Depreciation in the Canadian Airline Industry

This case is designed to help students enhance their analytical skills and link accounting policy choices with corporate strategy. Written initially for MBA students and senior analysts attending executive education sessions, it provides participants with 1) industry background for the Canadian airline sector, and 2) historical and selected financial and non‐financial information from the annual reports and initial public offering documents of three players in this industry. Participants are invited to reflect on the theoretical and practical reasons underlying the choice of a depreciation method by airline companies, to find ways to quantitatively compare companies that use different depreciation methods, and to link these policy choices to possible strategic considerations. This case is based on a unique situation prevailing in 2009 where financial information was available for all three airlines which were using different approaches for aircraft depreciation.     

Political dimensions of environmental conflicts in Kosi Bay,South Africa: significance of the new post-apartheid governance system

The new demarcation of land in Kosi Bay, aimed at reversing the spatial legacy of apartheid, has resulted in competition and new environmental conflicts between political structures, conservation authorities and local communities. The current complex governance framework is attempting to overcome the problems created by the political structures of the apartheid era, during which time the declaration of natural areas for conservation resulted in forced removals and negative perceptions of conservation. The case study of Kosi Bay, a strategic area for tourism development, is a typical example of various confrontations that reflect the history of the past and the rivalries of the present.     

The roles of reputation and transparency on the behavior of biased experts

We analyze situations in which an expert is biased toward some decision but cares also about his reputation in the market for experts. The information the expert reveals decreases as his bias moves toward stronger preferences for the status quo. Surprisingly, revealing the intensity of the expert’s bias does not always improve the information he reveals in equilibrium. The presence of a second expert raises the first expert’s incentives to report truthfully when the market can identify the contribution of each expert, but reduces them when only the collective contribution is identified by the market.     

Fragmented Food Habits and the Disintegration of Traditional Meal Patterns: A Challenge to Public Health Nutrition in Canada?

Abstract

This study examines the shifting patterns in meal consumption practices among Canadians and the sources of disruption of meal habits. It analyses the notion of breakfast, lunch, dinner, out-of-household consumption of food, cooking, and snacking which could be considered as disrupting eating habits. Meal skipping, primarily breakfast and lunch was common, particularly among women, as was consumption of food outside the home, particularly among lower income earners and respondents with lower education attainment. The findings of this survey suggest that contemporary Canadians are experiencing a disruption of meal times, a rise in the frequency of snacking and an erosion of the will or ability to prepare or cook meals at home. For many Canadians, the traditional notion of three-meals a day is becoming an ideal, rather than a daily reality. Fragmented food habits and the disintegration of traditional meal patterns represent a challenge to public health nutrition in Canada.     

Do ESG Controversies Matter for Firm Value? Evidence from International Data

The aim of this paper is to investigate the relationship between environmental, social, and governance (ESG) controversies and firm market value. We use a unique dataset of more than 4000 firms from 58 countries during 2002–2011. Primary analysis surprisingly shows that ESG controversies are associated with greater firm value. However, when interacted with the corporate social performance (CSP) score, ESG controversies are found to have no direct effect on firm value while the interaction appears to be highly and significantly positive. Building on this evidence, we attempt to explore the channels through which CSP may enhance market value. Conducting sample split analysis indicates that higher CSP score has an impact on market value only for high-attention firms, those firms which are larger, perform better, located in countries with greater press freedom, more searched on the Internet, more followed by analysts, and have an improved corporate social reputation. Thus, our findings provide new insights on the role of firm visibility through which firms can profit from their CSP.     

Self-fulfilling expectations and the inflation of the 1970s: Evidence from the Livingston Survey

Using survey data on expectations, we examine whether the response of monetary policy to sudden movements in expected inflation contributed to the persistent high inflation of the 1970s. The evidence suggests that, prior to 1979, the Fed accommodated temporary shocks to expected inflation, which then led to persistent increases in actual inflation. We do not find this behavior in the post-1979 data. Among commonly cited factors, oil and fiscal shocks do not appear to have triggered an increase in expected inflation that eventually resulted in higher actual inflation.     

The influence of online product recommendations on consumers’ online choices

This study investigates consumers’ usage of online recommendation sources and their influence on online product choices. A 3 (websites) × 4 (recommendation sources) × 2 (products) online experiment was conducted with 487 subjects. Results indicate that subjects who consulted product recommendations selected recommended products twice as often as subjects who did not consult recommendations. The online recommendation source labeled “recommender system,” typical of the personalization possibilities offered by online retailing, was more influential than more traditional recommendation sources such as “human experts” and “other consumers”. The type of product also had a significant influence on the propensity to follow product recommendations. Theoretical and managerial implications of these findings are provided.     

Pre-commitment Mechanism and Policy Credibility in African Trade Reform

In the absence of a binding pre-commitment mechanism, a government has an incentive to renege on announced policy. This is a well-established result in the literature. The paper applies this theory to tariff policy by developing a two-game model to analyze the credibility of government tariff reform announcements. The pre-commitment solution is subgame-imperfect; therefore, government's announcement of tariff reforms is time-inconsistent. Using a sample of African countries operating under IMF structural adjustment programs, the study finds only weak evidence that countries implemented their announced tariff reforms. However, SAP agreements seem to enhance private sector confidence in government reforms.