World Markets of Vertically Differentiated Agricultural Commodities: A Case of Soybean Markets

Replaced with revised version of poster 07/21/11.vertical product differentiation, market power, GM, non-GM, soybean, Industrial Organization, International Relations/Trade, L1,

VETERINARY STANDARDS AS BARRIERS TO TRADE: THE CASE OF POULTRY TRADE BETWEEN THE U.S. AND THE EU

The EU banned U.S. poultry meat imports because it considers U.S. veterinary regulations unsatisfactory. We develop a model of the EU and world poultry markets. We find that the import ban causes a 2.44% increase and a 0.44% decrease in the EU and world price respectively.International Relations/Trade, Livestock Production/Industries,

Consumption Inertia and Asymmetric Price Transmission

We propose consumption inertia as a new explanation for asymmetric price transmission. Inertia in consumer demand enlarges retailers’ gains in gross profits from raising prices in response to higher wholesale prices and reduces gains from decreasing prices in response to lower wholesale prices. Thus, consumption inertia can cause asymmetries in price transmission whereby retailers are more willing to change their prices, and change them more quickly, in response to wholesale price increases as opposed to wholesale price decreases.asymmetric price transmission, consumption inertia, market power, retail pricing, Demand and Price Analysis,

Asymmetric Price Transmission and Demand Characteristics

Through analyzing the effect of a demand characteristic, this paper investigates the reasons for the market phenomenon that farm and/or wholesale price changes are transmitted asymmetrically to retail markets.asymmetric price transmission, demand characteristics, Industrial Organization,

Location, Proximity, and M&A Transactions

In this paper, we examine how the geographic location of firms affects acquisition decisions and value creation for acquirers in takeover transactions. We find that firms located in an urban area are more likely to receive a takeover bid and complete a takeover transaction as a target than firms located in rural areas, and takeover deals involving an urban target are associated with higher acquirer announcement returns, after controlling for the proximity between the target and the acquirer. In addition, a target\u27s urban location significantly attenuates the negative effect of a long distance between the target and the acquirer on acquirer returns, a fact that is documented in the existing literature. Our findings reveal a previously underexplored force—firm location—that can affect takeover transactions, in addition to proximity. Our paper suggests that a firm\u27s location plays an important role in facilitating the dissemination of soft information and enhancing information-based synergies

OFDM Synthetic Aperture Radar Imaging with Sufficient Cyclic Prefix

The existing linear frequency modulated (LFM) (or step frequency) and random noise synthetic aperture radar (SAR) systems may correspond to the frequency hopping (FH) and direct sequence (DS) spread spectrum systems in the past second and third generation wireless communications. Similar to the current and future wireless communications generations, in this paper, we propose OFDM SAR imaging, where a sufficient cyclic prefix (CP) is added to each OFDM pulse. The sufficient CP insertion converts an inter-symbol interference (ISI) channel from multipaths into multiple ISI-free subchannels as the key in a wireless communications system, and analogously, it provides an inter-range-cell interference (IRCI) free (high range resolution) SAR image in a SAR system. The sufficient CP insertion along with our newly proposed SAR imaging algorithm particularly for the OFDM signals also differentiates this paper from all the existing studies in the literature on OFDM radar signal processing. Simulation results are presented to illustrate the high range resolution performance of our proposed CP based OFDM SAR imaging algorithm.Comment: This version has been accepted by IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing. IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing 201

CAN FOOD PROCESSORS USE CONTRACTS TO INFLUENCE FARM CASH PRICES? THE COMPETITIVE IMPLICATIONS OF TOP-OF-THE-MARKET AND RELATED PRICING CLAUSES

When contract production is marketed contemporaneously with production sold through a spot market, it is conveninet to specify the contract price in terms of the subsequent cash price. This paper examines the competitive implications of such pricing arrangements, focusing in particular upon so-called "top-of-the-market (TOMP) pricing in cattle procurement, wherein the contract guarantees the producer the highest cash price prevailing at the time of delivery. We show that these contracts have anticompetitive consequences when the same buyers who purchase cattle with the TOMP clause also compete to procure cattle in the subsequent spot market. By committing to purchase cattle at a price to be determined later, beef packers' incentives to compete aggressively in the spot market are attenuated. Although TOMP pricing is not in producers' collective interest, rational sellers may nonetheless sign these contracts, in some cases with little or no financial inducement.Demand and Price Analysis,