Earnings Information and Stock Market Efficiency

This paper examines earnings information and stock market efficiency in Bahrain by taking annual earnings announcement as an event. The study is based on 32 companies listed on Bahrain Bourse. We have used event study methodology and t test. The behaviour of AARs and CAARs are examined for 30 days before and 31 days after the announcement of annual earnings. The results of the study contradict semi-strong form of efficient market hypothesis.

Performance Analysis of Commercial Banks in the Kingdom of Bahrain (2001-2015)

Banking sector plays a leading role in financing a country's economic activities.  Its performance is crucial in determining a country's economic growth. This paper examines the performance of commercial retail banks (conventional and Islamic) in Bahrain and financial ratios were used for the period 2001-2015 on parameters such as profitability, liquidity, operating efficiency, capital adequacy and leverage. The empirical results revealed that conventional retail banks, except for Bahrain Development Bank, have consistent performance in ROA and ROE while among the Islamic retail banks, the performance of Kuwait Finance House is satisfactory in terms of profitability. The data also shows that all banks have satisfactory risk assets ratio. The commercial banks' profitability and capital adequacy as well as their profitability and efficiency are statistically correlated. There is a significant difference in the capital adequacy but no significant difference in profitability and liquidity was found among the listed commercial retail banks. Keywords: Performance Analysis, Conventional Banks, Islamic Banks JEL Classifications: G20, G2

Investigating the Nexus between Crude Oil Price and Stock Prices of Oil Exploration Companies

In emerging economies, examining the linkage between different markets has become crucial. We have examined the linkage between crude oil and Indian oil exploration companies' equity prices. The augmented Dickey-Fuller method is used to test the stationarity of the series. The Granger causality test, Vector autoregression (VAR), and correlation methodologies are used to examine the causality between the markets. The p-values of Granger causality tests are less than 0.05, which confirms that the crude oil price causes the price movements of Indian oil exploration equities. The VAR (2) model confirmed that the prices of HOCE, OIL, and ONGC follow the first and second lag, Reliance and PETRONET equities follow the first lag of International crude price. The impulse response function shows a positive response of Indian oil exploration equity returns for the positive shocks of crude oil return. The findings of this study may help the traders and investors in the equity market, energy equity investors

Single-stage Modified Duhamel procedure for Hirschsprung′s disease : Our experience

Introduction: Primary single-stage pull-through for Hirschsprung′s disease (HD) has been reported to give comparable surgical outcomes to staged operations with less morbidity. Herein, we present our experience with single-stage Modified Duhamel procedure for management of HD. Patients and Methods: This was a review of 48 cases of HD who underwent single-stage Modified Duhamel procedure without a protective colostomy. Results: The age at surgery ranged from 6 months to 10 years (median - 9 months, mean - 2.3 years). The average weight of the child was 7.2 kg (range, 4.9-22 kg). 38 (79.2%) patients had classical rectosigmoid HD, the rest being long segment HD (the proximal most level being the splenic flexure). The average duration of surgery was 175 minutes (range, 130-245 minutes). The average blood loss was 45 ml. The average hospital stay was 7.2 days (range: 6-10 days). The major postoperative complications (n=3) included postoperative adhesive intestinal obstruction, anastomotic leak and persistent constipation due to residual aganglionosis. Each required a re-exploration. Minor complications included surgical site infection (n=3) and post-operative enterocolitis (n=3), which were managed conservatively. Six patients had constipation for a limited period post-operatively. All patients have a satisfactory functional outcome and normal development and growth. Conclusions: For HD, we recommend that single-stage Modified Duhamel procedure should be the preferred approach in view of its low morbidity, satisfactory functional outcome and avoidance of stoma, multiple surgeries and economic benefit in view of decreased hospital stay

Paenibacillus spp infection among infants with postinfectious hydrocephalus in Uganda:an observational case-control study

Paenibacillus thiaminolyticus is a cause of postinfectious hydrocephalus among Ugandan infants. To determine whether Paenibacillus spp is a pathogen in neonatal sepsis, meningitis, and postinfectious hydrocephalus, we aimed to complete three separate studies of Ugandan infants. The first study was on peripartum prevalence of Paenibacillus in mother-newborn pairs. The second study assessed Paenibacillus in blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from neonates with sepsis. The third study assessed Paenibacillus in CSF from infants with hydrocephalus. In this observational study, we recruited mother-newborn pairs with and without maternal fever (mother-newborn cohort), neonates (aged ≤28 days) with sepsis (sepsis cohort), and infants (aged ≤90 days) with hydrocephalus with and without a history of neonatal sepsis and meningitis (hydrocephalus cohort) from three hospitals in Uganda between Jan 13, 2016 and Oct 2, 2019. We collected maternal blood, vaginal swabs, and placental samples and the cord from the mother-newborn pairs, and blood and CSF from neonates and infants. Bacterial content of infant CSF was characterised by 16S rDNA sequencing. We analysed all samples using quantitative PCR (qPCR) targeting either the Paenibacillus genus or Paenibacillus thiaminolyticus spp. We collected cranial ultrasound and computed tomography images in the subset of participants represented in more than one cohort. No Paenibacillus spp were detected in vaginal, maternal blood, placental, or cord blood specimens from the mother-newborn cohort by qPCR. Paenibacillus spp was detected in 6% (37 of 631 neonates) in the sepsis cohort and, of these, 14% (5 of 37 neonates) developed postinfectious hydrocephalus. Paenibacillus was the most enriched bacterial genera in postinfectious hydrocephalus CSF (91 [44%] of 209 patients) from the hydrocephalus cohort, with 16S showing 94% accuracy when validated by qPCR. Imaging showed progression from Paenibacillus spp-related meningitis to postinfectious hydrocephalus over 1-3 months. Patients with postinfectious hydrocephalus with Paenibacillus spp infections were geographically clustered. Paenibacillus spp causes neonatal sepsis and meningitis in Uganda and is the dominant cause of subsequent postinfectious hydrocephalus. There was no evidence of transplacental transmission, and geographical evidence was consistent with an environmental source of neonatal infection. Further work is needed to identify routes of infection and optimise treatment of neonatal Paenibacillus spp infection to lessen the burden of morbidity and mortality. National Institutes of Health and Boston Children's Hospital Office of Faculty Development

Cranial and ventricular size following shunting or endoscopic third ventriculostomy (ETV) in infants with aqueductal stenosis: further insights from the International Infant Hydrocephalus Study (IIHS)

Purpose The craniometrics of head circumference (HC) and ventricular size are part of the clinical assessment of infants with hydrocephalus and are often utilized in conjunction with other clinical and radiological parameters to determine the success of treatment. We aimed to assess the effect of endoscopic third ventriculostomy (ETV) and shunting on craniometric measurements during the follow-up of a cohort of infants with symptomatic triventricular hydrocephalus secondary to aqueductal stenosis. Methods We performed a post hoc analysis of data from the International Infant Hydrocephalus Study (IIHS)-a prospective, multicenter study of infants (< 24 months old) with hydrocephalus from aqueductal stenosis who were treated with either an ETV or shunt. During various stages of a 5-year follow-up period, the following craniometrics were measured: HC, HC centile, HCz-score, and frontal-occipital horn ratio (FOR). Data were compared in an analysis of covariance, adjusting for baseline variables including age at surgery and sex. Results Of 158 enrolled patients, 115 underwent an ETV, while 43 received a shunt. Both procedures led to improvements in the mean HC centile position andz-score, a trend which continued until the 5-year assessment point. A similar trend was noted for FOR which was measured at 12 months and 3 years following initial treatment. Although the values were consistently higher for ETV compared with shunt, the differences in HC value, centile, andz-score were not significant. ETV was associated with a significantly higher FOR compared with shunting at 12 months (0.52 vs 0.44;p = 0.002) and 3 years (0.46 vs 0.38;p = 0.03) of follow-up. Conclusion ETV and shunting led to improvements in HC centile,z-score, and FOR measurements during long-term follow-up of infants with hydrocephalus secondary to aqueductal stenosis. Head size did not significantly differ between the treatment groups during follow-up, however ventricle size was greater in those undergoing ETV when measured at 1 and 3 years following treatment