Exchange Rate Undervaluation and Manufactured Exports: A Deliberate Strategy?

Recent literature suggests that a proactive exchange rate policy in accordance with price incentives (i.e. undervaluation) can foster manufactured exports and growth. This paper is built on these recent developments and investigates, using a sample of 52 developing countries, whether such a proactive exchange rate policy is adopted. The results show that during the period 1991-2005 a number of countries has used undervaluation to foster the price competitiveness of manufactured exports.Exchange rate, Misalignment, Undervaluation, Exports diversification

Exchange Rate Undervaluation to Foster Manufactured Exports: A Deliberate Strategy?

Recent literature suggests that a proactive strategy consisting of deliberate real exchange rate depreciation can promote exports diversification and growth. This paper is built on these recent developments and investigates whether four developing countries have adopted such a strategy. Data from Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia are used to construct and compare the macroeconomic Real Effective exchange rate (REER), similar exchange rates at the sector level (SREER) and the macroeconomic Equilibrium Real Effective exchange rate (EREER). It shows that there are instances where the objective of diversifying exports through depreciation of exchange rate comes at the expense of further misalignment (REER departs from the EREER) and, then, monetary authorities are doomed to choose. The results show that Morocco and Tunisia are choosing the proactive exchange rate strategy while Egypt and Jordan are not. This fits with the observation that the former are doing much better than the latter in terms of exports diversification.Exchange rate, Misalignment, Undervaluation, Exports diversification

Exchange Rate Undervaluation to Foster Manufactured Exports: A Deliberate Strategy?

Recent literature suggests that a proactive strategy consisting of deliberate real exchange rate depreciation can promote exports diversification and growth. This paper is built on these recent developments and investigates whether four developing countries have adopted such a strategy. Data from Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia are used to construct and compare the macroeconomic Real Effective exchange rate (REER), similar exchange rates at the sector level (SREER) and the macroeconomic Equilibrium Real Effective exchange rate (EREER). It shows that there are instances where the objective of diversifying exports through depreciation of exchange rate comes at the expense of further misalignment (REER departs from the EREER) and, then, monetary authorities are doomed to choose. The results show that Morocco and Tunisia are choosing the proactive exchange rate strategy while Egypt and Jordan are not. This fits with the observation that the former are doing much better than the latter in terms of exports diversification.Exchange rate;Misalignment;Undervaluation;Exports diversification

Exchange Rate Undervaluation and Manufactured Exports: A Deliberate Strategy?

Recent literature suggests that a proactive exchange rate policy in accordance with price incentives (i.e. undervaluation) can foster manufactured exports and growth. This paper is built on these recent developments and investigates, using a sample of 52 developing countries, whether such a proactive exchange rate policy is adopted. The results show that during the period 1991-2005 a number of countries has used undervaluation to foster the price competitiveness of manufactured exports.Exchange rate;Misalignment;Undervaluation;Exports diversification

Determinants of Insurers' Performance in Risk Pooling, Risk Management, and Financial Intermediation Activities

Corporate finance theory predicts that firms' characteristics affect agency costs and hence their efficiency. Cummins et al. (2006) have proposed a cost function specification that measures separately insurer efficiency in handling risk pooling, risk management, and financial intermediation functions. We investigate the insurer characteristics that determine these efficiencies. Our empirical results show that mutuals outperform stock insurers in handling the three functions. Independent agents and high capitalization reduce the cost efficiency of risk pooling. Certain characteristics such as being a group of affiliated insurers, handling a higher volume of business in commercial lines, assuming more reinsurance or investing a higher proporotion of assets in bonds, do significantly increase insurers' efficiency in risk management and financial intermediation.Risk pooling, risk management, financial intermediation, property-liability insurance, efficiency, agency costs

Determinants of Insurers’ Performance in Risk Pooling, Risk Management, and Financial Intermediation Activities

Corporate finance theory predicts that firms’ characteristics affect agency costs and hence their efficiency. Cummins et al (2006) have proposed a cost function specification that measures separately insurer efficiency in handling risk pooling, risk management, and financial intermediation functions. We investigate the insurer characteristics that determine these efficiencies. Our empirical results show that mutuals outperform stock insurers in handling the three functions. Independent agents and high capitalization reduce the cost efficiency of risk pooling. Certain characteristics such as being a group of affiliated insurers, handling a higher volume of business in commercial lines, assuming more reinsurance, or investing a higher proportion of assets in bonds, do significantly increase insurers’ efficiency in risk management and financial intermediation.Risk pooling, risk management, financial intermediation, property-liability insurance, efficiency, agency costs.

Nonlinear interactions between US waves and contact interface

Gli ultimi decenni sono stati caratterizzati da un crescente interesse per le non linearità inerenti al danneggiamento (difetti) dei solidi ed alle interfacce di contatto. Di conseguenza, diversi metodi di analisi non-lineare sono stati sviluppati per l'individuazione del danno e per la caratterizzazione delle interfacce di contatto. Tuttavia, la comprensione dei meccanismi fisici relativi alle non linearità di contatto rimane limitata. In questo contesto, il lavoro di tesi è indirizzato all’ analisi dell'interazione non lineare tra un'onda ed un'interfaccia, integrando diversi meccanismi legati al contatto, al fine di proporre gli strumenti idonei ad una metodologia di analisi non-distruttiva efficiente, per la caratterizzazione delle interfacce. Lo studio dell'evoluzione della seconda armonica per caratterizzare le proprietà di difetti localizzati e più in generale delle interfacce di contatto è dunque al centro di questo lavoro. L'interazione non lineare tra un'onda longitudinale e un'interfaccia di contatto è stata qui analizzata combinando due approcci: uno basato sull’analisi di propagazione acustica, ed utilizzato per caratterizzare l’interfaccia in trazione; l'altro basato sull’analisi della vibrazione strutturale, ed utilizzato per la caratterizzazione dell’interfaccia in compressione. Il primo consiste nel modellare il contatto con una legge RCCM. Lo studio propone un'analisi dettagliata del comportamento dell'interfaccia in trazione, integrando l'adesione tra le due superfici in contatto. I parametri principali, che regolano la firma non lineare della legge RCCM, sono stati identificati, permettendo quindi una migliore comprensione della fisica alla base di questa interazione non lineare. Il secondo metodo, usato in compressione, si basa su un modello di rigidezza non lineare dell'interfaccia, in cui la rigidezza dell'interfaccia è descritta in funzione della pressione di contatto. Lo studio consiste in un'analisi complementare, numerica e sperimentale, della componente non-lineare della risposta dinamica del sistema, dovuta alla presenza di un'interfaccia di contatto. Si è così evidenziato come la non-linearità della rigidezza di contatto alle basse pressioni ha un effetto importante sulla risposta non-lineare del sistema. Infine, le leggi di contatto proposte in compressione e trazione sono state combinate in una unica legge di contatto, per permettere una correlazione più fine tra le non-linearità associate alle differenti fasi del contatto, sia compressione che trazione, e le caratteristiche della risposta non-lineare del sistema . I risultati numerici sono promettenti, in vista dello sviluppo di metodologie inverse per la caratterizzazione delle proprietà delle interfacce di contatto a partire dalla risposta non-lineare ad una eccitazione esterna, applicabile nell’identificazione non-distruttiva del danno e dei contatti

Concept and architecture of a new apparatus for cylindrical form measurement with a nanometric level of accuracy

In relation to the industrial need and to the progress of technology, Laboratoire National de M´etrologie et d’Essais (LNE) would like to improve the measurement of its primary pressure standards, spherical and flick standards. The spherical and flick standards are, respectively, used to calibrate the spindle motion error and the probe, which equip commercial conventional cylindricity-measuring machines. The primary pressure standards are obtained using pressure balances equipped with rotary pistons. To reach a relative uncertainty of 10−6 in the pressure measurement, it is necessary to know the diameters of both the piston and the cylinder with an uncertainty of 5 nm for a piston diameter of 10 mm. Conventional machines are not able to reach such an uncertainty level. That is why the development of a new machine is necessary. The purpose of this paper is to present the concepts and the architecture adopted in the development of the new equipment dedicated to cylindricity measurement at a nanometric level of a accuracy. The choice of these concepts is based on the analysis of the uncertainty sources encountered in conventional architectures. The architecture of the new ultra-high equipment as well as the associated calibration procedures will be described and detailed.Thèse CIFR

Efficiency of Insurance Firms with Endogenous Risk Management and Financial Intermediation Activities

Risk management is now present in many economic sectors. This paper investigates the role of risk management in creating value for financial institutions by analyzing U.S. property-liability insurers. Property-liability insurers are financial intermediaries whose primary roles in the economy are risk pooling and risk bearing. The risk pooling and risk bearing functions performed by insurers are the primary determinants of the need for risk management. The main goal of this paper is to test how risk management and financial intermediation activities create value for insurers by enhancing economic efficiency. Insurer cost efficiency is measured relative to an econometric cost function. Since the prices of risk management and financial intermediation services are not observable, we consider these two activities as intermediate outputs and estimate their shadow prices. The shadow prices isolate the contributions of risk management and financial intermediation to insurer cost efficiency. The econometric results show that both activities significantly increase the efficiency of the property-liability insurance industry.Risk management, US property-liability insurer, risk pooling, financial intermediation, economic efficiency, intermediate output, shadow price, cost function, translog approximation

Efficiency of Insurance Firms with Endogenous Risk Management and Financial Intermediation Activities

Risk management is now present in many economic sectors. This paper investigates the role of risk management in creating value for financial institutions by analyzing U.S. property-liability insurers. Property-liability insurers are financial intermediaries whose primary role in the economy is risk pooling and risk bearing. The risk pooling and risk bearing functions performed by insurers are the primary determinants of the need for risk management. The main goal of this paper is to test how risk management and financial intermediation activities create value for insurers by enhancing economic efficiency. Insurer cost efficiency is measured relative to an econometric cost frontier. Since the prices of risk management and financial intermediation services are not observable, we consider these two activities as intermediate outputs and estimate their shadow prices. The shadow prices isolate the contributions of risk management and financial intermediation to insurer cost efficiency. The econometric results show that both activities significantly increase the efficiency of the property-liability insurance industry.