EFFICIENCY OF CORPORATE INTERNATIONAL DIVERISIFICATION: EVIDENCE FROM DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

During the last two decades corporate international diversification became a widely used growth strategy. However, the majority of scientific researches insist on its value-destroying pattern. Those of them which were based on accounting studies’ methodology and used current performance measures are likely to make an incomplete evaluation of corporate performance by accounting either for operating performance or financial (cost of capital) effects of internationalization. The current paper proposes a new approach for estimation of internalization-performance relationship which is based on economic profit concept. It allows to control simultaneously both operating and financial effects of internationalization on the firms’ current performance. The proposed model has been empirically tested on a sample of large companies from one of emerging economies - Russia. The results identify a nonlinear U-shape relationship between a degree of internationalization and companies’ residual income (economic profit). The relationship is mainly determined by operating performance effects on economic profit while cost of capital has a modest effect. Overall for the majority of companies international diversification refers to decrease in economic profit. The results are compared against the Q-Tobin measure which incorporates expectations about future performance. A joint analysis of current performance (economic profit) and long-term performance (Q-Tobin) allows to expect the internationalization benefits to be realized in future. As an implication of the present research for corporate decision makers it may be stated that at the initial level of international diversification the internationalization decisions should be made with a high degree of caution. There should be a clear internationalization strategy based on definite mechanisms of performance improvement. The prestige and other irrational motives which may lead to the value destruction should be pruned

The Problems of the Replacement of Alternative Penalties Taking into Account the Implementation of International Standards: Case of Some Post-Soviet Countries

International standards for the treatment of convicts without isolation from society contain the world experience of humanism in the execution of punishments and the development of the correctional system of all the countries in the world, concerning Russia and the countries of the former Soviet Union, they are adopted and implemented relatively recently. Today not all international standards have found their consolidation in the sectoral legislation of Russia and the CIS and Baltic countries. The execution of punishments is one of the most detailed regulated processes from the point of view of international regulation, as for the classification of the state as democratic, largely affects the compliance of its sectoral legislation in the penitentiary sphere with international standards. The aim of the study is to determine the features of the procedure for the replacement of alternative penalties, taking into account the implementation of international standards in some post-Soviet countries.     Keywords: international standards; alternative punishments; court; Prosecutor’s office; replacement of punishments

Distribution of sizes of erased loops of loop-erased random walks in two and three dimensions

We show that in the loop-erased random walk problem, the exponent characterizing probability distribution of areas of erased loops is superuniversal. In d-dimensions, the probability that the erased loop has an area A varies as A^{-2} for large A, independent of d, for 2 <= d <= 4. We estimate the exponents characterizing the distribution of perimeters and areas of erased loops in d = 2 and 3 by large-scale Monte Carlo simulations. Our estimate of the fractal dimension z in two-dimensions is consistent with the known exact value 5/4. In three-dimensions, we get z = 1.6183 +- 0.0004. The exponent for the distribution of durations of avalanche in the three-dimensional abelian sandpile model is determined from this by using scaling relations.Comment: 25 pages, 1 table, 8 figure

BENCHOP - The BENCHmarking project in Option Pricing

The aim of the BENCHOP project is to provide the finance community with a common suite of benchmark problems for option pricing. We provide a detailed description of the six benchmark problems together with methods to compute reference solutions. We have implemented fifteen different numerical methods for these problems, and compare their relative performance. All implementations are available on line and can be used for future development and comparison

Probing photo-ionization: Experiments on positive streamers in pure gasses and mixtures

Positive streamers are thought to propagate by photo-ionization whose parameters depend on the nitrogen:oxygen ratio. Therefore we study streamers in nitrogen with 20%, 0.2% and 0.01% oxygen and in pure nitrogen, as well as in pure oxygen and argon. Our new experimental set-up guarantees contamination of the pure gases to be well below 1 ppm. Streamers in oxygen are difficult to measure as they emit considerably less light in the sensitivity range of our fast ICCD camera than the other gasses. Streamers in pure nitrogen and in all nitrogen/oxygen mixtures look generally similar, but become somewhat thinner and branch more with decreasing oxygen content. In pure nitrogen the streamers can branch so much that they resemble feathers. This feature is even more pronounced in pure argon, with approximately 10^2 hair tips/cm^3 in the feathers at 200 mbar; this density could be interpreted as the free electron density creating avalanches towards the streamer stem. It is remarkable that the streamer velocity is essentially the same for similar voltage and pressure in all nitrogen/oxygen mixtures as well as in pure nitrogen, while the oxygen concentration and therefore the photo-ionization lengths vary by more than five orders of magnitude. Streamers in argon have essentially the same velocity as well. The physical similarity of streamers at different pressures is confirmed in all gases; the minimal diameters are smaller than in earlier measurements.Comment: 28 pages, 14 figures. Major differences with v1: - appendix and spectra removed - subsection regarding effects of repetition frequency added - many more smaller change

Evolutionary subdivision of domestic chickens: implications for local breeds as assessed by phenotype and genotype in comparison to commercial and fancy breeds

To adjust breeding programs for local, commercial, and fancy breeds, and to implement molecular (marker-assisted) breeding, a proper comprehension of phenotypic and genotypic variation is a sine qua non for breeding progress in animal production. Here, we investigated an evolutionary subdivision of domestic chickens based on their phenotypic and genotypic variability using a wide sample of 49 different breeds/populations. These represent a significant proportion of the global chicken gene pool and all major purposes of breed use (according to their traditional classification model), with many of them being characterized by a synthetic genetic structure and notable admixture. We assessed their phenotypic variability in terms of body weight, body measurements, and egg production. From this, we proposed a phenotypic clustering model (PCM) including six evolutionary lineages of breed formation: egg-type, meat-type, dual purpose (egg-meat and meat-egg), game, fancy, and Bantam. Estimation of genotypic variability was carried out using the analysis of five SNPs, i.e., at the level of genomic variation at the NCAPG-LCORL locus. Based on these data, two generally similar genotypic clustering models (GCM1 and GCM2) were inferred that also had several overlaps with PCM. Further research for SNPs associated with economically important traits can be instrumental in marker-assisted breeding programs

Selection-driven chicken phenome and phenomenon of pectoral angle variation across different chicken phenotypes

An appreciation of the synergy between genome and phenome of poultry breed is essential for a complete understanding of their biology. Phenotypic traits are shaped under the influence of artificial, production-oriented, selection that often acts contrary to that which would occur during natural selection. In this comparative study, we analysed the phenotypic diversity of 39 chicken breeds and populations that make up a significant part of the world gene pool. Grouping patterns of breeds found within the traditional, phenotypic models of their classification/clustering required in-depth analysis using sophisticated mathematical approaches. As a result of studying performance and conformation phenotypes, a phenomenon of previously underestimated variability in pectoral angle (PA) was revealed. Moreover, patterns of PA relationship with productive traits were analysed. We propose using PA measurement as a promising new auxiliary index for selecting hens and roosters of breeding flocks in egg production improvement programs

Disentangling clustering configuration intricacies for divergently selected chicken breeds

Divergently selected chicken breeds are of great interest not only from an economic point of view, but also in terms of sustaining diversity of the global poultry gene pool. In this regard, it is essential to evaluate the classification (clustering) of varied chicken breeds using methods and models based on phenotypic and genotypic breed differences. It is also important to implement new mathematical indicators and approaches. Accordingly, we set the objectives to test and improve clustering algorithms and models to discriminate between various chicken breeds. A representative portion of the global chicken gene pool including 39 different breeds was examined in terms of an integral performance index, i.e., specific egg mass yield relative to body weight of females. The generated dataset was evaluated within the traditional, phenotypic and genotypic classification/clustering models using the k-means method, inflection points clustering, and admixture analysis. The latter embraced SNP genotype datasets including a specific one focused on the performance-associated NCAPG-LCORL locus. The k-means and inflection points analyses showed certain discrepancies between the tested models/submodels and flaws in the produced cluster configurations. On the other hand, 11 core breeds were identified that were shared between the examined models and demonstrated more adequate clustering and admixture patterns. These findings will lay the foundation for future research to improve methods for clustering as well as genome- and phenomewide association/mediation analyses