The Value of Publishing Official Central Bank Forecasts

The aim of the present analysis is to shed light on the question whether Central Banks should publish their macroeconomic forecasts, and what could possibly be gained in monetary policy if they did so. We show that disclosing the Central Bank’s assessment of the prevailing inflationary pressures in the form of a forecast improves macroeconomic performance even if this assessment is imprecise. This is because it makes policy more predictable. We are also interested in finding out the useful content of the forecasts, if published, and answering the question whether it makes a difference if these official forecasts are “unconditional” in the sense of incorporating the Central Bank’s forecasts of its own policy as well, or “conditional” on some other policy assumption. Possible conditional alternatives may include assuming unchanged instruments, however specified, or assuming the kind of policy that the private sector is estimated to expect. The analysis comes out in favour of publishing unconditional forecasts, which reveal the intended results of monetary policy. A discussion of some practical issues related to publishing official macroeconomic forecasts is also provided.forecasting; transparency; monetary policy; central banks

The Effects of EMU on the Finnish Economy - Some Early Conjectures

This paper analyses the convergence of the Finnish economy to the monetary policy regime of the EMU. We review the expectations on the effects of EMU membership which prevailed before the union was established, and compare those with actual outcomes for Finland in the first years of the EMU. It seems that the de facto membership in the new policy regime, began approximately at the beginning of 1997. The significant improvement of some traditional structural imbalances of the Finnish economy is reported. It is argued that the improvement of monetary policy credibility can explain much of the improved performance of the economy.

Economies of scale and technological development in securities depository and settlement systems

The paper investigates the existence and extent of economies of scale in depository and settlement systems. Evidence from 16 settlement institutions across different regions for the years 1993–2000 indicates the existence of significant economies of scale. The degree of such economies, however, differs by size of settlement institution and region. While smaller settlement service providers reveal high potential of economies of scale, larger institutions show an increasing trend of cost effectiveness. Clearing and settlement systems in countries in Europe and Asia report substantially larger economies of scale than those of the US system. European cross-border settlement seems to be more cost intensive than that on a domestic level, reflecting chiefly complexities of EU international securities settlement and differences in the scope of international settlement services providers. The evidence also reveals that investments in implementing new systems and upgrades of settlement technology continuously improved cost effectiveness over the sample period.securities settlement, economies of scale, technological progress

Word upon a word : parallelism, meaning, and emergent structure in Kalevala-meter poetry

This essay treats parallelism as a means for articulating and communicating meaning in performance. Rather than a merely stylistic and structural marker, parallelism is discussed as an expressive and cognitive strategy for the elaboration of notions and cognitive categories that are vital in the culture and central for the individual performers. The essay is based on an analysis of short forms of Kalevala-meter poetry from Viena Karelia: proverbs, aphorisms, and lyric poetry. In the complex system of genres using the same poetic meter parallelism transformed genres and contributed to the emergence of cohesive and finalized performances

Economies of scale and technological development in securities depository and settlement systems

The paper investigates the existence and extent of economies of scale in depository and settlement systems. Evidence from 16 settlement institutions across different regions for the years 1993–2000 indicates the existence of significant economies of scale. The degree of such economies, however, differs by size of settlement institution and region. While smaller settlement service providers reveal high potential of economies of scale, larger institutions show an increasing trend of cost effectiveness. Clearing and settlement systems in countries in Europe and Asia report substantially larger economies of scale than those of the US system. European cross-border settlement seems to be more cost intensive than that on a domestic level, reflecting chiefly complexities of EU international securities settlement and differences in the scope of international settlement services providers. The evidence also reveals that investments in implementing new systems and upgrades of settlement technology continuously improved cost effectiveness over the sample period.securities settlement; economies of scale; technological progress

Purkutyön suunnittelu

Työn päätavoitteena oli luoda toimeksiantajayritykselle purkutyön suunnitelmalomake. Työssä perehdyttiin purkutöiden suunnitteluun ja täytetyn lomakkeen avulla esiteltiin, miten esimerkkikohteen purkutyö tullaan toteuttamaan. Korjausrakentaminen aloitetaan yleensä purkutöillä. Rakennushankkeessa purkutyöt ovat yksi vaarallisimmista työvaiheista, minkä vuoksi purkutöiden ennakkosuunnittelu on todella tärkeää. Suunnittelulla minimoidaan tapaturmien määrä sekä turvataan työntekijöiden terveys. Purkutyö edellyttää ammattitaidon lisäksi erikoiskoneita ja -laitteita. Opinnäytetyössä kerrotaan, mitä purkutyö on ja miksi purkutöitä teetetään. Tässä työssä käsiteltiin saaneerauspurkua, mutta myös erilaiset purkamisen vaihtoehdot esiteltiin. Työssä käytiin läpi purkutyötä koskeva lainsäädäntö ja kerrottiin, mitä se velvoittaa työnantajalta. Työssä käsiteltiin purkutyön suunnitteluprosessin tärkeimmät vaiheet ja vaiheiden vastuuhenkilöt. Lainsäädännön ja suunnitteluprosessin jälkeen kerrottiin, kuinka purkutyösuunnitelmalomake täytetään. Purkutöitä harjoittavilla yrityksillä on yleensä hyvin vähän valmiita lomakkeita purkutöi-tä varten, joten suunnittelu on usein puutteellista. Opinnäytetyön tuloksena luotiin Maarakennus T. Haavisto Oy:lle toimiva purkutyösuunnitelmalomake, jota tullaan käyttämään yrityksessä apuvälineenä.The objective of this thesis was to create the demolition work plan for the client company. This thesis oriented itself with planning of demolition work and using a filled form how to present execution example of demolition work in a construction site. Renovation construction starts usually with demolition work. It is one of the most dangerous stages of the work in a construction project. This is why advanced planning of the demolition work is very important. Planning minimizes the number of accidents and safeguards employees’ health. Demolition work requires professional skills as well as special machines and devices. The thesis explains what demolition work is and why is it needed. This thesis deals with renovation work, but also presents other options for demolition. Thesis goes through the legislation of demolition work and explains what it obligates from the employer. This thesis also reviewed the main stages of planning process and the authorized persons of these stages in a demolition work. After reviewing the legislation and the planning process of demolition work, it is explained how to fulfill demolition work plan form. Companies which are doing demolition work usually does not have forms for demolition work. So planning is usually insufficient. The main conclusion of this thesis was to create a demolition work plan form for Maarakennus T. Haavisto Ltd and it is made to help planning process

International economic spillovers and the liquidity trap

We study the effect of the zero bound constraint of interest rates on international transmission of eco-nomic policy and supply shocks. After some preliminary analysis with a simple theoretical model, we ap-ply a rich two-country simulation model to the problem. The model framework consists of EDGE, Bank of Finland’s dynamic equilibrium model for the euro area, linked to a similar model calibrated to resem-ble the US economy. The models have new Keynesian properties because of price rigidities and forward-looking pricing, consumption and investment behaviour. We assume freely floating exchange rates. Monetary policies are modelled with Taylor type policy rules, taking into account the zero bound con-straint for interest rates. We find that effects of policy and supply side shocks differ significantly from the ‘normal’ situation if one of the countries is in the ‘liquidity trap’, ie if the interest rate is constrained by the zero bound. Being in the liquidity trap amplifies the domestic effects of fiscal policy, but mitigates its spillover to abroad. Changing the long run inflation target, which does not have international spillovers in the normal case, does have effects abroad if the country where the target is changed is in a temporary li-quidity trap. The effects of supply shocks are also very different in the liquidity trap case compared to the normal case.zero bound; liquidity trap; international spillovers; edge

Stock exchange alliances, access fees and competition

This paper investigates the market consequences of alliance formation among stock exchanges. These alliances enable brokers to match investors internationally at their local market, thereby eliminating the need for brokers to maintain memberships in foreign stock exchanges. We sort out the conditions under which alliance formation increases profits for stock exchanges and brokers, and how changes in fee structures affect investors’ participation rates and welfare. Finally, we examine several methods for implementing access fees and their welfare implications.stock exchange alliances; access fees; competition among stock exchanges

Parallelism in verbal art and performance : an introduction

Frog is an Academy of Finland Research Fellow and Associate Professor in Folklore Studies at the University of Helsinki. He completed his Ph.D. in Scandinavian Studies at the University College London in 2010 and his Docentship (Habilitation) in Folklore Studies at the University of Helsinki in 2013. He specializes in theory and methods related to the study of oral poetry and mythology, working mainly with Finno-Karelian kalevalaic poetry and Old Norse poetry and prose.Lotte Tarkka is Professor of Folklore Studies at the University of Helsinki. Her theoretical and methodological interests include oral poetics, theories of genre, intertextuality in oral poetry, processes of traditionalization and authorization, vernacular and mythic imagination, and reconstructive performance studies. She specializes in the study of Finnic oral traditions, especially poetry in the Kalevala-meter, Elias Lönnrot’s epic, the Kalevala, and Viena Karelian culture.Parallelism has been considered a fundamental feature of artistic expression. Robert Lowth (1753:180) coined the term parallelismus membrorum (“parallelism of members”) to describe a variety of different types of equivalence or resemblance that he observed between verses in Biblical Hebrew. Lowth’s study is in many respects the foundation of research on parallelism,2 although his terminology only began to spread across the nineteenth century. The concept expanded considerably during the twentieth century, especially through the far-reaching influences of Roman Jakobson. From early in his career, Jakobson looked at parallelism as an abstract text-structuring principle of “le rapprochement de deux unités” (Jakobson 1977 [1919]: 25) (“the bringing together of two units;” translations following a citation are by the present authors), later referred to in English as “recurrent returns” (1981 [1966]:98). Jakobson saw parallelism not only at the level of words, syntax, or meanings of verses as discussed by Lowth, but also at the level of sounds and rhythms within and across verses as well as in larger, complex structures. The breadth of Jakobson’s perspective allowed textual parallelism to connect fluidly with parallelism in music and other forms of expression. His views are the foundation for advancing the concept from language to a general semiotic phenomenon—a phenomenon observable within and across all sorts of media. Parallelism has become a central term and concept on discussions of literature, poetics, and beyond, and yet the phenomenon is so basic, so pervasive, that it is challenging to pin down.--Page 203.Frog, in collaboration with Lotte Tarkka