Corporate social responsibility committees and the use of corporate social responsibility assurance services

This study examines whether corporate social responsibility (CSR) committees associate with the external assurance of CSR reports. Specifically, we consider the presence and effectiveness of CSR committees. Using a sample of Australian firms over the period 2004–2016, we show the mere presence of a CSR committee is not related to the external assurance of CSR. However, CSR committee effectiveness is positively related. In addition, firms with higher CSR committee effectiveness are more likely to seek external assurance provided by the Big4 accountancy firms and acquire financial audit and CSR assurance services from the same provider. Taken together, CSR committee effectiveness plays an active role in CSR assurance services. Our results are particularly relevant to those with interests in understanding the demand and choice of external CSR assurance services, as well as the impact of corporate governance mechanisms on these services.     

知识产权法“利益平衡说”之反思： 自然法与功利主义之比较

“利益平衡说”被认为是知识产权法之基本原则或基本精神,旨在平衡权利人个人利益与社会公共利益之冲突,并以此解释知识产权法的制度构成。依自然法理论,知识产权之正当性因其自然获得性,相关权利与限制是确定权利的正当边界,维护以个人权利为基础之社会契约。功利主义理论则认为知识产权保护是实现社会效用之必要工具,经由排他性权利及其限制来达至社会效用最大化。无论限制或保护权利均有可能产生对权利或社会效用的正面或负面作用。由此,利益平衡的二元价值目标论值得商榷。知识产权法的根本问题是以个人权利为导向还是以社会效用为终极价值之选择问题。     

Reconciling sustainability and discounting in Cost–Benefit Analysis: A methodological proposal

The incorporation of the intergenerational equity objective has rendered the traditional Cost–Benefit Analysis (CBA) approach obsolete for the evaluation of projects presenting an important number of environmental externalities and for those whose impacts extend throughout a long period of time.Based on the assumption that applying a discount rate rewards current consumption and, therefore, that it is only possible to introduce a certain intergenerational equity in a Cost–Benefit Analysis, in this work we propose an approach to discounting based on a different rationale for tangible and intangible effects. We designed two indicators of environmental profitability: a) the Intergenerational Transfer Amount (ITA), which quantifies in monetary units what the current generation is willing to pass on future generations when an environmental restoration project is carried out, and b) the Critical Environmental Rate (CER), measures the implicit environmental profitability.These concepts were tested through an empirical case study pertaining to the assessment of an Erosion Control Project in the southeast of Spain. The results yield traditional profitability indicators that are higher — and probably closer — to the real values set by the contemporary society. The information provided by the environmental profitability indicators proposed renders more transparency to the quantification of the levels of intergenerational equity applied, thereby facilitating the difficult reconciliation of the CBA technique with the objective of sustainability.     

股权结构、代理问题与公司多元化折价

本文利用我国最新的上市公司资料,在得出我国上市多元化公司存在折价的基础上,从股权结构的角度来验证了代理问题和公司多元化折价的关系.我们发现,国有股权与公司多元化程度呈现负相关关系,法人股与多元化程度呈倒U形曲线关系,流通股与多元化程度呈正比例关系;股权集中度、机构持股比例和管理层持股与多元化程度呈负相关关系.结果表明,代理问题在有效解释公司多元化程度的同时,也有效地解释了公司多元化折价的产生.     

竞争、产权、公司治理三大理论的相对重要性及交互关系

对于国有企业与民营企业间的绩效差异,文献一般从三个理论角度进行研究:竞争、产权与公司治理。但是我们认为其中的各种观点都只强调了某一个方面而忽略了其他方面。本文采用世界银行对中国5大城市7个行业的700多家公司在1996—2001年运营情况的调查数据,分别从单因素效应、多因素效应以及它们之间的相互作用三个方面,对以上三个理论的相对重要性进行了实证研究。研究发现:(1)当分别对各单个因素进行考察时,各因素都对样本公司绩效有积极影响。然而当对这些因素进行综合考察时,我们发现产权结构与公司治理作用相对重要,而竞争效应则不甚显著;(2)在产权与公司治理,以及产权与竞争之间,存在着某种程度的替代性;(3)非国有企业在某些治理机制方面比国有企业显示出特定的优势,但另一方面市场竞争对于国有企业绩效影响大于对非国有企业的影响。研究表明,现有的理论观点都有其片面性,对企业绩效的全面的研究需要将三个理论体系结合起来进行综合考察。我们的研究将对中国正在推行的民营化浪潮,以及改善公司治理和完善市场竞争,都具有重要的政策指导意义。     

Institutions and economic growth in Portugal: a quantitative exploration

This paper presents a broad diagnostic of the level of institutional development in Portugal in the legal, corporate governance and financial systems. A comparative assessment suggests that Portuguese institutions are less developed than their European Union and East Asian counterparts, more developed than Greek institutions and on a level similar to that of Spanish institutions. We use data for a wide cross-section of countries since 1960 and correlate indicators of institutional development with the long-term average growth rate, identifying issues where reform is likely to significantly affect economic growth. We construct three new indices that measure the potential of institutional reform - the impact of reform on growth, the required reform effort and the efficiency of reform index - by taking into consideration the institutional distance between Portugal and the European Union. These indices measure, respectively, which reforms have the most payoff in terms of growth, which are less costly to undertake and which deliver the most growth per required effort. Our results strongly suggest that in a large number of issues, institutional reform may translate into substantially higher rates of economic growth. Of the ten most promising reforms, six are in the legal area, irrespective of which of the indices is considered. Whereas legal reform is promising at the aggregate and the microeconomic levels, in the financial sector aggregate indicators offer the wider scope for productive reform, while in the corporate governance area it is indices at the micro level that hold the most promise. These results support the view that a comprehensive reform effort is likely to deliver higher rates of growth in Portugal, allowing faster real convergence with the rest of the European Union.Received: January 2003, Accepted: February 2004, JEL Classification: O0, O5, K00, K4, G2, G3This paper is based on Firms, Financial Markets and the Law: Institutions and Economic Growth in Portugal, prepared for the conference Desenvolvimento Económico Português no Espaço Europeu: Determinantes e Políticas, organized by the Banco de Portugal. Financial support by the Banco de Portugal, NOVA FORUM and FUNDAÇÃO Para a Ciência e tecnologia and Polti through feder are gratefully acknowledged. Comments from Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, two anonymous referees and the editor are sincerely appreciated. The usual disclaimer applies.     

衰退产业中企业创新战略选择

衰退产业是一种越来越普遍的产业形态。产业创新是衰退产业中企业的生存选择。衰退产业创新有三种基本战略,即进攻型创新战略、防御型创新战略和模仿与依赖型创新战略。     

作业基础业绩评价体系的构建

作业基础内部业绩评价体系是在传统责任会计理论基础上发展起来的作业基础责任会计制度,它以作业为基础,通过作业动因对企业内部各责任中心的再认识和再划分,利用作业管理基本理论和方法,依据作业价值链对责任中心进行管理和考核.作业基础责任会计是责任会计自身理论和实践的发展与完善,是对企业内部业绩评价的一种全新的改革.     

社保基金监管的现状、问题与建议

目前,我国已经初步确立社保基金监管体制,取得了明显的成效.但依然存在着局部地区违规操作、管理体制不顺畅和相关法制、监管建设滞后等问题.从世界范围社会保障基金监管实践看,依托完备法律法规体制实施社保基金监管,确立社保基金监管部门、监管结构,赋予执法权威,社保基金监管向专业化、市场化发展成为社保基金监管的共同点.借鉴国际先进管理经验,我国应提高立法层次、建立完善的法律体制;强化监管力量,适当集中,构建主辅分明、多重监管的社保基金监管结构;推进社会保险基金监管的市场化.     

The tax (dis)advantage of a firm issuing options on its own stock

It is common for firms to issue or purchase options on the firm's own stock. Examples include convertible bonds, warrants, call options as employee compensation, and the sale of put options as part of share repurchase programs. This paper shows that option positions with implicit borrowing—such as put sales and call purchases—are tax-disadvantaged relative to the equivalent synthetic option with explicit borrowing. Conversely, option positions with implicit lending—such as warrants—are tax-advantaged. I also show that firms are better off from a tax perspective issuing bifurcated convertible bonds—bonds plus warrants—rather than an otherwise equivalent standard convertible.