The world has faced tumultuous times in recent years with the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the Russian invasion of Ukraine causing the stock market to be unusually volatile. During such times investors tend to flee to alternative investment opportunities that are uncorrelated or negatively correlated with the stock market, called safe-haven assets. Traditionally, the most prominent safe-haven asset has been gold but with the rise of cryptocurrencies as a new asset class there has been much speculation if they could act as a safe-haven against the stock market. The leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin is often the main target for such research and has even been called “digital gold”. However, some studies have explored the possibility that the second largest cryptocurrency Ethereum has an even greater potential as a safe-have asset. With the stock market crash in 2020 providing the first “real” test if cryptocurrencies can behave as safe-haven assets a myriad of papers on the topic have been published. However, little research has been done taking on the perspective of a Swedish investor. This thesis aims to fill this research gap by investigating whether the two major cryptocurrencies Bitcoin and Ethereum have acted as safe-havens towards the Swedish stock index OMX30 during the COVID-19 crisis and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. For this purpose, DCC-GARCH analysis was conducted, and the results were compared with gold as benchmark of how a more traditional safe-haven asset has behaved. The findings in this study showed that neither Bitcoin or Ethereum have acted as safe-havens during the COVID-19 crisis or the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The study also finds that gold did not act as a safe-haven for the COVID-19 crisis while it did during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. These findings imply that Bitcoin and Ethereum seem to be unable to act as “digital gold” for Swedish investors in a safe-haven and hedging sense. Instead, these cryptocurrencies have only provided diversification benefits during the recent stock market turmoil.

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Das Ausmaß der Zerstörung von Kulturgut im bewaffneten Konflikt stellt die internationale Gemeinschaft vor neue Herausforderungen. In vorliegender Arbeit werden die Präventionspflichten der Staaten in Friedenszeiten nach dem Humanitären Völkerrecht in Abgrenzung zu friedensvertraglichen Regelungen beleuchtet. Dabei werden zur Konzeptualisierung der Prävention die Dimensionen der Verhaltens- und der Verhältnisprävention unterschieden und auf die Normen des Völkerrechts übertragen. Das aufkommende Konzept des safe haven wird als potentiell präventive Maßnahme analysiert und kritisch gewürdigt.

Under de senaste 14 åren har den svenska kronan genomgått en period av depreciering mot många andra valutor. Detta väcker frågan om vad som ligger till grund för växelkursens rörelser. Denna studie ämnar därför undersöka om det öppna ränteparitetsvillkoret kan förklara relationen mellan förändringar i växelkurser och räntedifferenser på kort sikt. För att undersöka frågan har två regressionsmodeller konstruerats med räntedifferenser som förklarande variabel och fluktuationer i växelkursen som beroende variabel. Studien begränsas till att undersöka förhållandet mellan Sverige som inhemskt land och Euroområdet samt USA som utländska områden/länder. Eftersom euron och den amerikanska dollarn kategoriseras som “safe haven” valutor inkluderas safe haven teorin som en sekundär aspekt i analysen. Studien använder månadsvis data över perioden 1999-2022. Regressionsmodellernas resultat visar en korrelation som är något avvikande från det öppna ränteparitetsvillkoret. Regressionsmodellerna presenterar icke-signifikanta resultat och studiens slutsats är därmed att undersökningen inte presenterar tillräckligt med bevis för att säkerställa att den sanna relationen mellan räntedifferenser och förändringar i växelkursen skiljer sig signifikant från ränteparitetsvillkoret. / Over the past fourteen years the Swedish krona has undergone a period of depreciation against many other currencies. This raises the question of what factors drive the movements of the exchange rate. This study intends to examine if the open interest parity condition can explain the relationship between fluctuations in the exchange rate and the interest rate differentials in the short term. To examine the subject two regression models have been constructed with the interest rate differentials as the explanatory variable and fluctuations in the exchange rate as the dependent variable. The research is narrowed down to examine the relationship between Sweden as the domestic country and the euro area and USA as foreign areas/countries. As the euro and the american dollar are categorized as “safe haven” currencies the safe haven theory is also included as a secondary aspect of the analysis. The study utilizes monthly data over the period 1999-2022. The results of the regression models show a correlation that deviates somewhat from the open interest parity condition. The regression models present non-significant results and the study's conclusion is thus that the study does not present enough evidence to ensure that the true relationship between interest rate differentials and changes in the exchange rate differs significantly from the interest parity condition.

Currency carry trade is an investment strategy that recently started gaining a lot of interest not only among investors and financial institutions but also academically. One of the underlying theoretical assumptions regarding the mechanisms of the foreign exchange market, the Uncovered Interest Parity has frequently been disproved in practice which has led to the conclusion that carry trade is profitable in practice. The function of a carry trade strategy is that a short position is taken in a low interest rate currency to finance a long position in another currency offering higher yields. This thesis is adding to the existing literature that is explaining the characteristics of currency carry trade but is adopting a different approach than most other recent researches that has focused on identifying especially risk factors. Gold as a financial asset has also received much attention largely due to its, contrarily to other asset classes, low dependence on macroeconomic factors. This makes gold desirable to diversify portfolios and decreasing overall risks. By investigating how the returns of currency carry trades and gold relates to each other an increased understanding in how carry trades can be beneficially included in managing portfolios are developed. Looking at a currency carry trade index, Deutsche Bank’s G10 Currency Future Harvest index, and the development of the gold price at the London bullion market for the 20 year period of 1993-2013 this research is exploring correlation, mean and volatility spillover effects. Spearman’s correlation, Vector Autoregression and a diagonal BEKK GARCH model are employed to test these effects. It also investigates if gold possesses hedge, diversifier and safe haven characteristics when combined with carry trades as it has been found to do with stock markets. This is determined by a regression analysis and supplemented by a portfolio simulation. This thesis found that there is a low positive correlation between the returns of gold and currency carry trades and that there is spillover effects as well between the two in both returns and volatility. This in addition to the regression analysis and portfolio analysis determined that there are diversification benefits by adding gold to a portfolio consisting of currency carry trade in the form of higher risk adjusted returns. However special caution has to be taken to the spillover effects as these complicate the relationship between the returns of the two variables and especially the volatility spillover effects slightly decreases the potential diversification benefit. The regression analysis concluded that gold work as a diversifier for carry trade but could not determine if it also exhibited hedge or safe haven characteristics. These findings pushes the existing understanding of carry trades forward and adds to focus of matching carry trades within a portfolio which could have implications to more efficiently match risks and returns by combining several asset classes in portfolio management.

When the financial markets start to shake investors start looking for a safe asset for protection. When people talk about a safe asset, they for the most part refer to gold. But is that really the case? There are few studies about gold as a safe haven however they do not concern the Swedish financial market. That is the purpose of this research; to examine if gold could act as a safe haven in the financial market in Sweden. This is of interest since there is an economic crisis caused by covid19 at this particular moment. The result could help us understand how investors could use gold in their portfolio of investments. To do this we have gathered daily returns from OMXS30, gold, and a 10-year Swedish government bond. With a statistical model we answered the question. When the financial markets start to shake investors start looking for a safe asset for protection. When people talk about a safe asset, they for the most part refer to gold. But is that really the case? There are few studies about gold as a safe haven however they do not concern the Swedish financial market. That is the purpose of this research; to examine if gold could act as a safe haven in the financial market in Sweden. This is of interest since there is an economic crisis caused by covid19 at this particular moment. The result could help us understand how investors could use gold in their portfolio of investments. To do this we have gathered daily returns from OMXS30, gold, and a 10-year Swedish government bond. With a statistical model we answered the question.

Eighty-five percent of all firms operating in Nigeria are small-and medium-sized business enterprises (SMEs) and contribute almost 55% to the gross domestic product (GDP) in Nigeria. Capital flight and other growth inhibitors pose threats to the sustainability of SMEs in Nigeria. This exploratory multiple-case study was to determine strategies SME leaders use to sustain business operations in Nigeria. The study participants consisted of 15 SME leaders from 3 regional manufacturing firms who had successfully implemented strategies to sustain SMEs in Nigeria. Bertalanffy's general systems theory and Freeman's stakeholder theory were the conceptual frameworks used in the research. The data collection processes included semistructured interviews and reviewing company documents. After analyzing the interview data and validating through member checking, 5 core themes emerged during the data analysis process: creating new markets, encouraging opportunity for sustainable growth, securing additional funding sources, employee participation in decision making, and gaining competitive advantages. The findings may promote social change among the business community leaders by identifying essential characteristics to improve the posterity of SMEs in Nigeria.

Purpose: This thesis investigates the relationship concerning traditional safe haven assets, gold and US 10-year treasury bonds during periods of market instability, specifically during the economic concerns raised by the COVID-19 pandemic. It assesses the hedging and safe haven properties of these assets and their dynamic nature throughout two periods of unconventional monetary and fiscal policy measures by the Federal Reserve & US Congress respectively. Furthermore, the study explores a unique divergence between the price movements of the two assets, as well as potential changes in their properties and relationships. Theoretical Perspective: The study is anchored in theoretical concepts based on previous research such as Modern Portfolio Theory, Safe Haven Theory and Hedging Theory. These theories explain asset behaviours during financial turmoil and the relationship between gold and US 10-year treasury bonds during financial crises. The research gap and research questions were formulated based on the information gathered. Methodology: The research employs a quantitative, explanatory approach, anchoredin objectivism and realism, focusing on testing established theories through empirical data. Using a deductive methodology, it investigates potential changes in the dynamic between traditional safe haven assets, gold and US 10-year treasury bonds. Empirical Foundation: Based on a thorough literature review, this study integrates insights from past research and with new data emerging from the pandemic's influence on financial markets and subsequent policy action. The empirical evidence is integrated through quantitative analysis, leveraging ARCH/GARCH models and quantile regression to understand asset performance amid market shocks and policy changes. Conclusion: The findings indicate that gold did not initially act as a hedge against bonds but did so against other assets such as Oil, USD, and BTC during the height of COVID-19. In the recovery phase, this relationship shifted, with gold emerging as a hedge against bonds while its hedging capacity against Oil and Real Yield was negated. Additionally, gold's role as a safe haven against bonds was consistently unsupported across both periods studied. Furthermore, a portfolio analysis revealed a shift in investment strategy, from a balanced gold-bonds mix during the crisis to a sole preference for gold in the recovery phase, adapting to the evolving market conditions and policy changes.

I en tid där skolor stängs ner för gott som en strategi för att möta utmaningar som exempelvis segregation inom västerländska skoldistrikt är det värt att reflektera över hur de påverkar barn och deras välbefinnande. Bakgrunden till uppsatsen bygger på ett större projekt av Flensner & Svensson (2023) kopplat till skolstängningar. I uppsatsen har projektets data från hösten 2021 använts. Metoden är kvantitativ och den upplevda känslan av trivsel, trygghet och tillit jämfördes mellan elever som bytt skola och de som inte bytt skola. Det var 1349 elever i åldrarna 10–15 år som deltog i undersökningen. Data från projektet analyserades med hjälp av Pearsons korrelationsanalys och ett oberoende t-test. Resultaten visade att trivsel, trygghet och tillit korrelerar positivt med varandra. Elever som svarade på enkäten och hade bytt skola trivdes i genomsnitt lika bra jämfört med de som inte hade bytt skola. Dessutom fanns en signifikant skillnad i upplevelsen av trygghet, där de som inte bytt skola kände sig tryggare. De som bytt skola upplevde en högre nivå av tillit. Eftersom många av de tillfrågade valde att inte svara skulle det kunna ha påverkat generaliserbarheten av resultatet. Diskussionen belyser skolstängningars effekt på elevernas upplevelse av trivsel, trygghet och tillit i skolan. / At a time when schools are being closed for good as a strategy to meet challenges such assegregation within Western school districts, it is worth reflecting on how they affect children and their well-being. The background to the essay is based on a larger project by Flensner & Svensson (2023) linked to school closures. In the essay, the project's data from autumn 2021 has been used. The method is quantitative, and the perceived sense of well-being, security, and trust was compared between students who changed schools and those who did not. There were 1,349 students aged 10–15 who participated in the survey. Data from the project were analyzed using Pearson's correlation analysis and an independent t-test. The results showed that well-being, security, and trust correlate positively with each other. Pupils who responded to the survey and had changed schools were on average just as happy compared to those who had not changed schools. In addition, there was a significant difference in the security experience, where those who did not change schools felt safer. Those who changed schools experienced a higher level of trust. As many of the respondents chose not to answer, this could affect the generalizability of the results. The discussion highlights the effect of school closures on students' experience of well-being, security, and trust in school.

La thèse est composée de trois parties. La première présente un certain nombre de mesures de dépendance extrême. Une application sur les actions et les obligations de 49 pays montre que la théorie des valeurs extrêmes multivariées conduit aux résultats différents de ceux issus du coefficient de corrélation, mais relativement proches de ceux obtenus du rho de Spearman conditionnel multivarié. Cette partie évalue aussi le risque de pertes importantes simultanées. La deuxième partie examine les déterminants des co-mouvements extrêmes entre 5 pays core et 49 pays non core. Les mécanismes de transmission des chocs varient de la période moins récente à la période récente, des pays développés aux pays émergents, des chocs normaux aux chocs extrêmes. La troisième partie étudie le rôle de valeur refuge de l’or sur la période 1986-2012. Les gains positifs extrêmes de l'or peuvent être liés aux pertes extrêmes du S&P. Cependant, ce lien n'est pas toujours valable, il évolue dans le temps et serait conditionné par d'autres facteurs. / The thesis consists of three parts. The first part introduces a number of measures of extreme dependency. An application on stock and bond markets of 49 countries shows the multivariate extreme value theory leads to results which are different from those from the correlation coefficient, but relatively close to those obtained from multivariate conditional Spearman's rho. This part also assesses the risk of simultaneous losses. The second part examines the determinants of extreme co-movements between 5 core countries and 49 non-core countries. Transmission mechanisms of shocks vary from less recent to recent period, from developed to emerging markets, from normal to extreme shocks. The third part examines the role of safe haven of gold over the period 1986-2012. Extreme positive gains of gold can be linked to extreme losses of S&P. However, this relationship is not always valid, it evolves over time and could be determined by other factors.