The Link Between Internet Financial Reporting and Information Asymmetry for American Depository Receipts

We provide evidence on the effect of the presentation format and information content of Internet financial reporting on the market value of American Depository Receipts and on country-specific variables that drive Internet financial reporting. A two-stage Heckman approach was used to determine if Internet financial reporting adds incremental value to firms beyond the decision to cross-list in the United States. The results indicate that investors more highly value firms that provide information in multiple formats. We also find that country-specific variables affect the information content, but not the presentation format of disclosures on corporate websites. The results uncover a disconnection between what the market values （presentation format） and what the firms believe the market values （information content）. This implies that firms are not entirely aware of investors＇ information wants and that they are not utilizing their resources in the manner that will have the most impact on their market value.

Regional Disparity and Convergence of China's Inbound Tourism Economy

Comprehending regional characteristics and influencing factors of China＇s inbound tourism economy is im- portant to make effective policies that will help inbound tourism develop harmoniously and shrink regional disparity. This paper studied the regional disparity and convergence of China＇s inbound tourism economy during 1996-2008 with the methods of a-convergence, club convergence and r-convergence. The results indicate that 1） inbound tourism receipts per capita （ITRPC） of the whole country, the eastern, central and western regions presented the rapid increasing trend; 2） ITRPC of the whole country was characterized by convergence; 3） the eastern region presented club con- vergence, but the central and western regions did not show this trend; 4） the star-hotel levels and investment in fixed assets for the tourism industry per capita had a same trend to growth rates of ITRPC, promoting inbound tourism de- velopment, and there was no difference among the 31 provinces （municipalities） in the mainland of China; 5） but the proportion of employed persons in the tourism industry accounting for total population and the proportion of the terti- ary industry accounting for GDP had a reversal trend to growth rates of ITRPC, shrinking the provincial disparity in inbound tourism economy, and there were differences between the developed provinces and the developing provinces. Based on these analyses, we put forward some suggestions for the developing provinces to speed up inbound tourism economy.

金融危机前后ADR和A股之间的收益传递--基于交叉上市公司面板数据的实证分析

本文以在美国纽约交易所和上海交易所交叉上市的中国公司为研究样本,构建动态面板模型,同时考虑并消除中美两国股市因不同节假日和不同时区带来的非同步交易效应,目的是分析金融危机前后A股与ADR(American Depositary Receipt)之间的收益传递效应。我们发现,A股与ADR之间存在显著的正向收益传递效应,且A股对ADR的影响要强于ADR对A股的影响。此外,这种互相传递效应在2008年国际金融危机爆发后有所增强。

Tourism as an Exit Strategy at Crisis Times

The contemporary crisis is giving evidence of failing macroeconomic theories and policies, after decades of focusing on the aggregate domestic demand and the role of the public expenditure. The contemporary crisis has shown the weakness of fiscal policy. With very low interest rates, the monetary policy does not seem to provide an alternative exit strategy out of the crisis, too. In this paper we discuss the hypothesis that GDP can still be a reliable estimate of growth. Nevertheless, at crisis times, only if the focus is on the foreign demand like International Tourism Receipts and Exports, and Exports can be an exit strategy. One component of Exports and International Tourism Receipts are worthy of attention. Thanks to a cluster analysis of per year variations of International Tourism Receipts (ITRs), GDP and Exports (World Bank Database) from 2007 to 2011, average positive variations of GDPs are matching with positive ITRs and Exports for “clusters” of countries. Performances of Europe and USA are worse than China, Brazil, India and South Africa and these continents and countries are separated in two different clusters. This result can be related to an increase of trade in emerging economies more than in mature ones, whose exit out of the crisis is much more demanding. The research confirms that Tourism and Exports are having an impact on the growth at different intensities (Europe and America vs. Asia) at crisis times.

Utilization of Malaria Diagnostic Tests and Receipt of Anti-Malarial Drugs by Febrile Patients Attending Outpatient Clinics of Health Centre IV Facilities in Mukono District, Uganda

Background: Failure to demonstrate the presence of malaria parasites prior to treatment with anti-malarial drugs remains a challenge in Uganda, often resulting into over-prescription of anti-malarial drugs to febrile patients suspected of malaria. The aim of this study was to describe the role of utilization of malaria diagnostic tests and associated factors in the receipt of anti-malarial drugs among febrile patients suspected of malaria. Methods: In a cross-sectional study design, client-exit interviews with febrile patients and key-informant interviews with purposively selected health workers were conducted at outpatient clinics of health centre IV facilities in Mukono district. Data entry and analysis were done using EpiData 3.2 and STATA 10 respectively. Data were described using frequency distributions and proportions. Chi square was used in two by two tables, odds ratios as the measure of association and an alpha level of 0.05 was used in all significance tests. Results: Out of 408 respondents, the majority were female (252, 61.8%) and a third of the samples were aged five years and below. The mean age in years was 3.3 with a standard deviation of 2.1. More than half of the respondents (359, 88%) utilized malaria diagnostic tests and about half (241, 59%) received anti-malarial drugs. There were no statistically significant differences between utilizers and non-utilizers in most characteristics except age, history of indoor residual spraying and perceived satisfaction with services at outpatient clinics. Utilizers were 75% less likely to receive anti-malarial drugs than non-utilizers after controlling for age, sex and residence (OR: 0.25, 95%CI: 0.09, 0.66). Frequent power cut-offs as well as limited knowledge on malaria treatment guidelines amongst laboratory personnel were some of the major limitations to microscopic diagnosis of malaria. Conclusion: Utilizers were 75% less likely to receive anti-malarial drugs as opposed to non-utilizers. This implies that increasing utilization of malaria diagnostic tests can reduce the problem of over-prescription of anti-malarial drugs by 75% among those tested for malaria, since anti-malarial drugs would be received by only those with a parasi- tologically-confirmed diagnosis of malaria. Policy implications: To overcome the problem of over-prescription of anti-malarial drugs, there must be a policy that ensures a consistent power supply in all public health laboratories. Training of health workers should encompass all cadres and work-shifts for laboratory personnel should be established to enhance utilization of malaria diagnostic tests especially at night.

Expanding Older Adults’ Care Choices Utilizing the Proceeds of Reciprocated Volunteerism: Capitalizing on Ghana’s Digitalization Artillery

Ghana has been a collectivistic society. However, due to social change, this value is fast being replaced by individualistic tendencies with implications for age-oriented care provision and receipt. This paper investigates the participation in the socially productive strategy of using ageing-oriented volunteerism to leverage the receipt of care in later life utilizing a quantitative dataset. The results show that volunteering may be undertaken with old age in sight. This needs to take place under circumstances of good communication skills among others. The accumulated time needs to be recorded in a time bank and redeemed with a time bank card in later life. Two-dimensional leveraging points pertain in this context: first, leveraging volunteerism for short or long-term care in the nearest future;second, technological innovation’s facilitation of the same. Volunteerism in this context has the attribute of low levels of depression, with implications for quality of life. These are discussed in the light of the social care pillar of ageing social policy. The paper argues that adopting volunteerism with reciprocation as the ultimate goal constitutes a kickback model for care receipt in later life. It served as a choice of care in later life which is a shock absorber to inadequate formal support infrastructure and individualistic social tendencies in Ghana. It is reminiscent of resistance to the shrinkage of older persons’ social integration in their social world.

Contagion or Real Linkages? Some Evidence from China's Emerging Parallel Markets

This paper empirically tests the existence of contagion using data on China ＇ s five parallel markets with different entry barriers for foreign capital. Taking the 1997 stock market crash as our experiment and using data on A, B and H shares, red chips and American depository receipts, the present paper tests whether these China-backed market returns respond differently to foreign shocks during the pre-1997 and post-1997 crash period. Evidence suggests that the contagion effects are stronger in markets with fewer entry barriers. An important implication of our findings is that countries vulnerable to contagion could be justified to impose some limits on capital flows.

Premiums between Cross-listed Shares:Determinants and Assessment of Financial Reform Policy Effectiveness

This paper explores determinants of price premiums between A-share and American depositary receipts(ADR)or H-share and sheds light on policies using daily data from cross-listed companies from 2002-2020.Market sentiment and financial openness are critical in explaining both types of price premiums.Expected exchange rate changes significantly impact the A-share versus ADR premium but liquidity is essential for the A-share versus H-share premium.The introduction of Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect in November 2014 has effectively increased the price discovery capacity of the A-share market,and investors were more adaptive to the RMB foreign exchange rate volatility after Chinese exchange rate system reform in 2015.The paper provides insights into future capital market reform in China.