Acquiring nanotechnology capabilities: role of mergers and acquisitions

Mergers and acquisitions (M&As) are an important but unstudied aspect of nanotechnology's evolution. This paper uses case review and bibliometric analysis to examine 20 M&As involving acquired firms in the nanotechnology domain. The guiding proposition is that acquired firms provide complementarities to the acquiring firms. Key measures given consideration include the nature of the post-acquisition organisation, whether the pre-acquisition geographic location is retained, the purpose of the acquisitions as indicated in news releases, and the extent of similarity in research publications and patents. Differences by the country of the acquiring firm and sub-industry are noted. Within the limitations of the case study approach, the results suggest that acquired firms in the nanotechnology domain provide complementary capabilities to their acquirers.     

How do Leading Retail MNCs Leverage CSR Globally? Insights from Brazil

In this article, we shed light on the debate about the financial performance of socially responsible investment (SRI) mutual funds by separately analyzing the contributions of before-fee performance and fees to SRI funds’ performance, and by investigating the role played by fund management companies in the determination of those variables. We apply the matching estimator methodology to obtain our results and find that in the period 1997–2005, US SRI funds had better before- and after-fee performance than conventional funds with similar characteristics. The differences, however, are driven exclusively by SRI funds run by management companies specialized in SRI. While these funds significantly outperform similar conventional funds, funds run by companies not specialized in SRI underperform their matched conventional funds. We find no significant differences in fees between SRI and conventional funds except in one case: SRI funds are cheaper than conventional funds run by the same management company.     

Agribusiness,Peasant Agriculture and Labour Markets: Ecuador in Comparative Perspective

The consolidation of capitalist agriculture in countries such as Ecuador has led to a recent revaluation of territories (central highlands) where cheap labour has facilitated agribusiness development linked to the world market. This process generates growth in the numbers of rural wage workers and the creation of a labour market that, in relation to others in several Latin American countries, has certain particularities: permanent jobs, gender balance, an absence of intermediaries and low levels of precariousness. Small‐scale peasant producers are marginalized in this context and play functional roles within the current dynamics of agribusiness firms. The organizational weakness of rural wage earners and the pursuit of clientelist relationships by firms do not allow rural workers and local communities to devise economic and social strategies that might improve their position in this ‘field of forces’ in the territory.     

A new perspective on dynamic portfolio policies

The paper starts from the preceeding paper by L. Peccati in this issue. The original model is enriched with corporate taxes and reinvestment possibilities.The decomposition of NPV is used to study an optimal dynamic reinvestment policy.A generalization of the model is outlined and a numerical example is provided in an appendix.     

Rovina,assicurazione e scambi di attività finanziarie

Viene fornita la soluzione in forma chiusa di un problema di ottimizzazione dinamica stocastica, consistente nella scelta ottimale tra consumo e risparmio e nella composizione ottimale di portafoglio, in presenza di possibilità di rovina assicurabile.Dal punto di vista della teoria assicurativa, il lavoro amplia alcuni modelli recenti sull'assicurazione ottima, poiché segue un approccio del tipo «equilibrio generale» con due tipi di agenti eterogenei anziché parziale.Dal punto di vista della teoria di portafoglio, esso si discosta dai modelli tradizionali perché giustifica l'esistenza di scambi sui mercati finanziari e ne spiega l'entità.In questo senso il lavoro amplia alcuni contributi recenti sui flussi di capitale includendovi la possibilità di rovina e l'esistenza di una assicurazione contro di essa.

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Summary This paper provides an analytical solution for a multiperiod stochastic optimization problem, namely consumption and portfolio choice with partial risk insurance.An opposed to some recent optimal-insurance models a general-equilibrium approach —with two classes of heterogeneous agents—is adopted.Furthermore, the paper departs from traditional portfolio analysis in that it emphasises the dynamics of financial markets and justifies the existence of market trading.In this sense, it widens some recent general-equilibrium results on capital flows by including bankruptcy risk and insurance.

     

Redevelopment impact on small businesses: Studying it before it happens: (The Kakaako district in Honolulu)

A study to anticipate the impact of inner city redevelopment on small businesses in Honolulu provides specific district-wide sample survey findings regardings perceived needs to remain and hardship of relocation for the majority of firms. A mitigating solution emerging from the analysis is the construction of vertical mixed use relocation prototypes ready to house businesses as they are being displaced by building demolitions.

A target area sample survey of firms corroborates this approach for small businesses to remain close to their original location. Innovative programs and policies are needed for this to take place. They depart from the currently proposed district rezoning.     

Strategic trade policy with bargaining over managerial contracts

This paper re‐examines the well‐known activist regime's inefficiency (governments set export subsidies) in a sales–delegation game with owner–manager bargaining over contracts. Contrary to the received literature, this bargaining process may (a) induce governments to set a tax if products are not too substitute or complements and (b) lead to an efficient (inefficient) equilibrium provided that products are sufficiently differentiated (not too complements). Therefore, unilateral public intervention can be optimal: in case of rival governments' retaliation, under appropriate product competition degrees, welfares are larger than under free trade even for small managers' power. Thus, managerial delegation practices are crucial also for international trade issues.     

How to translate results from auctions to procurements

The translation of statements from auctions to procurements is not always straightforward. We define a duality relationship between them and provide the appropriate transformations needed for establishing it. Additionally, we prove that affiliation is preserved under these transformations and establish the linkage principle for procurements.     

Increasing PAYG pension benefits and reducing contribution rates

We analyse how a reduced contribution rate affects the balanced pay-as-you-go pension budget in the basic overlapping generations model of neoclassical growth (Diamond, P., 1965. National debt in a neoclassical growth model. American Economic Review 55 (5), 1126–1150). It is shown that PAYG pensions can be increased by reducing the payroll tax paid by the young contributors.