Does Regulation matter? Institutional dimension of the 2008 financial crisis

Why did house prices fall in 2007‐2009? This is the fundamental question to most Americans, and to those who lent them money. Most homeowners did not care why residential real estate prices rose. They assumed prices always rose, and they should simply enjoy their good fortune. It was not until prices began to fall that people were left searching for answers. How much did regulation or lack thereof play in the role of the devastation? To what degree did greed and unrealistic consumer expectation have on the real estate bubble? Using existing literature as well as face to face interviews of experienced leaders within the real estate industry in California who experienced both the up and down of the real estate cycle, the overarching purpose of this study is to investigate the opinions and beliefs of the leaders and drivers within the real estate industry about the cause of the real estate bubble that occurred sharply in 2008 . Specifically, this project will focus on the opinions of real estate industry leaders who worked in the center of the subprime universe located in Irvine, California, during 2004‐2008. Comparing the mainstream beliefs with the interviewees it is fair to say that the main finding in the mainstream beliefs are reflected very well with the finding of the subject’s opinion. The thesis is divided into 6 chapters starting with “introduction”, followed by chapter 2 “Literature Review”. Chapter 3 is “Research Methodology” followed by chapter 4 “Data Presentation”. Finally, the results are discussed in chapter 5 “Analysis and Discussion” and conclusions in Chapter 6.

Impactos de restrições sobre empresas listadas na BM&F Bovespa : um survey a partir da crise de 2008/09

Por meio de um survey, ouvimos 56 gestores financeiros e de relações com investidores de empresas listadas na BM&F Bovespa sobre o grau das restrições financeiras observadas durante a crise de 2008/09, contrapondo diferenças entre firmas que declararam ter sofrido restrições àquelas que disseram não terem sido afetadas. Nossa evidência aponta que as restritas rebaixaram os preços praticados e demitiram colaboradores em dose maior do que as irrestritas. As restritas também acusaram salto pronunciado no endividamento, enquanto as irrestritas conservaram suas fontes de financiamento, buscando preservar reputação no mercado. Cerca de 65% das firmas restritas indicam que as restrições financeiras afetaram a capacidade de aceitar projetos atrativos, e 25% dessas firmas se viram forçadas a postergar/cancelar investimentos vantajosos. Comparando a medida direta de nosso survey frente a proxies usualmente adotadas, cremos que este trabalho agrega ao espectro de ferramentas empregadas para avaliar o impacto de restrições financeiras sobre as decisões corporativas.

Value and momentum strategies in the Brazilian stock market: the 2008 financial crisis and its aftermath

Esta dissertação analisa o desempenho de três estratégias de investimento em carteiras de custo zero (“value”, “momentum” e uma combinação 50/50 delas, que é chamada de “combo”) no mercado de ações brasileiro durante a última década. Os resultados são comparados aos encontrados por Asness, Moskowitz e Pedersen (2009) para quatro mercados: EUA, Reino Unido, Europa Continental, e Japão. Uma análise específica é feita em torno da crise financeira de 2008, comparando os resultados pré- e pós-crise. O índice de Sharpe é usado para ajustar os desempenhos por seus riscos, e para classificar as estratégias para diferentes horizontes de investimento. Os resultados mostram um ótimo desempenho da estratégia “combo” nos últimos três anos, período que inclui a crise de 2008, mas considerando todo o período analisado a estratégia “value” obteve o melhor desempenho. Esse resultado difere dos resultados encontrados para os quatro mercados de referência, onde a estratégia combo tem o melhor desempenho. A análise do horizonte de investimento mostra que a escolha do investidor pode mudar com diferentes horizontes.

Governança global e a visão brasileira das organizações e regimes pós-2008

O primeiro capítulo trata do problema de pesquisa consubstanciado na pergunta: como a crise financeira mundial de 2008 atingiu o equilíbrio de poder global e quais foram os desdobramentos no sistema internacional, e a respectiva argumentação de objetivos, delimitação e relevância do estudo. O capítulo dois aborda a questão metodológica do ponto de vista dos métodos de abordagem e da coleta e tratamento das informações. O capítulo terceiro apresenta a complexidade da interação entre ordem internacional e governança global, termos difíceis de serem definidos, porém constantes nas agendas da diplomacia e política internacional. O capítulo quarto introduz o conceito de governança multinível para expressar a interação de diversos atores em diversas camadas abaixo e acima do Estado. O capítulo quinto trata das crises pré-2008, buscando verificar possíveis características comuns entre elas. O capítulo sexto trata da crise de 2008 e alargamento e prolongamento para a Europa, articulando variáveis econômicas e financeiras globais. O capítulo sete procura relacionar a política externa brasileira à arquitetura da governança global, aspirando uma participação mais ativa nos fóruns internacionais. No capítulo nono é apresentada a conclusão do estudo em termos de dilemas e obstáculos comportamentais e/ou estruturais e os campos que devem ser melhor investigados e aprofundados.

The impact of the 2008 economic recession on three residential property type investments: a case study of five diverse zip codes in Washington DC, USA

There has been 47 recessions in the United States of America (US) since 1790. US recessions have increasingly affected economies of other countries in the world as nations become more and more interdependent on each other. The worst economic recession so far was the “Great Depression” – an economic recession that was caused by the 1929 crash of the stock market in the US. The 2008 economic recession in the US was a result of the burst of the “housing bubble” created by predatory lending. The economic recession resulted in increased unemployment (according to NBER 8.7 million jobs were lost from Feb. 2008 to Feb. 2010); decrease in GDP by 5.1%; increase in poverty level from 12.1% (2007) to 16.0% (2008) (NBER) This dissertation is an attempt to research the impact of the 2008 economic recession on different types of residential investments: a case study of five (5) diverse neighborhoods/zip codes in Washington DC, USA The main findings were that the effect of the 2008 economic depression on the different types of residential properties was dependent on the location of the property and the demographics/socio-economic factors associated with that location.

The development of the private equity industry since the 2008 financial crisis

The private equity industry was experiencing a phenomenal boom at the turn of the century but collapsed abruptly in 2008 with the onset of the financial crisis. Considered one of the worst crises since the Great Depression of the 1930s, it had sent ripples around the world threatening the collapse of financial institutions and provoking a liquidity crunch followed by a huge downturn in economic activity and recession. Furthermore, the physiognomy of the financial landscape had considerably altered with banks retracting from the lending space, accompanied by a hardening of financial regulation that sought to better contain systemic risk. Given the new set of changes and challenges that had arisen from this period of financial turmoil, private equity found itself having to question current practices and methods of operation in order to adjust to the harsh realities of a new post-apocalyptic world. Consequently, this paper goes on to explore how the private equity business, management and operation model has evolved since the credit crunch with a specific focus on mature markets such as the United States and Europe. More specifically, this paper will aim to gather insights on the development of the industry since the crisis in Western Europe through a case study approach using as a base interviews with professionals working in the industry and those external to the sector but who have/have had considerable interaction with PE players from 2007 to the present.

As políticas anticíclicas brasileiras da crise financeira de 2008 : uma análise setorial

A crise financeira internacional de 2008 afetou tanto a economia dos Estados Unidos quanto a economia mundial. Assim, discutiu-se as origens da crise do “subprime”, em uma contextualização histórica e entendeu-se a repercussão dessa crise, com foco nas medidas anticíclicas brasileiras adotadas em nível setorial. Através de estudos econométricos que visavam avaliar a eficácia dessas medidas de políticas fiscal, monetária e creditícia, direcionadas aos setores automotivo, de construção civil e de móveis e eletrodomésticos, buscou-se entender a eficácia das medidas anticíclicas tanto como incentivo econômico, quanto na manutenção do nível de emprego, dois dos principais focos das políticas anticíclicas brasileiras. A análise empírica revelou, no lado do incentivo dos setores, que a política monetária expansionista não teve o efeito esperado em nenhum dos três setores testados, enquanto que as políticas creditícia e fiscal, também expansionistas, tiveram efeitos positivos sobre os setores em estudo. Pelo lado da eficácia na manutenção do emprego, as políticas fiscal e monetária foram eficazes para os três setores analisados, o que nos permite concluir que as medidas do governo tiveram alguma forma de eficácia. É importante ressaltar que se assumiu a premissa para as séries de IPI sobre o setor de móveis e eletrodomésticos e a série de desemprego, que não estavam disponíveis de forma específica, constituindo uma limitação ao trabalho.

Política monetária brasileira pré-crise de 2008 : uma análise da possível influência dos juros americanos e de outros fatores externos

Neste trabalho, é feita uma análise da política monetária brasileira no período de 2000 a 2008 com o intuito de entender o quão independente ela foi em relação às ações do Federal Reserve. Esse entendimento é importante devido à iminente movimentação de subida de juros nos EUA, ainda sem data precisa para ocorrer, mas que pode trazer consequências no câmbio e nos juros domésticos em um momento em que já há um aperto monetário em curso no país. Além disso, os efeitos de outras variáveis ligadas a situações externas como eventos de crise, câmbio e risco país nos juros brasileiros também são levados em consideração. Os resultados indicam que, no período de estudo, a política monetária nacional foi marcada por uma maior autonomia em relação às flutuações nos juros americanos, fato que pode ter sido auxiliado pela adoção em 1999 do câmbio flutuante.

Estudo empírico do comportamento dos depósitos das instituições financeiras brasileiras durante a crise de 2008

A motivação do trabalho surgiu dos efeitos causados pela crise imobiliária nos Estados Unidos em 2008, sendo a quebra do banco de investimento “Lehman Brothers” o estopim para uma série de eventos. No Brasil, os efeitos foram diversos, o presente trabalho se aprofundou nos efeitos sobre as captações, analisando se houve uma corrida bancária dos pequenos e médios bancos para os grandes. Este estudo foi feito por meio da análise de quebra estrutural baseada nos testes OLS Cusum introduzido por Ploberger e Kramer (1992) e Teste F por Chow (1960), bem como por meio da análise de dados em painel, utilizando as metodologias de análise de cluster e o modelo de efeitos fixos. De um modo geral, os nossos resultados demonstram que efetivamente ocorreu uma transferência massiva de recursos dos pequenos e médios bancos para os grandes.

Financial governance: the Brazilian experience on prudential regulation and its impacts on the effects of the 2008 financial crisis

The Brazilian economy was severely hit by the 2008 crisis. In the beginning of the crisis, the vast majorities of the economic agents and authorities thought that Brazil could face some sort of decoupling since some macroeconomic fundamentals were very good. What we saw, however, was that the Brazilian economy was not decoupled, and expectations faced a huge deterioration soon after the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers in September 15th. Two aspects regarding the impact of crisis in Brazil, however, deserve a great deal of attention: (a) although deep, the impact did not last for a long time. Actually, the GDP growth experienced a good recovery in the second quarter of 2009, showing that the health of the Brazilian economy was good; (b) the Brazilian banking system performed very well during the crisis, although we cannot say the system was not in danger in the worst time of the crisis. In spite of the confidence crisis faced by the banking system 1, it showed a great deal of resilience. In this aspect, we argue that the restructure faced by the banking system in the aftermath of the Real Plan, as well as the development of a solid supervision regulation helped a lot the system to avoid the systemic crisis that was an open possibility to the Brazilian banking system in the end of 2008. These notes, thus, discusse why the Brazilian banking system performed pretty well in the 2008 financial crisis and how the Brazilian banking (and prudential) regulation can be taken as responsible for this good performance. More specifically, the paper back to the middle of the 1990s, when the Real Plan was implemented, in order to understand the role played by the restructuring of the Brazilian financial system in helping to pave the way to the great resilience experienced by the Brazilian banking system during the 2008 crisis. More specifically, the prudential regulation that was implemented in Brazil in the aftermath of the Real Plan seems to play a decisive role in the resilience of the system nowadays.

A note on financial regulation and the brazilian response to the 2008‐09 financial crisis

Brazil was frequently criticized for its interventionist and heavy financial regulation up until the 2008‐09 world financial crisis.  According to the neo‐liberal or pro‐market view that predominated in academic and financial circles during the early 2000s, economic development came together with financial deepening, which in its turn could only be achieved through financial liberalization and deregulation. The currency crises of the 1990s notwithstanding, by the mid‐2000s Brazil’s segmented financial market and its restrictive reserve and capital requirements were seen as a symbol of inefficiency and backwardness by most financial specialists.  To the luck of the Brazilian population, most of the advices of such specialists were ignored by the Brazilian authorities, so that, when the 2008 financial crisis hit the world economy, Brazil still had powerful and efficient instruments to deal with the problem.  The objective of this note is to present the mains aspects of the Brazilian financial regulation and how they helped the economy to deal with the consequences of 2008‐09 financial meltdown.

Relações internacionais: o comércio exterior do Brasil e Rio Grande do Norte no período de 1999 a 2008

The period post-war promoted several changes in relations economic, political and social world. Since then, a new division international of labor has delineated, with the great growth of Asian countries. In the field of international relations, the world still appears to transition is not completed because the old institutions were not replaced by new ones and the power of the United States as a major capitalist country remains unshaken, even with the emergence and strengthening of new economic global blocs. With globalization, Brazil emerges with more intensity in the face of new issues global, although its share in transactions trade global hasn‟t changed accordingly. In this sense, the objective of this dissertation is to examine, in a descriptive and critical the development of international relations and trade of Brazil and Rio Grande do Norte with the main blocs in the world from 1999 to 2008. As a secondary objective: to identify the assumptions theoretical that underpinned the decisions governments of the FHC and Lula, in particular, the interference of these terms in international relations and foreign trade. Adopted as the procedure methodological the literature review of the subject, as well as collection and processing of the data of foreign trade. During the Cardoso government has undergone the substantial growth in imports, as part of the economic policy of anti-inflationary, generating large deficits trade. From the first to the second term, with the inflection of exchange rate policy the country has resumed surpluses trade. The choice of government of the autonomy participation increased the relative share of the traditional blocks in total foreign trade and reduced the share of MERCOSUL. In the Lula government, there is the maintenance of some elements of the economic policy of the previous government and the partial shift in the conduct of foreign policy, with the option of autonomy through diversification, raising its stake on the blocks and other emerging countries in total foreign trade Brazilian and reducing the contribution of the traditional blocks such as NAFTA and the European Union. A trend observed in the previous government and deepened in the Lula government was the growth in commodity exports and the decline of manufactured products, confirming the model of conservative insertion of Brazilian exports. The Rio Grande do Norte followed the trend Brazilian in the growth of foreign trade, including in participating conservative, given that the products exported by the state are basically coming from horticulture irrigated and agribusiness. However, in the aspect of destination export, the state followed trajectory distinct from that in the Lula government, with the deepening of trade relations with traditional blocks, especially with the European Union and NAFTA

El comercio internacional en América Latina y el Caribe en 2009: crisis y recuperación

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