Getting fourteen for the price of one! Understanding the factors that influence land value and how they affect biodiversity conservation in central Brazil

Biodiversity policies are suffering an implementation crisis; the roots are deeply entrenched in the unfair competition between the public and private interests for suitable versus available land. In this article we propose a value-based equivalence method for compensation for the 20% compulsory reserves in the Taquari River sub-catchments, as legally required for central savannas of Brazil. Using regression techniques we analyzed 106 land deals in the Pantanal's watershed and identified the most significant variables influencing land value. We argue that the commonly used area-for-area, compensation mechanism, where 1 ha of compulsory reserve is missing, requires another hectare protected in the same catchments, instead of counteract habitat loss, is in fact harmful to biodiversity, stimulating progressive habitat destruction. We identified the economic forces behind deforestation and habitat fragmentation in the central savannahs of Brazil and proposed a market-based approach to counteract these forces using tools already available in environmental economics. We suggest that a dollar-for-dollar reference to determine land equivalence and compensation can better counter-balance the incremental losses from habitat destruction, while providing objectivity and transparency for trading alternatives.     

人民银行分支机构绩效评估的困境及对策

当前人民银行分支机构绩效评估中的技术缺陷及形式主义行为来自于传统的人治理念与集权体制。立足现实、循序渐进是走出困境的理性选择。要坚持科学发展观,着力规范人行分支机构绩效评估中的内部关系,并推动公民有序参与。     

The valuation effects of overseas listings: The case of the Tokyo Stock Exchange

Shareholders of U.S. firms that listed stock on the Tokyo Stock Exchange from 1973 to 1989 are shown to have experienced no significant wealth gains. The pattern of the market's reaction to a Tokyo listing tracks closely the reactions to a domestic listing, where gains prior to listing are later erased. The findings indicate no advantages to a listing for a firm with a prior business presence in Japan, and they do not support the hypothesis of diminishing returns to foreign listings. The findings are consistent with the integration of international capital markets.     

Valuation in infinite-horizon sequential markets with portfolio constraints

Summary. We develop a theory of valuation of assets in sequential markets over an infinite horizon and discuss implications of this theory for equilibrium under various portfolio constraints. We characterize a class of constraints under which sublinear valuation and a modified present value rule hold on the set of non-negative payoff streams in the absence of feasible arbitrage. We provide an example in which valuation is non-linear and the standard present value rule fails in incomplete markets. We show that linearity and countable additivity of valuation hold when markets are complete. We present a transversality constraint under which valuation is linear and countably additive on the set of all payoff streams regardless of whether markets are complete or incomplete. Received: March 9, 2000; revised version: February 13, 2001     

A test of Hotelling’s Valuation Principle for nonrenewable resources

A recent study by Cairns and Davis (1998) tested and rejected the Hotelling Valuation Principle (HVP) using cross-sectional data on gold mines. But a replication of that study using the same data suggests the presence of heteroscedastic errors. In contrast to the results of ordinary least squares regressions, robust estimation and weighted least squares results indicate that the HVP may not be rejected at conventional levels of significance. Moreover, the alternative valuation equations proposed by Cairns and Davis can require additional and often unavailable information regarding mineral production. Matched pairs tests indicate that prediction accuracy is roughly comparable across all of the equations examined.Revisions to this paper were completed during a sabbatical at the Life Cycle Institute in the Catholic University of America. I thank Ernest M. Zampelli, Philip Pfaff, two anonymous referees, and the editors for helpful comments. Any errors are my own.First version received: May 2003/Final version received: April 2004     

Learning to play games in extensive form by valuation

Game theoretic models of learning which are based on the strategic form of the game cannot explain learning in games with large extensive form. We study learning in such games by using valuation of moves. A valuation for a player is a numeric assessment of her moves that purports to reflect their desirability. We consider a myopic player, who chooses moves with the highest valuation. Each time the game is played, the player revises her valuation by assigning the payoff obtained in the play to each of the moves she has made. We show for a repeated win-lose game that if the player has a winning strategy in the stage game, there is almost surely a time after which she always wins. When a player has more than two payoffs, a more elaborate learning procedure is required. We consider one that associates with each move the average payoff in the rounds in which this move was made. When all players adopt this learning procedure, with some perturbations, then, with probability 1 there is a time after which strategies that are close to subgame perfect equilibrium are played. A single player who adopts this procedure can guarantee only her individually rational payoff.     

David Pearce and the economic valuation of biodiversity

David Pearce was a pioneer in the economic valuation of biodiversity. His work powerfully influenced both later economists who worked in the field and natural scientists and practitioners who gained and appreciation of the importance of economics to their efforts. Pearce often applied the paradigm of demonstration followed by appropriation: the values of biodiversity must first be demonstrated to those who make decisions concerning its survival, and then appropriated by them. The later step will be possible when market and policy failures are rectified so as to allow the realization of conservation values. While Pearce wrote extensively on these themes, he was also acutely aware of the limitations of the paradigm. Rosy projections of values that could not be realized and appropriated would be of little practical use, and Pearce often cautioned against excesses of optimism. Yet he also clearly believed that there are compelling, if not always easily demonstrated, reasons for conservation. I argue in this paper that Pearce’s seminal work on the valuation of biodiversity cannot be understood without some appreciation of his philosophical perspective. Pearce would have described himself as a pragmatist. However, his pragmatism was grounded in the belief that it is both expedient and ethical to recognize that communities in some of the poorest corners of the world will only conserve biodiversity if they are justly compensated for the sacrifices they must make to do so. Associate Professor of International Policy, Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University; Economist, National Center for Environmental Economics, United States Environmental Protection Agency; and Research Associate, Elliott School of International Studies, George The opinions expressed here are those of the author, and do not necessarily express the views of the United States Environmental Protection Agency.     

A new approach to estimating earnings forecasting models: Robust regression MM-estimation

This study focuses on the impact of model estimation methods on earnings forecast accuracy. Compared with an ordinary least squares (OLS) regression combined with winsorization, robust regression MM-estimation improves the earnings forecast accuracy of all the models examined, especially for those with more variables. My findings indicate that the impact of outliers on the OLS regression increases with the number of variables in the models, alerting researchers who use OLS regressions for forecasting. My findings explain the puzzling negative relationship between earnings forecast accuracy and the number of model variables in prior research. Moreover, I demonstrate the valuation implications of earnings forecasted using robust regression MM-estimation. This study contributes to earnings forecasting, valuation, and influential observation treatment in forecasting.     

基于会计信息的企业内在价值评估方法——Faltham-Ohlson估价模型的拓展分析

传统的企业内在价值评估模型忽略了大量有价值的会计信息,如何将丰富的会计信息恰当地运用于企业估价便成为证券市场中会计研究的焦点,Faltham-Ohlson估价模型的提出解决了这一难题。本文将源于杜邦体系的比率分解思想引入到该模型进行拓展分析,揭示出财务报表中存在的会计数据与企业价值的确定之间的关系,旨在为建立一个基于更多会计信息的企业内在价值评估模型进行尝试性的探讨。     

小企业的定价策略分析

与大中型企业的定价理论与定价方法相比,小企业(包括新创企业和新技术企业)的定价理论和方法一直缺乏完整性和可操作性,以往的定价方法大多是为大型公司服务,有时不得不将小企业当作小型的大企业来处理。小企业的定价策略渐渐成为一个突出的问题。本文主要说明小企业的定价特点,同时介绍了几个小企业(包括服务型小企业和新技术小企业)的定价方法。