STRUCTURE AND CONDUCT OF THE WORLD RICE MARKET

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the world rice market through a Structure-Conduct-Performance (SCP) framework utilizing annual data from 1970 to 2007. Since World War Two, the world rice market has been very unstable, with rice prices experiencing volatile swings in both rice price and rice availability. Therefore, a SCP framework can provide crucial insight into the world rice market for policy makers. Also, this paper describes the effects of total production, export rice price, and real exchange rate for exporting countries on total export volume from an export supply model standpoint. On the basis of these results, it is evident that market power exists in the international rice market with respect to supply elasticity and an exporting country’s currency exchange rate greatly determines that country’s competitiveness as a net rice exporter relative to other rice producers.S-C-P paradigm, world rice market, concentration ratio, HHI, export rice price, exchange rate export supply function, Industrial Organization, International Relations/Trade,

AN EMPIRICAL ESTIMATION OF THE IMPORT DEMAND MODEL AND WELFARE EFFECTS: THE CASE OF RICE IMPORTING COUNTRIES

This analysis presents the determination of an import demand function for the world rice market using annual data from 1994 to 2007. In the specification and analysis of a world rice market import demand function, Ordinary Least Square (OLS), Instrumental Variables (IV) with Generalized Method of Moments (GMM), and Seemingly Unrelated Regression (SUR) methods have been used. Social welfare effects have been obtained using consumer surplus and compensated variation for the top four rice importing countries (Indonesia, Philippines, Nigeria, and Saudi Arabia). Empirical results suggest that economic growth, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), and importing countries’ population positively affect national income, thus, positively affecting rice consumption. Oil price has a strong effect on the domestic rice prices in importing countries. This paper also estimates the social effects arising from increased rice export prices and examines how consumer surplus is affected in major rice importing countries.rice export and import, consumer surplus, trade, import demand function, International Relations/Trade,

A giant mystery in giant cell myocarditis: navigating diagnosis, immunosuppression, and mechanical circulatory support.

Giant cell myocarditis is a rare but often devastating diagnosis. Advances in cardiac imaging and mechanical circulatory support have led to earlier and more frequent diagnoses and successful management. This disease state has wide variation in acuity of presentation, and consequently, optimal treatment ranging from intensity and type of immunosuppression to mechanical circulatory support is not well defined. The following case describes the management of a patient with an unusual presentation of giant cell myocarditis over a 10 year course of advanced heart failure therapies and immunomodulatory support. This case highlights emerging concepts in the management of giant cell myocarditis including sub-acute presentations, challenges in diagnosis, and treatment modalities in the modern era

Transmission resonances and supercritical states in a one dimensional cusp potential

We solve the two-component Dirac equation in the presence of a spatially one dimensional symmetric cusp potential. We compute the scattering and bound states solutions and we derive the conditions for transmission resonances as well as for supercriticality.Comment: 10 pages. Revtex 4. To appear in Phys Rev.