The Viability of Fixed Exchange Rate Commitments: Does Politics Matter? A Theoretical and Empirical Investigation

This article studies the connection between political instability and the sustainability of an exchange rate regime. A model based on the credibility of monetary policy shows that political unrest should be correlated with the adoption of flexible exchange rates. That intuition is tested using various measures of political instability on a panel of 125 countries between 1980 and 1994.     

The cost implications of the use of telmisartan or ramipril in patients at high risk for vascular events: the ONTARGET study

Abstract

Background:

The recently published ONTARGET trial found that telmisartan was non-inferior to ramipril in reducing CV death, MI, stroke, or heart failure in patients with vascular disease or high-risk diabetes. The cost implications of ramipril and telmisartan monotherapy use based on the ONTARGET study are reported here.

Methods and Results:

Only healthcare system costs were considered. Healthcare resource utilization was collected for each patient during the trial. The authors obtained country-specific unit costs to the different healthcare care resources consumed (i.e., hospitalizations events, procedures, non-study, and study drugs) for all enrolled patients. Purchasing power parities were used to convert country-specific costs into US dollars (US$ 2008). The total undiscounted costs of the study for the telmisartan group was $12,762 per patient and is higher than the ramipril group at $12,007 per patient, an un-discounted difference of $755 (95% confidence interval [CI], $218–$1292); The discounted costs for the telmisartan group was $11,722 compared with $11,019 for the ramipril group; a difference of $703 (95% CI, $209–$1197). The difference in costs is exclusively related to the acquisition cost of telmisartan over generic ramipril.

Limitations:

This analysis only considered direct healthcare system costs. Costs accrued outside the hospital were not collected. Combination therapy was excluded since it would likely be more expensive than ramipril alone, with no additional benefit and a risk of some harm.

Conclusions:

Based on these results, it is suggested that for the ONTARGET patients, the use of telmisartan instead of ramipril increases costs by 6.3%. These findings suggest that the choice to put patients on telmisartan should be justified based on the patient’s susceptibility to specific adverse events to minimize the cost implications.     

北美自由贸易协定前景展望

当世界把注意力集中在欧共体1992年大市场形成之际,在大西洋的彼岸美洲却酝酿着更大的贸易一体化计划,这就是华盛顿官方于1991年2月5日宣布的,计划开始北美自由贸易协定(FTA,以下简称协定)的谈判。该协定将有别于以前的任何协定,是继美加自由贸易协定后又一贸易条约,它将使美国、加拿大和墨西哥三国溶入一个拥有3.6亿消费者,6万亿美元产值的世界最大的市场之中。本文试图对该谈判的背景以及对世界经济贸易发展的影响作一分析。     

进一步开放外资银行初探

<正> 世界上一些发达国家以及发展中国家,在发展本国经济时无不积极利用外资以加速其经济建设的发展,而要积极利用外资,又不能不借助于外资银行的配合,因此,开放外资银行就成为许多国家的普遍做法。我国正在进行社会主义现代化建设,正在贯彻实施沿海地区经济发     

输配电价改革——考察带来的启示和建议

为学习和借鉴国外一些国家电力体制和电价改革的成功做法和经验,深化和促进我国电力体制和电价改革,健全合理的电价形成机制,国家电力公司组成电价考察团,于2001年3月底4月初对英国、西班牙、意大利、法国四国的电力市场、电价尤其是输配电价情况进行了考察。期间,访问了四国的政府电力主管部门、监管机构、电力集团公司、发电公司、电网公司等单位,听取了他们对电力体制、电力市场改革及电价情况的介绍,并就电价形成机制、政府监管、利润水平、电价构成及电价分类等问题与相关部门进行了讨论交流。现结合考察的情况对我国的电力市场及电价改革谈一些看法和建议。     

多频道通信程控多环式频率综合器

为适应多频道通信的需要,在采用的频率综合技术中,锁相多环式频率综合可同时满足信号频谱纯、频道多且间隔小、换频速度快等要求。本文利用典型的带电流源鉴频鉴相器的锁相环,推导了其环路数学模型,并对其稳定性进行了讨论。最后,结合大规模集成销相环,给出一个三环式多频道频率综合器的原理框图及主要性能指标,并讨论了低噪声压控振荡器等具体电路的设计。     

卫星电视接收技术的现状及其发展趋势

本文综述了卫星电视接收技术的国内外现状,简要地概括了它的十个发展方向,其发展的最终目标是要进入家庭.在技术开发和市场开拓上都是具有光明前途的.     

基于供应链的蔬菜企业应用网络技术的调研报告

在广泛调查的基础上，探讨了基于供应链的我国蔬菜企业应用网络技术的现状，制约蔬菜企业采用网络技术的因素以及企业未来应用网络技术的计划。     

当前国际经济形势分析

2007年上半年,全球经济基本面依然积极向好,持续较快增长的大格局没有发生变化.今年下半年乃至今后的一段时期,世界经济增长仍有可能维持在4%左右的高位,我国发展面临的国际经济环境总体较为有利.     

我国商业银行实施精细化管理的理论思考

商业银行精细化管理是对企业精细化管理行为的引申和运用,它对商业银行克服粗放经营现象、运用数据技术进行成本和风险控制,进而实现效益最大化具有重要的现实意义。我国商业银行的精细化管理涉及决策组织、职能部门和执行机构,包括管理战略、管理资源和营销策略等管理过程,具体对风险管理目标、经营成本控制和客户服务方案每一环节设计系统化方案、进行标准化控制和实行差异化管理。实施精细管理需要有效的组织保障、技术支持和目标监控,并通过智能化的程序控制和规范化的制度约束,确保规范管理行为,实现管理目标,取得最佳的经营效益。