Momentum and reversals in Taiwan index futures returns during periods of extreme trading imbalance

The study analyzes the relation between a trading imbalance metric that captures data observable by investors, and future momentum and reversals in Taiwan index futures returns. Standard regression analyses do not show any significant dynamic relations between daily index futures returns and the trading imbalance, regardless of whether the trading imbalance metric is lagged, contemporaneous, or leads the index futures return. However, when the analyses are focused on periods with extreme trading imbalances I find that the daily index futures returns exhibit significant reversals following periods of extreme (low) trading imbalances and low returns. I also find some evidence of residual momentum in consecutive daily index futures returns following periods of extreme (high) trading imbalances and high returns. Trading simulation, directional accuracy, and market timing tests show these effects to be economically significant, even after accounting for transaction costs.     

Influences on coastal tourism demand and substitution behaviors from climate change impacts and hazard recovery responses

Climate change impacts can negatively affect tourism demand and, subsequently, local economies by disrupting access and altering physical conditions, including those from adaptation and recovery efforts. Research is needed that helps destinations become more climate ready, including studies of decision factors that influence trip-taking behaviors. This paper presents findings from a discrete choice experiment to determine how physical and economic changes could affect visitation behaviors to a vulnerable coastal destination, the Outer Banks region of North Carolina, USA. We embedded our experiment within an on-site visitor survey to reveal thresholds of negative changes to coastal attributes that tourists are willing to tolerate, and also examined tourists’ willingness to substitute their future trips to the region. Transportation-related changes had the highest relative importance among the four selected attributes. The likelihood of three types of spatial substitution, spurred by not being able to access the destination, were consistently related to residency but less consistently related to place meanings, visitation history, and other demographic variables. Study results can inform climate change planning within coastal zones to minimize negative impacts to tourism demand, such as the need to develop creative revenue streams to maintain resilience in communities that rely on occupancy taxes.     

The Tourism Penetration Index in Large Islands: The Case of the Dominican Republic

The Tourism Penetration Index (TPI) (McElroy & de Albuquerque, 1998) provides an overall measure of economic, social and environmental impact in small islands. Thus far it has not been used to gauge tourism’s spatial concentration in different regions within a given destination. This study develops a TPI for four regions in the Dominican Republic (DR), and these regional scores are compared with a sample of 42 small islands. Results place Punta Cana in the east among the most penetrated islands/ regions, Puerto Plata/Samana in the north among the intermediate, and La Romana/San Pedro and Santo Domingo in the south among the least developed. Results are also compared with surveys on visitor satisfaction, perceptions of safety, and propensity to return. Planning and research implications are discussed.     

Work unit incivility, job satisfaction, and total quality management among transportation employees

Survey results from 1381 employees working in a state department of transportation tested the idea that uncivil work environments bear undesirable consequences for job satisfaction and diminish the effectiveness of quality management practices. Results demonstrated that incivility does not have to be personally experienced to have deleterious effects, merely witnessed. Perceived workplace incivility was found to adversely affect job satisfaction and the effectiveness of quality programs aimed at teamwork, customer focus and continuous improvement, even after controlling for race, gender and prior experience of harassment. Managers are advised to broaden their consideration of incivility to include its effects on observers.     

刍议跨国并购交易中的几个关注因素

在全球经历了五次并购浪潮后，越来越多的中国公司希望通过跨国并购的形式寻求海外投资机会，实现跨越式发展。有鉴于此．中华咨询与美国波士顿商学院联合进行了跨国并购领域的专项研究，     

Alternatives to the U.S. Antitrust Agency approach to market definition

Shortcomings of the U.S. Antitrust Agency Guidelines method of market definition include failure to focus on competition, the need for cost data, and discontinuities. Two alternative approaches are presented which avoid these problems and the Guidelines' inclusion of substitutes on an all-or-nothing basis. One alternative focuses on the size of a change in capacity of a substitute that would be needed to have the same effects as a unit change in capacity of an initial item. The second proposed alternative offers a simple operational method of giving practical content to the “reasonable interchangeability” concept which is a prominent feature of U.S. Supreme Court decisions. The alternative approaches are evaluated in comparison to that of the Guidelines and some modified versions of the latter.     

PRICE AND WELFARE EFFECTS OF OLIGOPOUSTIC MERGERS

When oligopolists merge, the new firm enjoys a lower cost structure than any of its premerger constituent parts. This is because of rationalization economies which are created as facilities previously operated at disparate marginal cost levels come under common control. The resultant price-decreasing force is countered by the loss of competition due to the merger. The latter can stem not only from reduction in the number of competitors, but also from the possibility that, with a more concentrated market structure, firms'conjectures about each others'reactions will move in the direction of being more cooperative. The paper shows that, under normal conditions, the effects of diminished competition outweigh those of rationalization so that a price increase will result from the merger. In addition, the equivalence of merger to the imposition of taxes is exploited to derive a market-share based test for mergers to cause welfare decreases. This complements a test proposed by Farrell and Shapiro that works only for welfare increases.