Corporate Governance and Asset Sales: The Effect of Internal and External Control Mechanisms

We investigate firms that sell assets to determine whether corporate governance mechanisms are effective at controlling agency problems. Our evidence shows that these firms have lower managerial ownership and are more likely to make unrelated acquisitions, suggesting weak internal controls. Analysis of insider trading activity shows that, on average, net buying increases before the asset sale and shareholders benefit more when this occurs. Results suggest that how managers reach a given level of ownership provides more information about incentive alignment than just the level of ownership. Our results also highlight the dynamic nature of corporate restructuring as firms acquire and then sell assets.     

韩中电子贸易协作方案

一直以民间企业为中心进行的两国间的电子贸易在中韩政府间正式推进。本文对电子贸易的概念、最近动态、韩国政府为促进电子贸易所采取的政策进行了探讨,以此为基础,提出了中韩电子贸易领域合作的内容和方案,并断言中韩合作对于电子贸易的活性化将会作出很大贡献。     

An estimation of the future demand for portable Internet service in Korea

Portable Internet service (PIS), which refers to wireless Internet service that can be accessed via a portable terminal at every time and at any place, is scheduled to be launched in Korea in early 2006. Thus, both the government and the industry need to obtain quantitative information on the future demand for the service. This study attempts to estimate future demand for the PIS, to analyze the determinants of the demand, and to conduct pre-test-market evaluation of the service. To this end, the dichotomous choice contingent valuation method is employed. On the whole, respondents accepted the contingent market and were willing to contribute a significant amount, on average. This willingness varies according to individual characteristics. Finally, the study discusses the importance of including valuation method in a pre-test-market evaluation of the PIS and presents the implications of the results, such as the mean willingness to pay (WTP) and the effects of individual characteristics and concerns about the service on the WTP.     

A Map of Markups: Why We Observe Mixed Behaviors of Markups

This paper proposes an explanation for mixed evidence on the behaviors of markups. The key mechanism consists of two complementary channels through which firms handle uninsurable business losses. One channel is based on cost‐compensating motive, by which firms raise prices to reflect higher losses stochastically associated with higher output levels. The other channel is based on loss‐balancing motive, by which firms lower prices to countervail higher losses stochastically associated with higher output levels. The relative responsiveness of the two channels to a shock depends on each firm's fundamental characteristics and leads to a sharp division of markup cyclicality across sectors.     

Does Intra‐regional Trade Matter in Regional Stock Markets? New Evidence from the Asia‐Pacific Region

We provide new evidence on the relationship between bilateral trade and stock market returns across the Asia‐Pacific region. Using three country blocs in this region, including the Far Eastern bloc, the Chinese bloc and the Australian bloc, we examine whether trade linkages between countries affect their stock returns. Incorporating two distinct dynamic properties of regime shifting and cointegration in intra‐regional trade and stock market returns, we employ the newly suggested multivariable smooth transition autoregressive vector error correction model (STAR‐VECM). A series of estimations reveals evidence that bilateral trade significantly Granger‐causes stock returns in the Asia‐Pacific region, with effects that are asymmetric depending upon the stock market regime and the country pair. Among the three blocs, the Far Eastern bloc displays a more pronounced positive effect of bilateral trade growth on stock returns than do the other blocs.     

The Effect of Cultural Distance on International Marketing Strategy: A Comparison of Cultural Distance and Managerial Perception Measures

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this article is to examine whether service convenience increases customer satisfaction that fosters customer loyalty in Indian commercial banks. A cross-sectional study of 352 retail banking customers through questionnaires was conducted. The population of the study is retail urban customers of banks in Rajasthan. Responses are analyzed using structural equation modeling. Dimensions of service convenience are decision convenience, access convenience, transaction convenience, benefit convenience, and postbenefit convenience. Decision convenience was found to influence customer satisfaction more than the other dimensions of service convenience. Customer satisfaction furthers customer loyalty. The article emphasizes the significance of SERVCON on customer satisfaction for the Indian banking sector. The direct impact of SERVCON on customer loyalty is also studied.     

A reactive tabu search algorithm for the multi-depot container truck transportation problem

A container truck transportation problem that involves multiple depots with time windows at both origins and destinations, including the reposition of empty containers, is formulated as a multi-traveling salesman problem with time windows (m-TSPTW) with multiple depots. Since the problem is NP-hard, a cluster method and a reactive tabu search (RTS) algorithm are developed to solve the problem. The two methods are compared with the mixed integer program which can be used to find optimum solutions for small size problems. The computational results show that the developed methods, particularly the RTS algorithm, can be efficiently used to solve the problem.     

Beyond panel unit root tests: Using multiple testing to determine the nonstationarity properties of individual series in a panel

Most panel unit root tests are designed to test the joint null hypothesis of a unit root for each individual series in a panel. After a rejection, it will often be of interest to identify which series can be deemed to be stationary and which series can be deemed nonstationary. Researchers will sometimes carry out this classification on the basis of n$n$ individual (univariate) unit root tests based on some ad hoc significance level. In this paper, we suggest and demonstrate how to use the false discovery rate (FDR)$\left(FDR\right)$ in evaluating I(1)/I(0)$I\left(1\right)/I\left(0\right)$ classifications.