Big Margin Research Articles

Measuring large UK accounting firm profit margins, mergers and concentration

This paper examines the relationship between UK accounting firm mergers and increases in profit margins enjoyed by large UK accounting firms. Cowling’s monopoly capitalism model provides the theoretical framework. The empirical parts of this paper draw on a number of quantitative sources, including the fees and staff numbers disclosed by UK accounting firms, official salary data and salary survey data. Correlation is used to show that the accounting firm data is a reliable source of evidence. The data are then used to construct an indicator of concentration, merger impact on concentration, and an indicator of big firm profit margins. Regression is used to estimate the close positive relationship between concentration and profit margins. The results confirm Cowling’s hypothesis that mergers lead to increases in profits. This paper complements Hanlon’s “commercialisation of accounting” thesis by providing an alternative theoretical framework for examining accounting firms and by bringing quantitative sources of evidence to bear.

Role of Spin Momentum Current in Magnetic Non-Local Damping of Ultrathin Film Structures

Non-local damping was investigated by Ferromagnetic Resonance (FMR) using ultrathin magnetic single and double layer structures prepared by Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE). The double layer structures show magnetic damping which is caused by spin transport across a normal metal spacer (N). In double layer structures a thin Fe layer, F1, was separated from a thick Fe layer, F2, by a Au(001) spacer. The interface magnetic anisotropies separated the FMR fields of F1 and F2 by a big margin allowing one to investigate FMR in F1 while F2 had a negligible angle of precession, and vice versa. The Fe films in magnetic double layers acquire non-local interface Gilbert damping. It will be shown that the precessing magnetic moments act as spin pumps and spin sinks. This concept was tested by investigating the FMR linewidth around an accidental crossover of the resonance fields for the layers F1 and F2. There is another possible mechanism for non-local damping which is based on a “breathing Fermi surface” of the spacer. The temperature dependence of the non-local damping indicates that this mechanism is weak in Au spacers. Surprisingly the Au spacer acts as an additional impedance for the spin pump mechanism. Finally, it will be shown that electron-electron correlations in a Pd spacer can lead to a significant enhancement of the non-local damping.

Alternative scenarios for Ukraine

Major trends and driving forces are analysed in four areas, i.e. polity, economy, society and international environment of Ukraine, as well as their inter-linkages, in order to define overall dynamics of Ukrainian society. It leads to three basic scenarios for the medium term: a pan-Slavic state centred scenario (example Belarus), a feudalisation/mercantilist scenario (example Pakistan) and a liberalisation scenario (example Mexico). It is argued that the rent seeking state and the rent seeking economy are deeply rooted in a society that can be characterised as patrimonial. Although having some distinctive features, such as high level of human capital and an over-powerful state, Ukraine faces problems that are characteristic for many stagnating Third World countries. A predatory and patrimonial state could develop due to the weakness of civil society. As Aristotle has said, we can learn the nature of anything when it has reached and past its maturity. Since the abolishment of communism and the proclamation of independence, in 1991, Ukraine is experiencing a turbulent transition to a new social, political and economic system. The most tangible change was the transition from an industrialised country, where people were assured of a decent living standard, to a country where industrial production declined by 75 per cent and where the overwhelming majority of the population has been pushed into poverty. The scale and speed of deprivation was unheard of as was the social peace that accompanied this destructive movement. Leonid Kuchma, who played a major role in Ukraine for most of the 1990s as President and as Prime Minister, was re-elected by the Ukrainian population with a big margin (56 per cent) in November 1999, when faced with the choice between Kuchma and Symonenko, the latter being an orthodox communist. It showed, to a certain extent, the break with the communist past although Ukraine has not developed yet into a participatory democracy. But Ukraine has consolidated its status as an independent nation in the heart of Europe. However, the overall impression is that of disintegration, hierarchical breakdown and decline. Ukraine has been the only transition economy not to have known at least one year of economic growth during the 1990s. Only in 2000 the Ukrainian economy started to grow. Here, an analysis is made of defining features and major trends in the political sphere, the economy, society and the international environment in order to identify overall dynamics. This exercise allows the formulation of relevant questions about the interrelationships of the various sub-systems in society as well as the major challenges that Ukraine may face in the medium term.

Meeting the Kyoto Targets: The Importance of Developing Country Participation

Many studies have emphasized the importance of China's participation in combating global climate change, but they looked at the role of China mainly from the point of view that future, uncontrolled increases in CO2 emissions in China will offset all emissions reductions in industrialized countries. This is only one side of the story. Although politicians and policy analysts claim the importance of China's participation in lowering compliance costs of industrialized countries, no studies have quantified such an importance to support their claims. This study is the first one to disentangle the impacts of China on industrialized countries' compliance costs from those resulting from the rest of the world by examining the markets with and without the inclusion of China, thus giving other side of the story. In so doing, we start with the no emissions trading case where each industrialized country must individually meet its Kyoto targets. Next, we consider a case where trading of emissions permits is limited to industrialized countries only. We then expand the scope of the market to include all the developing countries but China. Finally, to investigate the role China plays in bringing down industrialized countries' compliance costs, we further broaden the market to include China into full global trading. Our results clearly demonstrate that the gain of the OECD as a whole increases as the market expands. Depending the scenarios examined, the U.S. would gain 12-19% with the inclusion of China than without China. Our results also show that developing countries themselves benefit from such an expansion too because it not only provides them for additional financial resources, but also helps to cut their baseline carbon emissions by a big margin. By contrast, the former Soviet Union tends to become worse off as the market expands. The potential conflict of interest between the former Soviet Union and developing countries underlines the importance of establishing clear rules of procedure about admitting new entrants before emissions trading begins. Furthermore, our results show that China is expected to emerge as the world's number one host country for clean development mechanism projects, but to materialize such benefits, China faces great challenges in institutional setting and implementation strategy.

Analysis of resin transfer moulding process with controlled multiple gates resin injection

Abstract In resin transfer moulding, increase of fibre volume fraction decelerates the resin flow. For fast resin flow without increasing injection pressure, resin can be injected using multiple injection gates. However, with improper injection schemes, the resin front becomes complicated and numerous air bubbles may form where the flow fronts merge. In this study, two different multiple gate injection schemes were investigated. One is to open the gates in a sequential manner as the resin front advances. The other is to control the resin injection pressure as a function of time. Mould filling was simulated numerically using the Control Volume Finite Element Method (CVFEM). Experiments were performed to verify the simulation results. The resin front shapes observed from the experiments were compared with the numerical results. Close agreements were found. The controlled multiple gate injection methods were proven to reduce the injection time by a big margin as well as to prevent the formation of air bubbles due to air entrapment.

Non-network Type Artificial Immune System and its Application to Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV) System

This paper describes Artificial Immune-Based Control System that is applied to the automatic transportation control system of AGV (Automated Guided Vehicle) operated in a restricted area such as a container terminal and an ironworks. The authors propose the non-network type artificial immune system that is functioning in a unit level of antibodies instead of in a network of antigens and antibodies. AGVs equipped by the proposed method can avoid the collision and/or the deadlock and move autonomously from the source points to the destinations. The transportation system using AGVs has been expected because AGVs have the flexibility and efficiency. However the control system for AGVs is so flexible that the design has a big margin. Especially, the design for the control system is a hard work when the number of AGV becomes to be large. Only a few study of this problem is found in a past references. This paper focuses on the automatic transportation plan of AGVs in a real time scheduling using the non-network type artificial immune system. The comparison of the proposed method: the non-network type artificial immune system and the network type artificial immune system are also discussed and the computer simulation verifies the effectiveness of the proposed method.

An Asymptotical $O(\sqrt{n} L)$-Iteration Path-Following Linear Programming Algorithm That Uses Wide Neighborhoods

Path-following linear programming (LP) algorithms generate a sequence of points within certain neighborhoods of a central path $\mathcal{C}$ which prevent iterates from prematurely getting too close to the boundary of the feasible region. Depending on the norm used, these neighborhoods include $\mathcal{N}_2 ( \beta ),\mathcal{N}_\infty ( \beta )$, and $\mathcal{N}_\infty^- ( \beta )$ where $\beta \in (0,1)$ and \[ \mathcal{C} \subset \mathcal{N}_2 ( \beta ) \subset \mathcal{N}_\infty ( \beta ) \subset \mathcal{N}_\infty^- ( \beta )\quad {\text{for each}}\quad\beta \in ( 0,1). \] A paradox is that among all existing (infeasible or feasible) path-following algorithms, the theoretical iteration complexity, $O(\sqrt{n} L)$, of small-neighborhood $(\mathcal{N}_2 )$ algorithms is significantly better than the complexity, $O(nL)$, of wide-neighborhood $(\mathcal{N}_\infty^- )$ algorithms. In practice, wide-neighborhood algorithms outperform small-neighborhood ones by a big margin. Here, n is the number of LP variables and L is the LP data length. In this paper, we present an $O(n^{\frac{n + 1}{2n}} L)$-iteration (infeasible) primal-dual high-order algorithm that uses wide neighborhoods. Note that this iteration bound is asymptotically $O(\sqrt{n} L)$, i.e., the best bound for small-neighborhood algorithms, as n increases.

Evaluation of PWR-LOCA under LOFT L2-3 condition.

Analysis of large break LOCA (loss-of-coolant accident) of a commercial PWR (pressurized water reactor) is made with the THYDE-P2 code under the LOFT (Loss-of-Fluid Test) L2-3 condition. Subcooled reflooding is calculated to occur, whereas in LOFT L2-3 saturated reflooding seems to have been observed. Except for this fact, despite the thermal and geometrical differences, the calculated results show that the LOFT system well simulates PWR-LOCA under the LOFT L2-3 condition. The existing safety criteria are satisfied by the commercial PWR's with a big margin in case of LOCA under the LOFT L2-3 condition.

Speech at the Sichuan Education Conference [Excerpts] (July 1, 1978)

On the basis of achieving initial success in one year in grasping the key link of class struggle and bringing about great order across Sichuan last year, the province has engaged itself in a serious effort this year to implement the line of the Eleventh Party Congress and the Fifth National People's Congress. Extensive publicity has been given to the general task for the new period, and the movement of "one criticism and two consolidations" is now under way. New achievements have been made in every field of endeavor, and the situation is excellent. In the field of agriculture, we have overcome drought and wrested a good harvest, with the early spring grain output increasing by one tenth and rapeseed by more than two tenths, topping the peak level in history. Industrial production has been growing steadily, with its total output value from January to May exceeding the same period of last year by 47.6 percent. Thirty-two products, including steel, steel products and cement, have fulfilled more than half of their annual production plan one month ahead of schedule. Revenues also went up by a big margin.

Small Nitrogen Fertilizer Factories in our Country Increased Their Output by a Big Margin

(NCNA, May 14, 1976) Under the impetus of the great struggle to beat back the right deviationist attempt to reverse correct verdicts, the broad masses of workers, cadres, and technical personnel in the small nitrogen fertilizer factories across our country persist in taking class struggle as the key link in all work and earnestly study Chairman Mao's important directives. With the deepening of their criticism of Teng Hsiao-p'ing, the top unrepentant capitalist-roader inside the Party, and his revisionist line, as well as his reactionary and criminal acts, the factories are seething with enthusiasm for the revolution and are boosting their production every day. As a result of their new achievements in production, in the first quarter of this year, they overfulfilled the target for nitrogen fertilizer production set in the state plan for the entire country, achieving a 50 percent increase over the same period last year. Small nitrogen fertilizer factories located in over twothirds of the provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions of our country augmented their output by more than 30 percent over the same period in the preceding year. Such increases as well as their distribution area and the output of small nitrogen factories were unprecedented in history. They eloquently testify to the fact that the struggle to criticize Teng Hsiao-p'ing and beat back the right deviationist attempt to reverse correct verdicts serves as a mighty impetus to stimulating the vigorous development of nitrogen fertilizer production by small factories.

Implement A Correct Line And Win High Wheat Yields: An Investigation Report of Hsin-hsiang District, Honan Province

Spurred by the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, the Campaign to Criticize Lin Piao and Rectify the Style of Work, and the Campaign to Criticize Lin Piao and Confucius, Hsinhsiang District has launched in depth the drive to "learn from Tachai in agriculture," reaping for years good harvests in agricultural production. Wheat output has registered increases over large areas by a big margin. This year, vast numbers of cadres and masses throughout the district, fostering the spirit of continuing revolution, have overcome a sustained and severe drought and have set an historical record for wheat output. Per-mou yield of the nearly five million mou of wheat rose to more than 400 chin, topping the "Program Target" in one season. Both unit yield and total output exceeded by more than twofold those of 1965, the year before the outbreak of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution.

People's Bank Savings in China again Increase by Big Margins

Abstract (NCNA, January 22, 1974) With the incessant penetration of education with respect to ideology and political lines and the sustained growth of agricultural production, the livelihood of the broad masses has gradually improved. Once again in 1973 the rural and urban savings deposits in our country have expanded by big margins: urban savings deposits increased 10.5 percent compared with the end of 1972; rural savings deposits, 32 percent. Nearly half of the existing bank deposits in the urban and rural areas have been saved in the seven years since the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution.

Kiangsu, Hopei, Honan, and Shantung Provinces Report Good Cotton Harvests

(NCNA, Nanking, November 24, 1973) Good harvests have been reported in the 8.7 million mou of cotton in Kiangsu Province, a major cotton-producing area in China. The estimated total output is more than 10 percent higher than in 1972. According to data on cotton collection, in the traditionally more productive Nan-tung and Su-chou areas, total output and per mou yield were both higher than in 1972. In the traditionally less productive Hsu-chou, Huai-yin, and Yen-ch'eng areas, output increased by big margins in 1973. The per mou yield hit an all-time high.

The Situation At The No. 1 Primary Rolling Plant of Anshan Steel is Excellent

Abstract (NCNA Shengyang August 3, 1973) In criticizing revisionism and rectifying the work style, the Party committee of the No. 1 primary rolling plant of Anshan Steel seriously carried through the line of the unity and victory of the Ninth Party Congress and mobilized the socialist activism of the cadres and masses with the Party's policies, bringing about a lively political situation. In recent years this plant has consistently overfulfilled the comprehensive state plans. The production of rolled steel has increased by big margins. It has become an advanced unit in China's metallurgical industry.

Shanghai Industry Continuously Makes New Contributions to the Support of Agriculture

(NCNA Shanghai July 3, 1973) Since the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, and especially as the movement to criticize revisionism and rectify the work style penetratingly unfolded, the working class in Shanghai criticized the revisionist line of Liu Shao-ch'i-type swindlers and continuously made new contributions in the support of agriculture. Comparing 1972 with 1965, output of agricultural machines, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides increased by big margins with more varieties, better quality, and lower production costs. Among them, the output of"Feng-shou 35" tractors increased ten times. The horsepower per unit increased from seven to eleven, and production cost decreased by one-fourth. The output of chemical fertilizers increased by one and a half times and various pesticides increased by more than 60 percent. Many highly effective, low-toxic pesticides have been successfully trial manufactured. From 1970 to 1972 the several hundred plants throughout Shanghai developed wide coordination and manufactured 300 sets of key equipment for the 3,000-ton type synthetic ammonia plant, thus promoting the development of small chemical fertilizers plants in various areas of the country.

Capital Turnover vs. Profit Margins

THESE COMMENTS deal with only one aspect of company analysis methods and that is profit margins. I believe that a deal of profit margin analysis is not in proper focus and that there is one often overlooked step in studying profit margins which can readily, and should customarily, accompany any critique of profit margins. Profit margin for this purpose is taken as the sum of net income and bond interest as a percentage of sales, that is to say, the ratio to sales of profits applicable to the capital structure. A big percentage profit margin is almost always referred to as good or high and a small percentage profit margin as poor, bad or low. Usually a bigger profit margin is referred to as better than a smaller one. The following Table 1 ranks twelve industry leaders in order of their profit margins in 1964.

Again, Too Few Graduates to Go Around; Salaries Up

Eighty of 85 journalism schools report demand for their graduates exceeds supply, usually by big margins, although the number of graduates increased 5.4% over 1956. While starting salaries again increased on the average, those offered journalism graduates lag well behind those offered in other fields.