THE WAYS OF ASSESSING COMPETITION BETWEEN COMMERCIAL BANKS

the article describes the essence and functions of the assessment of competition between commercial banks, the features of the organization of banking services in the interbank market. A scientific proposal and practical recommendations on improving competition in commercial banks of our republic have been develope

THE EFFECT OF SPONSORSHIP ANNOUNCEMENTS ON STOCK RETURNS: DOES INDUSTRY CONCENTRATION MATTER?

The purpose of this paper is to provide an event study based evidence on whether the effect of sponsorship announcements on stock returns differs based on market concentration. The study sample includes 17 sponsorship announcements occured  during the period of  2011 and 2016 for10 firms listed in BIST. In order to test whether stock return is affected by sponsorship announcements, abnormal return (AR), cumulative abnormal return (CAR)  were tested by using t-tests for event window [-5, +5]. According to the results, in [-5 +5] event window 13 events revelaed statistically significant AR and CAR before and after the event day.  Accordingly, sponsorship announcements are associated with stock returns of sponsoring firms. A Mann-Whitney U test indicated statistically  significant difference in abnormal returns between firms operating in non-concentrated industries and firms in concentrated industries. In concentrated markets sponsorship announcements created negative abnormal returns. On the other hand, sponsorship announcements created positive abnormal returns in non-concentrated industries. The study extends the current knowledge through providing empirical evidence for the role of market competitive structure

The impact of the economic diversification index on growth outside the hydrocarbon sector using the ARDL model (1980/2019) - Algeria's case with reference to the Norwegian model-

تهدف هذه الورقة البحثية إلى تقييم جهود الجزائر في تحقيق التنويع الاقتصادي بمختلف أشكاله، وذلك من خلال إبراز أثر مؤشر التنويع على النمو الاقتصادي خارج المحروقات، باستخدام النموذج الديناميكي (ARDL) مع الاستلهام بالنموذج النرويجي الرائد في حوكمة إدارة موارده النفطية، وتوصلت الدراسة إلى أن سياسة تنويع القاعدة الاقتصادية لم تنجع من الرفع من معدلات النمو خارج المحروقات في المدى الطويل، لكنها بطيئة على المدى القصير متسمة بغلة الحجم المتناقصة، واقترحت الدراسة على ضرورة استعمال النفط وسيلة لتنمية صناعات جديدة مستديمة غير معتمدة على استمرار عملية استخراج النفط.  This research paper aims to assess Algeria's efforts to achieve economic diversification by highlighting the impact of the diversification index on economic growth outside hydrocarbons, using the dynamic model (ARDL), while taking advantage of the leading Norwegian experience in the governance of its oil resource management. The study concluded that the policy of diversification of the economic base has not succeeded in raising the rates of non-hydrocarbon growth in the long run, but its effect is slow in the short term, characterized by diminishing yields. The study suggested the necessity of using oil as a means to develop new sustainable industries that are not dependent on the continuation of the oil extraction process

An Empirical Analysis on the Impact of Market Concentration on the Financial Performance of General Private Clinics in Greece

This research investigates the dynamics of the Greek General Private Clinics Sector over the period 2012-2020, examining the interplay between market concentration, as measured by the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI), and key financial ratios. The study delves into Return on Equity (ROE), Gross Profit Margin, Operating Profitability, Net Profit Margin, Earnings After Tax Margin, and Return on Assets financial ratios. Commencing with a moderately concentrated market in 2012 (HHI=775.74), subsequent years witnessed the sector's adaptability to evolving market dynamics, reflected in fluctuations in both market concentration and financial ratios. The unexpected positive correlation observed in 2015, where a decrease in HHI (710.39) coincided with an increase in Net Sales and EBITDA, challenges conventional expectations. Throughout the analyzed period, the sector showcased resilience, demonstrated by its ability to navigate changes in market concentration while sustaining and expanding earnings. In 2019, Net Sales and EBITDA experienced an upturn, reaching 554.31 million euros and 104.11 million euros, respectively. However, the intriguing scenario in 2020, marked by a slight decrease in Net Sales (540.55 million euros) coupled with a significant surge in HHI (1097.52), underscores the intricate interplay between market structure and financial performance. The juxtaposition of key financial ratios with the HHI provides a holistic view of the sector's financial landscape, offering valuable insights for practitioners, policymakers, and researchers alike

Bounds of Herfindahl-Hirschman index of banks in the European Union

The level of concentration can be measured by different indicators. The article overviews the calculation methods of the so called CR3 index, Gini-index and Herfindahl-Hirschman index. The paper makes evidence for existence of such upper and lower bounds of Herfindahl-Hirschman index that could be determined by sampling if the total market value and the total number of market players are known. Furthermore, it proves that the difference of the upper and lower bounds decreases if the sample is supplemented by new units of the analyzed population. In order to apply the findings, the bounds of the Herfindahl-Hirschman index of the bank market of the European Union are determined in case of total assets, own funds, net interest income and net fee income of European banks. It can be done because these aggregated values and the number of European banks are known

Nano-gaming: produtoras e editoras de videojogos como criadores de conteúdos sobre nanotecnologia

São diversos os discursos políticos e científicos que apresentam a nanotecnologia como a nova Revolução Industrial, com a promessa de fomentar um novo paradigma civilizacional abalando o mundo como o conhecemos. Enquanto tecnologia convergente ligada a setores tecnológicos (por exemplo, biotecnologia, tecnologias de informação) e a setores de aplicação (por exemplo, energia, produção alimentar, saúde, militar), a sua composição torna-a uma forma de conhecimento multidisciplinar e de aplicação inter-industrial. Esta pluralidade conceptual permitiu às indústrias culturais – em especial literatura, cinema, séries televisivas e videojogos ligados ao género de ficção (científica) – a construção de um novo imaginário social em torno da nanotecnologia conectando-a com temáticas como o transhumanismo. No presente artigo questionamos o contributo dos videojogos no retrato da nanotecnologia e quais as temáticas emergentes que fundamentam a criação dos atuais paradigmas tecnológicos. Por moldarem os contextos narrativos dos produtos culturais, os videojogos possibilitam aos jogadores uma interação virtual com a nanotecnologia, demonstrando diferentes aplicações e configurações em torno desta tecnologia. Este capítulo visa identificar a forma como a nanotecnologia foi retratada nos videojogos, no período correspondente à produção de dois ciclos de consolas (2005-2013/ 2013-actualidade) estimando quais as funções e os papéis atribuídos pelas diferentes produtoras e editoras de videojogos. Pretendemos demonstrar o modo como a nanotecnologia é associada aos setores tecnológicos e de aplicação, questionando as configurações geopolíticas representadas na indústria dos videojogos. Configurando um arquétipo analítico pela aplicação de índices de concentração territorial Herfindahl-Hirschmann quisemos perceber quem são, de onde provêm as produtoras/editoras, explorar as suas bases de consumidores e auscultar as nanonarrativas emergentes nos videojogos.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Interval estimation of the herfindahl-hirschman index under incomplete market information

An interval estimate is provided for the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) when the knowledge about the market is incomplete, and we know just the largest market shares. Two rigorous bounds are provided for the HHI, without any further assumptions. Though the interval gets wider as the sum of the known market shares gets smaller, the estimate proves to be quite tight even when the fraction of the market that we do not know in detail is as high as 30%. This robustness is shown through three examples, considering respectively a set of real data and two sets of synthetic data, with the company sizes (a proxy for market shares) following respectively a Zipf law and a Pareto distribution

Nano-gaming: produtoras e editoras de videojogos como criadores de conteúdos sobre nanotecnologia

São diversos os discursos políticos e científicos que apresentam a nanotecnologia como a nova Revolução Industrial, com a promessa de fomentar um novo paradigma civilizacional abalando o mundo como o conhecemos. Enquanto tecnologia convergente ligada a setores tecnológicos (por exemplo, biotecnologia, tecnologias de informação) e a setores de aplicação (por exemplo, energia, produção alimentar, saúde, militar), a sua composição torna-a uma forma de conhecimento multidisciplinar e de aplicação inter-industrial. Esta pluralidade conceptual permitiu às indústrias culturais – em especial literatura, cinema, séries televisivas e videojogos ligados ao género de ficção (científica) – a construção de um novo imaginário social em torno da nanotecnologia conectando-a com temáticas como o transhumanismo. No presente artigo questionamos o contributo dos videojogos no retrato da nanotecnologia e quais as temáticas emergentes que fundamentam a criação dos atuais paradigmas tecnológicos. Por moldarem os contextos narrativos dos produtos culturais, os videojogos possibilitam aos jogadores uma interação virtual com a nanotecnologia, demonstrando diferentes aplicações e configurações em torno desta tecnologia. Este capítulo visa identificar a forma como a nanotecnologia foi retratada nos videojogos, no período correspondente à produção de dois ciclos de consolas (2005-2013/ 2013-actualidade) estimando quais as funções e os papéis atribuídos pelas diferentes produtoras e editoras de videojogos. Pretendemos demonstrar o modo como a nanotecnologia é associada aos setores tecnológicos e de aplicação, questionando as configurações geopolíticas representadas na indústria dos videojogos. Configurando um arquétipo analítico pela aplicação de índices de concentração territorial Herfindahl-Hirschmann quisemos perceber quem são, de onde provêm as produtoras/ editoras, explorar as suas bases de consumidores e auscultar as nanonarrativas emergentes nos videojogos

Groundnut variety replacement, market structure, marketed surplus and demand for improved varieties in Malawi: the case of smallholders and traders.

Doctoral Degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg.Groundnut is an important crop for the Malawian agricultural sector. It has the potential to increase agricultural farm incomes and contribute to improving food security for the predominantly maizebased food production system. The Government of Malawi also considers groundnut as one of the legume crops to complement dwindling export earnings from tobacco, which is the main export crop for the country. Despite its potential to contribute to the economic wellbeing of smallholders and the economy at large, the empirical literature has not adequately investigated how factors inherent in the production and marketing chain affect the performance of the groundnut subsector. Given this, the objectives of this study were to: investigate factors that determine smallholder' replacement decisions of conventional and modern varieties of groundnuts; assess effects of marketed surplus on demand for improved varieties by smallholders, and determine market competitiveness and entry barriers for groundnut markets among intermediary traders in central and northern Malawi. These objectives were achieved with survey data collected from groundnut smallholder producers and intermediary traders. Simple and systematic random sample sizes of 416 and 124 respectively were selected. The study focused on five potential groundnut producing districts, namely, Lilongwe, Mchinji, Kasungu and Salima in central Malawi, and Mzimba in northern Malawi. Several econometric techniques were applied to analyze the data, namely, Bivariate Probit (BVP), Endogenous Switching Probit (ESP), and the Multivariate Probit (MVP) regression models. The empirical results of the Bivariate Probit (BVP) model indicated that among the smallholders that replaced conventional with improved varieties, few reverted to the cultivation of the former. Other findings suggest that the probability that farmers would replace groundnut varieties, improved or conventional, was lower than the probability for not replacing them. Conversely, the probability of maintaining modern varieties was higher than that of maintaining conventional ones. Further results indicated that the production of groundnuts for food and income increased the probability of replacing both conventional and improved varieties. The statistical significance and the probability for this dual-purpose production were stronger and higher in the replacement of conventional varieties than for the modern ones. Factors related to the road infrastructure network decreased the likelihood of replacing conventional varieties, whereas institutional factors and smallholder' productive assets increased the likelihood of replacement of the same. Finally, farm household characteristics and related institutional factors positively influenced the probability of replacing modern groundnut varieties. These findings suggest that promoting dualpurpose production of groundnuts could increase the adoption of modern varieties while concurrently maintaining the diversity of the conventional ones. Farmers that belong to farmer organizations, those experienced in groundnut production and human capital development of the farmers, are also critical in contributing to the conservation of conventional varieties through strategies that mitigate their erosion. The results of the Endogenous Switching Probit (ESP) showed that marketed surplus had a positive effect on demand for improved varieties. The average treatment effect for smallholders with a marketed surplus (ATET) on the probability that they demanded improved varieties increased by 40%. Conversely, the average treatment effect for smallholders that did not have marketed surplus, the untreated (ATU), on the probability that they demanded improved varieties declined by 14%. Further, the marginal treatment effect (MTE) and average treatment effect (ATE) of marketed surplus on the probabilities to demand improved varieties increased by about 30% and 26%, respectively. Other results of this analysis revealed that despite groundnut productivity remaining constant for over a decade at smallholder level, marketed surplus, as indicated by the average commercialization index, was observed to be about twice the household's average consumption index. This finding suggests that farmers are orienting themselves towards the commercialized production of groundnuts. Access to market information, being involved in piece work jobs, yield per hectare and the proportion of total land allocated to the production of groundnuts had a positive and significant effect on marketed surplus. The positive average effects of marketed surplus on demand for improved varieties suggest that farmers that are inclined to intensify market participation value high yielding traits from improved varieties more than any other groundnut varietal attributes. The findings of the study suggest that demand for improved varieties among smallholders could increase if policy interventions could also focus on the challenges that smallholders encounter in the output market. In this case, increased crop productivity, engagement of smallholders in off-farm economic activities, and enhancing access to output market information are critical. In other results, an interval Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) revealed the existence of a competitive structure in the local, district, and city groundnut markets. However, the Multivariate Probit (MVP) regression model showed more entry barriers in the local and city markets than in the district market. Such findings suggest that the existence of competitive market structures does not imply the absence of trader entry barriers into the markets. Other results of the MVP showed that experience in business and sole ownership of business positively influenced entry into the district and local markets, respectively. Market transaction costs and storage infrastructure negatively and positively influenced entry into local and city markets, respectively, while the quantity of produce transacted positively and negatively influenced entry into both local and city markets, respectively. Access to credit and informal credit sources positively and negatively influenced entry into city markets, respectively. Membership in informal trader' associations positively influenced entry into city markets. The findings of the study suggest that policy facilitation for the formation of formal trader associations and access to credit from formal financial institutions could enhance trader' participation in the city groundnut markets. Further, public-private partnership investment in storage facilities and public investment in road infrastructure is critical in reducing market transaction costs, which could enhance the participation of intermediary traders in the local and city groundnut markets. The overall findings of the study attest to the need for policy support for an integrated smallholder groundnut seed system that would contribute to the growth and development of smallholder agriculture. Strategies that would enhance the adoption of improved varieties and minimize losses of indigenous germplasm are critical. In this vein, the marketed surplus has shown to be relevant to increase the demand for improved varieties among the smallholders. There is also a need for policy support in reducing constraints that prevent intermediary traders from enhancing their participation in the groundnut markets. In such a way, they would continue to render marketing services to smallholders, which otherwise could be costly if undertaken by themselves. One crosscutting issue that merits attention for policy support is infrastructural development in improved road networks from crop production centers to the distribution of produce along the marketing chain of groundnuts

A Europa no mundo e o mundo na Europa: crise e identidade. Livro de atas

A conferência “A Europa no Mundo e o Mundo na Europa: Crise e Identidade”, ocorrida em junho de 2015, no Instituto de Ciências Sociais da Universidade do Minho, pretendeu constituir um momento de reflexão acerca das antinomias que atravessam a Europa contemporânea nos seus múltiplos quadros de relação com o mundo. Tratava-se de discutir, num contexto de krisis, os caminhos que se oferecem à Europa, convocando o que de mais digno nos legou a cultura europeia: o pensamento crítico. Porque a Europa se fez no mundo, foi esta conferência ocasião para debater de que forma se posiciona a Europa perante as transformações societais contemporâneas, tendo como pano de fundo as relações políticas e culturais tecidas pela história.Financiada no âmbito do Programa Estratégico do CECS (UID/CCI/00736/2013) pelo COMPETE: POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007560 e FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologiainfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio