Determinants of firm start-up size in the Brazilian industry: an empirical investigation

The article investigates the determinants of newly created industrial establishments in Brazil in 1997 taking as reference explanatory variables referring to market structure and industry dynamics, stronger effects are detected for larger firms. Minimum efficient scale, industry size, industry growth and turbulence display the expected positive effects on firm size, but the intensity of those are more pronounced for larger firms. The suboptimal scale variable, on the other hand, exhibits a counterintuitive positive effect and perhaps other types of barriers to entry that are not related to scale aspects may be important in the Brazilian case.     

Implementing the International Public Sector Accounting Standards for consolidated financial statements: facilitators,benefits and challenges

ABSTRACT

Portugal and Spain have reformed their national standards to adapt them to the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS). This paper explains the process of implementing the IPSAS for consolidated reporting in the two countries and the advantages and disadvantages which have emerged. The results highlight the role of the IPSAS in improving the quality and use of consolidated financial statements (CFS) and will be of interest to other countries that are intending to implement the IPSAS.     

Malmquist financial efficiency analysis for airlines

This article discusses the financial efficiency of 42 airlines from 25 countries, in 2001 (the year of the September 11 terrorist attack in the United States), and their profitability in the following year. The Malmquist index was used to indicate the airlines’ capital structure changes from 2001 to 2002. The results show airline capital structure management and profitability dynamics following the unexpected event of 2001. The main conclusion is that airlines which moved more intensively to reduce their indebtedness showed improved profitability, given their size, fleet and intangible assets.     

Attitudinal loyalty and trust in entrepreneurship: building new relationships

This paper studies the impact of attitudinal loyalty and trust in entrepreneurship, following a client-focused strategy. In this context, trust and commitment are the cornerstone of relationship marketing, and contributes positively to achieving attitudinal loyalty, which is suitable for the maintenance of relationships over time. This variable also acts as a facilitator or mediator on the influence satisfaction has on loyalty. We show that satisfaction has a positive impact on trust and attitudinal loyalty. Following structural equation modelling methodology we test all the relationships in a sample composed by travel agency customers.     

Note on the existence and modulus of continuity of the {\textit{SLE}}_8 curve

We review one method for estimating the modulus of continuity of a Schramm–Loewner evolution (SLE) curve in terms of the inverse Loewner map. Then we prove estimates about the distribution of the inverse Loewner map, which underpin the difficulty in bounding the modulus of continuity of SLE for $\kappa =8$ . The main idea in the proof of these estimates is applying the Girsanov theorem to reduce the problem to estimates about one-dimensional Brownian motion.     

Energy prices,substitution, and optimal borrowing in the short run: An analysis of adjustment in oil importing developing countries

The paper discusses optimal short-term borrowing in response to an increase in the price of imported inputs. The rationale for borrowing lies in the increase in substitution possibilities in production (between imported and domestic inputs) and in consumption (between traded and non-traded goods) as the economy adjusts its structure to the new prices. A typology of LDCs and the oil price increases in the 70's are used to illustrate the results of the model, which are compared with the actual increase in borrowing during the period.     

Online banking services: a meta-analytic review and assessment of the impact of antecedents and consequents on satisfaction

This paper provides a meta-analysis of the generalizations in the relationships between the antecedents and consequents of satisfaction with online banking services. In total, 118 observations were analysed, with a sample of 49,607 respondents in 39 published articles from studies indexed in ten databases (Jstor, Emerald, PsycINFO, Taylor & Francis, Elsevier Science Direct, Scopus, ProQuest, SciELO, Google Scholar and EBSCO). Specifically, for the data analysis, we used the correlation coefficient r (plus χ², f test, t test, z test and β values). The results showed that constructs related to uncertainty, as evoked by online devices, system performance, quality of device content and online banking device structures, are significant and positive antecedents of consumer satisfaction. We also found that satisfaction with online banking services promotes trust and loyalty. Finally, we also detected that the relationship between reliability, satisfaction and service quality is stronger among Western banking consumers.     

An alternative approach to estimating demand: Neural network regression with conditional volatility for high frequency air passenger arrivals

In this paper we provide an alternative approach to analyze the demand for international tourism in the Balearic Islands, Spain, by using a neural network model that incorporates time-varying conditional volatility. We consider daily air passenger arrivals to Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza and Mahon, which are located in the islands of Mallorca, Ibiza and Menorca, respectively, as a proxy for international tourism demand for the Balearic Islands. Spain is a world leader in terms of total international tourist arrivals and receipts, and Mallorca is one of the most popular destinations in Spain. For tourism management and marketing, it is essential to forecast high frequency international tourist demand accurately. As it is important to provide sensible international tourism demand forecast intervals, it is also necessary to model their variances accurately. Moreover, time-varying variances provide useful information regarding the risks associated with variations in international tourist arrivals.     

AGOA and Apparel: Who Captures the Tariff Rent in the Presence of Preferential Market Access?

The United States grants preferential (tariff‐ and quota‐free) market access to a list of products from eligible countries in sub‐Saharan Africa through the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). We analyse the increase in prices received by apparel exporters who benefited from AGOA preferences. In the presence of competitive markets, export prices should increase as much as the tariff which was previously collected by the US government. We refer to this price increase as the ‘tariff preference rent’ since exporters receive this income as the rent for their preferential status. The results show that exporters receive only one‐third of this rent and smaller exporters receive less than larger and established ones. We then provide evidence that suggests this may be due to the degree of market power enjoyed by US importers when facing African exporters.