CDO and HAC

Modelling portfolio credit risk is one of the crucial challenges faced by financial services industry in the last few years. We propose the valuation model of collateralized debt obligations (CDO) based on copula functions with up to three parameters, with default intensities estimated from market data and with a random loss given default that is correlated with default times. The methods presented are used to reproduce the spreads of the iTraxx Europe tranches. We apply hierarchical Archimedean copulae (HAC) whose construction allows for the fact that the risky assets of the CDO pool are chosen from six different industry sectors. The dependence among the assets from the same group is specified with the higher value of the copula parameter, otherwise the lower value of the parameter is ascribed. The copula with two and three parameters models the relation between the loss given default and the default times. Our approach describes the market prices better than the standard pricing procedure based on the Gaussian distribution.CDO, CDS, multivariate distributions, Copulae, correlation smile, loss given default

The New Third Party in Two-Party System? Circumstances and Implications of UKIP Success in 2014 European Parliament Elections

For a growing group of voters the UKIP party ceases to be a second choice, and it becomes a main party. But, contrary to popular belief, its electoral success is only partly due to its Eurosceptic program. Its growing support is rather the result of disappointment in policies of the main parties and a sense of alienation of a growing social group, failing to find its way in a liberal, multicultural society. Note, however, that the UK electoral system rewards parties that have geographically concentrated support, yet in case of UKIP it is distributed fairly evenly. For this reason, even a significant popular support will translate only in a small degree into the seats in the House of Commons. UKIP electoral successes has forced the major political parties to modify their policies, which manifested mainly in radicalization of their programs in the area of immigration and asylum policy, as well as their attitude towards the UK’s membership in the European Union

Mniejszość Niemiecka w prasie regionalnej w sytuacji konfliktu. Framing i agenda medialna w ramach sporu o „Duże Opole”

One of the indicators of the condition of the democratic state is its attitude towards national minorities. Not only the institutional dimension of these relations is important, but also the functioning of the public sphere. Public sphere provides space to negotiate and deliberate over issues that are important to the community. Media, which are an essential part of public sphere act as a facilitator and influence social attitudes towards discussed issues. Following paper presents results of an original research on framing German minority in regional press in Poland. Context of the research is the political conflict over the the enlargement of Opole City. The majority of Germans - the most numerous national minority in Poland - live in the Opole region. The enlargement of the city of Opole changes administrative structure in the region by incorporating to the city parts of the neighboring communities often governed by German minority. The incorporation process induced strong protests of the residents of these communities and fears of the German minority itself that these changes would adversely affect its position. The study covers press articles that appeared in regional dailies published in the Opole region. Quantitative and qualitative analysis tools were used, includuing framing analysis.Jednym z wskaźników kondycji państwa demokratycznego jest jego stosunek do mniejszości narodowych. Istotny jest wymiar formalny tych relacji, a także funkcjonowanie sfery publicznej. Kluczowa będzie zatem zdolność do efektywnego negocjowania i deliberacji nad kwestiami ważnymi społecznie i budzącymi duże emocje. Naturalną przestrzeń dla takiej debaty stwarzają media. Będąc również uczestnikiem debaty, media pozycjonują strony i wpływają na postawy społeczne wobec dyskutowanych kwestii. Celem badań, których wyniki są prezentowane w niniejszym artykule była analiza medialnego pozycjonowania mniejszości niemieckiej (MN) w ramach sporu o przesunięcie granic Opola. Na Opolszczyźnie zamieszkuje większość polskich Niemców – najliczniejszej mniejszości narodowej w Polsce. Powiększenie miasta Opola o część terenów należących do sąsiednich gmin, w których znaczącą część społeczności stanowiła MN, wzbudziło silne protesty mieszkańców tych gmin i obawy samej MN, że zmiany te niekorzystnie wpłyną na jej pozycję. W badaniach uwzględniono artykuły prasowe, które ukazały się w regionalnych dziennikach wydawanych na Opolszczyźnie. Stosowano narzędzia analizy ilościowej i jakościowej, wykorzystując m.in. metodę ram interpretacyjnych (framing)

Generalised infection evoked by Aeronomas hydrophylia in a patient with unclassified arthritis

Generalised infection evoked by the bacterium of Aeronomas Hydrophylia in a 69-year-old patient with unclassified arthritis, hospitalised due to an exacerbation of rheumatic disease at the Rheumatology Ward, in September, 2019. From the very beginning of the disease, the patient was chronically treated with steroids, for the next few years with chloroquine and for a brief moment with methotrexate (MTX) which had to be discontinued due to the patient’s gastrointestinal intolerance. The bacterium of Aeronomas Hydropylia is commonly known as an etiological factor of fish diseases (e.g. salmonid ulcers or carp eryhtrodermatitis). Hitherto only Aeronamas Hydrophilia, Aeronomas Caviae and Aeronomas Sobria have been the Aeronomas strains known to threaten human health. Aeronomas Hydrophilia causes an opportunistic infection in individuals with a disturbed immune system. In the literature one can find described and analysed the cases of skin and soft tissue infections, in tropical and subtropical countries in particular

China’s contribution to the economic potential of the 16+1 platform : developments prior to the global pandemic

PURPOSE: The 16+1 platform, first introduced by China in 2012, provides a framework for Central and Eastern (CE) European countries to benefit from economic cooperation with China. This paper seeks to ascertain which countries have benefitted the most and under what conditions.DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: The work introduces a quantitative methods model to measure the economic potential (EP) of all sixteen countries as a share of the total for the platform group, using variables on natural and human resources, economic scale as well as each country’s bilateral cooperation with China.FINDINGS: The EP indexes reveal that China initially contributed more in terms of trade and/or investment to the more sizeable countries of the EU – especially, the Visegrad group of four and two of the EU Balkan countries, Romania and Bulgaria. However, sizeable nonEU Balkan countries, which are strategically located, have also benefitted, though this is predominantly in the form of Chinese foreign investment with infrastructure being one of the key areas.PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The 16+1 platform is a long-term project and, if treated as a regional group of countries, necessitates injections of further investment into infrastructure development and also trade stimulation between China and those countries that have yet to benefit.ORIGINALITY/VALUE: This research provides an analysis of the economic potential of each of the countries belonging to the 16+1 platform with the inclusion of China. This was carried out using a model constructed to measure multiple variables on country and population size, economic scale and Chinese trade and investment. The sum of the variables provides an EP index for each country and for the platform as a whole.This publication was co-financed by a subsidy granted to the Cracow University of Economics: Project no. 4/EEE/2020/POT.peer-reviewe