Towards Inflation Targeting in Egypt: Fiscal and institutional reforms to support disinflation efforts

This paper reviews the prerequisites of inflation targeting, analyses the extent to which they are met in Egypt and examines whether the Egyptian economy, under its current status, is ready to formally adopt an inflation targeting regime. It discusses why developing strong fiscal, financial and monetary institutions is so critical to the success of inflation targeting and explains how, even if the prerequisites are not stringently fulfilled in the beginning of its adoption, the move towards them is believed to contribute to the macroeconomic stability of the country. More particularly, the focus is being put on fiscal balance, the financial sector and central bank independence. Since we believe that the latter is the most important condition in the inflation targeting implementation process, the paper discusses the CBE's independence and underlines the importance of issues related to transparency, credibility, technical capabilities and accountability. Finally, the paper draws some conclusions and formulates some policy recommendations on the adjustments the country should put in place in order to ensure a successful transition towards an inflation targeting regime. Keywords: Egypt, Inflation targetting, Financial reformsEgypt, Inflation targetting, Financial reforms

Finite-state codes

A class of codes called finite-state (FS) codes is defined and investigated. The codes, which generalize both block and convolutional codes, are defined by their encoders, which are finite-state machines with parallel inputs and outputs. A family of upper bounds on the free distance of a given FS code is derived. A general construction for FS codes is given, and it is shown that in many cases the FS codes constructed in this way have a free distance that is the largest possible. Catastrophic error propagation (CEP) for FS codes is also discussed. It is found that to avoid CEP one must solve the graph-theoretic problem of finding a uniquely decodable edge labeling of the state diagram

Some partial-unit-memory convolutional codes

The results of a study on a class of error correcting codes called partial unit memory (PUM) codes are presented. This class of codes, though not entirely new, has until now remained relatively unexplored. The possibility of using the well developed theory of block codes to construct a large family of promising PUM codes is shown. The performance of several specific PUM codes are compared with that of the Voyager standard (2, 1, 6) convolutional code. It was found that these codes can outperform the Voyager code with little or no increase in decoder complexity. This suggests that there may very well be PUM codes that can be used for deep space telemetry that offer both increased performance and decreased implementational complexity over current coding systems

Dynamic analyses of suspension bridge structures

A method of dynamic analysis for vertical, torsional and lateral free vibrations of suspension bridges has been developed that is based on linearized theory and the finite-element approach. The method involves two distinct steps: (1) specification of the potential and kinetic energies of the vibrating members of the continuous structure, leading to derivation of the equations of motion by Hamilton's Principle, (2) use of the finite-element technique to: (a) discretize the structure into equivalent systems of finite elements, (b) select the displacement model most closely approximating the real case, (c) derive element and assemblage stiffness and inertia properties, and finally (d) form the matrix equations of motion and the resulting eigenvalue problems. The stiffness and inertia properties are evaluated by expressing the potential and kinetic energies of the element (or the assemblage) in terms of nodal displacements. Detailed numerical examples are presented to illustrate the applicability and effectiveness of the analysis and to investigate the dynamic characteristics of suspension bridges with widely different properties. This method eliminates the need to solve transcendental frequency equations, simplifies the determination of the energy stored in different members of the bridge, and represents a simple, fast and accurate tool for calculating the natural frequencies and modes of vibration by means of a digital computer. The method is illustrated by calculating the modes and frequencies of a bridge and comparing them with the measured frequencies

Engineering data and analyses of the Whittier, California earthquake of January 1, 1976

A magnitude 4.2 earthquake occurred near Whittier, California on January 1, 1976 at 09:20 Pacific Standard time. The shock was centered at 33.58N (Lat.) and 117.53W (Long.) in the Puente Hills of Los Angeles County. The ground shaking was recorded within a 14 Km (8.7 miles) radius of the instrumentally determined epicenter, and eleven strong-motion accelerograph records were obtained on 70 mm film from SMA-1 accelerographs operated as part of the U.S.G.S. Seismic Engineering Branch network. Although of relatively small magnitude, the earthquake did produce peak ground accelerations as high as 187% g, which merit an engineering analysis. The locations of the strong-motion accelerograph stations at the time of the earthquake are shown in Fig. 1. The eleven records were obtained from different structures as follows: (1) three records from a ten-story modern reinforced-concrete building in Whittier, (2) three records from the Carbon Canyon earth-dam site, (3) two records from the Brea earth-dam site, (4) two records from the Diemer Filtration Plant, and finally (5) one record from the Orange County Reservoir. Instruments located at Whittier Dam (16.4 Km from the instrumental epicenter) and at Puddingstone Dam (15.0 Km from the epicenter) were operational, but were not triggered by the event (Etheredge and Nielson, Ref. 1)

Constructions for finite-state codes

A class of codes called finite-state (FS) codes is defined and investigated. These codes, which generalize both block and convolutional codes, are defined by their encoders, which are finite-state machines with parallel inputs and outputs. A family of upper bounds on the free distance of a given FS code is derived from known upper bounds on the minimum distance of block codes. A general construction for FS codes is then given, based on the idea of partitioning a given linear block into cosets of one of its subcodes, and it is shown that in many cases the FS codes constructed in this way have a d sub free which is as large as possible. These codes are found without the need for lengthy computer searches, and have potential applications for future deep-space coding systems. The issue of catastropic error propagation (CEP) for FS codes is also investigated