generation of social conflicts. Finally, an experience in Peru, a country that has been characterized in recent years by high economic growth and also by the presence of social conflicts that have stopped entrepreneurship is analyzed.     

Concentration and foreign penetration in Latin American banking sectors: Impact on competition and risk

In the 1990s, Latin American banking sectors experienced an accelerated process of concentration and foreign penetration that prompted diverse views regarding its implications for the competitive behavior of banks and the financial stability of the system. In this paper, we examine these issues exploiting a rich bank-level database for eight Latin American countries. We find that, while increased concentration did not weaken banking competition within the region, foreign penetration appears to have led to a less competitive industry. Moreover, we find that bank risk has been negatively associated with competition which, coupled with the previous finding, explains the positive link between banking sector stability and foreign penetration revealed by the data.