Local Economic Conditions and Wage Labor Decisions of Farm and Rural Nonfarm Couples

Effects of geographical differences in local economic conditions on wage labor demand and wage labor participation decisions of rural couples are examined for Current Population Survey households 1978–82. Wage premiums are shown to exist for localities anticipating labor demand growth, higher unemployment rates, larger share of employment in services, and higher costs of living. These effects are stronger for males than females. Effects of local economic conditions on the probability of wage work are consistent with expected market wage and reservation wage effects, and for farm households the probability of wage work increases when expected farm output prices decline or the wage increases

Design of bio-nanosystems for oral delivery of functional compounds

Nanotechnology has been referred to as one of the most interesting topics in food technology due to the potentialities of its use by food industry. This calls for studying the behavior of nanosystems as carriers of biological and functional compounds aiming at their utilization for delivery, controlled release and protection of such compounds during food processing and oral ingestion. This review highlights the principles of design and production of bio-nanosystems for oral delivery and their behavior within the human gastrointestinal (GI) tract, while providing an insight into the application of reverse engineering approach to the design of those bio-nanosystems. Nanocapsules, nanohydrogels, lipid-based and multilayer nanosystems are discussed (in terms of their main ingredients, production techniques, predominant forces and properties) and some examples of possible food applications are given. Phenomena occurring in in vitro digestion models are presented, mainly using examples related to the utilization of lipid-based nanosystems and their physicochemical behavior throughout the GI tract. Furthermore, it is shown how a reverse engineering approach, through two main steps, can be used to design bio-nanosystems for food applications, and finally a last section is presented to discuss future trends and consumer perception on food nanotechnology.Miguel A. Cerqueira, Ana C. Pinheiro, Helder D. Silva, Philippe E. Ramos, Ana I. Bourbon, Oscar L. Ramos (SFRH/BPD/72753/2010, SFRH/BD/48120/2008, SFRH/BD/81288/2011, SFRH/BD/80800/2011, SFRH/BD/73178/2010 and SFRH/BPD/80766/2011, respectively) are the recipients of a fellowship from the Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia (FCT, POPH-QREN and FSE Portugal). Maria L. Flores-Lopez thanks Mexican Science and Technology Council (CONACYT, Mexico) for PhD fellowship support (CONACYT Grant number: 215499/310847). The support of EU Cost Actions FA0904 and FA1001 is gratefully acknowledged

The Effect of Captial Ratios on Credit Union Rates Nationwide

The average net worth ratio of credit unions has increased substantially over the past twenty years. During this time period, there has been a little pressure by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) to increase this ratio. The average net worth ratio of credit unions has increased significantly since 1985 to well beyond the well-capitalized ratio of 7 percent. Much of this increase came in the early 1990's, when falling interest rates, due to an easy monetary policy, helped increase net income for depository institutions.With the average net worth ratio at around 11.4 percent in 2007, how high this ratio should be has continued to be an issue. There are two basic arguments that credit unions should maintain a lower net worth. First, since credit unions are cooperatives, any retained earnings greater than what is needed, given their risks, should go back to the credit union members. Second, credit unions may have to restrict growth if they try to maintain a higher net worth ratio than what is needed. However, adequate net worth is needed to maintain credit union soundness and to protect against interest rate risk and credit risk.

Factors Determining Credit Union Loan Rates in Local Markets

This study uses a variant of the structure-performance model, often used in banking studies, to examine the credit union industries in Idaho and Montana. This should be of interest since credit unions have recently been the fastest growing type of depository institution. The used vehicle loan rate is the dependent variable. We found that credit union size, a proxy measure of economies of scale, and bank market share had negative and significant effects on loan rates. Credit union charge-offs, three-firm concentration ratios, higher salaries and a measure of credit union inefficiency led to significantly higher rates.

Local Economic Conditions and Wage Labor Decisions of Farm and Rural Nonfarm Couples

Effects of geographical differences in local economic conditions on wage labor demand and wage labor participation decisions of rural couples are examined for Current Population Survey households 1978–82. Wage premiums are shown to exist for localities anticipating labor demand growth, higher unemployment rates, larger share of employment in services, and higher costs of living. These effects are stronger for males than females. Effects of local economic conditions on the probability of wage work are consistent with expected market wage and reservation wage effects, and for farm households the probability of wage work increases when expected farm output prices decline or the wage increases.This is a staff paper of an article from American Journal of Agricultural Economics 73 (1991): 652, doi:10.2307/1242818.</p

Risk-based loan pricing consequences for credit unions

© 2018 Elsevier B.V. Risk-based pricing, in which interest rate offers vary according to individual borrower risk levels, has been increasingly used to price credit union loans in the United States. The key question examined in this research, given credit union not-for-profit objectives, is whether this pricing strategy increases the availability of loans, particularly for high-risk borrowers. Data on the number of loans per credit union member and loan delinquency rates are used to assess loan access and average risk-levels, respectively. The results indicate that risk-based pricing adopters increase the availability of loans relative to otherwise similar non-adopters. However, average risk levels, as measured by delinquency rates, appear to be somewhat lower for adopters of risk-based pricing compared to matched non-adopters. This suggests that lending increases primarily for low-risk borrowers, which contrasts with claims that risk-based pricing chiefly benefits high-risk borrowers who might otherwise be denied credit

Credit union loan rate determinants following the 2008 financial crisis

© 2014 Western Social Science Association. Previous studies show that a variety of institutional and market variables influence cross-sectional variation in the interest rates that credit unions charge on loans. This study examines the behavior of loan interest rates using nationwide credit union data for the fourth quarter of 2009 in the United States. Results from this sample of more than 6,700 individual credit unions corroborate earlier research indicating that credit union competition tends to suppress loan rates and that economies of scale exist at these financial intermediaries. In contrast to prior studies, however, credit unions with higher net worth ratios are found to charge higher interest rates on loans

From Iceberg to Iced Tea

In relation to an exhibition of film and photography by 13 First Nations and Inuit artists, the correspondence between the curators (one Native, the other non-Native) reveals their preparations and discussion of the photographic representation of culture and community. Staats' poetic text deals with creativity and cultural struggle. Biographical notes. 3 bibl. ref