Dividend Policy as a Core Determinant of Earning Management: Evidence from Pakistan

The current study estimated the impact of dividend policy on earnings management for the non-financial firms of Pakistan listed at the Karachi Stock Exchange. The data covering the period from 2005 to 2017 were estimated by using a random effect-generalized least square regression. The study findings report that dividend policy is a significant determinant of earning management and limits the probability of a firm’s earning management practices. This research gives us some empirical evidence regarding the role of key contributing factors in the scope of earnings management. Regulators can implement corporate governance rules and regulations based on empirical tracts in place of motivational debates on politics. This study results offer a compact platform for investors to eradicate ambiguity by recognizing the likelihoods of resourceful goals and improving their policymaking process. The research findings will help to give investors a clear idea about the various factors that play a contributing part for making financial reporting and misreporting of profits.  These contributing factors allow investors to be careful about the ingenious purpose and effectiveness of management to obtain returns for their benefit

Production Efficiency Analysis between Transplanting and Direct Seeded Rice Producers in Punjab, Pakistan

Rice is known as an Asian crop because 90% of global rice production and consumption takes place in Asia. It is the staple food for about 50% of the world population and 75% of the people living in developing countries. Pakistan is the 11th rice producer in the world and 5th largest exporter. Comparative economic efficiency of Transplanted (TRP) and Direct Seeded (DRS) rice production in Pakistan needs evaluation. This study analyzed the economic efficiency of TRP) and DRS producers in rice producing districts of Punjab. Primary data was collected from major rice producing areas of Punjab, Pakistan and Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) was run in order to estimate the profit efficiency of rice producers. The results revealed that on average profit efficiency of TRP rice farmers and DRS farmers was 57% and 83%, respectively. Hence, there are opportunities to improve economic and technical efficiency as well as the rice production profitability through adopting improved farming practices, optimal use of inputs and production techniques. The results also demonstrated that socio-economic factors of rice producers also significantly influence the profit efficiency of rice producers. Therefore, the efficiency of rice producers can also be improved through education and enrichment of extension services in the rural areas

Technical Efficiency and Economic Analysis of Rice Crop in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: A Stochastic Frontier Approach

Pakistan is one of the world’s leading producers, exporters, and consumers of rice. This study analyzes the technical efficiency of rice growing farmers in the Swat district of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. A three-stage sampling procedure was used to interview 204 rice growers through a well-structured and pretested interview schedule. The maximum likelihood function results showed that chemicals, urea, diammonium phosphate (DAP), labor, and farmyard manure (FYM-dummy) were positive and had a statistically significant effect on rice yield; this implies that a 1% increase in chemicals, urea, DAP, labor, and FYM leads to an increase in rice production by 0.22%, 0.25%, 0.02%, 0.03%, and 0.01%, respectively. The estimated results of model 2 reported that respondents’ age had a positive significant effect on inefficiency, showing that with a rise in farmers’ age, the farmers’ inefficiency significantly increased. The education and experience of farmers were negative and significant, implying that these variables significantly decreased the farmers’ inefficiency. Furthermore, the results showed the mean technical efficiency as 87%, with a minimum of 66% and a maximum of 99%. The study recommends that the extension department needs to arrange training programs for the rice growers in this specific area to boost rice yield, enhance agronomic skills, and facilitate these farmers with the technical knowledge for efficient production

Facile biosynthesis of Ag-NPs using Otostegia limbata plant extract: Physical characterization and auspicious biological activities

Silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) synthesized through reduction by Otostegia limbata green extract are, hereby, reported for the first time. It is very interesting to observe that in this case, O. limbata plant extract acts as a strong chelating agent in Ag-NPs formation through AgNO3. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) studies expose that Ag-NPs formation is highly homogenous and spherical with mean particle size of 32±0.8 nm. A typical Ag absorption peak has been observed at 419 nm by ultra violet (UV)-visible spectroscopy which have endorsed the successful formation of single phase Ag-NPs. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) examination further validates the crystalline pure phase structure of Ag-NPs. Promising results have been recorded against protein kinase inhibition assay and antibacterial assay having prominent pathogenic strains. Our present study explores that biosynthesized eco-friendly Ag-NPs have great potential, in the future, for anticancer drug development with wide range pharmaceutical applications