Capital regulation, bank competition, and financial stability

We analyze capital requirements if banks compete for loans and deposits. Banks and firms are subject to a risk-shifting problem. The ambiguous effect of competition on banks’ risk-taking translates into an ambiguous effect of capital requirements on financial stability.     

How to Attract an Audience at a Conference: Paper,Person or Place?

We analyze the drivers of audience size and the number of questions asked in parallel sessions at the annual conference of the German Economics Association. We find that the location of the presentation is at least as important for the number of academics attending a talk as the combined effect of the person presenting and the paper presented. Being a presenter in a late morning session on the second day of a conference, close to the place where coffee is served, significantly increases the size of the audience. When it comes to asking questions, location becomes less important, but smaller rooms lead to more questions being asked. Younger researchers and very senior researchers attract more questions and comments. There are also interesting gender effects. Women attend research sessions more diligently than men, but seem to ask fewer questions than men. Men are less likely to attend presentations on health, education, welfare and development economics than women. Our findings suggest that strategic scheduling of sessions could ensure better participation at conferences. Moreover, different behaviors of men and women at conferences might also contribute to the lack of women in senior scientist positions.     

THE 2007–2008 U.S. RECESSION: WHAT DID THE REAL‐TIME GOOGLE TRENDS DATA TELL THE UNITED STATES?

In the extant literature of business cycle predictions, the signals for business cycle turning points are generally issued with a lag of at least 5 months. In this paper, we make use of a novel and timely indicator—the Google search volume data—to help to improve the timeliness of business cycle turning point identification. We identify multiple query terms to capture the real‐time public concern on the aggregate economy, the credit market, and the labor market condition. We incorporate the query indices in a Markov‐switching framework and successfully “nowcast” the peak date within a month that the turning occurred. (JEL E37, G17)     

DETERMINANTS OF FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT – A TALE OF NINE THEORETICAL MODELS

Abstract.  This paper presents a review of nine theoretical models of foreign direct investment (FDI). Discussed are early studies of determinants of FDI (1) as well as determinants of FDI based on the neoclassical trade theory (2), ownership advantages (3), aggregate variables (4), the ownership, location and internalization advantage framework (5), horizontal and vertical FDI models (6), the knowledge-capital model (7), diversified FDI and risk diversification models (8) and policy variables (9). From each of the nine theories, the relevant determinants of FDI are derived. Empirical studies indicate the importance of these determinants in the real world. The paper shows that there is not one single theory of FDI, but a variety of theoretical models attempting to explain FDI and the location decision of multinational firms. Therefore, any analysis of determinants of FDI should not be based on a single theoretical model. Instead, FDI should be explained more broadly by a combination of factors from a variety of theoretical models such as ownership advantages or agglomeration economics, market size and characteristics, cost factors, transport costs, protection, risk factors and policy variables.     

Cournot equilibrium without apology: Existence and the Cournot inverse demand function

In a multi-commodity framework with absence of wealth effects, we prove the existence of equilibrium for Cournot oligopoly, and that the concept is completely non-ambiguous. We also obtain a uniquely defined endogenous inverse demand function, depending only on the competitive sector.     

The influence of modularity and industry clockspeed on reverse logistics strategy: Implications for the purchasing function

Environmental policies and recent take-back legislation pose new management challenges and require many companies to come up with new strategies and corresponding processes for recovering their products. Some leading firms have already succeeded in a field marked by ever-greater levels of uncertainty and material flows. However, simply mimicking the example of these leading companies does not seem to be suitable for all companies. A configurational approach is needed to understand why this is the case. This paper therefore considers two case studies to analyze the effects of industry clockspeed and product architecture on recovery options involving repair, refurbishing, or reuse. Its findings suggest that the recovery and reuse of key components is an economically viable reverse logistics strategy in a high-modularity case; in contrast, scrapping or recycling of materials is often the most viable strategy for integrated architectures. Different strategies must also be employed for high and low clockspeed situations. The demands that recovery activities place on a company's purchasing function is also illustrated in the second part of the paper.     

Frontier markets’ efficiency: mutual information and detrended fluctuation analyses

This study tests weak form efficiency in frontier markets. Mutual information and detrended fluctuation analyses are performed to assess global correlation and long range dependence in the stock markets of twenty three countries. The results indicate that Slovenia is the only case where there is evidence compatible with weak form efficiency. The relatively less inefficient markets are mainly located in Europe and America, and the relatively more inefficient mainly in the Middle East. This information is useful for investors, but also for the assessed countries’ regulators as they indicate that relevant impediments are preventing the exploitation of potential profitable opportunities.

     

Specialized new graduate RN critical care orientation: retention and financial impact

New graduate RN retention in the first year of employment is a challenge for hospitals, ranging from a low of 25% to a high of 64%. he objectives of this study were to determine the retention and costs associated with the employment of new graduate RNs before and after the initiation of a specialized year-long critical care orientation program. Retention was compared between two independent groups of graduate RNs in the critical care units of two tertiary hospitals in a multi-hospital health care system in metropolitan New York. The major study findings were a significant difference in retention between the two groups at 3 months, 9 months, and 12 months, and an annual financial savings related to decreased nursing turnover. Specialized orientation programs that support new graduate RNs have documented increased retention and decreased turnover. Health care finances are positively impacted by specialized orientation programs.     

The role of small bettors in price formation in betting exchanges

ABSTRACT

The presence of small bettors in betting exchanges generates mispricing, which can lead to exploitation by informed traders or result in permanent price deviations. This paper shows that mispricing from this source is also dependent upon variables of established relevance such as tournament round, the level of attention to the event, the volume of the betting, and bet type, further confirming these findings by means of cumulative accuracy profile (CAP) curves. It also offers evidence of the relevant role played by the type of device used to place the bet, whereby higher mispricing is observed in live bets placed via a mobile device, which appears to be associated with impulsive betting. This last finding could have practical implications for the regulation of the use of mobile devices to access gambling platforms.