Descalces cambiarios, repercusiones en el balance general y protección contra el riesgo en empresas no financieras chilenas

(Disponible en idioma inglés únicamente) En este trabajo se emplea una nueva base de datos de la composición cambiaria de activos y pasivos para analizar los factores determinantes y las consecuencias de los descalces cambiarios en empresas no financieras chilenas. Al igual que en estudios anteriores al nivel de empresa en Chile, descubrimos que en períodos siguientes a una depreciación, las empresas con más deuda denominada en dólares no registran un desempeño menor que sus contrapartes con pasivos denominados en pesos. No obstante, una vez que controlamos adecuadamente las diferencias en la composición en divisas de los activos, los ingresos y las posiciones en derivados netos, sí descubrimos un efecto considerable en el balance general. Hallamos además que los instrumentos derivados desempeñan un papel importante de aislamiento de las inversiones empresariales contra las sacudidas del tipo de cambio. Siguiendo la misma dirección de estudios anteriores, también hallamos pruebas de correspondencia cambiaria entre las empresas chilenas. En Chile, las compañías consiguen reducir los riesgos vinculados con la exposición al riesgo cambiario al hacer corresponder la composición en divisas de sus pasivos con la de sus ingresos y activos, así como también adquiriendo instrumentos derivados si no hay disponibles instrumentos de cobertura reales. Por último, hallamos cambios significativos en el nivel de exposición neta a las divisas tras la introducción del régimen de cambio flotante en 1999. Sostenemos que una interpretación posible de estos resultados se debe al efecto de una mayor variación del tipo de cambio sobre el riesgo relativo de la deuda interna y externa.

Currency Mismatches, Balance Sheet Effects and Hedging in Chilean non-Financial Corporations

Using a new database on the currency composition of assets and liabilities this paper explores the determinants and consequences of currency mismatches in Chilean non-financial firms. As in previous firm level studies for Chile, we find that in periods following a depreciation firms with higher dollar debt do not underperform their peso counterparts. However, once we adequately control for differences in the currency composition of assets, income and net derivative positions, we do find a significant balance sheet effect. In addition, we find that derivatives play a role in insulating firm level investment from exchange rate shocks. In line with previous studies, we also find evidence of currency matching in Chilean corporates. Firms in Chile actively reduce the risks associated with exchange rate exposure by matching the currency composition of their debt with that of their income and assets, and by taking on derivatives if no “real” hedge is available. Finally, we find significant changes in the level of net currency exposure after the exchange rate was floated in 1999. We argue that one possible interpretation of these results is due to the effect of higher exchange rate variance on the relative risk of domestic and foreign debt.

Causes of annual reproductive variation and anthropogenic disturbance in harlequin ducks breeding in glacier national park, montana

Annual reproductive variation is the central focus of many ecological studies. Variation in reproductive success is an important vital rate to study because it can lead to inferences about population health, extinction risk, human disturbance and habitat quality. The identification of the causes of reproductive variability can help guide conservation and management efforts of a species. In Glacier National Park, Montana I studied causes of annual reproductive variation and behavioral responses to human disturbance in a breeding population of harlequin ducks (Histrionicus histrionicus). Harlequins are rare sea ducks with a Holarctic distribution and winter along rocky coast lines of North America. Females reach reproductive maturity at age 3. At this time they bond with a male that they will breed with for life. Recent band re-sighting has revealed that these ducks can live up to at least 21 years. In spring pairs migrate inland to the female’s natal montane stream to breed. My study focused on the breeding season from April – September on Upper McDonald Creek, Glacier National Park, Montana. My objective was to study 3 potential indirect and direct sources of reproductive variation in Harlequin ducks on this breeding stream; 1) stream flow effects on annual reproductive success, 2) human presence and effects on stream patch occupancy and resource selection, and 3) carry-over effects of physiological measures of body condition, baseline corticosterone levels (primary stress hormone in birds), and integrated measures of corticosterone deposition in feathers. For my first objective I identified 4 different parameters of stream flow that accounted for 32% of the annual variation in reproductive success. I conclude that these parameters will be very sensitive to climate change, making reproduction challenging for harlequins into the future. For my second objective I found greater probability of occupancy of ducks in high human use sites and in stream patches closer to roads. I also found greater occupancy in pool habitat; surprisingly, this pool habitat also had a greater distribution close to road. I conclude from this analysis that there were no strong negative effects of human disturbance on harlequin duck occupy and resource selection, but recommend that harlequin habitat near to human use areas be monitored closely. For my third objective I found that concentrations of corticosterone deposited in feathers grown just prior to reproduction predict reproductive success for that year. I did not find any predictive value of body condition or baseline corticosterone levels. The carry-over effects that I documented in the feathers grown during the prenuptial molt indicate that is an import period that reflects reproductive decision (may be 2 month separation from feather growth to egg lay). These 3 lines of inquiry identified important sources of annual reproductive variation and will help guide management and conservation efforts. I recommend further study to better understand important resources that harlequins select for on the breeding stream and intensive study of harlequin wintering habitat, especially prenuptial molt areas

Customary farm rental arrangements (1999)

Landowners and tenants can choose from several different types of rental arrangements. They can choose cash, crop-share, livestock-share, or flexible-cash arrangements. The landowner also has the option of hiring custom operators for the field work or operating directly with hired labor. This guide focuses on development of an equitable crop-share lease.Revised 11/99/5M

Agro-climate tools for a new climate-smart agriculture

The way we produce food must adapt to a variable and changing climate. And key to achieving this is to improve the link between climate information and agricultural practices, especially those of smallholder farmers in developing countries. ‘Agro-climate tools’ do just that and some are introduced here

Bound circumplanetary orbits under the influence of radiation pressure: Application to dust in directly imaged exoplanet systems

We examine the population of simply periodic orbits in the Hill problem with radiation pressure included, in order to understand the distribution of gravitationally bound dust in orbit around a planet. We study a wide range of radiation pressure strengths, which requires the inclusion of additional terms beyond those discussed in previous analyses of this problem. In particular, our solutions reveal two distinct populations of stable wide, retrograde, orbits, as opposed to the single family that exists in the purely gravitational problem. We use the result of these calculations to study the observational shape of dust populations bound to extrasolar planets, that might be observable in scattered or reradiated light. In particular, we find that such dusty clouds should be elongated along the star--planet axis, and that the elongation of the bound population increases with $\beta$, a measure of the strength of the radiation pressure. As an application of this model, we consider the properties of the Fomalhaut system. The unusual orbital properties of the object Fomalhaut~b can be explained if the observed light was scattered by dust that was released from an object in a quasi-satellite orbit about a planet located in, or near, the observed debris ring. Within the context of the model of Hayakawa \& Hansen (2023), we find that the dust cloud around such a planet is still approximately an order of magnitude fainter than the limits set by current JWST data.Comment: 21 pages, 23 figure

Escape of Trajectories From a Vase-Shaped Cavity

We consider the escape of ballistic trajectories from an open, vase-shaped cavity. Such a system serves as a model for microwaves escaping from a cavity or electrons escaping from a microjunction. Fixing the initial position of a particle and recording its escape time as a function of the initial launch direction, the resulting escape-time plot shows “epistrophic fractal” structure—repeated structure within structure at all levels of resolution with new features appearing in the fractal at longer time scales. By launching trajectories simultaneously in all directions (modeling an outgoing wave), a detector placed outside the cavity would measure a train of escaping pulses. We connect the structure of this chaotic pulse train with the fractal structure of the escape-time plot

Preliminary Results of American Eel Sampling Efforts in Gulf of Mexico Drainages of Texas

American Eel Anguilla rostrata has a unique and complex life history that is fairly well-studied on the eastern coast of the United States, but few studies have been done on Gulf of Mexico drainages. To inform conservation and management decisions, efforts to better understand the population structure, seasonal dynamics, and life history of American Eel are underway. The primary objectives of our efforts are to assess the current and historical distribution and abundance, habitat use, movement patterns, parasite occurrence, diet and population structure of American Eel across all life stages in Gulf of Mexico drainages of Texas.Texas State Wildlife Grant Program grants T-173-R-1 and T-172-R-1 in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration ProgramIntegrative Biolog