Book Description

This book presents a quarter of a century of empirical research on interest rates and a variety of asset prices.It will serve to deepen our understanding of asset price inflation. The book includes extensive analysis ofthe measurement of interest rates, with case studies from The Netherlands, Belgium and EMU, and emphasizes statistical measurement and the attempt to understand interest rate behavior through statistical estimation. The book also includes an examination of historical interest rate development in the long run, both theoretically and empirically.In conclusion, Professor Fase also analyzes the behavior of bonds, stocks and investment in art and examines the factors indispensable for a monetary strategy designed to target inflation. ... Read more

Book Description

This book consists of twelve studies on the issue of complexity and the history of economic thought. The studies relate complexity to the ideas of specific economists such as Adam Smith, Karl Marx, Alfred Marshall and Ragfnar Frisch. ... Read more

Book Description

Book Description

During the last several years, new techniques have emerged to improve treasury management, particularly in the area of interest rate risk. This timely book covers the principles of interest rate management and its accounting, tax, and administrative implications. Particularly valuable explanations are given of the more sophisticated techniques of interest rate swap guarantees, forward rate agreements, and interest rate swap options, with examples of each. ... Read more

Book Description

Written by one of North America's foremost authorities on the subject, this is the first sustained treatment of the complex relationship between real interest rates and investment returns. Spiro focuses specifically on the problems of measuring and predicting real interest rates in order to optimize corporate investment and borrowing strategy. The book provides a wealth of practical advice in such key areas as choosing types of investment instruments, selecting the best term to maturity, and assessing the risks versus rewards of different types of bond instruments. "Considering the complex subject, the book is surprisingly well written. Corporate financial officers, in particular, will want to read it." Journal of Accountancy ... Read more

Book Description

A major economic dilemma for the developing world--how to achieve interest rate levels that are not inflationary but are high enough to encourage saving and domestic development--is brought into sharp focus by a leading economist with over twenty-five years experience working with third world governments. In this comprehensive analysis of the causes and international consequences of high US interest rates, Benoit thoughtfully considers many factors. Contrasting Islamic and Western banking practices; describing the real causes of the international debt crisis; revealing the strategies of creditor banks, debtor countries and others; and focusing particularly on Third World dependence on US economic health, the author offers an honest appraisal of the extent to which developing countries are responsible for their own predicament. He questions the basic premises underlying US and other aid policies and calls for increased efficiency, honesty, and self-reliance on the part of developing countries. ... Read more

Book Description

‘Stable holdings of each other’s shares have been a significant, distinctive feature of Japanese major industrial companies and financial institutions and an integral component of its economic system of bank-based finance and permanent employment. Recent accelerating decline in stable shareholding thus has important implications for Japan’s transition to a market-based system. Mitsuaki Okabe provides useful data and insightful analysis of the rather complex patterns of changing costs and benefits of cross-shareholdings in this important new study, the first of its kind available in English.’

- Hugh T. Patrick, Columbia University

‘Cross shareholding among major firms and the bank in Japan has long been a central feature of Japanese industrial organisation. As Okabe argues it is not an isolated element in the way in which the Japanese economic system works: it is at the core of the whole system - the structure of the labour market, the way in which the capital market has worked to protect Japanese business against external competition, and the innovation system. Okabe provides a fresh look at the dissolution of corporate and main bank links in Japan leaving open the question of when the changes under way will reach a critical point. This is a valuable up-to-date primer on these important changes in corporate Japan and the Japanese economic system more generally.’

- Peter Drysdale, Australian National University, Australia

This book focuses on one of the most important features of the contemporary Japanese economy; cross shareholding – or mutual shareholding – between corporations. The book analyzes recent trends and the reasons behind these, and discusses the implications for the entire Japanese economic system and highlights relevant public policy.

Mitsuaki Okabe proposes that the dissolution of cross shareholdings has weakened the importance of long-term transactional relationships as seen in the Keiretsu (the ‘main bank’) practice and employment, and that as a result the character of the economy is now closer to that of the Anglo-American system.

Cross Shareholdings in Japan is a timely book and will be of special interest to academics and researchers of economics, Asian studies and finance, as well as policymakers and those involved either directly or indirectly in the Japanese financial system. ... Read more

Book Description

This study examines the progress made in integrating the financial markets of the major industrial countries: Britain, France, Germany, Japan, and the United States. Professor Marston shows that deregulation and liberalization have succeeded to such an extent that interest rates in any single currency are nearly the same regardless of whether they are offered in national or Eurocurrency markets. The analysis examines returns in the money and bond markets of these countries, investigating whether there are systematic variations in relative returns across markets. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A timely monograph on mathematical aspects of HJM models
The class of arbitrage free interest-rate models introduced by Heath, Jarrow and Morton in the 1980s has become the standard mathematical framework for interest rate theory since. In the recent years many researchers have approached HJM models from the viewpoint of infinite dimensional stochastic analysis, viewing them as evolution equations in the space of forward rate curves.
This monograph, which is based on the PhD thesis of its author at ETH Zurich, contains a rigorous mathematical presentation
of this point of view on HJM models plus a detailed discussion of the so-called "consistency problem": when is a given parametric family of forward rate curves invariant under an evolution specified by an HJM model?

Chapter 2 "Stochastic equations in infinite dimensions" is interesting in itself as a minimal and economical introduction to this topic without needlessly complicated formalism.
For example the infinite dimensional Wiener process is introduced as a sequence of independent scalar Wiener processes
and everything is understandable for a student who knows one dimensional Brownian motion.
Chapters 4 and 5 define a possible mathematical framework for viewing HJM models as evolution equations. This discussion, some of which is original work of the author, is what is missing (or even wrong) in many other works on this topic. I found this chapter clear and helpful; it is the best part of the book.

Chapters 6 and 7 discuss recent researh by Bjork, Christensen, Zabczyk and the author on invariant finite dimensional manifolds for HJM models. Although this is the main focus of the thesis it seems less interesting to me since I never saw any real
motivation of this problem from financial applications.

Some weak points of the book are: total absence of any empirical data, no figures (there is not even a single figure of what a forward curve looks like), no numerical examples showing how "bad" inconsistency can be, ...Also no application is given...But then these are problem typical of the whole corpus of (continental) European literature on mathematical finance.
Another point is the relation between the "infinite dimensional" viewpoint and the "random field" interest rate models. This is discussed in some parts of the text (see Chap 5) but only briefly. ... Read more

Book Description

To remain current there is not a line or middle manager in government or private enterprise who can afford not to have read this book. The work provides a comprehensive list of 'Red Flags' or warning signs of possible fraud presence in an organization with the Red Flag module containing in excess of 70 red flags and 400 investigation protocols to detect and investigate corporate fraud or ethics abuse. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

The practical value of his work could not be over-emphasised
'Whether you love Henderson or hate him, one cannot ignore his work.

Forensic audit and innovation crystallize into a single masterpiece of thinking.

Some parts may be mistaken for a work of fiction, however, Henderson's portraits, leave the reader in no doubt forensic audit as a profession has never been a Sunday school picnic - the practical value of his work could not be over-emphasised.

Each and every forensic practitioner should have a copy of his work.'

Intuitive
If you read Hendersons summaries you are left with an eerie feeling. He seems to have been calling for changes to the way the audit profession does business for years. In fact his comments are almost mirrored by the Sarbanes Oxley Act. The man is ahead of his time, of that there is little doubt. The red flags are in a word unbelievable!

Hats Off!
The fraud 'red flags' are phenomenal. The detail is breathtaking. Henderson has nailed occupational fraud down to a fine art. This work has given me years of experience between two covers. I could clearly see why it took him three and a half years to complete. The previous reviews are extremely personal and reflect criticism levelled at the author himself. They in no way seek to attempt to tackle the issues the book addresses. The case studies are unrelated to contemporary cases and cannot be found over the net which is obvious if you read the book. In my view the book contains some of the most important information I have been able to find on the subject ever. Perhaps his detractors should try their hand at writing instead of tearing apart what has obviously been a monumental effort.

Extensive
I have never encountered a piece of work that summarises occupational fraud in the manner this book does. I cannot agree with the comments of some previous reviews. This book does not deal with readily available case studies gleaned from the internet. The previous reviewers can't have read it. The work is a diagnostic toolkit and text book and does not include many of the more familiar cases. The strength of this work lies in the red flag checklists which in my opinion are the most comprehensive I have ever found. As a fraud investigator this work has helped me and my company save thousands in unnecessary audit fees.

Thank you Mr. Henderson

HOGWASH
What a lot of Hogwash.This piece of trash was handed to me by a friend who attended one of the Authors courses recently.
This guy does not know what he is talking about. He calls himself a Fraud Investigator.
All the case studies were direct copies from the internet - what a joke.
I agree with a previous review that the Author obviously wrote the first review himself.
This book is a waste of money, effort and Intent. ... Read more

Book Description

This monograph addresses the return side of the decision to use interest rate swaps or other interest-rate-contingent claims. Because the economic costs of decisions related to a company's policies toward debt maturities are important to stock price performance, the analysis in this monograph has practical implications for investment analysts. Brooks demonstrates how an at-the-market swap with a risk premium can have a significant impact on the expected return from using the swap. ... Read more

Book Description

The development of the information economy (i.e., the rapid changes facilitated by IT, telecommunications, and the Internet) is as much about corporate strategy as it is about adoption of these new technologies. The importance of technology and information gathering cannot be ignored by companies in the increasingly competitive commercial environment, if they are to sustain their competitive position.The Information Economy contains numerous case studies of international companies, which highlight the way in which organizations are meeting these new challenges by aligning their business strategy with developments in information and communications technology. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

terrific, and ongoing introduction into this important area
The information presented in this book, is like its style and presentation, simple, immediately accessible and implementable.

The book may not apply to highly trained and experienced web designers, but will serve as a terrific information source for non-ICT people that need to get an immediate grasp of the key concepts, the terminology, the possible applications and ultimately in implementing the strategies and ideas.

This is a terrific, and ongoing introduction into this important area of website marketing. ... Read more

Book Description

Uses of liability swaps * role of banks * swaps rates * matched swap payments * asset swaps * valuation of swaps * zero coupon rates. ... Read more