Wage bargaining and the boundaries of the multinational firm

Do variations in labor market institutions across countries affect the cross-border organization of the firm? Using firm-level data on multinationals located in France, we show that firms are more likely to outsource the production of intermediate inputs to external suppliers when importing from countries with empowered unions. Moreover, this effect is stronger for firms operating in capital-intensive industries. We propose a theoretical mechanism that rationalizes these findings. The fragmentation of the value chain weakens the union's bargaining position, by limiting the amount of revenues that are subject to union extraction. The outsourcing strategy reduces the share of surplus that is appropriated by the union, which enhances the firm's incentives to invest. Since investment creates relatively more value in capital-intensive industries, increases in union power are more likely to be conducive to outsourcing in those industries. Overall, our findings suggest that multinational firms use their organizational structure strategically when sourcing intermediate inputs from unionized markets

Wage Bargaining and the Boundaries of the Multinational Firm

Do variations in labor market institutions across countries affect the cross-border organization of the firm? Using firm-level data on multinationals located in France, we show that firms are more likely to outsource the production of intermediate inputs to external suppliers when importing from countries with empowered unions. Moreover, this effect is stronger for firms operating in capital-intensive industries. We propose a theoretical mechanism that rationalizes these findings. The fragmentation of the value chain weakens the union's bargaining position, by limiting the amount of revenues that are subject to union extraction. The outsourcing strategy reduces the share of surplus that is appropriated by the union, which enhances the firm's incentives to invest. Since investment creates relatively more value in capital-intensive industries, increases in union power are more likely to be conducive to outsourcing in those industries. Overall, our findings suggest that multinational firms use their organizational structure strategically when sourcing intermediate inputs from unionized markets.wage bargaining, trade unions, sourcing, multinational firms

Small Sample Properties of Copula-GARCH Modelling: A Monte Carlo Study

Copula-GARCH models have been recently proposed in the financial literature as a statistical tool to build flexible multivariate distributions. Our extensive simulation studies investigate the small sample properties of these models and examine how misspecification in the marginals may affect the estimation of the dependence function represented by the copula. We show that the use of normal marginals when the true Data Generating Process is leptokurtic or asymmetric, produces negatively biased estimates of the normal copula correlations. A striking result is that these biases reach their highest value when correlations are strongly negative, and viceversa. This result remains unchanged with both positively skewed and negatively skewed data, while no biases are found if the variables are uncorrelated. Besides, the effect of marginals asymmetry on correlations is smaller than that of leptokurtosis. We finally analyse the performance of these models in terms of numerical convergence and positive definiteness of the estimated copula correlation matrix.Copulas, Copula-GARCH models, Maximum Likelihood, Simulation, Small Sample Properties.

A Copula-VAR-X Approach for Industrial Production Modelling and Forecasting

World economies, and especially European ones, have become strongly interconnected in the last decades and a joint modelling is required. We propose here the use of Copulas to build flexible multivariate distributions, since they allow for a rich dependence structure and more flexible marginal distributions that better fit the features of empirical data, such as leptokurtosis. We use our approach to forecast industrial production series in the core EMU countries and we provide evidence that the copula-VAR model outperforms or at worst compares similarly to normal VAR models, keeping the same computational tractability of the latter approach.Forecasting, Industrial Production, Copulas, VAR models.

Absolute or relative: the dark side of fund rating systems

Academic literature and market practitioners have always devoted great attention to the analysis of asset management products, with particular regard to fund classification and performance metrics. Less attention has been paid to rating methodologies and to the risk of attributing positive ratings to underperforming asset managers. The most widespread rating criterion is the ordinal one, which is based on the assumption that the best asset managers are those who have performed better than their competitors regardless of their ability to achieve a given threshold (i.e. a positive overperformance against the benchmark). Our study, after a description of the most common risk-adjusted performance measures, introduces the idea of attributing the rating on a cardinal basis, setting in advance a given threshold that should be achieved to receive a positive evaluation (i.e. a rating equal to or higher than 3 on a scale of 1–5). The empirical test conducted on a sample of funds (belonging to the main equity and bond asset classes) made it possible to quantify the e®ects of the cardinal approach on the attribution of the rating and on the probability of assigning a good rating to underperforming funds. Empirical analysis also highlighted how the cardinal method allows, on average, better performance than the ordinal one even in an out-of-sample framework. The differences between the two methodologies are particularly remarkable in efficient markets such as the North American equity market. The two rating assignment systems were also analyzed using contingency tables to test the ability to anticipate the default event (underperformance relative to the benchmark). The policy suggestion emerging from our study concerns the significant impact of the rating criterion in reducing the risk of recommending funds that, despite a good rating, have failed to perform satisfactorily and are unlikely to do so in the future either

Homocysteine induces VCAM-1 gene expression through NF-kB and NAD(P)H oxidase activation: protective role of Mediterranean diet polyphenolic antioxidants

Introduction: Hyperhomocysteinemia is a recognized risk factor for atherosclerotic vascular disease, but molecular mechanisms are no completely understood. Because VCAM-1 expression is crucial in monocyte adhesiveness, we evaluated the NF-κB-related induction of VCAM-1 by homocysteine (Hcy) and the possible inhibitory effect of specific dietetic polyphenolic antioxidants, such as trans-resveratrol (RSV) and hydroxytyrosol (HT). Methods and Results: We found that in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC), Hcy, at ≥50 μmol/L, but not cysteine, induced VCAM-1 expression at protein and mRNA levels, at enzyme immunoassay and Northern blot, respectively. Transfection studies with deletional VCAM-1 promoter constructs demonstrated that two tandem NF-κB motives in VCAM-1 promoter are necessary for Hcy induced VCAM-1 gene expression. This was confirmed by Hcy induced NF-kB activation at EMSA and the nuclear translocation of its p65 (Rel A) subunit and the degradation of both inhibitors(I)kB-α and -b at Western analysis. Hcy increased intracellular ROS, measured with dichlorofluoresceine fluorescence assays, in HUVEC, by NAD(P)H oxidase activation, determined through the membrane translocation of its p47phox subunit. Antioxidants, NF-κB and NAD(P)H oxidase inhibitors decreased the Hcy inducted intracellular ROS and VCAM-1 expression. Previously, we found that antioxidants RSV and HT inhibited NF-κB mediated VCAM-1 induction by LPS or TNFα. Here we shown that nutritionally relevant concentrations of RSV and HT, but not folate and B vitamins, reduced (>60% inhibition at 10-6 mol/L) Hcy-induced VCAM-1 expression and monocytoid cell adhesion to the endothelium. Conclusions: These data point out that pathophysiologically relevant Hcy concentrations induce VCAM-1 expression through NF-κB-mediated pro-oxidant mechanism. This can be inhibited by natural Mediterranean diet antioxidants, suggesting a their possible therapeutic role in Hcy-induced vascular damage

Pharmacological modulation of vascular inflammation in atherothrombosis

Vascular inflammation, especially at the level of endothelial cells, has been shown to play a pivotal role in the inception, progression, and clinical complications of atherosclerosis. The common denominators for the activation of inflammatory genes appear to be a small subset of transcription factors-among which include nuclear factor-κB, activator protein-1 (AP-1), and GATA-that function as the central hub of vascular inflammation. Strategies directed to inhibit both the secondary mediators and the primary triggers (atherosclerosis risk factors) appear viable to inhibit atherosclerosis. However, attempts have now been made to address the central hub of vascular inflammation. "Old" drugs, such as dipyridamole, can also now be revisited for properties related to inhibition of vascular inflammation, probably by acting on the common hub of inflammation

Effect of Cocoa Products and Its Polyphenolic Constituents on Exercise Performance and Exercise-Induced Muscle Damage and Inflammation: A Review of Clinical Trials

In recent years, the consumption of chocolate and, in particular, dark chocolate has been \u201crehabilitated\u201d due to its high content of cocoa antioxidant polyphenols. Although it is recognized that regular exercise improves energy metabolism and muscle performance, excessive or unaccustomed exercise may induce cell damage and impair muscle function by triggering oxidative stress and tissue inflammation. The aim of this review was to revise the available data from literature on the eects of cocoa polyphenols on exercise-associated tissue damage and impairment of exercise performance. To this aim, PubMed and Web of Science databases were searched with the following keywords: \u201cintervention studies\u201d, \u201ccocoa polyphenols\u201d, \u201cexercise training\u201d, \u201cinflammation\u201d, \u201coxidative stress\u201d, and \u201cexercise performance\u201d. We selected thirteen randomized clinical trials on cocoa ingestion that involved a total of 200 well-trained athletes. The retrieved data indicate that acute, sub-chronic, and chronic cocoa polyphenol intake may reduce exercise-induced oxidative stress but not inflammation, while mixed results are observed in terms of exercise performance and recovery. The interpretation of available results on the anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory activities of cocoa polyphenols remains questionable, likely due to the variety of physiological networks involved. Further experimental studies are mandatory to clarify the role of cocoa polyphenol supplementation in exercise-mediated inflammation

Nutraceuticals and prevention of atherosclerosis: focus on omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and Mediterranean diet polyphenols

Nutraceuticals are potentially healthful foods that play a role in maintaining human well being, enhancing health and preventing, or even treating, specific diseases. More than for any other diseases, cardiovascular diseases occur in association with risk factors that are amenable to prevention or treatment by nutraceutical interventions. Several ingredients marketed for use in dietary supplements address such risk factors. The ability of nutraceuticals to favorably influence cardiovascular risk factors and atherosclerotic vascular disease should be recognized as an enormous opportunity for the prevention or treatment of this common condition. In this review, we attempt at summarizing some of the recent research findings on omega-3-polyunsaturated fatty acids and antioxidant polyphenols that have beneficial cardiovascular effects to update the practicing clinicians on the potential benefits of nutraceuticals in this area

"I that is we, we that is I”:The mediating role of work engagement between key leadership behaviors and volunteer satisfaction

Leadership styles offer relevant clues to the challenging issue of managing volunteers. In particular, we assume that leaders encouraging a collective dimension — such as communal identity, recognition, and trust — among followers can improve positive outcomes. The study aims to analyze the relationship between two key leadership behaviors and volunteer satisfaction, hypothesizing a mediating role of work engagement. The hypothesized relations were tested by using structural equation models in a group of 195 Italian volunteers. Results show that the two key leadership behaviors studied are positively associated to work engagement, which, in turn, is positively related to volunteer satisfaction. The relationships between the antecedents and outcome are totally mediated by work engagement. We explain our findings through the job demands-resources (JD-R) model. Training programs for leaders can be implemented on the basis of this study to enhance volunteers’ well-being