BUILDING PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS: Assessing and managing risks in port development

In recent years increasing dependencies between public and private organizations lead to a growing need for public-private partnerships. However, cultural and institutional differences between the public and private domain and, in addition, the difficulties of bringing the two together, constitute a serious threat to successful public-private partnership. The formation of these partnerships is further hindered by confusion of the concept of public-private partnership. The predominant model of contracting out restricts rather than enhances public-private interaction. This article deals with the difficulties and risks involved in building public-private partnerships and tries to answer the question of how to overcome them. The issue is illustrated by an analysis of the attempts made to realize a huge port expansion in the port of Rotterdam by means of establishing public-private partnership.     

企业无形资产的资本化运营原则

企业在进行资本化运营活动中，不仅要重视有形资产的资本化运营，同时更应重视无形资产的资本化运营．无形资产的资本化运营在企业的资本化运营中占有重要地位．无形资产的资本化运营没有固定的模式，但是在进行无形资产的资本化运营过程中应遵循一定的原则．     

Bootstrapping Financial Time Series

It is well known that time series of returns are characterized by volatility clustering and excess kurtosis. Therefore, when modelling the dynamic behavior of returns, inference and prediction methods, based on independent and/or Gaussian observations may be inadequate. As bootstrap methods are not, in general, based on any particular assumption on the distribution of the data, they are well suited for the analysis of returns. This paper reviews the application of bootstrap procedures for inference and prediction of financial time series. In relation to inference, bootstrap techniques have been applied to obtain the sample distribution of statistics for testing, for example, autoregressive dynamics in the conditional mean and variance, unit roots in the mean, fractional integration in volatility and the predictive ability of technical trading rules. On the other hand, bootstrap procedures have been used to estimate the distribution of returns which is of interest, for example, for Value at Risk (VaR) models or for prediction purposes. Although the application of bootstrap techniques to the empirical analysis of financial time series is very broad, there are few analytical results on the statistical properties of these techniques when applied to heteroscedastic time series. Furthermore, there are quite a few papers where the bootstrap procedures used are not adequate.     

Preferential trade agreements between asymmetric countries: Free trade areas (with rules of origin) vs. customs unions

This paper examines differences in welfare implications between a free trade area (FTA) and a customs union (CU) for member countries differing in their market sizes. In a stylized three-country model of trade under oligopoly, we take into account the conditions that FTA members set external tariffs to induce their exporting firms to comply with rules of origin (ROO) within the trade bloc. This approach rules out trade deflection and regime switches in forming an effective FTA. The key findings are as follows: (i) Unless the difference in market size is too large and ROO are too restrictive, an FTA can be welfare-improving to countries with market size differential. (ii) The formation of a preferential trade agreement (either an FTA or a CU) is more likely to emerge between countries of similar market size. However, forming a CU allows for a greater degree of market size asymmetry than forming an FTA. (iii) Compared to the pre-PTA equilibrium, the greater reductions in external tariffs under an FTA than under a CU remain valid even for the case with market size asymmetry and preferential ROO. As such, a non-member country is relatively better off under an FTA. (iv) World welfare is higher under an FTA than under a CU when the market size asymmetry is moderate and ROO are less restrictive.     

Rules, principles and judgments in accounting standards

The distinction between rules-based and principles-based standards is not well defined and is subject to a variety of interpretations ( SEC, 2003 , p. 5). Yet there is a commonly held view that the FASB's standards are rules-based and the IASB's standards are principles-based. This article identifies the basis of this distinction. For research and development, the article compares the FASB standard with two principles-based standards. For each standard we identify and classify rules and judgments, and observe the level of justifications for the rules and assistance to support the judgments. The three standards have rules, are based on principles, and require the exercise of professional judgment; the less conservative standard requires more judgments and, unexpectedly, more rules. The results suggest that the rules-based versus principles-based distinction is not meaningful, except in relative terms. We conclude that a relatively more principles-based standards regime requires professional judgment at both the transaction level (substance over form) and at the financial statement level ('true and fair view' override). Furthermore, it is suggested that any FASB and IASB convergence will require agreement on the weightings given to the qualitative characteristics.     

客户分类与银行理财——关联分类算法在银行理财营销中的应用研究

关联分类是数据挖掘中一种新的分类方法,集成了关联规则挖掘和分类的特点,具有较高的分类精度和较强的扩展性.本文针对银行理财产品营销,通过改进CBA算法,引入加权支持度以及加权置信度进行关联规则的挖掘,然后综合考虑这些规则与测试数据之间的最小差异度,并以此作为依据对客户的理财能力进行分类,为银行有效营销理财产品,提高收益,...     

The economic agent as rule maker and rule user: <Emphasis Type="BoldItalic">Homo Sapiens Oeconomicus</Emphasis>

The paper discusses the micro foundations of evolutionary economics, introducing a unified concept of the economic agent as a rule maker and rule user. Based on recent findings of the neuronal, cognitive and behavioral sciences, Homo Sapiens Oeconomicus emerges as an alternative to Homo Oeconomicus. A taxonomy of rules distinguishing between cognitive, behavioral and blueprint rules and a set of theoretical propositions related to the structure and evolution of those rules are suggested.JEL Classification: A 12, B 41, B 52, B 53, D 00, D 64, D 80, D 83, E 11, L20The present paper had its origin in a research project on The Interdisciplinary Foundations of Economic Decision Making supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation during 1978-1980. The core of that work was a brain model whose architecture also serves as a corner stone for this paper. Since then there have been substantial developments in the respective areas; some of the major findings of the more recent research in the neuronal, cognitive and related sciences are discussed and integrated into the present paper. - I gratefully acknowledge insightful comments and criticisms from Georg D. Blind. Some ideas were discussed during my tenure as a Visiting Professor in the Department of Economics at the University of Queensland, in fall 2003, and I wish to record my appreciation of the hospitality during that visit. Particular thanks for the inspiring discussions go to Peter Earl, John Foster, and, as always, Jason Potts. Special thanks are due to Juli Lessmann and Charles R. McCann for their thoughtful corrections of my English prose and their editorial help. The usual disclaimer applies.     

模块化结构下的市场结构、行为及绩效

模块化作为新产业结构的本质特征,其结构由三部分构成:设计规则、隐形模块生产和系统集成与检测。模块化改变了传统的产业组织形态,在模块化结构下,市场结构是分散型的大系统,市场行为表现为三种新竞争形态,最终市场绩效是增进的。     

Would African Countries Benefit from the Termination of Kenya’s Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the EU? An Analysis of EU Demand for Imported Roses

This paper assesses the impact of Kenya’s preferential status on EU demand for imported roses by country. Import demand equations were estimated using a production version of the Rotterdam model in an Armington framework. With the expiration of the Lomé Convention, tariffs (up to 24%) on Kenyan roses were likely if an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) was not signed by January 2008. Roses from African countries not subject to tariffs were expected to displace Kenya’s exports in the future. However, results of this study showed that roses from African countries were complements in the EU market and those exports from Zimbabwe and Other African countries would have been negatively impacted if a Kenya–EU EPA was unsuccessful. Given the maximum import duty on Kenyan roses, EU imports from Kenya would decrease by 9.1% and imports from Zimbabwe and Other African countries would decrease by 6% and 4%, respectively.