The Investment Performance of Art in Mainland China

This article investigates price determinants and investment performance for paintings from mainland China using hedonic regression analysis applied to a new dataset from over 190,000 auction transactions. The price index obtained indicates that from 2000 to 2015, the average annual appreciation in value of Chinese art was 8.42% in real USD. Compared with American artwork, global artwork, and traditional financial assets, Chinese art possesses a comparatively better risk and return profile and a low correlation with other assets. Finally, regarding the masterpiece effect, the conclusion is that highly priced Chinese art does not underperform the market.     

Is China’s Manufacturing Industry Efficient? Evidence from an Energy-Rebound Effect Perspective

Majority of the increase in global energy consumption is from China; hence, studying energy issues, especially in China’s manufacturing industry (CMI), is worthwhile and of much interest in the academic field. Based on the translog cost function, we develop a research framework to study the rebound effect of CMI. Considering the effect of asymmetric energy price, we augment the energy-cost function with asymmetric influence constraint of energy price. Again, we add time series data of CMI’s capital, labor, energy, and mid-input to the model to calculate the direct rebound effect of CMI. We find that the rebound effect of CMI is 44.2%, and CMI still has large energy-conservation potentials. Based on the results of this study, some policy recommendations are provided.     

Liquidity operations during the financial crisis 2008/09: evidence from the relations between Korean won onshore and offshore markets

This paper addresses the interrelation of onshore and offshore markets before and after the Bank of Korea intervened in 2008/09. During the financial crisis, Korea faced a liquidity crunch and leveraged its high level of reserves to conduct swap agreements in late 2008. To analyse how the reforms affected the mean and volatility spillover in between the spot and NDF markets, an extended GARCH model is used. The main findings of this paper are that prior to the financial crisis, the spot market dominated the offshore market. This changed after South Korea addressed the won’s liquidity crunch at the height of the crisis. Mean and volatility spillover between the markets diminished and the price gap narrowed. In addition to the empirical results, the paper also underlines the significance of liquidity and robust capital requirements for central banks.     

Capital gains lock-in and governance choices

Differences in accrued gains and investors’ tax-sensitivity induce variation in a capital gains lock-in effect across mutual funds even for the same stock at the same time. Exploiting this variation, we show this effect influences funds’ governance decisions: higher capital gains decrease the likelihood a fund exits prior to contentious votes and increase the likelihood a fund votes against management. Consistent with tax motivation, these findings are concentrated among funds with tax-sensitive investors. Further, high aggregate capital gains across funds holding a stock predict a higher likelihood management loses a vote and a lower likelihood a contentious vote is proposed.     

Monetary policy and stock valuation: structural VAR identification and size effects

This paper examines the relationship between the US monetary policy and stock valuation using a structural VAR framework that allows for the simultaneous interaction between the federal funds rate and stock market developments based on the assumption of long-run monetary neutrality. The results confirm a strong, negative and significant monetary policy tightening effect on real stock prices. Furthermore, we provide evidence consistent with a delayed response of small stocks to monetary policy shocks relative to large stocks.     

Voluntary disclosure,greenhouse gas emissions and business performance: Assessing the first decade of reporting

This study explores the empirical relationships between GHG emissions and an extensive range of business performance measures for UK FTSE-350 listed firms over the first decade or so of such reporting. Despite the popular and policy generated environmental imperatives over this period—along with growing evidence of the corporate added-value of having an ‘environmental conscience’, voluntary disclosure of emissions has been slow to adopt by firms. The leading contribution is to present clear evidence of a non-linear relationship, initially increasing with firm performance and then decreasing. An extensive pattern of non-reporting of emissions is also observed over time, and prior literature has introduced questions of endogeneity existing between firm performance and emissions. Steps are taken to ensure confidence/robustness of the results to these concerns. Accordingly, a two-stage (Heckman-type) selection model is used to analyse the emissions-performance nexus conditional upon the firm choosing to report (i.e. treating the choice to report as being endogenously determined with firm performance). From this—in addition to confirming the robustness of the non-linear relationship—it can be observed that the decision to report emissions is not directly influenced by wider social/governance disclosure attitudes of a firm, thus suggesting that firms disassociate environmental responsibility from social responsibility.     

Impact of contracts in high yielding varieties seed production on profits and yield: The case of Nepal

Nepal’s population continues to grow, but the agricultural sector’s performance remains almost stagnant. This has led to a decline in the per capita availability of food. Increasing agricultural productivity is the key to agricultural growth, and one strategy for increasing agricultural productivity is to use improved seeds. This study investigates the impact of contract farming (CF) in high yielding varieties (HYV) of paddy seed production on costs, yield, and profits of smallholder farms in Nepal. Using farm-level data and a non-parametric propensity score matching estimator, the study finds a significant positive impact of contract HYV seed farming on revenues, profits, and yield, and a significant negative impact on total costs of production. Additionally, very small farms (⩽0.43 ha) with CF in HYV paddy seeds tend to gain the most when it comes to yield per hectare. Our estimates reveal that the average smallholder household in Nepal engaged in CF with input conditions receives higher profits. However, farmers engaged in CF with output conditions tend to have higher yields but smaller profits. Finally, farmers engaged in CF in HYV paddy seeds with both input and output conditions have the highest yield gains and significantly higher profits.     

光伏组件PID效应及解决方案论析

描述了光伏组件发生PID的效应及现象,从电池角度阐述了其主要可能形成的机理,并通过实验观察到PID问题在实际测试及使用过程中的现象和影响,通过实验比对不同扩散方阻及扩散PN结深、不同折射率的镀膜工艺、不同类型组件封装材料以及正负极不同系统接地方式等解决方案,重点论述了解决PID问题的方法以及几种方案在目前实际生产中的应用情况,为解决PID问题提供参考。     

企业模块化的边界及其经济效应研究

作为一种分析工具，模块或模块化的涉及范围和利用能力非常强大。尤其是在信，皂，技术快速发展和需求日益个性化的知识经济时代．对模块化理论的重新解读和运用，更有助于我们认识新经济现象的本质特征。大量的研究已显示．企业模块化以后形成了一种全新的组织形式，而且带来了许多令人想像不到的效果。但这并不意味着对企业模块化研究的终结。本文试图在经济学理论和模块化理论融合的基础上．探究企业模块化的形成机理，企业模块化的最佳边界．以及企业模块化后究竟带来了怎样影响三个核心命题。     

模块化组织价值创新:原理、机制及理论挑战

本文借鉴瀑布效应原理，通过对需求导向下协调生产规则的演变、生产控制权追逐下旗舰企业地位的形成．以及迂回生产链加长条件下报酬递增等模块化组织价值创新机制的研究．指出企业与市场握手地带是一种专业化分工与一体化分工并存、报酬递减与报酬递增并存和外生不确定性化解与内生不确定性提高并存的双重世界。这将使企业与市场握手地带的传统企业理论因双重性而受到挑战。