Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Managerial Overconfidence in Initial Public Offering Decisions and Its Impact on Macrodynamics and Financial Stability: Analysis Through an Agent-Based Model

This study aims to connect the two strands of literature, i.e. behavioral corporate finance and agent-based macroeconomics to assess the impact of managerial overconfidence both at the micro and at the macro level. More specifically, we build a macroeconomic Agent-Based Model (ABM) calibrated for the specific case of Poland to explore whether overconfidence of top corporate managers in the context of their Initial Public Offering (IPO) decisions is detrimental or not for the firms being managed in that way, for the financial market dynamics and the selected macroeconomic indicators in Poland. We modelled heterogeneous firms with different IPO decision criteria depending on degree of managerial overconfidence. Our model also included a banking sector and a stock market that interact with the real economy. We found that there is a contradiction between the micro and the macro impact of overconfidence. Overconfident firms showed better performances in terms of output than other firms. But they were also more exposed to stock market volatility which makes them more likely to default. Higher default rate of overoptimistic firms negatively impacted the banking sector and increases financial instability. In turn, financial instability harmed the economy as a whole. We also observed that an increase in the proportion of overconfident firms is associated with a decrease in aggregate output although overconfident firms showed better individual performances. Finally, we run policy shocks and show that the increased financial instability can be offset by strengthening regulation of the banking sector.
Who Hates Government Debt in China? Evidence from Revealed Preferences

Controlling government debt seems to be one of the top priorities for current Chinese leaders since debt expansion and accumulation has reached an alarming level in recent years. However, this paper shows that serious contradictions exist between policy statements and revealed preferences of policy makers. These are not only an indication on whether government debt can be successfully controlled, but also a reflection on more fundamental problems in China’s political-economic system. While economic restructuring calls for financial liberalization and allocative efficiency, political stabilization requires centralization and strengthening state capacity. The difficult challenges facing the Chinese leaders in the “New Era” has put the theory of “authoritarian resilience” to the real test.
Technological Determinants of Financial Constraints

This paper studies the investor’s investment decision in a standard financial contracting model. The investor chooses among entrepreneurs with heterogeneous production technologies who generate different probability distributions of cash flow under effort. I provide a complete characterization of optimal contracts, agency rents, and the investor’s investment decision. Differences in entrepreneurs’ production technologies imply differences in optimal contracts and agency rents across equally productive entrepreneurs, which biases and potentially distorts the investor’s investment decision. The results provide a complete characterization of entrepreneurs’ financial constraints in the presence of heterogeneous production technologies and uncover a fundamental link between production technologies, financial contracts, and financial constraints. This paper was accepted by Gustavo Manso, finance.
The Impact of E-Procurement Practices on Supply Chain Performance: A Case of B2B Procurement in Pakistani Industry

The purpose of the present research is the study of the association amidst the practices of electronic procurement and its impact on supply chain performance. We analyzed four prime practices of e-procurement that known as electronic design, electronic sourcing, electronic negotiation, and electronic evaluation. Data was collected from 239 respondents doing jobs related to supply chain management using the Likert scale Questionnaire that was adopted from (Chang, Tsai, & Hsu, 2013) The data was analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling as well as Confirmatory Factor analysis. The results suggested that electronic design and electronic evaluation shown a positive and significant impact on supply chain performance whereas, electronic negotiation and electronic sourcing didn’t show a significant impact on supply chain performance. Hence, the findings imply that compare to electronic sourcing and electronic negotiation, electronic design, and electronic evaluation has more effect on supply chain performance. The administration must focus more on electronic design and electronic evaluation than electronic sourcing and electronic negotiation. Furthermore, the study advocates integration among supply chain members is equally important as to focus on joint learning practice because it leads to augment the supply chain performance. In addition, the study advocates that electronic procurement is at the side of the input of the supply chain system, therefore, it is more valuable for the industry to develop an innovative and effective process that satisfies all the needs of the organizational supply chain.
Value Added in Motion: Modelling World Trade Patterns at the 2035 Horizon

We address in this paper the future geography of production, migration and energy at the world level, and the consequences for the largest European countries. We take scant account of the wide range of possible evolutions of the world economy in terms of technological progress and diffusion, education, demography including migrations and finally energy price and efficiency. Taking a 2035 horizon, we examine how world trade patterns will be shaped by the changing comparative advantages, demand, and capabilities of different regions, and what will be the implications in terms of location of value added at the sector and country level. We combine a convergence model fitting three production factors (capital, labour and energy) and two factor-specific productivities, alongside a dynamic CGE model of the world economy calibrated to reproduce observed elasticity of trade to income. Each scenario involves three steps. First, we project growth at country level based on factor accumulation, demography and migration, educational attainment and efficiency gains, and discuss uncertainties related to our main drivers. Second, we impose this framework on the CGE baseline. Third, we implement trade policy scenarios (tariffs as well as non-tariff measures in goods and services), in order to get factor allocation across sectors from the model as well as demand and trade patterns.
How Distorting are Stock Market Valuations Really to Corporate Investment?

We study mechanisms whereby stock market valuations may color corporate investment by using European firm-level data. We find that managers vicariously learn from stock prices when making investment decisions. Specifically, managers’ propensity to learn increases in stock price informativeness. Moreover, the route of investor sentiment transmission to investment runs substantially through the catering channel. While opaque firms are more likely to cater, evidence for the equity issuance hypothesis is confined to large, transparent and constrained firms. Finally, bubbly markets are associated with vigorous investment episodes but unexpectedly neither the 2001-2003 recession nor the subprime crisis induced significant cuts in investment.
Evaluation of the authenticity of haloarchaeal strains by random‐amplified polymorphic DNA

PCR analysis was performed on several archaeal species using 11 different 10‐mer oligonucleotides of arbitrary sequence. Duplicates of the type strain of Halococcus morrhuae (ATCC 17082 and CCM 537) showed markedly different RAPD profiles. Moreover, RAPD patterns from the type strain of Haloferax denitrificans ATCC 35960 and the strain ATCC 49116 deposited as ‘Haloferax larsenii’, were identical. This method represents an invaluable instrument in microbial screening and can clarify problems with strain identities.
Changes in abundance and infectivity of powdery mildew conidia from cucumber plants treated systemically with lithium chloride

Systemic treatment of cucumber plants with lithium chloride reduced the numbers of conidia produced by colonies of powdery mildew, Sphaerotheca fuliginea, growing on leaves, and lowered the infectivity of conidia produced from those leaves when they were applied to leaves of untreated plants. Production of conidiophores was lower in both lithium-treated and calcium-deprived plants, and lithium slightly decreased the calcium content of leaves. When the lithium-containing growth medium was supplemented with phosphate, conidiophore production was still markedly reduced, although leaves had normal levels of calcium. Fungal development was not correlated with either the calcium or phosphorus content of leaves. It is concluded that, although severe calcium deficiency can inhibit fungal development, the inhibitory effects of lithium are not mediated through alterations in calcium or phosphorus uptake by host tissues.
Response of aboveground biomass increment, growth efficiency, and foliar nutrients to thinning, fertilization, and pruning in young Douglas-fir plantations in the central Oregon Cascades

The effect of thinning and cultural practices (multinutrient fertilization, pruning) on total aboveground biomass increment and growth efficiency was studied over three consecutive 2-year periods (1981–1987) in young Douglas-fir (Pseudotsugamenziesii (Mirb.) Franco) plantations. Net aboveground biomass increment over the 6-year period averaged 14.5, 7.8, and 5.5 Mg•ha−1•year−1 for the high-, medium-, and low-density plots, respectively. Growth efficiency, after dropping sharply between leaf area indexes of 1 and 6 m2/m2, remained relatively constant up to a leaf area index of 17, the highest measured. Consequently, aboveground biomass increment continued to increase at leaf area indexes well above that at which the Beer–Lambert law predicts maximum light should be absorbed. Foliage analyses indicate that thinning improved nitrogen, potassium, and magnesium nutrition and increased the translocation of potassium from 1-year-old foliage to support new growth. However, fertilization increased foliar nitrogen .
The Antagonism of Push and Pull Strategies, and the Current Funding Campaigns to Fight Orphan Diseases

We argue that an increase in investments in R&D for innovative treatments to eradicate neglected diseases in developing countries leads to a rational decrease in investments in available treatment technologies. In a formal model where the government of a developing country seeks to optimally allocate public resources, we show that the higher the odds of appearance of an innovative treatment, as occurring when investments in R&D increase, the lower the optimal provision of current treatments and other health expenditures. We also show that this phenomenon is aggravated when the opportunity cost of investments in current treatments increases. This implies that welfare in developing countries deteriorates as innovative treatments are more likely to become available. We also describe an insurance scheme that remedies these issues, and that leads to Pareto-optimal allocations regardless of the investment level in R&D for innovative treatments.
TGF-β1 down-regulates induced expression of both class II MHC and B7-1 on primary murine renal tubular epithelial cells

TGF-β1 down-regulates induced expression of both class II MHC and B7-1 on primary murine renal tubular epithelial cells. Background We examined the immunomodulatory effects of transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) on the regulation of class II MHC and costimulatory molecule expression in a primary renal tubular epithelial cell line, called F1K. Methods Class II major histocompatibility complex (MHC), class II transactivator, B7-1, intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) and interferon-γ (IFN-γ) receptor β chain were evaluated in untreated and cytokine-treated F1K by Northern hybridization analysis and flow cytometry. T cell activation studies were performed to assess TGF-β1-mediated effects on antigen presenting cell function of F1K. Results Pretreatment of F1K with TGF-β1 markedly inhibited IFN-γ-induced class II MHC expression, by both FACS and Northern analysis. Total class II transactivator mRNA levels were also diminished by TGF-β1, indicating that class II MHC modulation in F1K results from inhibition of this intermediate protein. As previous studies demonstrated that cotreatment of F1K cells with IFN-γ+ lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induces B7-1, we evaluated the potential regulatory effects of TGF-β1 exposure on B7-1 expression. Our studies revealed that B7-1 mRNA and cell-surface expression in IFN-γ+ LPS-treated F1K were decreased by TGF-β1 pretreatment. Functional studies evaluating TGF-β1-mediated effects were performed with IFN-γ+ LPS-treated F1K and MR1.3, a nephritogenic CD4 + Th2 clone derived from kidneys of animals with autoimmune glomerulonephritis. Interleukin (IL)-4 production assays demonstrated activation of MR1.3 by IFN-γ+ LPS-treated cells, but not by IFN-γ+ LPS-treated cells previously exposed to TGF-β1, indicating that TGF-β1-mediated inhibition of class II MHC and B7-1 expression alters the antigen presenting cell function of F1K. Conclusions These studies describe the proscriptive influence of TGF-β1 on class II MHC and B7-1 expression in renal tubular epithelial cells. Such findings indicate that TGF-β1 alters the antigen presenting cell function of renal tubular epithelial cells in vitro , and suggest a potential mechanism for immunosuppression of T cell-mediated renal immune responses in vivo.
Federal Reserve Policy in a World of Low Interest Rates

The Federal Reserve (Fed) is tasked with maintaining price stability and achieving maximum employment. In practice, over the last decades the Fed has sought to achieve its objectives primarily through the manipulation of a short-term inter-bank interest rate, the federal funds rate (FFR). <br><br>At the height of the Great Recession of 2007-2009, the Fed pushed its benchmark policy rate to zero. With its principal tool unavailable, the Fed resorted to a sequence of unconventional policy actions in attempt to provide further stimulus to the economy. These actions included large-scale asset purchases (more commonly referred to as quantitative easing, or QE) and forward guidance. These programs were viewed by most as solutions to the temporary problem of the zero lower bound (ZLB) on the short-term policy rate. Market participants never expected the ZLB to last more than a couple of years (Bauer and Rudebusch 2016; Wu and Xia 2016), but in actuality the FFR was at zero for seven years. And though the Fed began raising the FFR at the end of 2015, it has since cut it twice, and at present the FFR sits less than two hundred basis points above zero. Markets are expecting further rate cuts in the near future. <br><br>A substantial body of research finds that the so-called natural rate of interest, or sometimes “r-star,” is on a continuing secular downward trend. While the Laubach and Williams (2003) estimate of r-star declined substantially in the wake of the Great Recession, this decline is part of a longer-run downward trend. In standard models, optimal policy entails adjusting the policy rate to track movements in the natural rate. With the natural rate hovering so close to zero, there is little room for conventional policy rate cuts should the need arise. <br><br>All signs therefore point towards an extended period in which interest rates are significantly lower than their average levels from the 1980s to 2000s. This means that the problem of the ZLB and the inability to push the FFR down in response to deteriorating economic conditions is likely to arise again. As a consequence, the Fed must move away from its conventional operating framework – for example, by significantly raising its inflation target, experimenting with negative rates, or more regularly using unconventional tools like QE as a substitute for conventional rate cuts at the ZLB. Which of these options should the Fed and other central banks choose?
A Review of Foreign Direct Investment and Manufacturing Sector of Pakistan

The objective of this study is to explore the insights of the literature on foreign direct investment (FDI) toward manufacturing industry in the context of developing economies. This paper examines and synthesizes existing theoretical and empirical literature on said issue. It first draws the overview of the FDI and manufacturing sector in Pakistan. Second, it identifies the literature based on the theoretical and empirical insights from the published literature. In addition, this article put light on theoretical methods that describes how/ why these methods work. Third, this article proposes three fruitful dimensions for further research. This paper contributes to the area of FDI and manufacturing sector growth by critically analyzing and synthesizing existing theory and research on FDI and growth of manufacturing sector.
Investor attention and portfolio performance: what information does it pay to pay attention to?

ABSTRACT We explore a unique dataset on individual investors’ online trading accounts to examine the determinants of their attention and its relation to portfolio performance. In particular, we investigate what individual characteristics affect investor attention and what type of information drives investment performance. We find distinct differences in investors’ attention and provide evidence that paying attention has a differential impact on performance depending on the type of information. Portfolio monitoring and attention to financial education are positively related to performance, while attention to analytical information is detrimental to performance. Attention to technical analysis is negatively related to the performance of actively trading investors but improves the performance of less frequent traders. Overall, our results provide additional evidence to the suggestion that attention to financial education is the key to investment success.
On Bond Returns in a Time of Climate Change

The study of the financial repercussions of low-carbon policy has focused mainly on stocks, leaving bonds out of the picture. The objective of this paper is to assess the impact of low-carbon policy upon European bond returns. This is done by extending the Fama and French two factor model for bonds with an EU-ETS participation factor: GMC (Green minus Carbon). This paper makes four contributions. Firstly, it provides a statistically highly significant measure of the sensitivity of bond portfolio returns to the GMC factor. Secondly, it shows the presence of a green premium in the European bond market in between 2008 and 2018. Thirdly, evidence is found that the addition of an environmental factor improves the performance of the original model. Fourthly, the carbon stress test put forward is able to indicate the effects of a plausible but more severe average EU-ETS carbon price on bond returns.
Antitrypanosomal Activity of Flavonoid Extracted from Ximenia Americana Stem Bark

The resurgence of Human African Trypanosomosis and Animal African Trypanosomosis in the latter part of the 20 th century after it had been brought largely under control in the 1960 has been alarming. Methanolic extract of stem bark of Ximennia americana were partitioned to obtain their major phytochemical fractions, these were evaluated for their in vitro and in vivo antitrypanosomal activities against Trypanosoma congolense . The Flavonoid fraction significantly (P<0.05) inhibited the motility of the blood stream forms with 10mg/ml. However, when the infected mice were treated at 5, 10 and 25mg/ml of the flavonoid fractions, there was a suppression of the growth of the parasites in a dose dependent manner with the 25mg/ml producing the maximum effect. The results further confirm the ethnopharmacological usage of Ximenia americana against Trypanosomosis. KEYWORD: Flavonoid , Ximenia americana , antitrypanosomal activity
The Effects of Reward Type on Employee Goal Setting, Goal Commitment and Performance

The use of tangible rewards in the form of non-cash incentives with a monetary value has become increasingly common at organizations (Peltier, Schultz and Block 2005). Despite their use, the behavioral and performance effects of tangible rewards have received minimal research attention. Relative to cash rewards, we predict tangible rewards will have positive effects on goal commitment and performance but will lead employees to set easier goals, which will negatively affect performance. The overall performance impact of tangible rewards will depend on the relative strength of these competing effects. We conduct a quasi-experiment at five call centers of a financial services company. Employees at two locations earned cash rewards for goal attainment while employees at three locations earned points, with equivalent retail value to cash rewards, redeemable for merchandise. Results show that cash rewards lead to better performance through their effects on the difficulty of the goals employees selected. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.
Sentiment Beta

This paper develops a novel stock-by-stock measure of investor sentiment which I call sentiment beta. It is defined as a sensitivity of stock returns to sentiment changes. Using this measure I test two hypotheses. First hypothesis postulates that sentiment affects stocks of some firms more than others due to differences in firm characteristics. Second hypothesis posits that more sentiment-sensitive stocks have higher individual ownership. Consistent with the first hypothesis, I find that more sentiment sensitive stocks are smaller, younger, with greater short-sales constraints, higher idiosyncratic volatility and lower dividend yields. However, given size and volatility, high sentiment beta stocks have more of an analyst following, greater institutional ownership, a higher likelihood of S&P500 membership, higher turnover and lower book-to-market ratios. Stocks with high exposure to sentiment deliver lower future returns inconsistent with the idea that noise trader risk is priced. Institutional analysis reveals that institutions stayed away from sentiment-sensitive stocks in the 1980's and held more of these stocks since the early 1990's. This suggests that institutions may well have been exacerbating sentiment-driven mispricing instead of countering the actions of sentiment traders.
Effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on severity of root rot of bananas caused by Cylindrocladium spathiphylli

The interaction between four arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi, Glomus sp. , G. proliferum, G. intraradices and G. versiforme, and the root-rot fungus Cylindrocladium spathiphylli, and subsequent effects on growth and phosphorus nutrition of banana (Musa acuminata, AAA, cv. Grande Naine) were investigated under glasshouse conditions. Overall, root infection by C. spathiphylli reduced the growth of banana plants, but preinoculation with AM fungi significantly attenuated this detrimental effect. Lower disease severity, stimulation of growth and increase of shoot P content were observed for the plants inoculated with one of the four AM fungi. Glomus sp. and G. proliferum induced the largest increase in growth parameters and shoot P content as compared to G. intraradices and G. versiforme, in the presence as well as in the absence of C. spathiphylli. Root damage caused by C. spathiphylli was decreased in the presence of A-M fungi, but the inoculation of mycorrhizal plants with C. spathiphylli also decreased the intensity of AM fungal root colonization, indicating a clear interaction between the two organisms.