High Interest Research Articles

MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS IN INDIA: LEGAL PROVISIONS AND JUDICIAL APPROACH

Most of the mergers and acquisitions are a consequence of positive economic factors like escalation in the GDP, the macroeconomic setting, fiscal policies and higher interest rates. Over the years, these factors have changed the way these mergers and acquisitions happen and have led to massive growth in markets. India has, in recent years, logged record deal-makings as far as mergers and acquisitions are concerned. Though, such activity can substantially contribute towards economic growth and consumer wellbeing, but the various legal issues that need to be dealt with to ensure that the growth continues smoothly and the mergers and acquisitions are a pleasant experience for all stakeholders. Most provisions to regulate mergers and acquisitions are under The Company Law, but the regulations are spread across many enactments. In this Article, we are trying to explore all the legal provisions that mainly govern Mergers and Acquisitions, and we will also be exploring the judicial approach of the Indian Courts towards such activity.

Regional High Debt Risk and Enterprise Innovation

Local governments have a significant impact on business activities and enterprises behavior. This paper selects the data of A-share listed companies and uses panel data regression analysis model to test the mechanism of regional high debt risk inhibiting innovation. The research findings are as follows: First, the expansion of local government debt restricts enterprises' investment in innovation and research and inhibits their innovation ability by improving corporate financing constraints, reducing government subsidies and tax incentives. Excessive local debt may lead to lower credit ratings, higher interest rates, limited financing channels, and thus crowding out corporate financing. In this case, enterprises may be forced to reduce R&D-related investment. As a result, local government debt inhibits firms' ability to innovate through financing constraints..Second, the mixed ownership reform and strategic differentiation can help enterprises to reverse their disadvantages and increase innovation and R&D investment. Mixed reform can reduce the policy burden of enterprises and reduce government intervention so that enterprises can focus more on innovation activities. Strategic differentiation leads to continuous learning and improvement process, and it will stimulate the innovation vitality of enterprises and achieve the growth of innovation performance.

The Impact of Incentivization on Recruitment, Retention, Data Quality, and Participant Characteristics in Ecological Momentary Assessments

Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) study participation is usually incentivized using monetary (e.g., fixed or performance-contingent payment) or non-monetary (e.g., feedback) compensation. This study investigates the impact of this incentivization on recruitment, retention, data quality, and participant characteristics in a sample of 74 students. For this purpose, an EMA study (time-based sampling) was conducted in participants’ daily life using a 2 Payment (fixed/ performance-contingent) x 2 Feedback (yes/ no) experimental between-subjects design. Offering feedback increased the likelihood of participation and reduced the likelihood of participants receiving fixed payment to drop out. Offering feedback additionally improved data quality. Furthermore, offering feedback attracted participants with higher interest in research and the study topic. Offering fixed vs performance-contingent payment had little effect on the outcomes of interest. Offering feedback as compensation in EMA studies may facilitate recruitment and increase data quality; however, it may also risk higher selection bias. Conclusions are drawn from a relatively small student sample; the results thus need to be replicated in larger and more diverse samples.

“Superstitious” Investors

Abstract We reconsider the excess volatility puzzle through the lens of a model in which agents believe they can predict dividend growth when in fact they cannot. Besides excess volatility in the time series, the model explains the value premium, and the explanatory power of the value factor. In support of the model, we show that analysts’ earnings forecasts align with market valuation and that analysts are far more optimistic about growth stocks than they are about value stocks. Using both survey and price data, we show that the same mechanism can explain the excess returns earned by investing in high-interest rate currencies. (JEL G12, G15, G41)

VRIO Analysis in Developing Branding Strategies for Egg-Based Food Products as Souvenirs from Blitar – Local Perspective

Blitar is rich in tourism potential. The local economy stands to benefit significantly from tourism, creating job opportunities and enhancing community development. Blitar's position as a major egg producer offers unique opportunities for developing egg-based souvenirs. However, challenges include identifying appealing products and effective branding strategy is required to enhance the marketability of these products, fostering economic growth and tourism in the region. This study utilizes a mixed-method approach to explore consumer perceptions of egg-based processed products in Blitar, combining quantitative surveys with qualitative interviews of business actors. A survey of 61 respondents gathered measurable data on consumer preferences and factors influencing purchasing decisions. In-depth interviews provided insights into marketing strategies and challenges faced by producers. The study employs descriptive statistics and VRIO analysis to develop effective branding strategies for promoting processed egg products as signature souvenirs from. The analysis reveals that respondents indicating higher interest in egg-based products as souvenirs from Blitar as food significantly influences their choice of tourist destinations, with a strong preference for local ingredients. However, awareness of Blitar’s egg production potential is low, leading to limited appeal for egg-based products. The VRIO analysis shows organizational weaknesses hinder competitive advantage despite valuable product features. Effective branding strategies tailored to consumer expectations are crucial for market success. Enhancing product awareness and education through organized action can further strengthen the appeal of these culinary offerings in tourism.

Is the market tougher with riskier banks? Evidence from the pricing of bank debt securities during a financial turmoil episode

The philosophy behind the indirect channel of market discipline in banking regulation presumes that the pricing of bank securities, if accurate, conveys reliable signals to supervisors. In this paper, we explore empirically the possibility that markets price differently the risk profile of bank issuers along the empirical distribution of security prices. The paper uses a quantile regression framework to draw novel inferences about the functioning of debt market discipline and the quality of private monitoring in European banking during a severe financial turmoil episode: 1995--2002. This period is characterized by large swings in yields due to the Russian default and LTCM crisis, the burst of the dot-com bubble, and Enron’s failure. We find that the yield spread-risk relationship is systematically steeper at the “right-tail” of the conditional distribution of the credit spread. This result suggests that the market is somewhat “tougher” with riskier banks; that is, riskier bank issuers borrow at higher interest rates, which are increasing in their degree of riskiness.

Perbedaan Minat Mengikuti Organisasi pada Mahasiswa Program Studi Psikologi dan Ilmu Komunikasi Universitas ‘Aisyiyah Yogyakarta

This study aims to identify differences in organizational interests between Psychology and Communication Science students at Universitas 'Aisyiyah Yogyakarta. With a quantitative approach and comparative design, data were obtained through a questionnaire involving 184 students from both study programs. The results of the analysis using the Mann-Whitney test showed that Communication Science students had a higher interest in organizing than Psychology students. This difference is thought to be influenced by internal and external factors, such as the need to expand social networks and develop communication skills in Communication Science students. These findings are expected to be a reference for institutions in designing more appropriate organizational development programs for students from various study programs, according to their respective needs and interests.

Inaccurate Borrower Information and Credit Risk: Evidence from Marketplace Loans

Abstract Inaccurate borrower-provided information in marketplace loans is informative about credit risk. An inaccuracy index constructed from the consistency of loan amount with outstanding credit balance, roundness of reported income, and roundness of chosen loan amount predicts the likelihood of default, and the additional default risk is not compensated by higher interest. Inaccurate information is more prevalent in areas with lower social capital and weaker social norms. It is also lower among borrowers whose professions are considered less honest, and among borrowers with higher income uncertainty. These results suggest that inaccuracy is driven by both deliberate misreporting and genuine uncertainty. (JEL D12, D91, G23, G41) Received: 6 April 2023; Editorial decision: 31 March 2024 Editor: Isil Erel Authors have furnished an Internet Appendix, which is available on the Oxford University Press Web site next to the link to the final published paper online.

Predictors of infectious disease-related behaviors among adolescents in Armenia

Abstract Background We explored the behaviors related to infectious diseases (ID) and its predictors among 15-17 years old adolescents in Armenia. Methods We surveyed adolescents from public and private high schools in Yerevan and one province in 2023. The instrument explored ID-related behaviors, health literacy (HL), interest in health, and socio-demographics. ID-related behaviors were measured with five Yes/No questions about sharing a toothbrush, covering their mouth when coughing or sneezing, and washing hands with soap and water - before eating, after using the bathroom, and when coming home. HL was assessed with ten questions on a scale from ‘Strongly disagree’ to ‘Strongly agree’. Summative scores were calculated for ID-related behaviors and HL. Multivariable regression analysis explored factors associated with ID-related behaviors. Results Overall, 366 students completed the survey, most of them being females (64.4%). The majority were interested in health issues (80.7%). Almost all respondents reported not sharing a toothbrush with other persons (97.9%) and usually covering their mouth when coughing or sneezing in public places (94.1%). Somewhat lower percentages reported washing hands with soap and water before eating (82.0%), after using the bathroom (89.2%), and when coming home (86.6%). The mean behavior score was 4.52 out of 5 (SD = 0.92) and the percent score was 90.4%. The average HL score was 17.41 out of 30 (SD = 4.47). In the regression analysis, being female vs. male, being interested in health vs. not, studying in private vs. public schools, and having higher HL were independent significant predictors for higher score of ID-related behaviors. Conclusions Armenian adolescents reported high levels of compliance with ID-related behaviors. Improving health literacy and fostering interest in health can help further enhance the performance of preventive behaviors. Interventions targeting public schools and male adolescents are particularly pertinent. Key messages • Being female, studying in private schools, having higher interest in health issues, and better health literacy independently positively influence infectious disease-related behaviors. • Promoting health literacy and fostering interest in health in high schools have the potential to further enhance infectious disease prevention behaviors among adolescents.

Labor market policies in high- and low-interest rate environments: Evidence from the euro area

Do labor market policies initiated in periods of loose monetary policy yield different outcomes from those introduced when monetary tightening prevails? Using data from 11 euro-area members up to 2010 – and extending to 17 countries up to 2020 – we analyze three labor market policies: replacement rates, spending on active labor market policies (ALMPs), and employment protection. We find that these policies deliver different macroeconomic outcomes in low- and high-interest rate environments. In particular, ALMPs reduce unemployment if implemented under a loose monetary policy but not otherwise, whereas higher employment protection delivers expansionary effects under a tight monetary policy. These findings highlight that the effectiveness of labor market policies is significantly influenced by the monetary policy environment, emphasizing the need for coordinated policy design. Methodologically, we contribute by proposing to average local projections using Mallow’s Cp criterion, allowing for inferences that are robust to mis-specification and accommodate non-linearities.

Macroeconomic Determinants of Foreign Direct Investment Inflow in Laos

This study aims to study macroeconomic determinants of foreign direct investment inflow in Lao PDR, which includes macroeconomic variables such as gross domestic product growth rate (GDPGRO), government investment spending (GI), exchange rate (EXR), inflation rate (IFR), interest rate (IR), openness trade (OPTR) and money supply (MS) from 2001-2022. This results found that: The foreign direct investment inflow has 12,298.57 million US dollars on an average per year is equal to 559.03 million US dollars and has an average growth rate of 4.73% per year, for the public expenditure used to investment is increasing every year with an average growth rate of 10.96% per year. The exchange rate of kip per US dollar has an increasing trend but overall there is a growth rate equal to 1 digit only in 2022 there is a growth rate equal to 2 digits which is equal to 45.94%. For the inflation, the growth rate is 6.33% per year, which is the year with the lowest inflation rate is 2017 which is equal to 0.83% and the year with the highest inflation rate is 2022 which is equal to 22.96%, The decreasing trend in which the year with the highest interest rate on US currency loans is 2002 which is equal to 13.5% and the year with the lowest interest rate on US currency loans is 2011 which is equal to 8.15%, the open trade has an increasing trend. The year with the highest increase in 2021 is equal to 77.91% of GDP and the money supply is increasing every year. For the analysis of macroeconomic factors to foreign direct investment, it was found that the economic growth rate of gross domestic product (GDPGRO), public investment expenditure, the exchange rate of kip per US dollar and the money supply have a positive coefficient and reject the null hypothesis with a statistical significance level of 0.01 and 0.05 indicates that it is a doubtful factor for foreign direct investment to increase. Meanwhile, the inflation rate has a negative coefficient and rejects the null hypothesis at a statistical significance level of 0.05, which is a factor that reduces foreign direct investment transfers. For the interest rate in dollars and the open trade, there are accepted null hypothesis, it shows that there is no effect on the transfer of foreign direct investment.

#Stand with Ukraine: Analyzing the links between Germans' emotions and their readiness to protest in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine

AbstractThe Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 sparked protests around the globe. Most of Europe had – luckily – not seen violent conflict of this scale on their doorstep for more than 30 years. For Germany, the period was even longer. Being confronted with news about the war drove thousands of German citizens to the streets. In passionate protests, they made various demands of their government. Herein, we investigate the links between Germans' emotions and their readiness to engage in such protests. Drawing on collective action research, we predicted that anger and sympathy would correlate positively with Germans' protest readiness. Given the context and public debate, we predicted that fear should also correlate with protest readiness. Two surveys (total N = 905) conducted with residents of Germany – one day after the invasion and at its first anniversary – supported our hypotheses. We consistently found that the more sympathy and anger respondents experienced, the greater their readiness to protest. Fear explained variance beyond sympathy and anger in two cases and in an information‐seeking measure of protest readiness: Greater fear correlated with a higher interest in demonstrations advocating peace negotiations and a lower interest in demonstrations calling for solidarity with Ukraine. These findings underscore the links between sympathy, anger, fear, and the readiness to protest in response to the contemporary crisis that is the war in Ukraine.

Estimating probability of default via delinquencies? Evidence from European P2P lending market

The unprecedented growth of the financial sector's digital transformation opens wide areas to the scaling up of finance in innovative and knowledge-based projects. Improving risk management takes centre stage in the acceleration of this process. This study uses loan-book data from the peer-to-peer (P2P) lending market to empirically investigate the determinants of default risk. Using the loan-book database covering the period from 2014 to 2020, we examine multiple factors related to the default risk of loans issued by P2P lending platforms. The results indicate that a higher interest rate and higher stock market returns increase the probability of default in the P2P lending market. Results are robust to additional tests based on endogeneity correction, the LASSO method and sampling bias. The severity of the impact of market returns and interest rates is found to be significantly different based on the levels of financial technology (FinTech) adoption and banking sector distress. Increases in the market interest rate are found to boost the sensitivity of P2P loan defaults to stock market volatility. This study contributes to existing literature on risk management models with its consideration of country-specific factors, paving the way to future best practices in the market.

Constraints Faced by Rural Women in Changing Livelihoods in Bangladesh: A Study on the Impact of Microcredit through PDBF

The main purpose of the study is to determine the extent of the constraints faced by the women beneficiaries of Palli Daridro Bimochon Foundation (PDBF) on their socio-economic development and to explore the relationship between the socio-economic characteristics of the beneficiaries and their constraints. A total of 3436 women beneficiaries of three upazilas under 55 districts of PDBF constituted the population of the study. A face-to-face interview survey was conducted to collect data from the randomly selected 346 respondents. Among the 13 selected problem items, ‘high rate of interest’ was ranked first (70.81%), ‘more savings have to be deposited while taking the loan’ was ranked second (68.69%) and third (68.40%) was ‘various income generating activities and social development training are inadequate’ The findings revealed a significant relationship between training exposures, decision-making ability, savings deposit, income-generating activities, communication & network, and constraints faced by PDBF beneficiaries. Therefore, the PDBF authorities should consider significant factors in reducing the constraints faced by rural women to change their livelihoods.

Finnish primary school student teachers’ systems thinking regarding sustainability in connection with reproduction, biodiversity and sustainable development

Systems thinking is considered an important skill when teaching biology and sustainable development in the 21st century. The key to understanding biodiversity and thus sustainability in biology is understanding reproduction as a phenomenon. The aim of this study is to analyse student teachers’ systems thinking levels regarding sustainability in connection with reproduction, biodiversity and sustainable development. Second-year primary school student teachers from one Finnish university (N = 174) participated in a questionnaire, and their open-ended answers were categorized using content analysis. The results indicate that most of the student teachers had a relatively low level of systems thinking concerning sustainable development and its relation to the concepts of biodiversity and reproduction. The study also showed that student teachers with higher interest towards biology had a more sophisticated level of systems thinking. For developing sustainability understanding, teaching focusing on the specific systems thinking skills concerning processing and understanding of wholes is crucial.

How Do Age and Attitudes Affect the Quality of Data Collected by Young Citizen Scientists in an Ecological Research Project?

Citizen science is increasingly used to collect ecological data. Specifically, participation of school students in authentic research has been suggested as having a multitude of benefits from serving as data collection to providing science education. Nevertheless, the overall quality and quantity of data is concerning for ecologists who are using data for research. In the Helsinki Urban Rat Project, lower- and upper secondary school students (13-19-year-old) collect data on urban rat occurrence using track plates that record rat footprints. I measured the success of school-aged citizen scientists in collecting and submitting data, and I determined the accuracy of the data they submitted by comparing their results to the results from professional researchers. Furthermore, I used additional questionnaire to relate success and accuracy to student attributes, including age, attitudes about biology as a school subject, interest in the environment and disgust sensitivity toward rats. I learned that, in contrast to results from previous studies, age was not a significant variable but rather available support from a teacher and voluntary participation with rewards were associated with higher data quality. Additionally, attitudes played a part in observer quality: higher liking of biology as a school subject was associated with lower accuracy, whereas a higher interest in the environment was associated with higher accuracy. The young citizen scientists provided broadly accurate data, although false-positive observations were comparatively common. The results suggest that the quality and quantity of citizen-generated data are not straightforwardly dependent on the selected target groups. Citizen science activities should be planned by careful consideration of the context as, for example, the organization of the participation strongly shapes the participatory activities.

Segmented Market of Indonesian Coffee Exports to International Market: RFM Approach

This study aims to determine the characteristics of coffee products in the international market. Data is collected from coffee product export transaction data from 2011-2021, Indonesia Statistic. Export data were selected based on the Harmony system (HS) code of coffee and its derivatives. The analysis method used is RFM (Recency, Frequency, Monetary) Analysis. The results show that there are 12 categories of coffee products exported to 90 countries divided into 9 regions/zones respectively. Coffee export products with the highest interest are arabica WIB (not roasted and not decaffeinated wet-processed Arabica coffee beans) or Robusta OIB (unroasted, with caffeine) coffee. Then the best markets for coffee products exported by Indonesia are the United States, Japan, Malaysia, Germany, Egypt, Georgia, Australia, United Arab Emirate, and Ecuador. The second-best exported coffee product is roasted coffee, with caffeine, unground that being imported Malaysia, China, and New Zealand. The two categories contribute 98% of export volume of Indonesia’s exported coffee and 78% frequency. The study confirms that the choice of coffee and its derivative products in importing countries is influenced by purchase timing, frequency, and funds used. In addition, purchasing factors are also influenced by the characteristics of consumers and processed industries in these importing countries

Interest in anime and manga: relationship with (mental) health, social disconnectedness, social joy and subjective well-being

Abstract Aim Our aim was to examine the association between interest in anime and manga and their relationship with (mental) health (in terms of depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, health-related quality of life, symptoms of hikikomori), social disconnectedness (in terms of preference for solitude, loneliness, objective social isolation, and perceived social isolation), subjective well-being (in terms of ikigai, life satisfaction, and happiness) and joy (frequency of laughter, and frequency of hugs). Subjects and methods Data were taken from a large sample of the general German adult population aged 18–74 years (n = 4,738 individuals, average age: 46.4 years). Established tools were used to quantify the outcomes. Multiple linear and ordered logistic regressions were used, as appropriate. Results Regressions showed that a higher interest in anime was associated with several adverse mental health and some social disconnectedness outcomes. Contrarily, a higher interest in anime was associated with favorable subjective well-being outcomes, and favorable joy outcomes. Similarly, regressions showed that a higher interest in manga was associated with several adverse (mental) health and some social disconnectedness outcomes. Contrary, it is associated with lower objective social isolation. Moreover, it is not significantly associated with subjective well-being outcomes, but significantly associated with the joy outcome frequency of hugs. Conclusion A higher interest in manga and anime was associated both with negative and positive outcomes. Particularly a higher interest in anime was associated with more favorable subjective well-being scores, laughing and hugging. In this respect, this topic needs to be approached in a very nuanced way.

Macroeconomic Determinants of the Gap between Domestic and International Gold Prices in Vietnam

This research investigates the factors influencing the disparity between domestic gold prices (SJC gold and 9999 gold) and global gold prices in Vietnam from January 2011 to December 2023. Using the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model, we identify key macroeconomic determinants impacting this price spread, including interest rates, oil prices, and consumer demand. Our findings reveal that higher interest rates are associated with larger price spreads, suggesting that monetary policy plays a significant role in the domestic gold market. Oil prices exhibit a negative relationship with the price spread for 9999 gold, indicating that rising oil prices tend to align domestic gold prices more closely with global trends. Consumer demand notably affects the SJC_Global price spread but not the 9999_Global spread, reflecting the different market dynamics of finished goods versus raw materials. Additionally, the error correction terms in both models indicate a robust mechanism for long-term equilibrium, demonstrating the Vietnamese gold market’s resilience. These insights highlight the need for policymakers to reconsider existing regulations, such as Decree 24, to ensure a stable and efficient gold market. The study concludes that while the Vietnamese gold market exhibits sustainable practices, regulatory revisions are necessary to support both market growth and community development. Future research should consider additional macroeconomic variables and the impact of regulatory changes over time to further understand the dynamics of gold price disparities in Vietnam.

Sustainability of lending diversification of sub-Saharan African low-income countries

The momentum in sub-Saharan low-income countries is leading to diversifying their funding sources to cover large infrastructure expenditures. This situation meets the expectations of international investors who are still willing to explore new opportunities. Recent access to the Eurobond market by these new players has resulted in the growing substitution of traditional concessional loans by market ones in countries with low-debt portfolios. Thus, a new sustainability approach is required to include risk premiums and potentially versatile investor behaviors. First, we use a theoretical model to show that in a context of low international interest rates, debtor countries can continue to stabilize their level of debt either through budget deficit, if it remains below a given sustainability threshold, or through budget surplus in a downturn context (high-interest rates and spreads). Second, the versatile behavior of investors could be challenging. Third, global liquidity greatly influences the debt dynamics of SSA countries so it matters more for bond spreads than domestic factors. As our empirical study shows that the current debt situation of sub-Saharan African low-income countries increasingly involved in the Eurobond market remains under control. To avoid the worst-case scenario, strong institutions should be a priority, along with appropriate management tools and methods of debt monitoring to cope with all potential vulnerability caused by undesirable side effects of such unstable behaviors.