bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
LOCATING ‘CHINA’ IN THE ARTS OF SIXTEENTH‐CENTURY JAPAN
Authors: WATSKY ANDREW M.
Published: December 2006

Even as Japanese armies marched on Ming China in the late sixteenth century, the artefacts of ancient China continued to elicit the esteem of Japanese elites, including the warrior‐ruler, Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537–98). In many of these artefacts a given location constituted the theme. This essay comprises three interconnected case studies of China‐related paintings and ceramics that demonstrate a concerted effort by Japanese of the Momoyama period (1568–1615) to claim Chinese antiquity as part of their cultural heritage. Japanese patrons and artists achieved this by adapting Chinese models of stylized or semi‐abstract landscape representation and, more dramatically, by physically and conceptually transforming original Chinese objects. Antique Chinese paintings of Chinese place were dismembered and remounted in Japan so as to function better in Japanese contexts. In a practice that highlighted location while eschewing the pictorial, aesthetic arbiters awarded old Chinese ceramic vessels poetic names related to Japanese places (a custom common in chanoyu, the tea ceremony), thus conceptually relocating the objects from China to Japan. In present‐day art‐historical practice these objects are not normally studied together. That practice, however, distorts pre‐modern realities, as, during the period in question, the Japanese used the objects en ensemble as they searched for, and at times reworked, the relevances of ancient China for Momoyama Japan.
Optimal Sure Portfolio Plans
Authors: Foldes Lucien
Published: December 2006

This paper is a sequel to the author's “Certainty Equivalence in the Continuous‐Time Portfolio‐cum‐Saving Model” in Applied Stochastic Analysis (eds. M. H. A. Davis and R. J. Elliot), where a model of optimal accumulation of capital and portfolio choice over an infinite horizon in continuous time was considered in which the vector process representing returns to investment is a general semimartingale with independent increments and the welfare functional has the discounted constant relative risk aversion (CRRA) form. A problem of optimal choice of a sure (i.e., nonrandom portfolio plan can be defined in such a way that solutions of this problem correspond to solutions of optimal choice of a portfolio‐cum‐saving plan, provided that the distant future is sufficiently discounted. This has been proved in the earlier paper, and is in part proved again here by different methods. Using the canonical representation of a PII‐semimartingale, a formula of Lévy‐Khinchin type is derived for the bilateral Laplace transform of the compound interest process generated by a sure portfolio plan. With its aid. the existence of an optimal sure portfolio plan is proved under suitable conditions, and various causes of nonexistence are identified. Programming conditions characterizing an optimal sure portfolio plan are also obtained.
Equilibrium Models With Singular Asset Prices
Authors: Karatzas Ioannis , Lehoczky John P. , Shreve Steven E.
Published: December 2006

General equilibrium models in which economic agents have finite marginal utility from consumption at the origin lead to financial assets having continuous prices with singular components. In particular, there is no bona fide “interest rate” in such models, although asset prices can be determined by equilibrium considerations (and uniquely, up to the formation of mutual funds). the singularly continuous processes in question charge precisely the set of time points at which some agent “drops out” of the economy, or “comes back” into it, between intervals of zero consumption. Not surprisingly, these processes are governed by local time.
Optimal Investment and Consumption With Two Bonds and Transaction Costs1
Authors: Shreve S. E. , Soner H. M. , Xu G.‐L.
Published: December 2006

An agent can invest in a high‐yield bond and a low‐yield bond, holding either long or short positions in either asset. Any movement of money between these two assets incurs a transaction cost proportional to the size of the transaction. the low‐yield bond is liquid in the sense that wealth invested in this bond can be consumed directly without a transaction cost; wealth invested in the high‐yield bond can be consumed only by first moving it into the low‐yield bond. the problem of optimal consumption and investment on an infinite planning horizon is solved for a class of utility functions larger than the class of power functions.
A Nonstandard Approach to Option Pricing
Authors: Cutland Nigel , Kopp Ekkehard , Willinger Walter
Published: December 2006

Nonstandard probability theory and stochastic analysis, as developed by Loeb, Anderson, and Keisler, has the attractive feature that it allows one to exploit combinatorial aspects of a well‐understood discrete theory in a continuous setting. We illustrate this with an example taken from financial economics: a nonstandard construction of the well‐known Black‐Scholes option pricing model allows us to view the resulting object at the same time as both (the hyperfinite version of) the binomial Cox‐Ross‐Rubinstein model (that is, a hyperfinite geometric random walk) and the continuous model introduced by Black and Scholes (a geometric Brownian motion). Nonstandard methods provide a means of moving freely back and forth between the discrete and continuous points of view. This enables us to give an elementary derivation of the Black‐Scholes option pricing formula from the corresponding formula for the binomial model. We also devise an intuitive but rigorous method for constructing self‐financing hedge portfolios for various contingent claims, again using the explicit constructions available in the hyperfinite binomial model, to give the portfolio appropriate to the Black‐Scholes model. Thus, nonstandard analysis provides a rigorous basis for the economists' intuitive notion that the Black‐Scholes model contains a built‐in version of the Cox‐Ross‐Rubinstein model.
Optimality of Stationary Asset Equilibria Under A Stochastic Inflation Tax
Authors: Eckwert Bernhard
Published: December 2006

In this paper we characterize the set of Pareto optimal asset equilibria in an incomplete market OLG framework when inflation‐tax‐financed monetary shocks impinge on the economy. We show that it is the strength rather than the mere presence of monetary disturbances that accounts for, if the market mechanism fails to achieve allocating efficiency.
Pricing Options On Risky Assets In A Stochastic Interest Rate Economy1
Authors: Amin Kaushik I. , Jarrow Robert A.
Published: December 2006

This paper studies contingent claim valuation of risky assets in a stochastic interest rate economy. the model employed generalizes the approach utilized by Heath, Jarrow, and Morton (1992) by imbedding their stochastic interest rate economy into one containing an arbitrary number of additional risky assets. We derive closed form formulae for certain types of European options in this context, notably call and put options on risky assets, forward contracts, and futures contracts. We also value American contingent claims whose payoffs are permitted to be general functions of both the term structure and asset prices generalizing Bensoussan (1984) and Karatzas (1988) in this regard. Here, we provide an example where an American call's value is well defined, yet there does not exist an optimal trading strategy which attains this value. Furthermore, this example is not pathological as it is a generalization of Roll's (1977) formula for a call option on a stock that pays discrete dividends.
A Martingale Representation Result and an Application to Incomplete Financial Markets
Authors: Jacka S. D.
Published: December 2006

We establish necessary and sufficient conditions for an H1‐martingale to be representable with respect to a collection, of local martingales. M H1(P) is representable if and only if M is a local martingale under all p.m.'s Q which are “uniformly equivalent” to P and which make all the elements of local martingales (Theorem 1.1). We then give necessary and sufficient conditions which are easier to verify, and only involve expectations (Theorem 1.2). We go on to apply these results to the problem of pricing claims in an incomplete financial market‐establishing two conjectures of Harrison and Pliska(1981).
Optimal Consumption‐Portfolio Policies With Habit Formation1
Authors: Detemple Jerome B. , Zapatero Fernando
Published: December 2006

This is a companion paper to the authors ‘Asset Prices in an Exchange Economy with Habit Formation” in Econometrica which focuses on consumption demand and asset pricing when preferences are habit forming. Here we prove existence of optimal consumption‐portfolio policies for (i) utility functions for which the marginal cost of consumption (MCC) interacts with the habit formation process and satisfies a recursive integral equation with forward functional Lipschitz integrand and (ii) utilities for which the MCC is independent of the standard of living and satisfies a recursive integral equation with locally Lipschitz integrand. Result (i) is demonstrated here for the first time. Result (ii) is novel and enables us to consider Cobb‐Douglas utilities without placing lower bounds on the system of Arrow‐Debreu prices. We also review and extend our earlier results in the linear case; in particular, we provide new insights about the structure of optimal portfolios. Additional new features of the model include the possibility of finite marginal utility of consumption at zero and habit formation mechanisms with stochastic coefficients. an extension to a financial market model with general processes is outlined. A byproduct of the analysis is a set of fixed‐point theorems for recursive integral equations with forward functional Lipschitz or locally Lipschitz integrands.
Option Pricing When Jump Risk Is Systematic1
Authors: Ahn Chang Mo
Published: December 2006

This paper generalizes the Merton jump‐diffusion option pricing model to the case in which jump risk cannot be eliminated in the market portfolio. the option pricing formula is obtained using a general equilibrium asset pricing model. Since jump risk is systematic, the correlation of the underlying stock's jump with the market portfolio's jump affects the option price.
DERIVATIVE ASSET PRICING WITH TRANSACTION COSTS1
Authors: Bensaid Bernard , Lesne Jean‐Philippe , Pagès Henri , Scheinkman José
Published: December 2006

In the modern theory of finance, the valuation of derivative assets is commonly based on a replication argument. When there are transaction costs, this argument is no longer valid. In this paper, we try to address the general problem of finding the optimal portfolio among those which dominate a given derivative asset at maturity. We derive an interval for its price. the upper bound is the minimum amount one has to invest initially in order to obtain proceeds at least as valuable as the derivative asset. the lower bound is the maximum amount one can borrow initially against the proceeds of the derivative asset. We show that, in some instances, this interval may be strictly bounded above by the price of the replicating strategy. Prima facie, the cost of a dominating strategy should appear to be higher than that of the replicating one. But because trading is costly, it may pay to weigh the benefits of replication against those of potential savings on transaction costs.
ALTERNATIVE CHARACTERIZATIONS OF AMERICAN PUT OPTIONS
Authors: Carr Peter , Jarrow Robert , Myneni Ravi
Published: December 2006

We derive alternative representations of the McKean equation for the value of the American put option. Our main result decomposes the value of an American put option into the corresponding European put price and the early exercise premium. We then represent the European put price in a new manner. This representation allows us to alternatively decompose the price of an American put option into its intrinsic value and time value, and to demonstrate the equivalence of our results to the McKean equation.
Diffusion Coefficient Estimation and Asset Pricing When Risk Premia and Sensitivities Are Time Varying1
Authors: Chesney Marc , Elliott Robert J. , Madan Dilip , Yang Hailiang
Published: December 2006

The exponential of a scalar diffusion is considered. Point estimates of the diffusion coefficient can be obtained by considering proportional increments of different powers of the exponential. an investigation of the minimum variance estimator gives unique optimal power.
Option and Futures Evaluation With Deterministic Volatilities1
Authors: Jamshidian Farshid
Published: December 2006

Several risk‐neutral expectation formulae are derived in a general multifactor setting. Specializing to deterministic covariances of returns, they lead to formulae for forward and future prices as well as formulae for options on forward and futures contracts. the results are applicable to currencies, bonds, commodities with stochastic convenience yield, and stock indices. For currencies, a noarbitrage relation between domestic and foreign economies is formulated and applied to evaluate quanto futures and options.
Impulse Control Method and Exchange Rate
Authors: Jeanblanc‐Picqué Monique
Published: December 2006

We control a diffusion process with constant coefficients in order to keep this process in a given band with impulse control methods. We prove that there exists an optimal control if the cost associated with each control is a fixed cost plus a proportional cost. We study the problem of the exchange rate and prove that it is possible to keep the exchange rate in a target zone with discrete interventions.
The Pricing of Options With an Uncertain Interest Rate: A Discrete‐Time Approach1
Authors: Sandmann Klaus
Published: December 2006

The aim of this paper is to develop a model for the pricing of European options under the assumption of a stochastic interest rate in a discrete‐time context. This is accomplished by combining the well‐known binomial model for a stock with a binomial model for the spot interest rate.
On Some Exponential‐Integral Functionals of Bessel Processes
Authors: Yor Marc
Published: December 2006

This paper studies the moments of some exponential‐integral functionals of Bessel processes, which are of interest in some questions of mathematical finance, including the valuation of perpetuities and Asian options.
MARTINGALE MEASURES FOR DISCRETE‐TIME PROCESSES WITH INFINITE HORIZON
Authors: Schachermayer W.
Published: December 2006

Let (St)tεI be an Rd‐valued adapted stochastic process on (Ω, ?, (?t)tεI, P). A basic problem occurring notably in the analysis of securities markets, is to decide whether there is a probability measure Q on ? equivalent to P such that (St)tεI is a martingale with respect to Q. It is known (see the fundamental papers of Harrison and Kreps 1979; Harrison and Pliska 1981; and Kreps 1981) that there is an intimate relation of this problem with the notions of “no arbitrage” and “no free lunch” in financial economics. We introduce the intermediate concept of “no free lunch with bounded risk.” This is a somewhat more precise version of the notion of “no free lunch.” It requires an absolute bound of the maximal loss occurring in the trading strategies considered in the definition of “no free lunch.” We give an argument as to why the condition of “no free lunch with bounded risk” should be satisfied by a reasonable model of the price process (St)tεI of a securities market. We can establish the equivalence of the condition of “no free lunch with bounded risk” with the existence of an equivalent martingale measure in the case when the index set I is discrete but (possibly) infinite. A similar theorem was recently obtained by Delbaen (1992) for continuous‐time processes with continuous paths. We can combine these two theorems to get a similar result for the continuous‐time case when the process (St)tεR+ is bounded and, roughly speaking, the jumps occur at predictable times. In the infinite horizon setting, the price process has to be “almost a martingale” in order to allow an equivalent martingale measure.
ON COMPONENTWISE and VECTOR STOCHASTIC INTEGRATION
Authors: Chatelain Michel , Stricker Christophe
Published: December 2006

We give a condition under which the componentwise stochastic integration with respect to a given Rd‐valued continuous local martingale coincides with the more general vector stochastic integration defined by Jacod (1979). We then provide a result on the equivalence between the vector and the component completeness of a financial market in a special case.
A NOTE ON THE GENERALIZED MULTIBETA CAPM
Authors: Lee Cheng‐Few , Reisman Haim , Simaan Yusif
Published: December 2006

The unified beta theory of Connor (1984) requires that the market portfolio be well diversified in a given factor structure. Wei (1988) extended Connor's results without relying on this assumption. This note provides an alternative to Wei's result by assuming that residuals from the projection of asset return on a set of k factors follow a joint elliptical distribution.
EFFICIENCY GAINS IN BETA‐PRICING MODELS1
Authors: Christensen Bent Jesper
Published: December 2006

Recent literature shows that the risk premium is efficiently estimated in the usual two‐pass procedure, estimating betas in the unrestricted model, and then regressing returns on estimated betas. This paper shows that this is not so when allowing for factor unobservability. Imposing the financial theory restriction from the outset leads to a strictly positive efficiency gain in the risk premium estimation. In addition, the role of an associated efficiency gain in the beta estimation is studied in the context of a zero‐beta model.
THRESHOLD AUTOREGRESSIVE MODELING IN FINANCE: THE PRICE DIFFERENCES OF EQUIVALENT ASSETS1
Authors: Yadav Pradeep K. , Pope Peter F. , Paudyal Krishna
Published: December 2006

Threshold autoregressive (TAR) models condition the first moment of a time series on lagged information using a step‐function‐type nonlinear structure. TAR techniques are expected to be relevant in financial time‐series modeling in situations where deviations of prices from equilibrium values depend on discrete transaction costs and where market regulators follow intervention rules based on threshold values of control variables. an important finance application is in modeling the difference in prices of equivalent assets in the presence of transaction costs. the focus of this paper is on motivating the use of TAR models in this context and on the statistical estimation and testing procedures. the procedures are illustrated by modeling the difference between the prices of an index futures contract and the equivalent underlying cash index. It is found that the hypothesis of linearity is conclusively rejected in favor of threshold nonlinearity and that the estimated thresholds are largely consistent with arbitrage‐related transaction costs.
ARBITRAGE AND FREE LUNCH WITH BOUNDED RISK FOR UNBOUNDED CONTINUOUS PROCESSES
Authors: Delbaen Freddy , Schachermayer Walter
Published: December 2006

We give two examples showing that for unbounded continuous price processes, the no‐free‐lunch assumption and the existence of an equivalent martingale measure are not equivalent. In fact it turns out that the notion of an equivalent local martingale measure is natural in this context.
A MULTIFACTOR GAUSS MARKOV IMPLEMENTATION OF HEATH, JARROW, AND MORTON
Authors: Brace Alan , Musiela Marek
Published: December 2006

Working within the Heath‐Jarrow‐Morton framework and using the theory of stochastic equations in infinite dimensions, a useful multifactor Gauss‐Markov model for the movement of the whole of the yield curve is derived. Swaptions are priced. They are hedged by eliminating random terms between the semimartingale representations of the swaption and hedging instruments. Hedging efficiency is analyzed. the model is fitted to the swap/cap strips in Australia. Computation times on a 20‐MHz laptop computer are acceptable.
DEFAULT RISK INSURANCE AND INCOMPLETE MARKETS1
Authors: Artzner Philippe , Delbaen Freddy
Published: December 2006

This paper uses the existence of secondary markets for debt instruments with default risk (e.g. corporate bonds) to define default insurance along the lines of financial economics. It examines whether, in the case of several risk‐neutral measures, characteristics of default can be uniquely determined by the prices of contracts involving default‐prone securities.
OPTIMAL INVESTMENT OF A LIFE INTEREST
Authors: Jacka S. D.
Published: December 2006

We consider the problem of a trustee faced with investing a sum of money, the interest from which will be received by one party (the life‐tenant) during his lifetime while the capital will go to another party (the survivor) on the death of the life‐tenant. We assume mat there are n+ 1 assets in which the trustee may invest—n risky assets of geometric Brownian motion type and one nonrisky asset. Under assumptions as to the utility functions of the two parties, we find the collection of Pareto optimal investment strategies for the trustee together with the corresponding payoffs. We do this by optimizing the payoff of the Lagrangian for the problem. We go on to present the Nash optimal solution for the trustee.
CERTAINTY EQUIVALENCE AND LOGARITHMIC UTILITIES IN CONSUMPTION/INVESTMENT PROBLEMS
Authors: Kuwana Yoichi
Published: December 2006

We investigate an optimal consumption/investment decision problem with partially observable drift. Logarithmic utilities are shown to be necessary and sufficient for the certainty equivalence principle to hold. For the sufficiency part of the proof, we allow a general stochastic structure about the unobservable drift. On the other hand, a simple Bayesian structure is assumed for the necessity part in order to utilize the Hamilton‐Jacobi‐Bellman equations.
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT WITH TRANSACTION COSTS: AN ASYMPTOTIC ANALYSIS OF THE MORTON AND PLISKA MODEL
Authors: Atkinson C. , Wilmott P.
Published: December 2006

We examine the Morton and Pliska (1993) model for the optimal management of a portfolio when there are transaction costs proportional to a fixed fraction of the portfolio value. We analyze this model in the realistic case of small transaction costs by conducting a perturbation analysis about the no‐transaction‐cost solution. Although the full problem is a free‐boundary diffusion problem in as many dimensions as there are assets in the portfolio, we find explicit solutions for the optimal trading policy in this limit. This makes the solution for a realistically large number of assets a practical possibility.
THE GARCH OPTION PRICING MODEL
Authors: Duan Jin‐Chuan
Published: December 2006

This article develops an option pricing model and its corresponding delta formula in the context of the generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedastic (GARCH) asset return process. the development utilizes the locally risk‐neutral valuation relationship (LRNVR). the LRNVR is shown to hold under certain combinations of preference and distribution assumptions. the GARCH option pricing model is capable of reflecting the changes in the conditional volatility of the underlying asset in a parsimonious manner. Numerical analyses suggest that the GARCH model may be able to explain some well‐documented systematic biases associated with the Black‐Scholes model.
VOLATILITY STRUCTURES OF FORWARD RATES AND THE DYNAMICS OF THE TERM STRUCTURE1
Authors: Ritchken Peter , Sankarasubramanian L.
Published: December 2006

For general volatility structures for forward rates, the evolution of interest rates may not be Markovian and the entire path may be necessary to capture the dynamics of the term structure. This article identifies conditions on the volatility structure of forward rates that permit the dynamics of the term structure to be represented by a two‐dimensional state variable Markov process. the permissible set of volatility structures that accomplishes this goal is shown to be quite large and includes many stochastic structures. In general, analytical characterization of the terminal distributions of the two state variables is unlikely, and numerical procedures are required to value claims. Efficient simulation algorithms using control variates are developed to price claims against the term structure.
MULTIVARIATE STABLE FUTURES PRICES
Authors: Cheng B. N. , Rachev S. T.
Published: December 2006

This paper introduces new techniques for modeling financial data under the assumption that the data belong to the domain of attraction of a multivariate stable Pareto law. We provide tail estimators for the index of stability parameteraand the corresponding spectral measure. These estimators are then applied to test the associtation of the individual components and to compute estimates of portfolio risk and the covariation of commodities. A practical example is given using DM‐dollar and JY‐dollar exchange rates data.
HEDGING AND PORTFOLIO OPTIMIZATION UNDER TRANSACTION COSTS: A MARTINGALE APPROACH12
Authors: Cvitanić Jakša , Karatzas Ioannis
Published: December 2006

We derive a formula for the minimal initial wealth needed to hedge an arbitrary contingent claim in a continuous‐time model with proportional transaction costs; the expression obtained can be interpreted as the supremum of expected discounted values of the claim, over all (pairs of) probability measures under which the “wealth process” is a supermartingale. Next, we prove the existence of an optimal solution to the portfolio optimization problem of maximizing utility from terminal wealth in the same model, we also characterize this solution via a transformation to a hedging problem: the optimal portfolio is the one that hedges the inverse of marginal utility evaluated at the shadow state‐price density solving the corresponding dual problem, if such exists. We can then use the optimal shadow state‐price density for pricing contingent claims in this market. the mathematical tools are those of continuous‐time martingales, convex analysis, functional analysis, and duality theory.
DYNAMIC SPANNING: ARE OPTIONS AN APPROPRIATE INSTRUMENT?1
Authors: Bajeux‐Besnainou Isabelle , Rochet Jean‐Charles
Published: December 2006

Ross (1976) has shown, in a static framework, how options can complete financial markets. This paper examines the possible extensions of Ross's idea in a dynamic setup. Surprisingly enough, we find that the answer is very sensitive to the choice of the stochastic model for the underlying security returns. More specifically we obtain the following results: In a discrete‐time model, classical European options typically become redundant with some probability (Proposition 2.1). Obnly path dependent (“exotic”) options may generate dynamic spanning (Proposition 4.1). In a continuous‐time model with stochastic volatility of the underlying security, and under reasonable assumptions, a European option is always a good instrument for completing markets (Proposition 5.2).
GENERAL EQUILIBRIUM WITH CONSTANT RELATIVE RISK AVERSION AND VASICEK INTEREST RATES1
Authors: Goldstein Robert , Zapatero Fernando
Published: December 2006

We consider a pure exchange economy consisting of a single risky asset whose dividend drift rate is modeled as an Omstein‐Uhlenbeck process, and a representative agent with power‐utility who, in equilibrium, consumes the dividend paid by the risky asset. Endogenously determined interest rates are found to be of the Vasicek (1977) type the mean and variance of the equilibrium stock price are stochastic and have mean‐reverting components A closed‐form solution for a standard call option is determined for the case of log‐utility. Equilibrium values have interesting implications for the equity premium puzzle observed by Mehra and Prescott (1985)
A YIELD‐FACTOR MODEL OF INTEREST RATES
Authors: Duffie Darrell , Kan Rui
Published: December 2006

This paper presents a consistent and arbitrage‐free multifactor model of the term structure of interest rates in which yields at selected fixed maturities follow a parametric muitivariate Markov diffusion process with “stochastic volatility.” the yield of any zero‐coupon bond is taken to be a maturity‐dependent affine combination of the selected “basis” set of yields. We provide necessary and sufficient conditions on the stochastic model for this affine representation. We include numerical techniques for solving the model, as well as numerical techniques for calculating the prices of term‐structure derivative prices. the case of jump diffusions is also considered.
The Allocation of Power in the Enlarged ECB Governing Council: An Assessment of the ECB Rotation Model
Authors: BELKE ANSGAR , STYCZYNSKA BARBARA
Published: December 2006

This study analyses the allocation of power in the Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) as it enlarges to accommodate new members of the economic and monetary union. For this purpose, two classical power indices that have their origin in solutions to co‐operative games are applied. First, an assessment is made of the effects of enlargement on the voting power of different subgroups of the Governing Council that arise in the wake of the continuous accession process. Second, a systematic comparison is carried out to the status quo rule (‘one member, one vote’) with respect to the voting power of the ECB Executive Board and to the representativeness of European monetary policy, along with the potential for its renationalization.
From GATT to the WTO: The Internal Struggle for External Competences in the EU
Authors: BILLIET STIJN
Published: December 2006

Despite the rise of ‘mixity’, the Commission is nonetheless the key European player in the WTO, even regarding issues that are not exclusive EC competences. While established integration theories struggle to explain this phenomenon, this article argues that the external institutional context should be brought into the analysis.
The EU‐Mercosol Free Trade Agreement: Quantifying Mutual Gains*
Authors: CALFAT GERMÁN , FLÔRES RENATO G.
Published: December 2006

We identify trade in goods opportunities in a EU‐Mercosul free trade area. Gains for Mercosul are rather concentrated, being mostly associated with a few agricultural commodities which face high protection barriers. EU gains are evenly spread, comprising a variety of market penetration possibilities. Trade deviation in the EU products is never higher than trade creation, confirming their international competitiveness and signalling that no great distortion of Mercosul's imports will take place. Balanced gains exist for both sides. For Mercosul, the agreement would act as a first serious trial for future liberalizations with other developed partners and as a warning on improvements in competitiveness.
Reordering the Marketplace: Competition Politics in European Finance*
Authors: MÜGGE DANIEL
Published: December 2006

Over the last 15 years, Europe has seen the liberalization of national financial markets as well as the integration of these markets and their governance through the introduction of the ‘Lamfalussy process’. This article argues that we can best understand these shifts as one integrated project of market‐building in Europe, guided by distributional struggles over the terms of mutual markets access. To comprehend the complex linkages between private and public actors across levels of governance, we have to look beyond macro‐theories of integration and financial liberalization upholding an analytical state‐market dichotomy and adopt an integrative approach to theory, instead. Using the example of securities markets, this article argues that ‘competition politics’ are key to understanding European financial market integration.
The International Bargaining Power of the European Union in ‘Mixed’ Competence Negotiations: The Case of the 2000 Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety*
Authors: RHINARD MARK , KAEDING MICHAEL
Published: December 2006

Studies of the European Union's role in international policy negotiations typically focus either on trade agreements, where the Community often enjoys exclusive competence in negotiations, or on military and security accords, where Member States take the diplomatic lead in international talks. Between these extremes are a number of issue negotiations in which Community officials and Member State representatives speak jointly on behalf of the EU. We analyse one such ‘mixed competence’ case ‐ the negotiations for a global biosafety protocol ‐ to understand more about the EU's behaviour and bargaining power in such settings. We aim for explanatory parsimony by applying an existing model designed to predict EU bargaining power in international trade negotiations (Meunier, 2000). The analysis reveals that the trade model has considerable explanatory power for some of the outcomes found in the biosafety protocol negotiations, but incorrectly predicts that the EU will have no bargaining power. We then explore the sources of discrepancy between the model's predictions and our empirical results, thereby identifying some of the general differences between exclusive and mixed competence negotiations. We conclude by making suggestions for future model‐building and by reflecting on some recent proposed changes that may affect the EU's bargaining power on the global stage.
The lectin Dolichos biflorus agglutinin is a sensitive indicator of branching morphogenetic activity in the developing mouse metanephric collecting duct system
Authors: Michael Lydia , Sweeney Derina E. , Davies Jamie A.
Published: December 2006

The urine collecting duct system of the metanephric kidney develops by growth and branching morphogenesis of an unbranched progenitor tubule, the ureteric bud. Bud branching is mainly dichotomous and new branches form from existing branch tips, which are also the main sites of cell proliferation in the system. This behaviour, and the fact that some genes (e.g. Wnt11, Sox9) are expressed only in tips, suggests that tip cells are in a specific state of differentiation. In this report, we show that the lectin Dolichos biflorus agglutinin (DBA), hitherto regarded and used as a general marker of developing renal collecting ducts, binds to most of the duct system but does not bind to the very tips of growing branches. The zone avoided by DBA corresponds to the zone that expresses Wnt11, and the zone that shows enhanced cell proliferation. If branching of the ureteric bud of cultured embryonic kidneys is inhibited in organ culture, by blocking the kidney's endogenous glial cell‐derived neurothrophic factor (GDNF)‐based branch‐promoting signals, the DBA‐binding zone extends to the very end of the tip but is lost from there when branching is re‐activated. Similarly, if excess GDNF is provided to growing kidneys, the DBA‐free zone expands. DBA‐staining status therefore appears to be a sensitive indicator of the morphogenetic activity of the collecting duct system.
Do women with high‐grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia prefer a see and treat option in colposcopy?
Authors: Balasubramani L , Orbell S , Hagger M , Brown V , Tidy J
Published: December 2006

Objective  To compare women’s experiences of either see and treat (ST) or defer and treat (DT) at first visit to colposcopy following abnormal cytology.

Design  A prospective postal questionnaire survey.

Setting  Colposcopy clinics of a University Hospital.

Sample  A total of 272 women with high‐grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) referred to colposcopy.

Methods  A total of 136 women receiving ST and a matched sample of women receiving DT (N= 136) were sent a postal questionnaire 7 days after first appointment at colposcopy to assess evaluations of their experience, psychological distress and relief. Subsequent appointment keeping was extracted from medical records.

Main outcome measures  Anxiety and subsequent behaviour.

Results  Women undergoing ST were significantly less anxious and more relieved than those undergoing DT. They also evaluated their first appointment as more motivationally congruent. While women undergoing ST were less likely than DTs to keep their second appointment, there was no overall difference in did not attend (DNA) rates at 15‐month follow up.

Conclusions  ST is psychologically beneficial and may be preferred by women with CIN2/3.
Short communication: The use of a perinatal internet consultation forum in Israel*
Authors: Mankuta D , Vinker S , Shapira S , Laufer N , Shveiky D
Published: December 2006

To analyse the use of a free, public, perinatal internet consultation service, 2000 consultations provided by university hospital staff were evaluated over 30 months. Ninety five percent of the questioners were women, and 62% of them were primiparous. The average response rate was 2.3 audience responses per question. Fifty‐two percent of the consultations were related to labour and delivery, 23% were related to pregnancy complications, 16% were related to prenatal diagnosis, and 7% were related to the puerperium period. We conclude that medical consultation forums provide an additional way of delivering inexpensive, accessible, fast, and convenient healthcare services.
Pregnancy‐induced hypertension and infant mortality: roles of birthweight centiles and gestational age
Authors: Chen XK , Wen SW , Smith G , Yang Q , Walker M
Published: December 2006

Objective  To assess the effect of pregnancy‐induced hypertension (PIH) on infant mortality in different birthweight centiles (small for gestational age [SGA], appropriate for gestational age [AGA], and large for gestational age [LGA]) and gestational ages (early preterm, late preterm, and full term).

Design  Retrospective cohort study.

Setting  Linked birth and infant death data set of USA between 1995 and 2000.

Population  A total of 17 464 560 eligible liveborn singleton births delivered after 20th gestational week.

Methods  Multivariate logistic regression models were applied to evaluate the association between PIH and infant mortality, with adjustment of potential confounders stratified by birthweight centiles and gestational age.

Main outcome measure  Infant death (0–364 days) and its three components: early neonatal death (0–6 days), late neonatal death (7–27 days), and postneonatal death (28–364 days).

Results  PIH was associated with decreased risks of infant mortality, early neonatal mortality, and late neonatal mortality in both preterm and term SGA births, and PIH was associated with lower postneonatal mortality in preterm SGA births. PIH was associated with decreased risks of infant mortality, early neonatal mortality, late neonatal mortality and postneonatal mortality in preterm AGA births. Decreased risk of infant mortality and early neonatal mortality was associated with PIH in early preterm LGA births.

Conclusions  The association between PIH and infant mortality varies depending on different birthweight centiles, gestational age, and age at death. PIH is associated with a decreased risk of infant mortality in SGA births, preterm AGA births, and early preterm LGA births.
Do firms adopt lower standards in poorer areas? Corporate social responsibility and environmental justice in the EU and the US
Authors: Gouldson Andy
Published: December 2006

Within the context of broader debates on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and environmental justice (EJ), this paper examines three key questions: first, how the standards that corporations adopt at the global scale trickle down into local site‐level practices; second, whether levels of corporate environmental performance vary from place to place; and third whether any variations in corporate environmental performance relate to the principles of EJ. To do this, the analysis draws upon recently disclosed data to evaluate variations in the environmental performance of oil refineries across the US and the EU. It finds significant variations in emissions of some key pollutants. These exist both across the range of refineries, with dirtier refineries emitting at least five times as much as cleaner refineries, and between the EU and the US, with refineries in the EU emitting more than twice as much as refineries in the US. At the local level, it finds that there are correlations between higher levels of emissions from refineries and lower levels of income, employment and population density. Although these findings provide support for some of the contentions of the EJ movement, they do not say anything about causality, and as a result we cannot say definitively that companies adopt lower standards in poorer areas.
Allogenic and autogenic influences upon riparian vegetation dynamics
Authors: Francis Robert A
Published: December 2006

Riparian vegetation dynamics are regarded as being driven by allogenic hydrogeomorphological factors, with autogenic (plant‐induced) influences becoming more important as landform stability is achieved. Autogenic processes, however, may have a substantial influence on both plant dynamics and the river environment from the earliest stages of plant establishment. Various aspects of both allogenic and autogenic processes in riparian vegetation dynamics are discussed here; in particular how plants may promote bank stability and sedimentation, and river island development. Riparian restoration often fails to incorporate autogenic processes, thereby restricting the re‐establishment of natural functioning, and further interdisciplinary work is needed to address this.
Geography fieldwork in a ‘risk society’
Authors: Cook Victoria A , Phillips Deborah , Holden Joseph
Published: December 2006

The recent decline in fieldwork provision in UK schools has partly been attributed to false perceptions of risk among teachers. This paper examines a case study based on geography teachers’ perceptions from six state secondary schools in a northern English city. The research shows that owing to the inherent subjectivity of risk perception, these teachers’ perceptions of fieldwork risk cannot be dismissed as false. Furthermore, it is argued that owing to the implicit, but powerful, spatialities of teachers’ imaginations of fieldwork, these teachers will first need to re‐evaluate the role and value of fieldwork before they are willing to re‐enter the field.
Possible geographies: a passing encounter in a café
Authors: Laurier Eric , Philo Chris
Published: December 2006

The rise of non‐representational theory in human geography has prompted searching questions about how researchers might ‘represent’ what they encounter in their fieldwork. A central problem is that we reach an insurmountable impasse, an aporia, because we cannot share thoughts, meanings, feelings, etc., in a manner faithful to our experience of them or equally that certain spectacular or horrific events and encounters escape their retelling. We argue that this impossibility should not become a warrant for withdrawing from the world, and instead propose that close descriptions can still be offered of particular encounters, attending in the process to the situated, embodied sense‐making work being (unavoidably) undertaken by the peoples involved that makes those encounters what they are. Such work may be threatened by scepticism, because it assumes the possibility of representation being at least partially successful, here and now, and relies on the ‘just‐thisness’ of things. Scholars of social life can, scepticism contained, learn much from taking seriously how any encounter unfolds without transcendental or structural guarantee in the immediacy of the life‐worlds where it is made and re‐made.
Monthly estimates of carbon dioxide emissions from fossil‐fuel consumption in Brazil during the late 1990s and early 2000s
Authors: Losey London M , Andres Robert J , Marland Gregg
Published: December 2006

Detailed understanding of global carbon cycling requires estimates of CO

2

emissions on temporal and spatial scales finer than annual and country. This is the first attempt to derive such estimates for a large, developing, Southern Hemisphere country. Though data on energy use are not complete in terms of time and geography, there are enough data available on the sale or consumption of fuels in Brazil to reasonably approximate the temporal and spatial patterns of fuel use and CO

2

emissions. Given the available data, a strong annual cycle in emissions from Brazil is not apparent. CO

2

emissions are unevenly distributed within Brazil as the population density and level of development both vary widely.
Allopurinol, oxidative stress and intestinal permeability in patients with cirrhosis: an open‐label pilot study
Authors: Spahr Laurent , Bresson‐Hadni Solange , Amann Pauline , Kern Ilse , Golaz Olivier , Frossard Jean‐Louis , Hadengue Antoine
Published: December 2006

Background: Cirrhosis is associated with intestinal barrier failure, related in part to enterocytes oxidative damage via xanthine oxidase overactivity. Experimentally, allopurinol, a xanthine oxidase inhibitor, reduces enterocytes' damage and bacterial translocation.

Aim: To assess the short‐term effects of allopurinol on intestinal permeability, oxidative stress and endotoxin‐dependent cytokines in patients with cirrhosis.

Methods: Nineteen patients with cirrhosis, in a stable condition (age: 56 years; Child A/B/C: 6/7/6; ascites: 12; alcoholic cirrhosis: 16/19; abstinence >2 weeks), were included. At baseline and day 10 of allopurinol 400 mg/day, intestinal permeability [lactulose/mannitol (Lac/Man) ratio test], oxidative stress (serum malondialdehyde), as well as TNF‐soluble receptor‐1, IL‐6 and lipopolysaccharide‐binding protein (which reflects exposition to endotoxin) were measured.

Results: Malondialdehyde decreased significantly (−23%, P<0.05), whereas no effects were seen on intestinal permeability and the endotoxin‐associated systemic inflammatory response. At baseline, portal pressure correlated to the Lac/Man ratio (r=0.55, P<0.02). At day 10, changes in malondialdehyde correlated to changes in the Lac/Man ratio (r=0.51, P<0.05).

Conclusions: A 10‐day course of allopurinol in patients with cirrhosis is associated with a significant reduction in oxidative stress but no effect on intestinal permeability and inflammatory markers. Whether intestinal damage in cirrhosis can be accessible to antioxidant therapy requires further study.
Thiopurine S‐methyltransferase gene polymorphism in Japanese patients with autoimmune liver diseases
Authors: Tamori Akihiro , Shinzaki Mayumi , Kosaka Saori , Hayashi Takehiro , Iwai Shuji , Enomoto Masaru , Habu Daiki , Sakaguchi Hiroki , Kawada Norifumi , Hino Masayuki , Shiomi Susumu , Nishiguchi Shuhei
Published: December 2006

Background and aim: Thiopurine S‐methyltransferase (TPMT) genotypes or phenotypes may be a predictive factor for azathioprine‐induced toxicities. We investigated the genotypic status of TPMT to evaluate the risk of azathioprine‐related adverse effects in Japanese patients with different liver diseases, including autoimmune hepatitis (AIH).

Methods: 49 patients with AIH, 67 with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC), and 120 with hepatitis C virus (HCV) were examined. TPMT genotypes were determined by PCR‐restriction fragment length polymorphism‐based assays.

Results: The distribution of TPMT genotypes was 90% TPMT*1/TPMT*1, 8% TPMT*1/TPMT*3C, and 2% TPMT*3C/TPMT*3C in AIH, and 94% TPMT*1/TPMT*1, 4.5% TPMT*1/TPMT*3C, and 1.5% TPMT*3C/TPMT*3C in PBC. All except 1 patient with HCV had the TPMT*1/TPMT*1 genotype. Severe myelosuppression occurred in two of nine patients with AIH who received azathioprine, one of whom was homozygous for TPMT*3C.

Conclusions: TPMT*3C variants are more frequent in patients with AIH or PBC than in patients with viral hepatitis or healthy volunteers in Japan. Pharmacogenetic screening for TPMT polymorphisms before commencing azathioprine therapy may help to prevent severe hematotoxicity in patients with TPMT deficiency.