Determinants of corporate hedging: A (statistical) meta-analysis

While literature provides several hedging theories, evidence on the corporate incentives to hedge remains ambiguous. We synthesize data of empirical studies via statistical meta-analysis to test different hedging hypotheses. To our knowledge, this constitutes the first application of such a methodology in financial economics. Our results imply that financial distress costs induce firms to hedge. We find weak evidence that the underinvestment problem and the dependence on costly external financing influence hedging behavior. Taxes and agency conflicts do not show explanatory power. Because statistical and narrative reviews yield different outcomes, we see various other application possibilities for meta-analysis in financial economics.     

Continuous prophylaxis with recombinant factor IX Fc fusion protein and conventional recombinant factor IX products: comparisons of efficacy and weekly factor consumption

Background: Continuous prophylaxis for patients with hemophilia B requires frequent injections that are burdensome and that may lead to suboptimal adherence and outcomes. Hence, therapies requiring less-frequent injections are needed. In the absence of head-to-head comparisons, this study compared the first extended-half-life-recombinant factor IX (rFIX) product—recombinant factor IX Fc fusion protein (rFIXFc)—with conventional rFIX products based on annualized bleed rates (ABRs) and factor consumption reported in studies of continuous prophylaxis.

Methods: This study compared ABRs and weekly factor consumption rates in clinical studies of continuous prophylaxis treatment with rFIXFc and conventional rFIX products (identified by systematic literature review) in previously-treated adolescents and adults with moderate-to-severe hemophilia B. Meta-analysis was used to pool ABRs reported for conventional rFIX products for comparison. Comparisons of weekly factor consumption were based on the mean, reported or estimated from the mean dose per injection.

Results: Five conventional rFIX studies (injections 1 to >3 times/week) met the criteria for comparison with once-weekly rFIXFc reported by the B-LONG study. The pooled mean ABR for conventional rFIX was slightly higher than but comparable to rFIXFc (difference=0.71; p?=?0.210). Weekly factor consumption was significantly lower with rFIXFc than in conventional rFIX studies (difference in means?=?42.8–74.5?IU/kg/week [93–161%], p?Conclusion: Comparisons of clinical study results suggest weekly injections with rFIXFc result in similar bleeding rates and significantly lower weekly factor consumption compared with more-frequently-injected conventional rFIX products. The real-world effectiveness of rFIXFc may be higher based on results from a model of the impact of simulated differences in adherence.     

Estimating the economic costs of organized crime by synthetic control methods

The economic costs of organized crime have been estimated for the case of southern Italy by Pinotti (Economic Journal 2015; 125, F203–F232, 2015): using synthetic control methods, he finds that, due to the advent of the Italian Mafia in the regions Apulia and Basilicata, GDP per capita dropped by 16%. Replicating this study in a narrow sense by estimating the same model with the same data, but using different software implementations, we observe minor differences stemming from the different implementations. By identifying the correct implementation, we find that the loss in GDP per capita due to the presence of the Mafia has been slightly overestimated.     

News sentiment and overshooting of exchange rates

In a globalized world, the volume of international trade is based on both import and export prices, thereby making a country’s economy highly dependent on exchange rates. In order to study exchange rate movements, one frequently exploits the so-called Dornbusch overshooting model. However, the model is controversial from a theoretical point of view: it explains exchange rate movements by a number of fundamental variables but ignores how novel information in the form of news can enter the market. As a remedy, this article adjusts for information dissemination by performing a multivariate analysis to compare the classical overshooting model with an extended variant that includes news sentiment. Our results show that news sentiment has a substantial explanatory power of 11% of the exchange rate forecasting error variance. In addition, we also find statistical evidence that a shock in news sentiment may lead to overshooting.     

Dynamiken der WahlkampfberichterstattungDynamics of campaign coverage

This paper examines the TV coverage of the last three federal election campaigns employing two longitudinal perspectives: For one, we analyze long-term developments across several election campaigns. In addition, we study dynamics of media coverage during the course of each campaign and how they evolve over time. We use content analytical data from the “Kampagnendynamik” (campaign dynamics) project 2005 and the German Longitudinal Election Study 2009 and 2013. These allow for a fine-grained analysis of the main evening newscasts of the two public broadcasters ARD and ZDF and the main commercial stations Sat.1 and RTL. The results contradict the assumption of linear trends that have been discussed using catchwords like “Americanization”. Over the course of the 2005 to 2013 period, no increased focus on the competitive character of an election could be detected; quite to the contrary we can observe an increasing focus on policy issues. Neither can we detect an increasing personalization. Looking at the dynamics throughout the campaigns, however, an increasing focus on candidates as well as on politics can be observed. Moreover, public and private broadcasting stations differ in their style of reporting.