Inflation expectations formation and financial stability in Indonesia

This paper examines the role of expectations in explaining the dynamics of inflation, interest rates and other key financial variables in Indonesia using VAR and error correction analyses. It is found that deposit interest rates, exchange rates and oil prices have significant impact on the expectations formation. We also found that administered prices are important, but their role decreases with time, while exogenous shocks remain a major source of movements in the expectations. The latter has long lasting effects and still accounts for more than 10 per cent of the variability of inflation expectations after the period of one year. This evidence shows the importance of inflation expectations formation, particularly on domestic financial stability.Inflation expectations; Formation; Financial Stability; Indonesia

The effects of the EBA's stress testing framework on banks' lending

This paper investigates the impact of the European Banking Authority (EBA)'s supervisory stress tests on bank lending. Using a sample of 282 European banks over the period 2006–2018, we find that stress-tested banks experience higher credit risk and reduce lending for specific loan types. In particular, due to country heterogeneities, we find that the contraction in lending is more pronounced for stress-tested banks in the GIIPS region. Our results also suggest that the elevated credit risk of highly-exposed stress-tested banks can be a driving factor of a reduction in bank lending. Consequently, prudential measures requiring banks to hold higher capital buffers are justified to contain credit risk shocks

Effectiveness of liquid organic-nitrogen fertilizer in enhancing nutrients uptake and use efficiency in corn (Zea mays)

The ever increasing price of nitrogenous (N) fertilizers coupled with the deleterious effects of imbalanced N fertilizers on the environment necessitates the enhancement of N use efficiency of plants. The objectives of this study were to: (1) Evaluate the uptake of selected nutrients due to application of liquid organic-N fertilizers and (2) determine the efficiency of the formulated fertilizers in Zea mays cultivation in an acid soil. Liquid organic-N fertilizers with different sources of humic molecules were evaluated. The treatments were applied at 10 and 20 days after sowing (DAS) of corn. Plant and soil samples were collected at 54 DAS (tasseling stage) and analyzed for N, P, K, Ca, Mg and Na. The use of liquid organic-N fertilizer increased N content in leaf, stem and roots. The fertilizer with Fulvic acids (FA) increased N uptake and use efficiency. It also improved exchangeable Ca and Mg in soil solution. No significant difference was observered for soil exchangeable K. It can be concluded that the use of organic substances could enhance N uptake and N use efficiency of corn.Key words: Humic acids, fulvic acids, liquid fertilizers, nitrogen use efficiency, nutrient uptake, corn

Improving formulated nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium compound fertilizer using zeolite

Ammonia volatilization from urea and ammonium containing compound fertilizers cause higher cost of fertilization in agriculture. In this study, an incubation experiment was carried out to compare the effect of different ratios of compound fertilizer amended with clinoptilolite zeolite on NH3 volatilization, soil exchangeable NH4 and available NO3 contents on Bekenu Series (Tipik Tualemkuts) with surface-applied urea without additives. Treatments with zeolite significantly reduced NH3 loss when compared with urea without addictives. They also improved retention of exchangeable NH4 and NO3 and this was possible because zeolite favoured formation of ammonium and nitrate over ammonia. There is a potential for compound fertilizer with zeolite to improve nitrogen efficiency by lowering ammonia volatilization and increasing accumulation of exchangeable NH4 and NO3.Key words: Ammonia volatilization, compound fertilizers, clinoptilolite zeolite, soil exchangeable ammonium, available nitrate

Reducing ammonia volatilization from compound fertilizers amended with zeolite

Ammonia volatilization is a direct loss of available nitrogen in agriculture. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of amending NPK fertilizer with different rates of clinoptilolite zeolite on ammonia volatilization, soil exchangeable ammonium, and available nitrate. Seven treatments evaluated were: 250 g soil alone (T1), 3.28 g ammonium nitrate (AN) without additive (T2), 44.6 g 5:3:2 formulated fertilizer + 31.77 g zeolite (T3), 44.6 g 5:5:5 formulated fertilizer + 26.36 g zeolite (T4), 37.17 g 6:6:6 formulated fertilizer + 18.92 g zeolite (T5), 22.30 g 10:10:10 formulated fertilizer + 4.06 g zeolite (T6), and 14.87 g 15:15:15 commercial fertilizer (T7). The ammonia loss was measured using close-dynamic air flow system method. Soil pH, exchangeable ammonium and available nitrate at the end of this study were determined using standard procedures. The mixture of formulated fertilizer and zeolite significantly reduced ammonia volatilization. Zeolite in the formulated compound fertilizers did not significantly affect soil exchangeable ammonium and available nitrate. Amending N, P, and K compound fertilizer could minimize ammonia loss.Keywords: Ammonium nitrate, zeolite, ammonia volatilization, soil exchangeable ammonium, soil available nitrat

Measuring Actual Evapotranspiration From Sweet Corn With Lysimeters in a Warm, Humid Climate.

A study was conducted to determine the actual evapotranspiration of sweet corn in a warm, humid climate. Sweet corn was grown in six lysimeters at Louisiana Agricultural Experimental Station\u27s Ben Hur Research Farm located 6 km south of Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. A water balance was measured over three corn growing seasons for the following three soil moisture regimes: No irrigation or drainage (SMR1); No irrigation but drainage as needed (SMR2); and irrigation or drainage as needed (SMR3). The average actual evapotranspiration from SMR1, SMR2, and SMR3 over three seasons were 192 mm, 202 mm, and 304 mm respectively. The maximum total actual ET under soil moisture treatment SMR3 was 352 mm. Irrigation increased actual evapotraspiration during a dry season. Potential evapotranspiration was estimated using the Modified Penman model, Hargreaves model, Thornthwaite model, and evaporation pan. By comparing the potential evapotraspiration of these three models with pan evaporation based on monthly values, mean monthly values for the period Jan 1981-Sept 1990, it was concluded that Modified Penman model was the most reliable model for estimating potential evapotraspiration for Southern Louisiana. A pan coefficient of 0.92 was calculated with $\pm$0.032 std. error. A crop growth stage coefficient curve for sweet corn was developed for Southern Louisiana. This curve did not differ significantly from the already published USDA-SCS curve 5 (1970). Actual evapotranspiration (ET\sb{\rm act}) can be determined at any growth stage of sweet corn by applying the following relationship: ET\sb{\rm act} = 0.92 * Kc * E\sb{\rm pan} where Kc is crop coefficient, and E\sb{\rm pan} is pan evaporation in mm/day. Irrigation significantly increased the growth (height), dry matter yield (kg/ha) and marketable yield (number of ears/ha) during a dry season. Also, a linear relationship was found between the dry matter yield (kg/ha) and the total actual ET (mm) which shows that dry matter increased 57.32 kg/ha for each 1.0 mm increase in actual ET

Performance enhancement of solar still desalination systems using revolving tubes: CFD simulation and experimental investigation

Water and energy are indispensable resources for life and civilisation. The scarcity of both water and energy have emerged as amongst the most serious concerns of our time due to the dramatic growth in population, enhancement in our standards of living, and the rapid development of the agricultural and industrial sectors in many countries. Desalination seems to be one of the most promising solutions to solve the problem of water scarcity; however, it is not without costs, as the desalination process is energy-intensive. Conventional sources of energy, such as fossil fuels, are limited, depleted and pollute the environment. Therefore, the use of renewable sources of energy such as solar energy is essential and represents a better option. Solar desalination systems are environmentally friendly and offer a win-win solution to solve shortages of both water and energy. The simplest and the most straightforward solar desalination process is the natural evaporation-condensation process of the Solar Still Desalination (SD) system. An SD system simply consists of a water basin and a tilted transparent cover that is exposed to solar radiation. SD systems have a low capital cost; however, the low productivity of these systems make the cost of the water that they produce higher than that produced via other traditional desalination systems. On balance, the selection of SD systems for remote areas that have relatively low demand for water makes those systems a feasible option, due to the elimination of the high costs of water transfer if such systems are deployed locally. SD systems can work powered by solar energy, which makes them environmentally friendly and suitable for areas that have no access to electricity, such as remote villages and less developed regions of the world. The main purpose of this study is to find a method to increase the productivity of SD systems to provide people in remote and less developed regions of the world with freshwater. The proposed technique is a simple amendment to the regular double-sloped SD system. The suggested modification was to add three parallel and symmetrical PVC tubes into the water basin of the SD system to be rotated by small DC motors. These tubes were wrapped in an absorbent black mat and were placed horizontally along the basin to be semi immersed in the water. The purpose of this modification is to stir the water in the basin and to generate a thin water layer around the tubes’ circumference, which leads to an increase in the surface area for water evaporation. This modification enhanced the water evaporation rate within the SD system, and thereby increased the productivity of this system. In this study, two SD systems: the Normal SD (NSD) system and the Modified SD (MSD) system were designed and manufactured, simulated numerically and tested experimentally. The CFD simulation was done using ANSYS-Fluent software. The experimental investigations were carried out during spring and summer in Toowoomba, Australia. The effective operation and design parameters such as water depth, the tubes’ diameter and the tubes’ rotation speed were analysed and optimised using the sensitivity analysis. The dimensional analysis, uncertainty analysis, and the cost analysis for the present experimental setup of both the SD systems were conducted as well. The daily productivity of the SD systems is equal to the distillate yield within a day and the daily efficiency is equal to this productivity divided by the daily insolation. The results show that the daily productivity and the daily efficiency of the MSD system were always higher than that of the NSD system. According to the experimental results, the maximum daily productivity and the maximum daily efficiency of the MSD system were 2.90

Comparing the Effectiveness of Waqf and English Charitable Trusts

This study examines the determinants of effectiveness in contemporary Waqf and permanent trusts, particularly in the context of English socio-legal environment. The paper employs a qualitative research approach to analyse a mix of primary and secondary data. Finally, it provides a list of critical policy recommendations for the enhancement of effectiveness in contemporary Awqāf particularly in the United Kingdom