Variations in municipal bond default risk premia by term-to-maturity

A recent study by McInish of the influence of term-to-maturity on municipal bond default risk premia concluded that default risk premia were not invariant with respect to maturity. That study, as well as an earlier one by Robinson, failed to consider the effects of issuer credit quality. Using a large cross-sectional sample of general obligation bonds sold between 1977 and 1980, the influence of issuer credit quality on the relationship between term-to-maturity and default risk premia is investigated. The results indicate that default risk premia were an increasing function of maturity, and that this effect was larger for lower rated bonds.     

Developing a strategic marketing orientation in a large industrial firm

This article outlines the approach one firm, Parker Hannifin, has taken during the past three years to begin the development of a marketing/strategic planning orientation throughout the 80 plus business units of the corporation.     

Rethinking the development agenda

This paper calls for a development agenda based on five majorpremises: (1) a more balanced form of globalisation based ona genuine respect for diversity; (2) a broad view of macroeconomicstability, which provides an adequate role for counter-cyclicalpolicies; (3) the need to complement macroeconomic stabilitywith active productive development policies; (4) strong socialpolicies and the mainstreaming of social objectives into economicpolicies to guarantee adequate linkages between economic andsocial development; and (5) the recognition that developmentinvolves broader human development goals.     

The separation of ownership from control and investment performance

There is much evidence of a growing separation of corporate ownership from its control by management. This paper compares the performance of several diversified portfolios containing a total of 199 industrial corporations' common stocks in which the class of a given portfolio's stocks is a range of percentage of the total voting stock held by management. This is a test of stock market performance with respect to public information on the relative separation of ownership from control.Performance measures from a naive arbitrage model that is an adaptation of a simplified market model showed that stock market performance was independent of the relative separation of ownership from control over the 1964–1973 period.     

Failure of the national flood insurance partnership

For nearly a decade flood insurance was provided by a unique partnership arrangement involving the federal government and the private insurance industry. This study examines (1) the rationale for establishing subsidized flood insurance in the United States, (2) the government-industry partnership formed to provide flood insurance, (3) the reasons why the partnership failed, and (4) the implications of the failure for future joint ventures between government and industry.     

Size and rank stability of the 100 largest commercial banks, 1925–1978

Although the importance and rank stability of the 100 or 200 largest industrial corporations has been the subject of several studies, no comparable studies have been conducted in banking. Questions about the position and role of the 100 largest banks are beginning to emerge as a result of the 1980 thrift institution legislation and the prospect of interstate banking in the not too distant future. Data constructed for this study reveal that 1) concentration of deposits in the 100 largest banks increased from 33.7 percent in 1925 to 51.4 percent in 1978, 2) the pattern of change and the absolute level of concentration are remarkably similar for the 100 largest industrials, 3) deposits have become increasingly concentrated within the top 100 banks, 4) mobility and turnover have been relatively stable since 1925, 5) merger activity is partly responsible for the increased concentration and observed mobility and turnover, and 6) there has been a notable increase in the geographical dispersion of banks among the top 100.     

Economic factors that affect new product substitution: A case history

A scenario is presented of a U.S. industry whose traditional products were well into the maturity stage of the product life cycle and long overdue in introducing a new product to the marketplace.     

Fear and Loathing (of others): Race,Class and Contestation of Space in Washington,DC

Our article explores the cultural politics of public space and the placemaking politics of urban redevelopment in the Atlas District of Washington, DC, a popular commercial district undergoing rapid gentrification. The major questions we address are, how do race and class impact the ways public space is controlled and/or managed in the context of rapid changes in the built, economic and social environments of the neighborhood? What role do those narratives play in justifying changes in and management of public space? We focus on uses of public space and describe how various forms of power are linked to the control of space in the context of gentrification. Our analysis focuses on designated public space in the Atlas District—the Starburst Plaza. By analyzing everyday practices around community control at the Starburst Plaza, this case study focuses on the discrete methods by which the symbolic and material inequities promulgated by the neoliberal state are reconfigured through struggles to define and manage contested public spaces.     

中国参与国际金融危机治理与西方危机治理模式的比较

与以"华盛顿共识"为代表的西方金融危机治理模式相比,中国参与国际金融危机治理有着自身独特的理念和行为方式,并能够在治理实践中不断拓展和深化。通过两者的对比分析,在借鉴西方有益经验和摒弃失误局限的基础上,中国才能在参与国际金融危机治理过程中发挥自身的优势、做出建设性的贡献。     

关于“北京共识”与“中国模式”的思考

随着中国经济的快速发展,对"中国模式"的研究也日趋广泛和深入,本文对关于"中国模式"的众多问题加以思考,从国际社会对我国的改革理论与发展道路的认知态度的演变中进行分析,到底是"华盛顿共识"还是"北京共识"更能发展本国经济;是拉美模式还是中国模式更能吸引发展中国家和世界的眼光;是中国模式还是中国道路更能概括中国改革开放过程中的经验和教训。