Banking Internationalization in Latin America: The Brazilian case, 1997- 2007 a panel analysis

Mestrado em FinançasDurante a década de 90 o setor bancário mundial passou por mudanças significativas. Um processo de internacionalização teve início em países desenvolvidos e em desenvolvimento, caracterizado por uma desregulamentação financeira, com barreiras de entradas mais fracas, globalização e desenvolvimento tecnológico. Após a crise Mexicana alguns países em desenvolvimento tiveram necessidade de realizar uma recapitalização no setor. A situação no Brasil era um pouco diferente, pois o país possuía um sistema financeiro com instituições problemáticas e para o aperfeiçoar havia necessidade de as vender ou de transferir o seu controlo. A privatização e o processo de internacionalização tornaram-se numa solução para este problema, e tiveram um papel muito importante durante este período. Este estudo analisa os efeitos da abertura do sistema bancário Brasileiro, e compara-os com o esperado de acordo com a teoria da internacionalização bancária. Diferenças de acordo com a dimensão dos bancos também serão estudadas, através da introdução de pequenos e médios bancos na amostra. A análise foi realizada utilizando dados de 18 bancos nacionais com portfólio comercial, durante o período de 1997 a 2007. Os resultados demonstram que o caso Brasileiro foi atípico, e assim difere do esperado de acordo com a teoria. A análise revelou que a rentabilidade dos bancos Brasileiros não diminuiu com a internacionalização do setor, pelo contrário até aumentou durante este período. Os resultados também permitem concluir que não houve um aumento da eficiência destes bancos nacionais em geral, na realidade os custos destes bancos aumentaram ao longo do tempo, negando a hipótese teórica de que deixariam a sua "quiet life". No entanto a associação existente entre ativos e eficiência, mostra que os maiores bancos se tornaram mais eficientes durante este período.During the 90s, the banking sector went through significant changes worldwide. An internationalization process began in developed and developing countries, characterized by financial deregulation, weaker entrance barriers, globalization and new technological developments. In some developing countries, after the Tequila banking crisis, there was the need to recapitalize the sector. The situation in Brazil was different, the country had a financial system with problematic institutions and in order to improve it, these institutions had to be sold or had to have their control transferred. Privatization and internationalization were an answer to these problems, and had a crucial role during this period. This work analyses the results of the opening of the Brazilian banking sector, and compares it to what is expected according to the multinational banking theory. Differences between bank sizes will be studied by introducing smaller banks in the sample. The analysis is made by using data from 18 private Brazilian banks with a commercial portfolio, between the period of 1997 to 2007. The results show that the Brazilian case was not typical and that it does not follow what is expected by theory. It shows that national bank profits did not decrease during internationalization; as a matter of fact, it only increased recently. The results also show that national banks did not become more efficient in general and actually have increased their costs, going against the "quiet life" hypothesis. However the association with assets and efficiency shows that bigger banks probably became more efficient during this period

Evaluación para el mejoramiento de la gestión financiera de la Empresa Estrella S. A.

Tesis de maestría -- Universidad de Costa Rica. Posgrado en Administración y Dirección de Empresas. Maestría Profesional en Administración y Dirección de Empresas con énfasis en Finanzas, 2013El objetivo general es realizar un análisis integral de la empresa Estrella S.A. para los últimos 4 años, evaluando la gestión empresarial a través del análisis de su información financiera, buscando el mejoramiento de sus metas a corto y largo plazo, con base en la retroalimentación efectiva a la administración. La organización investigada se dedica al ensamble y manufactura de chips para servidores y computadores a nivel internacional. Cuenta con una planta especializada en ensamble y prueba, un centro de distribución, un edificio exclusivo para servicios financieros con cobertura de las Américas y regiones de Oriente, así como oficinas en Ultra Park para soporte de tecnologías de información. Para ello, el proyecto desarrolla una investigación de tipo documental, a través de la cual se recopilan los términos más importantes que se originan de las fuentes bibliográficas consultadas. Se trabaja con la investigación descriptiva, detallando la empresa y la situación actual. También se utiliza la investigación analítica, por medio de la cual, partiendo de la información financiera disponible por la empresa, se busca evaluar su gestión financiera. Finalmente, con la investigación descriptiva, se desarrolla una serie de conclusiones y recomendaciones a partir los resultados obtenidos del análisis financiero. Dentro de sus principales conclusiones se encuentra que la empresa tiene que mejorar significativamente el manejo de sus activos totales, para poder mejorar sus utilidades netas así como su rendimiento sobre el patrimonio. Con base en todo lo anterior, se recomienda desarrollar una estrategia orientada al manejo efectivo de los inventarios, desde su abastecimiento hasta su rotación. De igual forma, esta estrategia debe cobrar proactivamente las ventas a crédito y evitar incurrir en incobrabilidad. El objetivo final es mejorar la liquidez de la empresa en el corto plazo y maximizar el beneficio obtenido por la inversión de largo plazo en los activos fijos.UCR::Vicerrectoría de Investigación::Sistema de Estudios de Posgrado::Ciencias Sociales::Maestría Profesional en Administración y Dirección de Empresas con énfasis en Finanza

Unveiling the History of a Peculiar Weevil-Plant Interaction in South America: A Phylogeographic Approach to Hydnorobius hydnorae (Belidae) Associated with Prosopanche americana (Aristolochiaceae)

Interspecific interactions take place over both long and short time-frames. However it is not completely understood if the interacting-partners persisted, migrated, or expanded in concert with Quaternary climate and landscape changes. We aim to understand whether there is concordance between the specialist weevil Hydnorobius hydnorae and its parasitic host plant, Prosopanche Americana, in space and time. We aim to determine whether Prosopanche had already established its range, and Hydnorobius later actively colonized this rare resource; or, if both host plant and herbivore expanded their range concomitantly. We performed population genetic, phylogeographic and Bayesian diffusion analysis of Cytochrome B sequences from eighteen weevil localities and used paleodistribution models to infer host plant dispersal patterns. We found strong but uneven population structure across the range for H. hydnorae with weak signals of population growth, and haplotype network structure and SAMOVA groupings closely following biogeographic region boundaries. The ancestral areas for both Hydnorobius and Prosopanche are reconstructed in San Luis province within the Chaco Biogeographic province. Our results indicate a long trajectory of host-tracking through space and time, where the weevil has expanded its geographic range following its host plant, without significant demographic growth. We explore the past environmental changes that could underlie the boundaries between locality groups. We suggest that geographic dispersal without population growth in Hydnorobius could be enabled by the scarcity of the host plant itself, allowing for slow expansion rates and stable populations, with no need for significant demographic growth pulses to support range expansion.Fil: Sequeira, Andrea S.. Wellesley College; Estados UnidosFil: Rocamundi, Nicolás. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Ferrer, Maria Silvia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Investigaciones de las Zonas Áridas. Provincia de Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Investigaciones de las Zonas Áridas. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Instituto Argentino de Investigaciones de las Zonas Áridas; ArgentinaFil: Baranzelli, Matias Cristian. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Marvaldi, Adriana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo; Argentin

Unveiling the History of a Peculiar Weevil-Plant Interaction in South America: A Phylogeographic Approach to <i>Hydnorobius hydnorae</i> (Belidae) Associated with <i>Prosopanche americana</i> (Aristolochiaceae)

Interspecific interactions take place over both long and short time-frames. However it is not completely understood if the interacting-partners persisted, migrated, or expanded in concert with Quaternary climate and landscape changes. We aim to understand whether there is concordance between the specialist weevil Hydnorobius hydnorae and its parasitic host plant, Prosopanche Americana, in space and time. We aim to determine whether Prosopanche had already established its range, and Hydnorobius later actively colonized this rare resource; or, if both host plant and herbivore expanded their range concomitantly. We performed population genetic, phylogeographic and Bayesian diffusion analysis of Cytochrome B sequences from eighteen weevil localities and used paleodistribution models to infer host plant dispersal patterns. We found strong but uneven population structure across the range for H. hydnorae with weak signals of population growth, and haplotype network structure and SAMOVA groupings closely following biogeographic region boundaries. The ancestral areas for both Hydnorobius and Prosopanche are reconstructed in San Luis province within the Chaco Biogeographic province. Our results indicate a long trajectory of host-tracking through space and time, where the weevil has expanded its geographic range following its host plant, without significant demographic growth. We explore the past environmental changes that could underlie the boundaries between locality groups. We suggest that geographic dispersal without population growth in Hydnorobius could be enabled by the scarcity of the host plant itself, allowing for slow expansion rates and stable populations, with no need for significant demographic growth pulses to support range expansion.Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Muse

Unveiling the History of a Peculiar Weevil-Plant Interaction in South America: A Phylogeographic Approach to <i>Hydnorobius hydnorae</i> (Belidae) Associated with <i>Prosopanche americana</i> (Aristolochiaceae)

Interspecific interactions take place over both long and short time-frames. However it is not completely understood if the interacting-partners persisted, migrated, or expanded in concert with Quaternary climate and landscape changes. We aim to understand whether there is concordance between the specialist weevil Hydnorobius hydnorae and its parasitic host plant, Prosopanche Americana, in space and time. We aim to determine whether Prosopanche had already established its range, and Hydnorobius later actively colonized this rare resource; or, if both host plant and herbivore expanded their range concomitantly. We performed population genetic, phylogeographic and Bayesian diffusion analysis of Cytochrome B sequences from eighteen weevil localities and used paleodistribution models to infer host plant dispersal patterns. We found strong but uneven population structure across the range for H. hydnorae with weak signals of population growth, and haplotype network structure and SAMOVA groupings closely following biogeographic region boundaries. The ancestral areas for both Hydnorobius and Prosopanche are reconstructed in San Luis province within the Chaco Biogeographic province. Our results indicate a long trajectory of host-tracking through space and time, where the weevil has expanded its geographic range following its host plant, without significant demographic growth. We explore the past environmental changes that could underlie the boundaries between locality groups. We suggest that geographic dispersal without population growth in Hydnorobius could be enabled by the scarcity of the host plant itself, allowing for slow expansion rates and stable populations, with no need for significant demographic growth pulses to support range expansion.Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Muse

Are flightless Galapaganus weevils older than the Galapagos islands they inhabit?

The 15 species in the weevil genus Galapaganus Lanteri 1992 (Entiminae: Curculionidae: Coleoptera) are distributed on coastal Peril and Ecuador and include 10 flightless species endemic to the Galapagos islands. These beetles thus provide a promising system through which to investigate the patterns and processes of evolution on Darwin's archipelago. Sequences of the mtDNA locus encoding cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) were obtained from samples of seven species occurring in different ecological zones of the oldest south-eastern islands: San Cristobal, Espanola and Floreana, and the central island Santa Cruz. The single most parsimonious tree obtained shows two well-supported clades that correspond to the species groups previously defined by morphological characters. Based on a mtDNA clock calibrated for arthropods, the initial speciation separating the oldest species, G. galapagoensis (Linell) on the oldest island, San Cristobal, from the remaining species in the Galapagos occurred about 7.2 Ma. This estimate exceeds geological ages of the extant emerged islands, although it agrees well with molecular dating of endemic Galapagos iguanas, geckos and lizards. An apparent explanation for the disagreement between geological and molecular time-frames is that about 7 Ma there were emerged islands which subsequently disappeared under ocean waters. This hypothesis has gained support from the recent findings of 11 -Myr-old submarine seamounts (sunken islands), south-east of the present location of the archipelago. Some species within the darwini group may have differentiated on the extant islands, 1-5 Ma.Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Muse

Are flightless Galapaganus weevils older than the Galapagos islands they inhabit?

The 15 species in the weevil genus Galapaganus Lanteri 1992 (Entiminae: Curculionidae: Coleoptera) are distributed on coastal Peril and Ecuador and include 10 flightless species endemic to the Galapagos islands. These beetles thus provide a promising system through which to investigate the patterns and processes of evolution on Darwin's archipelago. Sequences of the mtDNA locus encoding cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) were obtained from samples of seven species occurring in different ecological zones of the oldest south-eastern islands: San Cristobal, Espanola and Floreana, and the central island Santa Cruz. The single most parsimonious tree obtained shows two well-supported clades that correspond to the species groups previously defined by morphological characters. Based on a mtDNA clock calibrated for arthropods, the initial speciation separating the oldest species, G. galapagoensis (Linell) on the oldest island, San Cristobal, from the remaining species in the Galapagos occurred about 7.2 Ma. This estimate exceeds geological ages of the extant emerged islands, although it agrees well with molecular dating of endemic Galapagos iguanas, geckos and lizards. An apparent explanation for the disagreement between geological and molecular time-frames is that about 7 Ma there were emerged islands which subsequently disappeared under ocean waters. This hypothesis has gained support from the recent findings of 11 -Myr-old submarine seamounts (sunken islands), south-east of the present location of the archipelago. Some species within the darwini group may have differentiated on the extant islands, 1-5 Ma.Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Muse

Host-specific gene expression as a tool for introduction success in Naupactus parthenogenetic weevils

Food resource access can mediate establishment success in invasive species, and generalist herbivorous insects are thought to rely on mechanisms of transcriptional plasticity to respond to dietary variation. While asexually reproducing invasives typically have low genetic variation, the twofold reproductive capacity of asexual organisms is a marked advantage for colonization. We studied host-related transcriptional acclimation in parthenogenetic, invasive, and polyphagous weevils: Naupactus cervinus and N. leucoloma. We analyzed patterns of gene expression in three gene categories that can mediate weevil-host plant interactions through identification of suitable host plants, short-term acclimation to host plant defenses, and long-term adaptation to host plant defenses and their pathogens. This approach employed comparative transcriptomic methods to investigate differentially expressed host detection, detoxification, immune defense genes, and pathway-level gene set enrichment. Our results show that weevil gene expression responses can be host plant-specific, and that elements of that response can be maintained in the offspring. Some host plant groups, such as legumes, appear to be more taxing as they elicit a complex gene expression response which is both strong in intensity and specific in identity. However, the weevil response to taxing host plants shares many differentially expressed genes with other stressful situations, such as host plant cultivation conditions and transition to novel host, suggesting that there is an evolutionarily favorable shared gene expression regime for responding to different types of stressful situations. Modulating gene expression in the absence of other avenues for phenotypic adaptation may be an important mechanism of successful colonization for these introduced insects.Fil: Mackay Smith, Ava. Wellesley College; Estados UnidosFil: Dornon, Mary Kate. Wellesley College; Estados UnidosFil: Lucier, Rosalind. Wellesley College; Estados UnidosFil: Okimoto, Anna. Wellesley College; Estados UnidosFil: Sousa, Flavia Mendonca de. Wellesley College; Estados UnidosFil: Rodriguero, Marcela Silvina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Confalonieri, Viviana Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Lanteri, Analia Alicia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. División Entomología; ArgentinaFil: Sequeira, Andrea. Wellesley College; Estados Unido

Action of Hexachlorobenzene on tumor growth and metastasis in different experimental models

Hexachlorobenzene (HCB) is a widespread organochlorine pesticide, considered a possible human carcinogen. It is a dioxin-like compound and a weak ligand of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR). We have found that HCB activates c-Src/HER1/STAT5b and HER1/ERK1/2 signaling pathways and cell migration, in an AhR-dependent manner in MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells. The aim of this study was to investigate in vitro the effect of HCB (0.005, 0.05, 0.5, 5μM) on cell invasion and metalloproteases (MMPs) 2 and 9 activation in MDA-MB-231 cells. Furthermore, we examined in vivo the effect of HCB (0.3, 3, 30mg/kg b.w.) on tumor growth, MMP2 and MMP9 expression, and metastasis using MDA-MB-231 xenografts and two syngeneic mouse breast cancer models (spontaneous metastasis using C4-HI and lung experimental metastasis using LM3). Our results show that HCB (5μM) enhances MMP2 expression, as well as cell invasion, through AhR, c-Src/HER1 pathway and MMPs. Moreover, HCB increases MMP9 expression, secretion and activity through a HER1 and AhR-dependent mechanism, in MDA-MB-231 cells. HCB (0.3 and 3mg/kg b.w.) enhances subcutaneous tumor growth in MDA-MB-231 and C4-HI in vivo models. In vivo, using MDA-MB-231 model, the pesticide (0.3, 3 and 30mg/kg b.w.) activated c-Src, HER1, STAT5b, and ERK1/2 signaling pathways and increased MMP2 and MMP9 protein levels. Furthermore, we observed that HCB stimulated lung metastasis regardless the tumor hormone-receptor status. Our findings suggest that HCB may be a risk factor for human breast cancer progression.Fil: Pontillo, Carolina Andrea. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Departamento de Bioquímica Humana; Argentina;Fil: Rojas, Paola Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental (i); Argentina;Fil: Chiappini, Florencia Ana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas . Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Centro de Estudios Farmacológicos y Botánicos; Argentina; Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Departamento de Bioquímica Humana; Argentina;Fil: Sequeira, Gonzalo Ricardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental (i); Argentina;Fil: Cocca, Claudia Marcela. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Físico Matemática; Argentina;Fil: Crocci, Máximo. Instituto de Inmunooncología Crescenti; Argentina;Fil: Colombo, Lucas Luis. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Instituto de Oncología; Argentina;Fil: Lanari, Claudia Lee Malvina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental (i); Argentina;Fil: Kleiman de Pisarev, Diana. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Departamento de Bioquímica Humana; Argentina;Fil: Randi, Andrea Silvana. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Departamento de Bioquímica Humana; Argentina