University of Macau / Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities. / Department of Government and Public Administration

University of Macau / Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities / Department of Government and Public Administration

This diploma thesis is focused on main aspects of the economic cooperation between Norway and Czech Republic. Theoretical part describes main determinants of international economic cooperation. The analytical part analyses business environment in both countries, an influence of European Union on the economic cooperation, an activity of investment agencies and SWOT analysis of the Norwegian market. One chapter is focused on an import of the natural gas from Norway to Czech Republic, which is the most important part of the economic cooperation.

Doctorat en sciences sociales, politiques et économiques / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

This dissertation is composed of three essays related to Financial Architecture. <p><p>The first essay, analysed in the first chapter of the thesis, contributes to the literature on Efficient Market Hypothesis and in particular in understanding several issues associated with how prices are determined for individual stocks. The chapter, in particular, provides further evidence of price and volume effects associated with index compositional changes by analysing the inclusions (exclusions) from the French CAC40 and SBF120 indices, as well as the FTSE100. I find evidence supporting the price pressure hypothesis associated with index fund rebalancing, but weak or no evidence for the imperfect substitution, liquidity and information hypotheses. The results improve on recent evidence from the S&P500 index. The evidence for the FTSE100 additions shows, in particular, that markets learn about an imminent inclusion and incorporate this information into prices, even before the announcement date.<p><p>The other two essays of this thesis relate to Corporate Governance issues. Chapters 2 and 3, in particular, analyze some aspects of two corporate governance mechanisms: ownership concentration and managerial labour market. <p>Chapter 2 provides an overview of the evolution of control in listed Slovenian corporations and evaluates the impact of the current changes in ownership on firm performance. Ownership and control has been concentrating in most transition countries. This consolidation of control introduces changes in the power distribution within privatised firms and, most importantly, redirects the corporate governance problem to a conflict between large and small shareholders. The chapter evaluate the ownership changes in Slovenian privatised firms through an analysis of stock price reactions to the entrance of a new blockholder (the shared benefits of control) and through an estimation of the premiums paid for large blocks (the private benefits of control). It provides evidence and discuss the reasons for the failures of the privatization investment funds in implementing control over firm managers and in promoting the restructuring of firms in the first post-privatization years.<p><p>Chapter 3 concentrates on one specific aspect of the managerial labour market: monetary remuneration schemes. The purpose of this chapter is to examine the interconnection between pay and corporate governance approaches with respect to the different rules found across European legal systems. The research data on reported pay practices for 2001 among FTSE Eurotop300 companies reveal a reliance on performance-based pay generally and a somewhat variable adoption of share options programs and other equity-based incentive contracts, which generate difficulties in dispersed ownership systems. Furthermore, on the basis of the regulation on executive remuneration disclosure discussed in this chapter and on the basis of the disclosure practices resulting from the data collected for the FTSE Eurotop300 constituents, I construct some disclosure indicators and analyse empirically how country and firm characteristics affect remuneration disclosure.<p> / Doctorat en sciences économiques, Orientation économie / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Thesis (MA (Political Science))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Political risk analysis is considered one of the essential ingredients in decision making processes when investing abroad. The Iranian Revolution and the oil crisis in the 1970s accentuated this need as investors increasingly felt the need for a proper assessment of the risks involved in establishing a business in other countries. Negative images of African countries combined with conventional risk models which are not able to accurately assess the political risk realities of post-conflict African countries, may be one of the reasons for why African countries struggle to attract a substantial amount of FDI. This study suggests that alternative risk models which are more African-orientated may aid in improving this situation. This study has analysed the political risk of Sierra Leone using a conventional risk model, and an African-orientated political risk model. The aim of this study was to assess whether conventional political risk models need to be adjusted to be able to more accurately assess the political risk of post-conflict African countries. The main research question guiding this study was:  Are conventional risk models able to objectively rate the political risk of post-conflict countries in Africa? The conclusion of this research was that African-orientated political risk models are able to more accurately assess the political risk of a post-conflict African country such as Sierra Leone. This is mainly due to the soft variables used in a political risk model and also the relationship between the variables included in the models. The African-orientated political risk model needs to be analysed further, but this research has made clear the need for a reevaluation of existing political risk models to be better equipped when analysing post-conflict African countries. This will not only benefit African post-conflict countries in improving their risk ratings, but also provide foreign investors with a more accurate identification of the potential political risks facing an investment in post-conflict African countries. It was acknowledged in this study that the political risk analyses of Sierra Leone were not conducted by someone who has inside information of the political risk models used which is a limitation iii for the results of this study. It is, however, possible to detect potential weaknesses with each political risk model and possible areas of improvements. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Politieke Risiko Analise word as een van die belangrikste bestandele in die besluitnemingsproses geag wanneer daar oorsee belê word. Die Iranese Rewolusie en die Olie krisis in die 1970’s het hierdie nood beklemtoon, aangesien beleggers toenemend die belang van deurdagte assesering van die risikos in verband met die oprigting en instandhouding van besighede in ander lande erken het. Negatiewe opvattings van Afrika lande, tesame met konventionele risiko modelle wat nie geskik is on akkurate asseserings van politike risiko realiteite op te lewer, is dalk van die redes waarom Afrika lande sukkel om groot Direkte Buitelandse Beleggings te lok. Hierdie studie stel voor dat alternatiewe risiko modelle wat meer Afrika-gesind van aard is die situasie kan help oorbrug. Hierdie studie het die politieke risiko situasie van die Sierra Leone analiseer aangaande‘n konvensionele riskio model en met behulp van’n Afrika-georienteerde politieke risiko model. Die studie het gepoog om te assesseer of die konvensionele modelle van politieke risiko gewysig moet word om in staat te wees om meer akkuraat te oordeel in verband met politieke risiko in post-konflik Afrika lande. Die hoof navorsingsvraag wat die studie gedryf het is die volgende: Is die konvensionele risiko modelle in staat om objektief te werk te gaan om die politieke risiko van post-konflik lande in Afrika te meet? Die gevolgtrekking van hierdie navorsing is dat die Afrika-georienteerde politieke risiko modelle meer gepas is om die politike risiko van post-konflik lande soos Sierra Leone te meet. Dit is hoofsaaklik die geval weens die sagte veranderlikes wat gebruik word in’n politieke risiko model asook die verband tussen die veranderlikes wat in die model ingesluit word. Die Afrika-georienteerde politieke risiko model moet verder uitgebrei word, alhoewel hierdie navorsing dit duidelik maak dat die belang bestaan vir‘n herevaluering van die bestaande politieke risiko modelle om beter toegerus te wees om analise van post-konflik Afrika lande uit te voer. Dit word erken dat hierdie studie van die politieke risiko van Sierra Leone nie uitgevoer was deur iemand wat‘n intieme kennis van politieke risiko modelle het nie. Dit is uiteindelik wel moontlik on potensiele swak plekke in die mondering van elke politieke risiko model uit te sonder, en moontlike areas van verbetering voor te stel.