<p>The ongoing financial crisis which has upset the financial markets of the world since the late summer of 2007 has not left Swedish corporations unaffected. Strategies which can be adapted within the firm to improve liquidity and cash flows concern the management of working capital and cash management, areas which are usually neglected in times of favourable business conditions.</p><p>In this study it is examined how companies have adjusted their liquidity strategies before the crisis started to spread worldwide and a year afterwards, in the beginning of the 2009 when economies are in the middle of the turbulence, still feeling the consequences of the financial crisis and not yet started to recover. Research problem consisted of two main questions:</p><p><em>Do active liquidity strategies have a positive effect on company’s profitability in times of financial turbulence/ economic turbulence? </em></p><p><em> </em></p><p><em>Have the importance of key ratios in the measurement of liquidity changed during the time period?</em></p><p>The primary purpose of the study was to evaluate and compare the use and extent of the liquidity practices in two time points. Furthermore, the aim was to measure if the changing of liquidity strategy is related to the profitability measured by return on assets (ROA).</p><p>Sample consisted of companies listed on Stockholm Stock Exchange’s Small and Mid cap- lists, with some restrictions. The quantitative research strategy was employed and data was collected by using telephone interviews and financial ratios from financial statements. Hypotheses tested different aspects of cash management and liquidity practices. Statistical analysis was conducted by using regression analysis of the change scores and profitability.</p><p>Overall findings suggested that the adaptation of liquidity strategies do not have a significant impact on ROA. Only increased use of liquidity forecasting and short-term financing during financial crisis had a positive impact on ROA. Moreover, it was found that the importance of the key ratios monitoring companies liquidity have not changed between the studied time points. Working capital ratio is the most commonly used liquidity measurement and in addition the use of working capital and DIO metrics has increased most during the crisis.</p><p>More frequent monitoring and forecasting on liquidity levels and making more short-term investments can provide gains in profitability Based on the findings the adjustment of liquidity practices is beneficial for the companies, even though benefits are not always directly measurable in profitability. Furthermore, companies are recommended to maintain their focus on liquidity and working capital management in an economic downturn.</p><p> </p>

The ongoing financial crisis which has upset the financial markets of the world since the late summer of 2007 has not left Swedish corporations unaffected. Strategies which can be adapted within the firm to improve liquidity and cash flows concern the management of working capital and cash management, areas which are usually neglected in times of favourable business conditions. In this study it is examined how companies have adjusted their liquidity strategies before the crisis started to spread worldwide and a year afterwards, in the beginning of the 2009 when economies are in the middle of the turbulence, still feeling the consequences of the financial crisis and not yet started to recover. Research problem consisted of two main questions: Do active liquidity strategies have a positive effect on company’s profitability in times of financial turbulence/ economic turbulence?   Have the importance of key ratios in the measurement of liquidity changed during the time period? The primary purpose of the study was to evaluate and compare the use and extent of the liquidity practices in two time points. Furthermore, the aim was to measure if the changing of liquidity strategy is related to the profitability measured by return on assets (ROA). Sample consisted of companies listed on Stockholm Stock Exchange’s Small and Mid cap- lists, with some restrictions. The quantitative research strategy was employed and data was collected by using telephone interviews and financial ratios from financial statements. Hypotheses tested different aspects of cash management and liquidity practices. Statistical analysis was conducted by using regression analysis of the change scores and profitability. Overall findings suggested that the adaptation of liquidity strategies do not have a significant impact on ROA. Only increased use of liquidity forecasting and short-term financing during financial crisis had a positive impact on ROA. Moreover, it was found that the importance of the key ratios monitoring companies liquidity have not changed between the studied time points. Working capital ratio is the most commonly used liquidity measurement and in addition the use of working capital and DIO metrics has increased most during the crisis. More frequent monitoring and forecasting on liquidity levels and making more short-term investments can provide gains in profitability Based on the findings the adjustment of liquidity practices is beneficial for the companies, even though benefits are not always directly measurable in profitability. Furthermore, companies are recommended to maintain their focus on liquidity and working capital management in an economic downturn.

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Texte remanié de: Dissertation--Leipzig--Universität, 2003. / Bibliogr. p. 229-245.

Syfte: Syftet med denna uppsats är att studera om förändringar i arbetet med rörelsekapital hade ett samband med lönsamheten i företag. Som mått på rörelsekapital används Cash Conversion Cycle och som mått på lönsamhet används ROA. Teoretiskt perspektiv: Den teoretiska referensramen består av teorier om Working Capital Management, Cash Conversion Cycle, Lean, Supply Chain Management och Supply Chain Finance. Metod: I denna uppsats används en kvantitativ metod där sekundärdata samlas in från årsredovisningar för 2005 och 2013. Denna data ligger till grund för fyra korrelationsanalyser. Den beroende variabeln i korrelationsanalyserna är ROA och defyra oberoende variablerna är Cash Conversion Cycle, dagar i lager, dagar som kundfordring och dagar som leverantörsskuld. Urvalet i denna studie består av svenska aktiebolag inom branschen tillverkning och industri med fler än 50 anställda. Empiri: Empirin består av fyra tabeller som presenterar de beräkningar som gjorts. Slutsats: Sambandet mellan förändring i Cash Conversion Cycle och förändring i ROA blev väldigt svagt positivt men inte signifikant. Alla förändringar i dagar i lager, dagar som kundfordring och dagar som leverantörsskuld visade svaga negativa samband till ROA och var signifikanta.

This thesis investigates the performance of Swedish listed family-controlled firms using re-turn on assets (ROA) and Tobin’s Q as performance measures. Results show that found-ing-family firms perform 6.1 % better than other firms for ROA. Firm-specific knowledge of the founder-CEO is the main cause of the enhanced performance. The results are not robust to residual testing which suggests caution when drawing conclusions from these re-sults. The main contribution of this thesis is an empirical analysis of family insider repre-sentation and the relation to ROA and Tobin’s Q in a sample consisting entirely of Swedish firms.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:26:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2013-08-02Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T20:47:34Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 giacon_gm_me_assis.pdf: 815140 bytes, checksum: ef186d28613bf13b30d713c57927ec24 (MD5) / A literatura roabastiana sai da estante dos clássicos literários e vem a público, a fim de demonstrar sua face historiográfica e intelectual, quando expõe os vícios políticos, os medos, a cultura da sociedade paraguaia em seus “anos de chumbo”. Este trabalho visa entender a visão da ditadura estronista e da história paraguaia construída pelo escritor, roteirista e crítico literário Antonio Augusto Roa Bastos, que ganhou o mundo das letras com sua obra prima Yo, el Supremo (1974) que se constituiu uma mordaz crítica ao autoritarismo paraguaio. Este intelectual se tornou ícone da literatura paraguaia e latino- americana pela sua qualidade técnica, mas também, pela escrita compromissada desenvolvida ao longo de sua carreira literária. O exílio forçado de 1947 até 1994 tornou este escritor um cidadão do mundo e permitiu que sua visão da realidade se tornasse ampla, pois as fronteiras territoriais se apagaram. O ponto de partida de sua escrita compromissada é sua terra natal: o Paraguai, do qual, discute seus problemas políticos e sociais por meio dos fatos históricos. Por fim, em seus textos representa situações comuns ao continente americano como sendo traços de uma sociedade autoritária e violenta, na qual o sofrimento humano e a resistência política estão enraizados. Além das propostas citadas há a intenção de compreender a posição do intelectual Roa Bastos frente ao regime estronista por meio da crítica social empreendida pelo autor nos romances Yo, el Supremo (1974) e El Fiscal (1993). Ler-se-á o contexto político que produziu essas obras. Para tanto é preciso compreender a realidade política paraguaia retratada pelo romancista, pois, a nosso ver é preciso conhecer o cenário político paraguaio, no qual a obra foi gestada. Cabe ressaltar que essa realidade política foi marcada pelo autoritarismo ao longo do século XX... / The literature roabastiana out the shelf of literary classics and goes public in order to demonstrate their intellectual and historiographical face when exposes the political vices, fears, culture of Paraguayan society in his years of lead. This work aims to understand the vision of the dictatorship estronista and history built by Paraguayan writer, screenwriter and literary critic Antonio Augusto Roa Bastos, who won the world of letters with his masterpiece I, the Suprem (1974) which was a scathing critique of authoritarianism in Paraguay. This intellectual became an icon of Paraguayan literature and Latin American for its technical quality, but also committed for writing developed throughout his literary career. The forced exile from 1947 until 1994 this writer became a citizen of the world and allowed his vision of reality became wide as territorial boundaries faded. The starting point of your writing committed is their homeland: Paraguay, which discusses his political and social problems through the facts history.And finally writer in his texts, represents situations common to the American continent as traces of a violent and authoritarian society in which human suffering and political resistance are rooted. Besides the above mentioned proposals is the intention of understanding the intellectual Roa Bastos opposite regime stronist through social criticism undertaken by the author in the novels I,the Suprem (1974) and El fiscal (1993). Reading will be the political context that produced these works. For this it is necessary to understand the political reality portrayed by Paraguayan novelist because, in our view it is necessary to know the scenario Paraguayan politician, in which the work was gestated. Note that this political reality was marked by authoritarianism throughout the twentieth century... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)

Submitted by Aline Batista (alinehb.ufpel@gmail.com) on 2014-09-05T14:12:29Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 19874 bytes, checksum: 38cb62ef53e6f513db2fb7e337df6485 (MD5) DISSERTAÇÃO DE MESTRADO - JULIANA MOROSINO versão definitiva.pdf: 1473729 bytes, checksum: 3c3e89a3d649ee35bc33e8d0db40865a (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Aline Batista (alinehb.ufpel@gmail.com) on 2014-09-05T14:15:06Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 19874 bytes, checksum: 38cb62ef53e6f513db2fb7e337df6485 (MD5) DISSERTAÇÃO DE MESTRADO - JULIANA MOROSINO versão definitiva.pdf: 1473729 bytes, checksum: 3c3e89a3d649ee35bc33e8d0db40865a (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2014-09-05T14:15:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 19874 bytes, checksum: 38cb62ef53e6f513db2fb7e337df6485 (MD5) DISSERTAÇÃO DE MESTRADO - JULIANA MOROSINO versão definitiva.pdf: 1473729 bytes, checksum: 3c3e89a3d649ee35bc33e8d0db40865a (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-03 / Sem bolsa / Essa dissertação de Mestrado apresenta uma leitura analítica dos contos do paraguaio Augusto Roa Bastos “La excavación”, “La gran solución” e “El prisioneiro” em comparação ao romance La ciudad y los perros do peruano Mario Vargas Llosa. Tal estudo consiste em observar as representações do autoritarismo nessas obras que, permeadas por contextos de dura repressão político-social, apresentam a partir de duas perspectivas diferentes uma mimesis da realidade política autoritária do Paraguai e Peru entre os anos 40 e 60. Nesse sentido, a partir da leitura alcançada nesse estudo, depreende-se que as obras ficcionais dos autores paraguaio e peruano selecionadas apresentam uma desobediência ao discurso oficial, inserindo, por meio da ficção, elementos que requerem o preenchimento das lacunas existentes na história de seus países. O aporte teórico adotado para subsidiar o presente estudo compõe-se pela Teoria Crítica da Sociedade, com base em pensamentos de teóricos como Walter Benjamim e Theodor Adorno. A crítica literária tomada como suporte para as reflexões desse estudo é basicamente de produção latino-americana, com destaque aos textos de Ángel Rama e Néstor Canclini. / This post-graduation thesis presents an analytical reading of the short stories of Paraguayan Augusto Roa Bastos “La excavación”, “La gran solución” and “El prisioneiro” in comparison to the novel La ciudad y los perros of Peruvian Mario Vargas Llosa. Such study consists in observing the representations of authoritarianism in those works that, permeated by tough political contexts of social repression, present from two different perspectives a mimesis of the authoritarian political reality of Paraguay and Peru between the 40s and the 60s. In this sense, based on the reading reached on this study, it appears that the fictional works of the Paraguayan and Peruvian authors selected present a disobedience to the official discourse, inserting elements through fiction that require the filling of gaps in the history of their countries. The theoretical framework adopted to support this study is formed by the Critical Theory of Society, based on the thoughts of theorists such as Walter Benjamim and Theodor Adorno. The literary criticism taken as support for the reflections of this study is basically Latin American production, with emphasis on texts by Ángel Rama and Nestor Canclini.

The problem of performance and scalability of web applications is challenged by most of the software companies. It is difficult to maintain the performance of a web application while the number of users is continuously increasing. The common solution for this problem is scalability. A web application can handle incoming and outgoing requests using blocking or non-blocking Input/Output operation. The way that a single server handles requests affects its ability to scale and depends on a web framework that was used to build the web application. It is especially important for Resource Oriented Architecture (ROA) based applications which consist of distributed Representational State Transfer (REST) web services. This research was inspired by a real problem stated by a software company that was considering the migration to the non-blocking web framework but did not know the possible profits. The objective of the research was to evaluate the influence of web framework&apos;s type on the performance of ROA based applications and to provide guidelines for assessing profits of migration from blocking to non-blocking JVM web frameworks. First, internet ranking was used to obtain the list of the most popular web frameworks. Then, the web frameworks were used to conduct two experiments that investigated the influence of web framework&apos;s type on the performance of ROA based applications. Next, the consultations with software architects were arranged in order to find a method for approximating the performance of overall application. Finally, the guidelines were prepared based on the consultations and the results of the experiments. Three blocking and non-blocking highly ranked and JVM based web frameworks were selected. The first experiment showed that the non-blocking web frameworks can provide performance up to 2.5 times higher than blocking web frameworks in ROA based applications. The experiment performed on existing application showed average 27\% performance improvement after the migration. The elaborated guidelines successfully convinced the company that provided the application for testing to conduct the migration on the production environment. The experiment results proved that the migration from blocking to non-blocking web frameworks increases the performance of web application. The prepared guidelines can help software architects to decide if it is worth to migrate. However the guidelines are context depended and further investigation is needed to make it more general.

This thesis aims to analyze the significance of the impact of low interest rates on profitability of banks in the Czech Republic. Profitability of banks is examined through an analysis of the financial profitability ratios on a sample of 6 banks in the period 2004 to 2014. A more detailed analysis and a better assessment of the impact of low interest rates on bank profitability are used decomposition of return on equity, which did not show the effect of low interest rates on return on assets. A more relevant indicator for assessing the impact of low interest rates is the net interest margin, reflecting a negative impact with half of all banks. The financial analysis results were confirmed in a subsequent regression analysis, which examined a variety of internal and external determinants of profitability including the impact of low interest rates. The impact of low interest rates, there was again demonstrated only in the net interest margin, but it certainly can not talk about the dominant factor.