This study was motivated by the desire to contribute to the understanding of the movement of house prices and the role of the so-called economic ‘fundamentals’ in the housing market, especially within an Australian context. The core objective of this thesis is to aid understanding of the economic and other mechanisms by which the Australian housing market operates. We do this by constructing an analytical framework, or model, that encompasses the most important characteristics of the housing market. This thesis examines two important aspects of the Australian housing market: movements of house prices and changes in the net capital stock of dwellings in Australia. Movements of house prices are modelled from two perspectives: firstly, using the ‘fundamental’ approach, which explains the phenomena by changes in such ‘fundamental’ explanatory variables as income, interest rates, population and prices of building materials, and secondly, by analysing spatial interdependence of house prices in Australian capital cities. Changes in stock of dwellings were also modelled on the basis of a ‘fundamental’ approach by states and for Australia as a whole...

Thesis (doctoral)--Universiẗat Frankfurt (Main), 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 399-444).

Thesis (doctoral)--Universiẗat Giessen, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 219-229).

Dividend policy, its determinants, and its impact on firm value are of significant academic interest, and many theories and explanations have been posited on the subject over the years, but there has not been a universal agreement. This thesis examines the links between dividend policy, various aspects of stock liquidity and price informativeness. We study a sample of UK firms over the period from 1996-2013. We show that, on average, stocks of dividend payers have significantly lower bid–ask spread and a lower illiquidity ratio than their counterparts of non-dividend payers. We also find that stocks of high-dividend payers are more liquid than those of firms that pay low or no dividends. These findings are consistent with the predictions of asymmetric information that posit that paying dividends reveals inside information to the market and hence decreases the level of asymmetric information, leading to higher stock liquidity. In the subsequent analysis, we suggest and examine a new channel through which dividend policy can impact firm value. Specifically, we show that dividend payers are less exposed to shocks in the aggregate market liquidity than non-dividend payers. Similarly, we find that the systematic liquidity risk is negatively associated with amount of dividends. Finally, in the context of signalling and agency costs models, we show that dividends are negatively related to stock price informativeness and that this relationship is stronger for firms with lower stock liquidity. The findings imply that dividend policy can both affect and be affected by stock markets.

Submitted by Filipe dos Santos (fsantos@pucsp.br) on 2018-11-22T11:43:40Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Pedro Kelson Batinga de Mendonça.pdf: 1630268 bytes, checksum: afa2c96c6a163568d281df37e5e2cce3 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-11-22T11:43:40Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Pedro Kelson Batinga de Mendonça.pdf: 1630268 bytes, checksum: afa2c96c6a163568d281df37e5e2cce3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-09-26 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / The present paper sought to study three civil society organizations in São Paulo with political impact: the Virada Política; Bancada Ativista and Rede de Ação Política pela Sustentabilidade, aiming to analyze how the Social Capital of each one is given, starting from the hypotheses that i) organizations that are more on the front of the public debate tend to have more closed cooperation models ; ii) Organizational structure, cooperation models, internal group plurality, purpose and networks of relations with other organizations are predominant factors for the strengthening of Social Capital; and (iii) more vertical organizations tend to have more fragile trust ties than more self-managed ones. These organizations were chosen because they are managed by young people and seek to broad social participation in politics and qualify Brazilian democracy. The conceptual discussion was made in two chapters – the first looks at the social and political context we are living, focusing on the global crisis of democracy and the changes in social structure caused by the technological revolution. The second presents a debate among several authors on Social Capital, althought Types of Cooperation and Nature of relational Ties. The research was done through a quantitative questionnaire sent to the three different groups and analyzed through participant observation. Among other things, the research shows that the horizontality in the management of these organizations tends to confront the internal plurality of their members and that, as much in the front of political debate, more closed they become / O presente trabalho buscou estudar três organizações da sociedade civil de São Paulo com incidência política: a Virada Política; Bancada Ativista e a Rede de Ação Política pela Sustentabilidade com o objetivo de analisar como se dão os capitais sociais de cada uma, partindo-se das hipóteses que i) organizações que estão mais no front do debate público tendem a ter modelos de cooperação mais fechados; ii) Estrutura organizacional, modelos de cooperação, pluralidade interna do grupo, propósito e redes de relações com outras organizações são fatores predominantes para o fortalecimento de Capital Social; e iii) As organizações mais verticalizadas tendem a ter vínculos de confiança mais frágeis do que aquelas mais autogeridas. Essas organizações foram escolhidas pois são geridas por jovens e buscam ampliar a participação social na política e qualificar a democracia brasileira. A discussão conceitual foi feita em dois capítulos – o primeiro olha para o contexto social e político que estamos vivendo, com foco na crise global da democracia e nas mudanças de estrutura social geradas pela revolução tecnológica. O segundo para traça um debate entre diversos autores sobre o Capital Social, Tipos de Cooperação e Natureza dos Laços relacionais. A pesquisa foi feita através de um questionário quantitativo enviado para os três diferentes grupos e analisado através de observação participante. Entre outras coisas, a pesquisa mostra que a horizontalidade na gestão dessas organizações tende a ir de encontro com a pluralidade interna de seus membros e que, quanto mais no papel de embate político, mais fechadas elas se tornam

Nas últimas décadas, a China obteve um crescimento econômico robusto. Dados mostram que o produto chinês, entre 1980 e 2010, teve uma média anual de crescimento de 9,5%. Esse aumento do produto permitiu que as condições de vida de milhões de pessoas melhorassem via incremento da renda e consumo. No entanto, esse crescimento também produziu desequilíbrios ambientais, uma vez que a consequente modernização se deu com base no elevado consumo de carvão. Atualmente a China consome quase 50% do carvão mundial, sendo a primeira em produção de energia elétrica e emissões absolutas de CO2, sendo que o carvão possui um papel preponderante em sua matriz energética. Frente a essa realidade, este trabalho propõe um modelo para analisar o papel do carvão como variável de energia no crescimento econômico chinês. A abordagem teórica baseou-se na função de produção do tipo Cobb-Douglas, que foi estimada por um modelo um VAR-VEC (Modelo de Autoregressão Vetorial com correção de Erro). O período de análise compreende 1980 a 2010. Busca-se relacionar o peso do carvão, capital e trabalho com o comportamento do PIB chinês. A variável capital foi testada de duas formas distintas. O primeiro modelo utilizou uma variável de capital construída, baseada em Conesa et al. (1999), enquanto que o segundo modelo utilizou a formação bruta de capital fixa, variável utilizada para representar o estoque de capital. Os resultados dos dois modelos apontam que carvão, capital e trabalho apresentaram um bom poder de explicação sobre o crescimento do PIB chinês em ambos os modelos. Porém, o modelo com a variável de capital construída mostrou melhores resultados para os coeficientes de relações contemporâneas e elasticidades impulso-resposta. Observou-se também que, em ambos os modelos, o carvão teve uma importância considerável na determinação do PIB chinês quando analisado pela função de impulso-resposta. / In recent decades, China has achieved robust economic growth. Data show that the Chinese product between 1980 and 2010 had an average annual growth of 9,5%. This increase in output allowed the living conditions of millions of people would improve through increased income and consumption. However, this growth has also produced environmental disturbances, because the resulting modernization was made based on high coal consumption. Currently China consumes nearly 50% of world coal, the first production of electric power and absolute CO2 emissions, with coal has a major role in its energy matrix. Facing this reality, this work proposes a model to analyze the role of coal as an energy variable in Chinese economic growth. The theoretical approach was based on the production function of the Cobb-Douglas, which was estimated by a model a VAR-VEC (Model autoregression Vector with error correction). The analysis period covers 1980 to 2010. The aim is to relate the weight of coal, capital and work with the Chinese GDP behavior. The capital variable was tested in two ways. The first model employed a variable capital constructed based on Conesa et al. (1999), while the second model used the gross formation of fixed capital, variable this commonly used for capital stock. The results of both models indicate that coal, capital and labor had a good explanatory power of the Chinese GDP growth in both models. However, the model with the built capital variable showed better results for the contemporary relations coefficients and impulse response elasticities. It was also observed that in both models, coal had a considerable importance in determining the Chinese GDP when analyzed by the impulse response function.

CAPES / A ação antrópica é a principal responsável pela degradação ambiental e, ao mesmo tempo, a única capaz de revertê-la, e para isso a sociedade precisa reconhecer que faz parte do meio ambiente e integrar-se a ele. A presente dissertação tem como objetivo principal avaliar os impactos socioambientais da implantação do ICMS Ecológico nas propriedades ribeirinhas da comunidade Manduri, em Marmeleiro – PR. Para isso realizou-se uma pesquisa socioambiental, de cunho quali-quantitativo, tendo como instrumentos de coleta de dados, questionários e entrevistas. Entendeuse que o Programa ICMS Ecológico possibilitou, através de recursos financeiros, o isolamento das matas ciliares e a readequação de estradas rurais em uma pequena comunidade rural. O diferencial da execução destas cercas foi o capital social preservado naquele contexto, e que também continua contribuindo para a preservação e recuperação ambiental da Comunidade. Percebeu-se que a maior preocupação da comunidade e o principal motivo que os levou a recuperar a mata ciliar, é a relação de importância entre áreas de preservação permanente e a qualidade e quantidade de água disponível. Deve-se também considerar, os relatos que destacaram a carência de fiscalização e de orientação por parte dos órgãos ambientais. / The human action is primarily responsible for environmental degradation and at the same time the only way to reverse it, so that society needs to be embedded in the environment and definitely a part of it. This thesis aims to evaluate the environmental impacts of the implementation of the Ecological ICMS on properties riverine community in Manduri Marmeleiro - PR. For this we used an environmental survey of qualitative and quantitative nature, and as a tool for data collection questionnaires and interviews. It was understood that the Ecological ICMS Program funding allowed through the isolation of riparian forests and the readjustment of rural roads in a small rural community where the capital this set in the context of conservation and environmental restoration. It was noticed that the biggest concern of the community and the main reason that led them to recover riparian, is the relationship between importance of permanent preservation areas with the quality and quantity of water available. One should take into account the reports that highlight the lack of supervision and guidance from environmental agencies.

CAPES / A ação antrópica é a principal responsável pela degradação ambiental e, ao mesmo tempo, a única capaz de revertê-la, e para isso a sociedade precisa reconhecer que faz parte do meio ambiente e integrar-se a ele. A presente dissertação tem como objetivo principal avaliar os impactos socioambientais da implantação do ICMS Ecológico nas propriedades ribeirinhas da comunidade Manduri, em Marmeleiro – PR. Para isso realizou-se uma pesquisa socioambiental, de cunho quali-quantitativo, tendo como instrumentos de coleta de dados, questionários e entrevistas. Entendeuse que o Programa ICMS Ecológico possibilitou, através de recursos financeiros, o isolamento das matas ciliares e a readequação de estradas rurais em uma pequena comunidade rural. O diferencial da execução destas cercas foi o capital social preservado naquele contexto, e que também continua contribuindo para a preservação e recuperação ambiental da Comunidade. Percebeu-se que a maior preocupação da comunidade e o principal motivo que os levou a recuperar a mata ciliar, é a relação de importância entre áreas de preservação permanente e a qualidade e quantidade de água disponível. Deve-se também considerar, os relatos que destacaram a carência de fiscalização e de orientação por parte dos órgãos ambientais. / The human action is primarily responsible for environmental degradation and at the same time the only way to reverse it, so that society needs to be embedded in the environment and definitely a part of it. This thesis aims to evaluate the environmental impacts of the implementation of the Ecological ICMS on properties riverine community in Manduri Marmeleiro - PR. For this we used an environmental survey of qualitative and quantitative nature, and as a tool for data collection questionnaires and interviews. It was understood that the Ecological ICMS Program funding allowed through the isolation of riparian forests and the readjustment of rural roads in a small rural community where the capital this set in the context of conservation and environmental restoration. It was noticed that the biggest concern of the community and the main reason that led them to recover riparian, is the relationship between importance of permanent preservation areas with the quality and quantity of water available. One should take into account the reports that highlight the lack of supervision and guidance from environmental agencies.

Magister Artium (Development Studies) - MA(DVS) / Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) which is caused by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is not only an epidemiological problem but also one of the developmental challenges in developing countries. The epidemic is severely affecting the productive part of the population (15 to 49 age range), that is believed to be ‘the motor of development’. Ethiopia is one of the Sub-Saharan African countries whose economy is affected by the epidemic. The country is assigned along with India, China, Nigeria and Russia as the ‘next wave of HIV/AIDS’ with large populations at risk from HIV infection, that will overtake the current epidemic prevalence rate in central and southern Africa (NIC, 2002). The epidemic is also among the challenges facing the agricultural sector of the country which provides half of the country’s GDP. Although agriculture is the backbone of the economy, little effort has been made to estimate the impact of the epidemic and many existing studies focus on urban areas instead of rural areas. Therefore, the research reported on in this thesis assesses the extent and channels of the impact of HIV/AIDS on agricultural production. The research measured the extent of the impact of the epidemic on factors of production such as labor, capital stock and land use, which are the determinants of agricultural production. The research was conducted in Ada’a district in Eastern Showa province, Ethiopia, which is one of the top agricultural production areas of the country and also one of the most vulnerable areas for HIV/AIDS. Stratified random sampling and judgmental sampling techniques were employed to identify sample cases. In addition, both primary and secondary data sources were used to gather the required data/information. The primary sources of data collection methods include PRA, individual interviews, focus groups, photographs and observations. Secondary sources include reports from governmental and nongovernmental organizations, health centers, agricultural bureaus, books, newspapers, the internet, etc. The collected data was analyzed by using spread sheets-2003. The interpretation of the results was supported by graphs, tables and photos. Two stages of ordinary least square (OLS) estimation were done. The first stage was to estimate the impact of HIV/AIDS on production factors whereas the second stage estimation was done to estimate the impact of HIV/AIDS on output (income) of farmers via the impacts on factors of production. The findings of the analysis indicated that HIV/AIDS has been affecting factors of production significantly, i.e. by reducing labor-hours, depleting the capital stock of farmers and by its impact on the use of land (reducing the amount of land cultivated). The findings also indicated that HIV/AIDS has been decreasing the agricultural income of farmers.

To establish the economic impact of petroleum in the UK, this paper uses the synthetic control method. By constructing an artificial UK economy without oil, from the donor pool of OECD economies, it establishes the counterfactual time path of capital stock the UK would have had if it lacked the petroleum endowment. Comparing the observed time path of capital stock with its counterfactual, one can witness that the petroleum extraction has reduced the UK’s capital stock with an average of 17 % since 1970, despite the UK having arguably the best quality of institutions. Dose-response tests suggest that it is possible to attribute the impact to the petroleum production. Performed robustness and sensitivity tests together with several falsification tests show that the result is robust to alternations in the donor pool, the predictor variables and alternative explanations. The finding raises a question regarding the quality of institutions, advanced by Mehlum, Moene and Torvik and claimed that the resource curse only occurs in economies with low quality of institutions.