Purchasing power parity and the unit root tests: a robust analysis

Empirical evidence suggests that real exchange rate is characterized by the presence of near-unity and additive outliers. Recent studeis have found evidence on favor PPP reversion by using the quasi-differencing (Elliott et al., 1996) unit root tests (ERS), which is more efficient against local alternatives but is still based on least squares estimation. Unit root tests basead on least saquares method usually tend to bias inference towards stationarity when additive out liers are present. In this paper, we incorporate quasi-differencing into M-estimation to construct a unit root test that is robust not only against near-unity root but also against nonGaussian behavior provoked by assitive outliers. We re-visit the PPP hypothesis and found less evidemce in favor PPP reversion when non-Gaussian behavior in real exchange rates is taken into account.

A new perspective on the PPP hypothesis

This paper the stastistical properties of the real exchange rates of G-5 countries for the Bretton-Woods peiod, and draw implications on the purchasing power parity (PPP) hypothesis. In contrast to most previous studies that consider only unit root and stationary process to describe the real exchange tae, this paper also considers two in-between processes, the locally persistent process ans the fractionally integrated process, to complement past studies. Seeking to be consistent with tha ample evidence of near unit in the real exchange rate movements very well. This finding implies that: 1) the real exchange movement is more persistent than the stationary case but less persistent than the unit root case; 2) the real exchange rate is non-stationary but the PPP reversion occurs and the PPP holds in the long run; 3) the real exchange rate does not exhibit the secular dependence of the fractional integration; 4) the real exchange rate evolves over time in a way that there is persistence over a range of time, but the effect of shocks will eventually disappear over time horizon longer than order O (nd), that is, at finite time horizon; 5) shocks dissipation is fasters than predicted by the fractional integracion, and the total sum of the effects of a unit innovation is finite, implying that a full PPP reversion occurs at finite horizons. These results may explain why pasrt empirical estudies could not provide a clear- conclusion on the real exchange rate processes and the PPP hypothesis.

On the purchasing power parity for Latin-American countries

The purpose of this paper is to test the hypothesis of long-run purchasing power parity (PPP) for all Latin American countries. These countries share similar economic history and contagious effects from currency crises, which might lead to comovements in their real exchange rates. New time series unit root tests found evidence of PPP for the vast majority of countries. In the panel data framework, tests for the null of unit root, null of stationarity, and unit root under multiple structural breaks indicated stationary real exchange rates. Thus, there is convincing evidence that PPP holds for Latin-American countries in the post-1980 period.

An essay about the effect of vague accounting standards on the decision making process of auditors

Vague words and expressions are present throughout the standards that comprise the accounting and auditing professions. Vagueness is considered to be a significant source of inexactness in many accounting decision problems and many authors have argued that the neglect of this issue may cause accounting information to be less useful. On the other hand, we can assume that the use of vague terms in accounting standards is inherent to principle based standards (different from rule based standards) and that to avoid vague terms, standard setters would have to incur excessive transaction costs. Auditors are required to exercise their own professional judgment throughout the audit process and it has been argued that the inherent vagueness in accounting standards may influence their decision making processes. The main objective of this paper is to analyze the decision making process of auditors and to investigate whether vague accounting standards create a problem for the decision making process of auditors, or lead to a better outcome. This paper makes the argument that vague standards prompt the use of System 2 type processing by auditors, allowing more comprehensive analytical thinking; therefore, reducing the biases associated with System 1 heuristic processing. If our argument is valid, the repercussions of vague accounting standards are not as negative as presented in previous literature, instead they are positive.

The family role on the internationalization process of family businesses: a two-case study

Essa dissertação procura identificar o papel da família no processo de internacionalização de dois negócios familiares: JBS, a maior empresa de proteína animal do mundo e Cutrale um dos líderes mundiais no mercado de suco de laranja. Empresas familiares possuem características que são intrínsecas a esse tipo de empresa. Muitos dos motivos de se internacionalizar ou mesmo o modo como eles se internacionalizam podem ser extremamente característicos. Assim, através de uma pesquisa qualitativa, os dois estudos de caso foram analisados baseados em teorias de internacionalização de empresas familiares. Porém, nessas companhias estudadas, a família não desempenhou um papel relevante no processo de internacionalização das mesmas. Com esses resultados, questões surgiram, como por exemplo, se o tamanho ou segmento da empresa tiveram um impacto na importância do papel que a família possui no processo de internacionalização. Essas questões não eram o foco do estudo porém fornecem muitos subsídios para uma próxima pesquisa.

WTO-plus commitments on the elimination of export duties: evidence of a two-tier membership?

This descriptive paper examines the prevalence of ‘WTO-plus’ commitments in accession protocols of newly acceded Members, with a focus on commitments on the elimination of export duties. It presents preliminary results of a mapping exercise carried out with respect to these commitments and seeks to answer two questions. First, can any general conclusions be drawn as to the prevalence of these commitments or are they, per definition, country-specific. Second, has the political nature of the WTO accession process allowed for the creation of a two-tier membership. The first question is answered by relying on data gathered as part of the ongoing PhD-research project conducted by the author. The project aims to construct a typology of WTO-plus commitments to allow for a more detailed analysis of the relationship between these commitments and the baseline obligations in the covered agreements. The accession of China to the WTO is commonly considered as the prime example of the inclusion of WTO-plus obligations in accession protocols. The paper tries to answer the question whether this particular accession was truly unique in nature, or whether the inclusion of “Plus” obligations is less exceptional than often assumed. Additionally, the accession protocols of other recently acceded-Members are examined to establish whether the hypothesis holds. In the PhD-research project this comparative methodology will also be applied to map WTO-plus commitments in other areas, such as anti-dumping and transparency. The second question will be answered in two stages. In a preliminary stage, international institutional law will be used to by analyzing the way in which the WTO’s Dispute Settlement Body has dealt with this type of WTO-plus commitment in its jurisprudence. The second stage deals with the question of hierarchy: Accession Protocols are negotiated with the WTO Membership, by each country willing to accede to the WTO. This poses questions as to their exact position in the system of WTO law. To establish whether evidence of a two-tier membership is present, one first has to turn back to the question whether Accession Protocols are a separate (or independent) legal instrument or an “integral part” of the WTO system of covered agreements. If newly acceded Members do not benefit from the general exceptions in order to balance their more stringent, WTO-plus, obligations, this may support the conclusion that the membership of the World Trade Organization is becoming, in fact, two-tiered.