Banking flows and financial crisis -- financial interconnectedness and basel III effects

This paper examines the factors that determine banking flows from advanced economies to emerging markets. In addition to the usual determinants of capital flows in terms of global push and local pull factors, it examines the role of bilateral factors, such as growth differentials and economic size, as well as contagion factors and measures of the depth in financial interconnectedness between lenders and borrowers. The analysis finds profound differences across regions. In particular, in spite of the severe impact of the global financial crisis, banking flows in emerging Europe stand out as a more stable region than is the case in other developing regions. Assuming that the determinants of banking flows remain unchanged in the presence of structural changes, the authors use these results to explore the short-term implications of Basel III capital regulations on banking flows to emerging markets.Debt Markets,Banks&Banking Reform,Emerging Markets,Access to Finance,Economic Theory&Research

The Crisis Hits Home: Stress-Testing Households in Europe and Central Asia

The financial crisis and economic downturn threatens the welfare of more than 160 million people who are poor or are just above the poverty line in the economies of Eastern and Central Europe, the former Soviet Union, and Turkey. This note concerns the findings of recent World Bank analysis (Tiongson et al. 2010)1 that uses precrisis household data and aggregate macroeconomic outcomes in these countries to simulate the impact of the crisis on households—transmitted via credit market shocks, price shocks, and income shocks. The adverse effects are widespread, with both poor and nonpoor households being vulnerable. By 2010, for the region as a whole, it is estimated that some 11 million more people will be in poverty and more than 23 million additional people will find themselves just above the poverty line because of the crisis.financial cirsis, stress testing, household income, Europe, Central Asia, welfare, Soviet Union, Turkey, World Bank, shocks

Growth kinetics effects on self-assembled InAs/InP quantum dots

A systematic manipulation of the morphology and the optical emission properties of MOVPE grown ensembles of InAs/InP quantum dots is demonstrated by changing the growth kinetics parameters. Under non-equilibrium conditions of a comparatively higher growth rate and low growth temperature, the quantum dot density, their average size and hence the peak emission wavelength can be tuned by changing efficiency of the surface diffusion (determined by the growth temperature) relative to the growth flux. We further observe that the distribution of quantum dot heights, for samples grown under varying conditions, if normalized to the mean height, can be nearly collapsed onto a single Gaussian curve.Comment: 2 figure

Evolution of superconducting order in Pr(Os1−x_{1-x}Rux_{x})4_{4}Sb12_{12}

We report measurements of the magnetic penetration depth $\lambda$ in single crystals of Pr(Os$_{1-x}$Ru$_{x}$)$_{4}$Sb$_{12}$ down to 0.1 K. Both $\lambda$ and superfluid density $\rho_{s}$ exhibit an exponential behavior for the $x$$\geq$0.4 samples, going from weak ($x$=0.4,0.6), to moderate, coupling ($x$=0.8). For the $x$$\leq$0.2 samples, both $\lambda$ and $\rho_{s}$ vary as $T^{2}$ at low temperatures, but $\rho_{s}$ is s-wave-like at intermediate to high temperatures. Our data are consistent with a three-phase scenario, where a fully-gapped phase at $T_{c1}$ undergoes two transitions: first to an unconventional phase at $T_{c2}$$\lesssim$$T_{c1}$, then to a nodal low-$T$ phase at $T_{c3}$$<$$T_{c2}$, for small values of $x$.Comment: Changed title, enlarged numbering in figures 5 pages, 4 figures, 1 tabl

Atomic displacements and lattice distortion in the magnetic-field-induced charge ordered state of SmRu4_{4}P12_{12}

Structural properties of SmRu$_4$P$_{12}$ in the anomalous magnetic ordered phase between $T^*\sim 14$ K and $T_{\text{N}}=16.5$ K in magnetic fields has been studied by x-ray diffraction. Atomic displacements of Ru and P, reflecting the field-induced charge order of the $p$ electrons, have been deduced by analyzing the intensities of the forbidden Bragg peaks, assuming a cubic space group $Pm\bar{3}$. Also, by utilizing high-resolution x-ray diffraction experiment, we observed a splitting of fundamental Bragg peaks, clarifying that the unit cell in the magnetic ordered phase is rhombohedral elongated along the $[1\, 1\, 1]$ axis. Responses of the rhombohedral domains to the magnetic field, which reflects the direction of the magnetic moment, is studied in detail.Comment: 11 pages, 11 figures, accepted for publication in PR

Transport properties of the heavy fermion superconductor PrOs4_{4}Sb12_{12}

We have measured the electrical resistivity, thermoelectric power, Hall coefficient, and magnetoresistance (MR) on single crystals of PrOs$_{4}$Sb$_{12}$, LaOs$_{4}$Sb$_{12}$ and NdOs$_{4}$Sb$_{12}$. All the transport properties in PrOs$_{4}$Sb$_{12}$ are similar to those in LaOs$_{4}$Sb$_{12}$ and NdOs$_{4}$Sb$_{12}$ at high temperatures, indicating the localized character of 4$f$-electrons. The transverse MR both in LaOs$_{4}$Sb$_{12}$ and PrOs$_{4}$Sb$_{12}$ tends to saturate for wide field directions, indicating these compounds to be uncompensated metals with no open orbit. We have determined the phase diagram of the field induced ordered phase by the MR measurement for all the principle field directions, which indicates an unambiguous evidence for the $\Gamma_{\rm 1}$ singlet crystalline electric field ground state.Comment: 7 pages, 10 figures, to appear in Physical Review

High magnetic field phase diagram of PrOs4Sb12

The magnetic phase diagram of PrOs$_4$Sb$_{12}$ has been investigated by specific heat measurements between 8 and 32 T. A new Schottky anomaly due to excitations between two lowest crystalline-electric-field (CEF) singlets, has been found for both $H \parallel (100)$ and $H \parallel (110)$ above the field where the field-induced ordered phase (FIOP) is suppressed. The constructed $H-T$ phase diagram shows weak magnetic anisotropy and implies a crossing of the two CEF levels at about 8 - 9 T for both field directions. These results provide an unambiguous evidence for the $\Gamma_1$ singlet being the CEF ground state and suggest the level crossing (involving lowest CEF levels) as the driving mechanism of FIOP.Comment: Submitted to Phys. Rev. Let