Credit channel and investment behaviour in Austria: a micro-econometric approach

Using individual firm data, this study analyzes the credit channel in Austria. The estimation is based on an accelerator specification of investment demand augmented by the liquidity ratio and a firm specific user cost of capital. The results show that there is a credit channel in Austria affecting all firms, while the interest rate channel is significant as long as the liquidity ratio is not included in the regression. Taking into account trade credit or lending relationships increases the significance but not necessarily the size of the interest rate channel. The interest rate channel is not significant for young firms due mainly to the fact that young firms rely more heavily on sales to increase investment. In general it is found that firms can reduce the sensitivity of investment to their liquidity position by building lending relationships with a housebank or using trade credit as a substitute for bank loans JEL Classification: C23, D92, E22, E52, G31, G32credit channel, investment demand, panel data

Wealth and asset price effects on economic activity

Do asset prices affect real activity? This question has taken on a new importance in recent years, as asset values first surged at the end of 1990s and, thereafter, dramatically retreated. This report reviews the available theoretical and empirical evidence regarding asset price and wealth effects in Europe and some other major economies. The main focus of this report is on consumption effects via the wealth channel, reflecting the bulk of literature on the effects of asset prices. However, asset price effects on investment via the Tobin’s-Q channel, balance sheet and confidence channels are also reviewed. The available evidence supports the view that the wealth channel is the most important of various channels. There is little empirical evidence indicating that the Tobin’s-Q, balance-sheet and confidence channels play any major independent role in the transmission of asset price effects to economic activity.household wealth, wealth channel, asset price, marginal propensity to consume, cost of capital.

IMPACTO DE LA REFORMA TRIBUTARIA DE 1986 SOBRE LA ESTRUCTURA PATRIMONIAL DE LAS EMPRESAS

Ante de 1986, el sistema tributario colombiano favorecía la financiación con deuda en contra de la capitalización accionaria. Con la ley 75 de 1986, el gobierno pretendió nivelar fiscalmente el costo del capital accionaría y del endeudamiento. En este trabajo se analiza la evolución de los principales indicadores empresariales para evaluar los efectos que dicha reforma tuvo sobre la capitalización de las sociedades.IMPUESTOS, REFORMA TRIBUTARIA

Determinación de la digestibilidad y energía digestible del forraje seco de mucuna (Mucuna pruriens) en cuyes

This study aimed to determine the apparent digestibility coefficients and digestible energy of dry velvet bean fodder (Mucuna pruriens). The indirect method was used, considering as a basal diet the concentrate used in the university guinea pig farm (Lima, Peru). The experiment had an adaptation phase (14 days) and a faecal collection phase (5 days). Ten adult male 3-month old guinea pigs randomly distributed in individual metabolic cages were used. Five animals were fed the basal diet and the other five with the experimental diet: 80% basal diet and 20% dry velvet bean fodder. The apparent digestibility coefficients obtained for the dry velvet bean were: 66.29% dry matter, 66.13% organic matter, 74.02% crude protein, 50.82% crude fibre, 60.18% ether extract, 78.22% nitrogen-free extract and 73.33% ash. The estimated digestible energy value was 2.61 kcal/g.El estudio tuvo como objetivo determinar los coeficientes de digestibilidad y la energía digestible del forraje seco de mucuna (Mucuna pruriens). Se empleó el método indirecto, considerando como dieta basal el concentrado utilizado en la Granja de Cuyes de Cieneguilla (Lima, Perú). El experimento tuvo una fase de adaptación (14 días) y otra de colección de heces (5 días). Se utilizaron 10 cuyes machos adultos de tres meses de edad, distribuidos en forma aleatoria en jaulas metabólicas individuales. Cinco animales fueron alimentados con la dieta basal y los otros cinco con la dieta experimental: 80% dieta basal y 20% forraje seco de mucuna. Los coeficientes de digestibilidad aparente obtenidos para la mucuna fueron: 66.29% de materia seca, 66.13% de materia orgánica, 74.02% de proteína cruda, 50.82% de fibra cruda, 60.18% de extracto etéreo, 78.22% de extracto libre de nitrógeno y 73.33% de ceniza. El valor de energía digestible estimado fue de 2.61 kcal/g

Geographic patterns of tree dispersal modes in Amazonia and their ecological correlates

Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu CEX2019-000940-MAim: To investigate the geographic patterns and ecological correlates in the geographic distribution of the most common tree dispersal modes in Amazonia (endozoochory, synzoochory, anemochory and hydrochory). We examined if the proportional abundance of these dispersal modes could be explained by the availability of dispersal agents (disperser-availability hypothesis) and/or the availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits (resource-availability hypothesis). Time period: Tree-inventory plots established between 1934 and 2019. Major taxa studied: Trees with a diameter at breast height (DBH) ≥ 9.55 cm. Location: Amazonia, here defined as the lowland rain forests of the Amazon River basin and the Guiana Shield. Methods: We assigned dispersal modes to a total of 5433 species and morphospecies within 1877 tree-inventory plots across terra-firme, seasonally flooded, and permanently flooded forests. We investigated geographic patterns in the proportional abundance of dispersal modes. We performed an abundance-weighted mean pairwise distance (MPD) test and fit generalized linear models (GLMs) to explain the geographic distribution of dispersal modes. Results: Anemochory was significantly, positively associated with mean annual wind speed, and hydrochory was significantly higher in flooded forests. Dispersal modes did not consistently show significant associations with the availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits. A lower dissimilarity in dispersal modes, resulting from a higher dominance of endozoochory, occurred in terra-firme forests (excluding podzols) compared to flooded forests. Main conclusions: The disperser-availability hypothesis was well supported for abiotic dispersal modes (anemochory and hydrochory). The availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits seems an unlikely explanation for the distribution of dispersal modes in Amazonia. The association between frugivores and the proportional abundance of zoochory requires further research, as tree recruitment not only depends on dispersal vectors but also on conditions that favour or limit seedling recruitment across forest types

Estimating the global conservation status of more than 15,000 Amazonian tree species

Estimates of extinction risk for Amazonian plant and animal species are rare and not often incorporated into land-use policy and conservation planning. We overlay spatial distribution models with historical and projected deforestation to show that at least 36% and up to 57% of all Amazonian tree species are likely to qualify as globally threatened under International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List criteria. If confirmed, these results would increase the number of threatened plant species on Earth by 22%. We show that the trends observed in Amazonia apply to trees throughout the tropics, and we predict thatmost of the world’s >40,000 tropical tree species now qualify as globally threatened. A gap analysis suggests that existing Amazonian protected areas and indigenous territories will protect viable populations of most threatened species if these areas suffer no further degradation, highlighting the key roles that protected areas, indigenous peoples, and improved governance can play in preventing large-scale extinctions in the tropics in this century

Predictive Power of the "Trigger Tool" for the detection of adverse events in general surgery: a multicenter observational validation study

Background In spite of the global implementation of standardized surgical safety checklists and evidence-based practices, general surgery remains associated with a high residual risk of preventable perioperative complications and adverse events. This study was designed to validate the hypothesis that a new “Trigger Tool” represents a sensitive predictor of adverse events in general surgery. Methods An observational multicenter validation study was performed among 31 hospitals in Spain. The previously described “Trigger Tool” based on 40 specific triggers was applied to validate the predictive power of predicting adverse events in the perioperative care of surgical patients. A prediction model was used by means of a binary logistic regression analysis. Results The prevalence of adverse events among a total of 1,132 surgical cases included in this study was 31.53%. The “Trigger Tool” had a sensitivity and specificity of 86.27% and 79.55% respectively for predicting these adverse events. A total of 12 selected triggers of overall 40 triggers were identified for optimizing the predictive power of the “Trigger Tool”. Conclusions The “Trigger Tool” has a high predictive capacity for predicting adverse events in surgical procedures. We recommend a revision of the original 40 triggers to 12 selected triggers to optimize the predictive power of this tool, which will have to be validated in future studies

Geography and ecology shape the phylogenetic composition of Amazonian tree communities

AimAmazonia hosts more tree species from numerous evolutionary lineages, both young and ancient, than any other biogeographic region. Previous studies have shown that tree lineages colonized multiple edaphic environments and dispersed widely across Amazonia, leading to a hypothesis, which we test, that lineages should not be strongly associated with either geographic regions or edaphic forest types.LocationAmazonia.TaxonAngiosperms (Magnoliids; Monocots; Eudicots).MethodsData for the abundance of 5082 tree species in 1989 plots were combined with a mega-phylogeny. We applied evolutionary ordination to assess how phylogenetic composition varies across Amazonia. We used variation partitioning and Moran's eigenvector maps (MEM) to test and quantify the separate and joint contributions of spatial and environmental variables to explain the phylogenetic composition of plots. We tested the indicator value of lineages for geographic regions and edaphic forest types and mapped associations onto the phylogeny.ResultsIn the terra firme and várzea forest types, the phylogenetic composition varies by geographic region, but the igapó and white-sand forest types retain a unique evolutionary signature regardless of region. Overall, we find that soil chemistry, climate and topography explain 24% of the variation in phylogenetic composition, with 79% of that variation being spatially structured (R2 = 19% overall for combined spatial/environmental effects). The phylogenetic composition also shows substantial spatial patterns not related to the environmental variables we quantified (R2 = 28%). A greater number of lineages were significant indicators of geographic regions than forest types.Main ConclusionNumerous tree lineages, including some ancient ones (>66 Ma), show strong associations with geographic regions and edaphic forest types of Amazonia. This shows that specialization in specific edaphic environments has played a long-standing role in the evolutionary assembly of Amazonian forests. Furthermore, many lineages, even those that have dispersed across Amazonia, dominate within a specific region, likely because of phylogenetically conserved niches for environmental conditions that are prevalent within regions