Figure 1 below shows the price of Tin over the past five years. It can Essay

Figure 1 below shows the price of Tin over the past five years. It can be seen from Figure 1 that the price of tin has fluctuate - Essay Example The pricing of tin in three different periods of 2008-2009, 2009-2011 and 2011-2013 will be studied. The correlation between the housing and construction industry with the tin industry will be analyzed to reach the conclusion. The supply curve concept and its implication on the tin industry will be discussed in the essay. Tin Prices: 2008-2013 The following graph shows the prices of tin in the time period under study. Figure 1: Tin prices from 2008-2013 (Source: London Metal Exchange, 2013) 2008-2009: The chief reason for the fall in the price of tin in 2008 began with excess supply. The year began on a cheerful note when, in April 2008, prices of tin touched the highest mark of US $2600 per ton (Asian Metal Ltd, 2008). The movement in the price of the currency also determines the pricing of commodities. An appreciation in the price of dollars stimulates a fall in the price of dollar denominated commodities. This was particularly true in case of agricultural products and prices of ba se metals (Losoncz, 2008). The prices had been low mainly due to the subprime lending crisis in America and heightened during the period of September 2008. As tin is one of the most important requirements in housing and construction industry, so a fall in the demand for houses in that period had led to a decrease in the demand for tin, which resulted in excess supply in relation to demand, thereby lowering the prices. This can be explained with the help of a supply curve. Figure 2: Supply Curve (Source: Gillespie, 2001) The graph above is that of a supply curve which shows that whenever there is an excess supply, the prices of the commodities tend to fall (Gillespie, 2001). The arrows imply that the prices tend to fall when supply exceeds demand. The subprime lending crisis left the economy with vacant houses and no one to buy it. The banks stopped giving loans for housing constructions (Bianco, 2008). All these lowered the consumer demand for tin, a basic metal in construction and therefore, the prices fell. 2009-2011: The price of tin began to recover with the onset of 2009. The rebound in prices could be attributed to the weakening of dollar against other currencies (Lenzer, 2009). Deprecation in the price of dollars triggers the price of commodities in dollars and this caused the tin prices to rise. Another factor which leads to the rise in tin prices was the rising imports of tin from China. The growing demand of tin from overseas market was also responsible for the rise in the price of tin. Even the improving economical and financial outlook contributed to this rise in the prices. In the aftermath of the global financial crisis, the demand for tin already crashed in 2009 as per the records of World Bureau of Metal Statistics (Burns, 2012). The rise in price of tin during this period was somewhat paradoxical considering the other pressing issues at hand then. The industrial demand for raw material had fallen to a great extent in the advanced European coun tries. The consumption of tin in America alone rose from 4% to 6% when other industries felt the heat of the financial crisis. This happened mainly because of the rising production of tin to meet the rising production demands of steel cans (U.S. International Trade Commission, 2001). The reaction from the supply side followed quickly after the global crash in demand. This was evident from the fall in the production of tin from the miners and smelters. On the global level, the cuts in supply could partially

SUV Pricing for Environmental and Safety Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

SUV Pricing for Environmental and Safety - Essay Example Due to the cost as well as the safety aspect associated with SUV's the demand for these vehicles is slowing down. According to a study carried out by Cambridge Energy Research, the percentage of sales of sports utility vehicles dropped from 56 percent of all vehicles sold in 2004 to 53 percent in 2006 (Williamson, 2006). Safety Concerns: There is a misconception that SUV's are safer than car, however they are more dangerous and according to a government study, the occupant death rate for mid-sized SUV is 6% higher than the car and for large SUVs the death rate of occupants is 6% higher than mid sized cars or minivan (SUVs: Dangers on the road, n.d.). SUVs are not safe as these appear and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the government agency, has described two characteristics of SUVs and other light trucks that can increase the fatalities: rollovers propensity and crash compatibility (SUVs: Escalating risks on the highways, n.d.). Rollover is a major safety concern in SUV's. The main reason are these vehicles are heavier and ride higher than regular cars and these factors particularly the later contributes propensity to roll over in accidents and similarly the recent study shows that SUVs on roads are greatly increasing the dangers for drivers and passengers in other cars (SUVs: Escalating risks on highways, n.d.). Environ... Actually the government regulations for SUVs are ambiguous and these vehicles are categorized with light truck where the average fuel economy achieved by these is only 20.7 mpg in compare to 27.5 mpg set for cars (Environmental double standards for sports utility vehicles, n.d.). California along with nine other states has demanded to raise the fuel economy standards for these vehicles so that the environmental pollution produced by these vehicles can be minimized (Baker, May, 2, 2006). California is the first state who has argued in favor of toughest regulation on air standards and fuel economy. A car having mileage of 27.5 mpg is likely to emit 54 tons of carbon dioxide from burning of gasoline over its life time as compare to 100 tons from a SUV that has a mileage of 14 mpg over its entire life (Environmental double standards for sports utility vehicles, n.d.). Carbon dioxide contributes is one among the green house gases and it traps heat in the atmosphere (Green House Emmission, 2007). Should SUVs priced higher or lower to reflect their environmental and safety aspect A) Yes: Let us say yes, SUVs should be priced to reflect their impact on environment and safety. As we have already seen these have severe impact on environment as well the safety on road of these vehicles is not only pose a danger to the driver and passengers of SUV itself but to other driver and passengers of other vehicles especially lighter cars. The rising greenhouse gases are expected to raise the temperature from 06 to2.5 degree in the next fifty years. According to an estimate around 2000 people have been saved if their vehicles would have been hit by heavy cars instead of SUVs (Environmental double standards for

Macbeth and Lady Macbeth in Act 2 Scenes 1 and 2 Essay Example for Free

Macbeth and Lady Macbeth in Act 2 Scenes 1 and 2 Essay Introduction The Macbeth play was written around 1603 by William Shakespeare. During this play, Macbeth and Banquo started off as best friends, after they met the three witches, they gave Macbeth some predictions about his future. Macbeth was delighted whereas his wife, Lady Macbeth becomes power crazed about this. She persuaded him to kill the king, Duncan (in Elizabethan times, it was the biggest crime that can be committed). Afterwards his mind started to play tricks on himself, so he decided to go back and revisit the three witches; they then told him three new prophecies. Others now have suspected that Macbeth killed Duncan, so when Macduff went to England, he decided to kill Lady Macduff and her children. When Macduff came back and heard that his family is all killed he was furious and decided to have his revenge. When he arrived, to kill Macbeth, Macbeth on the other hand thought he cannot be harmed due to one of the prophecy that the witches told him but all at the end Macduff won. During the Elizabethan, all of audience believed in many supernatural things such as, witchcraft, religion, owls etc. In this play, the witches show us that they are creepy and unreliable due to all those set ups for Macbeth. This constructs a feeling for the Elizabethan audience that they are horrifying things. Shakespeare presented Macbeth as a brave and loyal person towards the King, he respected the King and is a really good fighter, but later on the play, he started to be controlled and changed into a horrific person. Lady Macbeth made Macbeth kill many innocent people; she is power crazed and evil and would do anything to be the queen. Start of this play, the themes mainly about murders and how Macbeth and Lady Macbeth changed. Section 1 Throughout Act 1 Scene 3, Macbeth was delighted when he heard the three witchs prediction of his future, Stay, you imperfect speakers. Tell me more, this quote demonstrates that he wants to know more about his future and he is keen to find out what great things will lie ahead of him. Furthermore, he called the three witches imperfect speakers, this might due to the fact that he does not really know what they are as he might not seen them before. In addition, the word imperfect lets me think of that the three witches are not telling the truth and are hiding some secrets. Macbeth uses a high tone of voice when talking to the three witches, Speak if you can, from this quote it creates a feeling that Macbeth is from a higher social class who is looking down onto the three witches, perhaps he is trying to give the impression that he is the Thane of Glamis. Macbeth also seemed to be confused that the witches told him, he will become the Thane of Cawdor, But how of Cawdor?, from this quote it portrays that Macbeth do not really know how he will become the Thane of Cawdor, he currently is quite happy that he is Thane of Glamis. Shakespeare put in this historical question to make people hooked in, as the audience will ask themselves lots of questions such as, how is he going to become the Thane of Cawdor?, how do those witches know? Etc. When the witches finished talking to Banquo and Macbeth, the three witches vanished into the air, Melted, as breath into the wind. Would they have stayed, this quote shows us that Banquo and Macbeth wondered what happened to them, Shakespeare uses this is due to that during the Elizabethan audience would really believed in witchcraft, this makes people wonder more and ask themselves further questions. Macbeth started off in a really good relationship with his friends and the king. King Duncan really respects Macbeth also Macbeth was a fine fighter for him. O worthiest cousin, this quote demonstrates that Duncan trusts him a lot and that he is really loyal towards the king. Duncan likes Macbeth, he even call him cousin which in my point of view is that Macbeth is like one of Duncans cousin and is really kind towards him. The king called him by the title My worthy Cawdor; this quote suggests that Duncan knows that he is a brave, loyal person. The word Cawdor which indicates that he actually is really pleased that Macbeth is the Thane of Cawdor. Near the start of the play, after Lady Macbeth read the letter, she thought that he would not make it to become the king as he is very weak and too kind, this shows us that the relationships between these two are weak, It is too full othmilk of human kindness, this quote indicates that she thinks Macbeth is too kind and would not have the strength to become the King, from this we could really tell that their relationship is very awful. On the other hand, Macbeth and Banquo was best friends near the start of the play, they were two friends that would never break up, Worthy Macbeth, this quote gives the impression that he really trust in Macbeth and that he is also confident in him, he knows that they would always be friends. Lady Macbeth started off in Act 1 Scene 5 where after she read the letter, she did not have any hope in Macbeth at all, That I may pour my spirits in thine ear, this quote signifies that she want to tell him what to do so he will not ruin this up as she does not have any trust in him. She described him as being weak and cannot do anything right, It is too full othmilk of human kindness, from this it portrays that she think he is like milk which is pure and white and he does not have any darkness in him. Shakespeare made Lady Macbeth seem really nasty, he probably wants us to know that Lady Macbeth and Macbeth never get on with each other so that it gives us a bad feeling that she is evil and horrible towards other people. Lady Macbeth is also two-faced, she is talks about how to get rid of King Duncan and come up with lots of plans but when she meets the King, she is really kind and pleasant, All our service, from this quote it shows us that Lady Macbeth is kind and loyal, she wants to give good impression towards the king so that King Duncan will think that Lady Macbeth and Macbeth are very helpful and kind towards people. This gives the audience a feeling that she is very evil and full of darkness. Section 2 For Act 2 Scene 2, it was set during the night when it is dark, with a torch-bearer before him, this quote suggests that during that time there was no light, only one that the servant is carrying, by setting it in darkness gives people the feeling that someone is going to get murdered, in addition, it gives the Elizabethan audience a feeling of something frightful is about to happen. Shakespeare wants the audience to consider that the place is starting to get suspicious due to that it is dark, Theres husbandry in heaven, Their candles are all out, this quote indicates that the night is really dark, darker than normal, as he is saying that there is no stars. This gives the audience a feeling that something is like messing with the heaven, this builds up the tension for the play also it hooks the audience to it. Near the start of this scene, Banquo had a feeling that something frightening is about to happen. When someone was coming, Banquo asked for his sword and held out his sword straight away, Give me my sword, this quote implies that Banquo does not know who it is and he suddenly prepared himself for unexpected visitors. This lets people think of that Banquo is really worried, but he does not know what is going to happen. Shakespeare uses this to give the audience a feeling that Macbeth is up to something and due to late night and still has not gone to sleep. Banquo had a feeling that something is not right which causes him cant sleep, And yet I would not , this quote gives the impression that Banquo is expecting something to happen so he cannot get to sleep. Banquo mentioned about the three wield sisters, I dreamed last night of the three weà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½rd sisters, this quote portrays that Banquo is testing out Macbeth, he wants to know what reactions Macbeth will have, as Banquo knows that one of the prophecies became true, he is testing out Macbeth to see if he thinks about them. The audience would know that Macbeth thinks about the witches a lot, Shakespeare wants people to understand what kind of person Macbeth is. From this part of the play onwards, the audience would start to see that their friendship is starting to break due to them testing each other because they are trying to find out more about each other. Macbeth responds to it as if he is really surprised about it, I think not of them, this quote indicates that he quickly tells Banquo that he does not, he do not want Banquo to be suspicious about him as he is about to kill the king. Macbeth wants to talk the three witches, We would spend it in some words upon that business, If you would grand the time, this quote shows that clearly Macbeth talk about the three witches, also this quote indicates that he is testing Banquo as well to see if he wants to talk about the three witches. In addition, I believe that Macbeth is starting to feel guilty about what he is about to do, he knows he does not want to but have to do it. Macbeth also tests Banquos loyalty to him, If you shall cleave to my consent, when tis, It shall make honour for you, this quote suggests that Macbeth is testing Banquos loyalty to him, he wants Banquo to listen to him but Banquo does not want to betray Duncan, maybe he does not want their friendship to break up, he knows that it will end. Shakespeare keeps the audience entertained by making them worrying about if everything will turn out well, . This makes Banquo suspicious about it, as he does not know why he is saying that as Macbeth knows that Banquo will still be loyal towards the king. Shakespeare uses this to show us that both of them are testing each other to see what and how they will respond to it. Section 3 Shakespeare made Macbeth in a nervous state of mind, Is this a dagger which I see before me, this quote signifies that Macbeth is already seeing the crime that he is about to commits. He is confused, does not know why he can see the dagger, he thinks the vision is telling him to kill Duncan. Shakespeare uses this to show us that Macbeths mind is playing tricks on him, is encouraging him to commit the crime and that he has some evilness in him. The audience would think that he is now crazy and seeing things which is just his mind persuading him to do it. Macbeth is now asking lots of question, Proceeding from the heat-oppressà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½d brain? this quote portrays that he does not know why he can see the dagger, he is wondering that it might be his brain is over-heated, this makes the audience wonder more about how he can see it, they might even ask themselves question. Shakespeare wants the audience to have a picture in their minds of Macbeth following the dagger and to give us a vision that he can see it but cannot touch it. A quote could be And such an instrument I was to use, this quote represents that Macbeth got the dagger from his pocket and he is about to use it. Shakespeare made the soliloquy long is to show us how nervous he is, he might want us to think about Lady Macbeth and how evil she is, by persuading Macbeth to kill Duncan. Macbeth shows us that he is really mixed up, he cannot sort out the right from the wrong, and just simply following his wifes orders. Shakespeare uses a lot of imageries in this part of the soliloquy to increase the tension, And on thy blade and dudgeon gouts of blood, this quote indicates that the dagger starts to get dripping blood yet he has not committed a crime. Shakespeare uses foreshadowing to build up the tension for when Macbeth kills the king, maybe he wants to create a feeling like as if we were there next to Macbeth, this hooks in the audiences attention. Macbeth been controlled by the witches, Pale Hecates offrings and withered murder, this quote demonstrates that the goddess of the witches is like controlling him to kill the king, he does not want to do it but the witches are making him do it. The Elizabethan audience believed in witchcraft, they understood that witches are evil. In my opinion, I think that Macbeth knows it is wrong to do but Lady Macbeth convinces him to do it. In Macbeths imagination, he sees murder as a withered man, Alarumed by his sentinel wolf, this quote portrays that he is called to action to kill Duncan. The audience would think that he is been called for the opportunity to kill another victim. Shakespeare uses this to compare Macbeth with other murders and creatures, he wants us to understand the murder he is about to do is massive and that he is like other murders (such as Murders sentinel) going to commit a huge crime. At this point, Macbeth describes the murder as moving, thus with his stealthy pace, this quote shows that he is now pacing like murder itself, walking towards the kings bedroom. He wants the place to be silent, With Tarquins ravishing strides, towards his design, this quote indicates that he is like Tarquin asking the earth to be unable to hear, so he can like moves like a ghost towards the kings room. Shakespeare uses Tarquin is because all the Elizabethan audience would know that Tarquin was the murderous rapist in Roman, this builds up the tension for when he kills Duncan. Due to the present silence of the night suits the horror of what he is about to do, we see Macbeth, a man who wants to be in the silent and deadly figure of horror. As Macbeth still has not done the murder yet, and he has been saying many threatening things, all the things he said inspired him to do the deed. Then when he heard the bell, A bell rings this quote shows that Macbeth finally moves from horrifying words to a horrible deed only when Lady Macbeths bell tell him it is time. Section 4 At the start of the scene, Lady Macbeth was excited, That which hath made them drunk, hath made me bold; What hath quenched them, hath given me fire, this quote suggests that she listens intently, as though she could actually hear the murder being committed. The word them refers to are the Kings two personal guards. Lady Macbeth has drugged the grooms possets. Lady Macbeth, herself has also had some wine, but she feels bold and fierce, this gives the audience a feeling that she feels happy now that the king has died. From this, it shows us the darkness inside Lady Macbeth. But Lady Macbeth also seems to be nervous about it, An Owl shrieks and Hark, peace! It was the owl that shrieked, the fatal bellman, Which gives the sternst good-night. He is about it, from these quotes it portrays that she jumped and thought that she was caught when the owl shrieked, she think it as a good omen due to the screech owl is a natures own fatal bellman, the noise of a screech owl foretells the death of a person, therefore, Lady Macbeth is happy about this. Shakespeare also tries to make the Elizabethan audience jump as well because people did not like owls and crickets which they thought that they are horrible animals that bring evilness. She was still nervous when Macbeth arrived, I heard the owl scream and the crickets cry. Did not you speak?, this quote indicates that she is still frightened and nervous, she asks lots of questions, this shows the lack of security. She even asks her husband if he heard it or not. When Lady Macbeth sees her husband, she thinks that he is a fool, A foolish thought, to say a sorry sight, this quote represents that she thinks that he is worrying too much about it, she is telling him that it is great. Lady Macbeth does not want Macbeth to be weak. This makes the audience think that she is trying to calm Macbeth down as his mind is like somewhere else. She tries to be kind to Macbeth to quiet him down, Why, worthy thane, You do unbend your noble strength to think, this quote signifies that she calls him by the title to make him feel happier and she saying that he is strong and brave, as she knows he likes to be the Thane of Cawdor. Shakespeare uses this to try making the audience think that she is cruel and mean on the inside but kind on the outside. After he calmed down, she changes back into a nasty woman, Go get some water And wash this filthy witness from your hand. Why did you bring these daggers from the place?, this quote demonstrates the filthy witness is the blood from Duncan, which acts as a witness to Macbeths crime. She is telling Macbeth to do all the work, maybe she does not want to be involved in this. She is also annoyed at Macbeth for bring back the daggers, she demands him to take it back. The audience might think that she does not want Macbeth to be caught, she wants Macbeth to make the grooms look guilty instead of them. Shakespeare wants us to think that she is taking care of all the things and knows what to do, this gives the impression that she is bossy. They must lie there. Go carry them this quote shows us that she wants Macbeth to do it instead of her. The audience would think that she does not want to get her hands dirty and let her husband do all the work, it gives us the impression that she is looking down on Macbeth and he is like her assistant. Macbeth feels really guilty about the murder he has committed, they pluck out mine eyes Will all great Neptunes ocean wash this blood Clean from my hands? this quote portrays that Macbeth feels guilty about what he has done, he known that the crime will never be forgotten, from this we could really tell that he feels sorry for the king, Shakespeare uses hyperbole, metaphor and historical question in this quote to create a image that makes the audience feeling that all the water in the universe cannot erase the witness he has committed also it makes it more realistic. It frightens him when he looks at his hands, he looks at them as though he had never seen them before, and he feels that looking at them is like getting his eyes gouged out. It is the blood on his hands that causes this horrible fascination, and he feels that the blood can never be washed away. Before his hands are clean, they will make all the seas of the world turn red(shows how big his crime was). Macbeth describes how the blood will turn seas red, The multitudinous seas incarnadine, Making the green one red, this quote signifies that nothing will clear away the witness, he will always remember it. We now know that Macbeth feels guilty comparing to Lady Macbeth who thinks it is easy and effortless. A little water clears us of this deed. How easy is it then!, from this, we could understand that she thinks there is nothing to worry about as no one will ever find out. She said it fast and simple; this gives the audience a feeling that she is not loyal to the king and is full of evilness. She said it easily and effortlessly, Shakespeare uses this to show us that she has no kindness and uses this to compare to Macbeth where he described it complicatedly/complex. Lady Macbeth tried to bring back her husband into the reality by comparing herself with him, My hands are of your colour, but I shame To wear a heart so white, this quote indicates that her hands are red, too (because she has been busy smearing the Kings blood on the grooms), but that she would be ashamed to have a heart as white as Macbeths. A white heart is white because it has no blood, and the person with a white heart is a coward. As she delivers this insult, we hear the knocking again, and Lady Macbeth takes her husband away so that they can wash up. In her opinion, it will only take a little water to make them innocent. The audience would think that Lady Macbeth is being too unforgiving and cruel on Macbeth, also she tells him that its childish to be afraid of the sleeping or the dead. Lady Macbeth also tells him he must put on his night-gown, so that if they have to get up and talk to whoever is knocking, it wont look like theyve been up all night. The word knocking makes me feel that someone is watching them talking about the murder, also Shakespeare added in many knocking sounds is because he might want us to think that Duncan has not died yet to calm the audience. He is unresponsive near the end of the scene, To know my deed, twere best not know myself, this quote demonstrates that he seems lost in his thoughts, when Lady Macbeth tells to snap out of it, he thinks about what she has become and the thinks they have done. Now he fully understands what he has done and knows that what a monster he has become. This makes the audience notice that he does not want to know that monster (himself), he knows that he cannot help to do anything better. At the very last, we hear the knocking again, Macbeth wishes none of it had ever happened, as he calls out Wake Duncan with thy knocking: I would thou couldst, this quote indicates that the knocking showed up a few times which Shakespeare might want us to think about why there is knocking, to ask ourselves questions. Conclusion Shakespeare maintains fear and horror throughout the play by reference to the supernatural, such as animal(owl, cricket), this help the play as the Elizabethan audiences does not like these kinds of creatures as they find them evil. He also uses lots imageries such as metaphors, similes etc. to make the audience entertained and hook into the play and also it helps to build up the tension. Shakespeare has also included soliloquy, hyperbole, asides and the use of the tone of voice, these make the play more realistic and them creepy but enjoyable to watch. Macbeth is a person who is scared at fear, at the beginning of the play, Macbeth is described as a brave, loyal man who is kind, but his wife manipulates him by accusing him of being a coward, and throughout the play he denies his own fears. I think that Macbeth is a fine war lord who is loyal to the king, but he shows some of his cruel side, mostly during the middle part of the play. At first, it appears that Lady Macbeth is the dominant partner that is evil and cruel, but after the murder of King Duncan she loses her grip on her husband and becomes weird as she could not even control herself. She is a two-faced woman who pretends that she is kind and lovely to people, especially the king.

Hofstedes Cultural Dimensions Theory

Hofstedes Cultural Dimensions Theory In the past decade of increased globalization and diversity, business across borders has increased. Although cross border business faces a lot of challenges not only from the political and socio economic paradigm but also from culture (Porter, 1990). National culture has gained importance, as it is significant in managing global operations. Multinational business strategy research has long acknowledged the importance of national cultural characteristics as determinants of management behavior (Cheng, 1989; Rosenweig and Singh, 1991). So now, what is culture? It is true that no two human would know the same things but they often have great deal of knowledge in common. This common knowledge or collective memory to a large extent make people work together, communicate and live together. This forms communities and if shared among enough people in a country, its characteristics are called national culture. The common knowledge constitutes one of the elements which make national culture uni que (The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, 2nd edition, revised and updated, by E. D. Hirsch, Jr., and James Trefil, is reviewed). There are a lot of theories that attempt to explain culture like the ones proposed by Fons Trompenaar, 1993; Kluckhohn and Strodtbeck, 1961, Edward T.Hall but Geert Hofstedes Cultures consequences has been remarkably influential and his work has provided the foundation for many studies on, intercultural relations (Hart, 1999), cross-cultural management control systems design (Harrison McKin- non, 1999), international business research (Chandy Williams, 1994), and psychology (Baskerville, 2003; Oyserman, Coon, Kem- melmeier, 2002; Schimmack, Oishi, Diener, 2005; Triandis, 2004), most often seeking to determine how differences on cultural dimensions (i.e., power distance, individualism, uncertainty avoidance, and masculinity) impacted work related values and behavior. (National Culture, Leadership and Citizenship: Implications for Cross-cultural Management, p 78) According to Geert Hofstede the culture is defined as collective programming of mind and explains that it lies between human nature on one side and individual personality on the other (Hofstede, 1991). Hofstedes cultural framework has been applied in a wide variety of contexts and his work has gained great support and is of prime importance to many researchers in various disciplines. As stated by Baskerville, Cultures Consequences demonstrates an average of 94 citations per annum in the last 18 years. Part of this level of usage appears to reflect efforts of researchers unaware of debates concerning the legitimacy of Hofstedes dimensions (R.F.Baskerville, 2003). So huge is the acceptance of hofstedes work. Geert Hofstede an expert of studies in culture from Netherland developed a cross- culture model. The five dimensions of culture are defined as follows Power Distance: the extent to which the less powerful members of organizations and institutions (like the family) expect and accept that power is distributed unequally (Hofstede, 1991: 28; Hofstede Peterson, 2000: 401). Uncertainty Avoidance: intolerance for uncertainty and ambiguity (Hofstede, 1991: 113; Hofstede Peterson, 2000: 401). Individualism versus Collectivism: the extent to which individuals are integrated into groups (Hofstede, 1991: 51; Hofstede Peterson, 2000: 401). Masculinity versus Femininity assertiveness and competitiveness versus modesty and caring (Hofstede, 1991: 82-3, 1998b; Hofstede Peterson, 2000: 401) (McSweeney, 2002) Hofstede defined culture as a Collective programming of mind, his concept of culture promotes an image of the individual as merely a passive carrier of a predetermined cultural template (Ailon, 2007; Ailon -Souday Kunda, 2003). As much as Hofstedes work has been universally accepted as I was researching I came across a number of critics for his work (e.g Galit Ailon (2008); R.F.Baskerville (2003); McSweeney (2002)). It was then it dawned on me the validity of the theory that even I had used in my graduate dissertation like an unquestionably acceptable principle. As G.Ailon (2008) stated it is not he (Hofstede), the individual, who is of interest here; instead,the discursive practices that governed his text that predominated and ran through him (Foucault, 1972: 139)that are of interest. So here I am going to critically evaluate his theory within a certain degree of my personal understanding of it although heavily relying on the articles of McSweeney and Galit ailon. A significant aspect of national culture research of Hofstede is the transparency with which he related the cultural dimensions with other studies of country or national differences for the purposes of making international comparisons. Each of the dimensions of index was compared to seven other national measurements: GNP, latitude, economic growth, population size and growth, population density and organization size. So the socio economic data used by him does describe cultural dimension rather the historical origins of nations. (R.F.Baskerville, 2003). His study comes to show that a nations attributes are culturally influenced. And most of the critiques have remarkably questioned the simplest of facts that many have failed to think. As Mikael Sondergaard puts it , most of the debate on hofstedes work has been on the following aspects of his study: surveys are inappropriate instruments to measure culture unit of analysis of nations is not the best unit suited for studying culture One company cannot provide information about the entire nations culture IBM data is old and obsolete Four dimensions cant tell the whole story (http://geert-hofstede.international-business-center.com/Sondergaard.shtml). I am going to be discussing the above mentioned in detail now, though Hofstedes work has entailed substantial contribution in the field of cultural studies there are some pertinent issues that leaves doubt on the validity of the typology produced by him. It is not possible for national culture to be uniform, there is considerable diversity. An assumption of a homogeneous culture can only be made by assuming that culture is coherent, pure, stable, and nothing external like other cultures and non cultural factors influence a national culture.(McSweeney, Forthcoming) Which is hard to believe in reality because when a number of cultures and subcultures co-exist it is impossible for it remain independent and completely uninfluenced by the other. Otherwise we have to consider cultures as being tough enough to withstand any attempts to change them. Some of the issues are discussed in the due course. The surveys were the backbone of the study. The surveys were carried out on 40 IBM subsidiaries around the world between 1964 and 1973 and used about 117000 questionnaires. Most of the researchers state that a survey is not an appropriate instrument for accurately determining and measuring cultural disparity. This is especially apparent when the variable being measured is a value which culturally sensitive and subjective (Schwartz, 1999). Two surveys were carried out and results are a combination of responses from both the surveys. A closer examination revealed that not all questionnaires were used and that the average number per country was small and sometimes evens a minuscule. In only six countries () the number of respondents were more than 1000 and in Pakistan was only 70 The narrowness of the Hofstede surveyed research population radically compounds the scale problem (McSweeney, 2002). This leads to a doubt in the statistical integrity of the results obtained from the survey. A s Schwartzs (1992) puts it that one cannot derive the normative ideals of a culture from the average of individual responses (p. 51). The PD (Power distance) index was based on three questions in the IBM questionnaire. The first question was a five point scale , and it asked how frequently in their experience employees were afraid of expressing disagreement with their managers and second and third questions asked about their preferred leadership style (autocratic, persuasive, consultative, and democratic) and the style that closely matched their boss. G.Ailon (2008) states that in each stage of the research process an attempt of neutralization is visible. This begins with the standardized uniform questionnaire that has been used worldwide. In effect, how- ever, uniformity was, meant ot direct respondents in the paths determined by a Western, managerially oriented research team. The questionnaire coerced a western axis of comparison on non-western cultures. It had a egalatarian portrayal of western culture and ignored racial and colonial inequalities and defined racial power distance under uncertainity avoidance. Th is fact, enabled a country like South Africa due to apartheid to be represented in the sample by white respondents only whether partial in terms of population sample, questionnaire content, or both, it constituted a political act that, however unwittingly, neutralized racism and colonialism by excluding them from measurement.Hofstede also tried to neutralize certain aspects of the dimension by universalisation, stating that Hierarchial inequality is something we inevitably find, the essence of organsation and so the choices given on the questionnaire was already based on the notion of its universal inevitability thereby trapping the respondent in an invisible way to positively answer the neutrality and inevitability of the managerial power.(G.Ailon, 2008).Though they had choices , and their answers did vary, these were again manipulated and labeled in such a way that hofstede tried to expropriate the meaning of the answers from his respondents, claiming, in so many words, that anyth ing they said proves his point-using their voices to turn his hypotheses into axioms (G.Ailon, 2008). The large power distance in France and Belgium (which were exceptions in Nordic, Anglo, Germany) he attributed to the cultural inheritance of Roman empire, likewise the small power distance in Pakistan he attributes to their Islamic religious background and belief that all are equal in the eyes of god. He used such exemptions to justify his claim that small PD countries are economically developed, large PD countries are less developed or developing.(Ailon.G, 2002). It emphasizes that those from small power-distance cultures are likely to accept responsibility, while those from large power-distance cultures are likely to be more disciplined (Triandis, 1993) The Uncertainty Avoidance (UA) index was based on three questions again and they were related to the frequency of nervousness and tension at work, the second was How long do you think you will continue working for this company? Please indicate the extent to which you personally agree or disagree . . . [that] company rules should not be bro- ken- even when the employee thinks it is in the companys best interest (Hofstede, 1980:76 -77, 405, 408 409). Hofstedes book states those in weak uncertainty-avoidance cultures may be very high in basic innovations, while those in strong uncertainty-avoidance cultures may triumph in precision manufacturing. (Triandis, 1993) Though Hofstede admits that better indicators could have been developed in ascertaining the UA, because it wasnt a familiar concept when they developed the IBM questionnaires, he very strongly and emphatically links a high UA to a number of socio-psychological tendencies. (G.Ailon, 2008) low UA, for example, is suggested to result from advanced modernization; older democracies; dense populations in poor countries and sparse populations in wealthy countries; tolerant religions that stress relativity; historical events marked by less legislation and more settlement of disputes by negotiation and/or conflict, as opposed to mere inheritance of developed systems of legislation; low mean age of population leaders; and smaller organizations (1980: 185). The suggested consequences of low UA include slower economic growth after World War II, weaker nationalism, less aggressiveness versus other nations, looser societies, stronger feelings of citizen competence, a casuistic approach to legal is sues, a stronger accent on lay competences as expressed by having more nurses per doctor, more religious tolerance, pragmatic or introvert meditative religions, rel- ativism, empiricism rather than theoricism in social sciences, more ambitious employees, managers who are more involved in strategy issues, and so forth (1980: 186-187). He is just forcing people to envision a world where everything is interconnected through simple logic (G.Ailon, 2002). At a point Hofstede states people from lower UAI cultures will tend to do better in cross-cultural contacts (1980: 398), I doubt this as it is something that is related to individuals personal communication skills and doesnt matter if he were from a country with a low UA index. Hofstede justifies the power of managers with a western background that they have a low UA and Small PD and so they are most suited for strategic and cross cultural management. So is that only the western managers have this skill which they imbibed from culture a nd their counterparts around the world lack this vital skill. (G.Ailon, 2008) The Individualism (IDV) index was based on work goal questions in which the respondents were asked to rate the importance of a variety of statements, in which high IDV were attributed to giving importance to doing a job leaving out personal and leisure time and, low IDV were attributed to having good physical skills and training opportunities at work. These tried to assess a person independence from organization and second to assess what the individual expected from the organization. (G.Ailon, 2008) As McSweeney put it power distance and individualism and collectivism were statistically identified by him only in nationally averaged data. At the level of individuals, they had near- zero inter-correlations (Bond, 2002; Schwartz, 1994) for those dimensions and thus no explanatory power at that level. Hofstede states that those from high-collectivism cultures may show employee commitment, while members of organizations from high-individualism cultures can profit from management mobility . Hofstedes book states that those from cultures high in femininity may be able to provide personal services, custom-made products, and be especially successful in biochemistry, while those in masculine cultures may excel in mass production, efficiency, heavy industry, and bulk chemistry; The masculinity index like the IDV was also based on work goal question and it attempted to measure the extent to which respondents endorsed ego goals (related to earnings and advancement) and social goals (related to cordial relations at work place and a friendly atmosphere). This index is based on the universal dissection relating to sexual character and goals, in which men are more assertive and tough and women are more nurturing and Tender. He states that the distribution of labor is affected by the goals of the organization. This according to me is true but he also goes to say that business organizations have goals of achievement which relates to the masculine index and it is not surprising they are run by men and their climate is set by men, which I as a girl would detest. Not just from a point of defending my own sex but from the common world examples, A study organized by the Finnish Business and Policy stated, Companies managed by women are on average ten per cent more profitable than those with a man as CEO. The study was conducted on atleast 14000 limited liability finish companies in 2003. (http://www.hs.fi/english/article/Study+companies+managed+by+women+more+profitable+than+those+run+by+men/1135230562325). Even in a country like US which has a fairly good masculinity index of 62, You have companies form the fortune 500 like yahoo, pepsico, New York Times and Kraft foods that are run by women ceos so it doesnt necessarily mean one has to be a man to be the big boss. Though national culture is not theorized as the only culture or a totality of cultures, within a nation, but by definition it culturally distinguishes the members of one nation from another. (McSweeney, 2002). Hofstede says that each country has a unique culture. I would slightly differ from that opinion, because that sort of unique cuture may be attributed to the cultural heritage and aspects like performing arts that may vary from country to country uniquely but on the basis of individual attitude and behavior it seems a little irrelevant. If you take India for example, it is culturally diverse and it does have numerous subcultures but the attitude and behaviors differ so widely even inside a subculture. Hofstede states that National culture is said to be carried by all individuals in a nation (1980a: 38) or a central tendency (1991: 253). The IBM survey responses within each country were characterized by radical differences. This now leaves doubt on his assumptions of national culture as being same in all individuals in a nation. He assumed that the average tendency of the IBM employees responses as the national representative. There seems to be no valid reason to prove it due to the complete ignorance on the background of those interviewed, who mostly well educated, middle class The samples for his study was exclusively from a single company called IBM. A study fixated on only one company cannot possibly provide information on the entire cultural system of a country (Graves 1986, 14-15; Olie 1995, 135; SÃ ¸ndergaard 1994, 449). The responses were also from only the marketing and sales executives of the company for which Hofstede claimed they shared the same organizational culture as that of all the other employees of IBM. The cultures carried by each respondent are effectively assumed to be three exclusively non-interacting and durable cultures: the organizational, an occupational, and the national. He assumes there is only one IBM culture and not cultures, which, as it were, possesses all employees and every occupation has a common worldwide occupational culture (McSweeney, 2002). Furthermore, McSweeney also evidences Hofstedes blind assumption that every individual in the company had the same organizational and occupational culture regardless of the commi tment and loyalty each individual had to his organization and also the duration of service by the employee to the organization which are all factors that lead to the bond that an employee creates overtime with the organization he works for. Though after a few years Hofstede did acknowledge that there is a variety of distinct cultures within and between units of the same organization and also redefined his statement on organizational culture so his assumption made in the first study wouldnt be invalidated (McSweeney, 2002). It is not known if the factors he redefined are supposed to be self evident. Regarding occupational culture, as McSweeney puts it, Hofstede assumes that members of a single occupation around the world share the same occupational culture. Clarification regarding his acknowledgement of cultural heterogeneity in organizations is needed i.e. it lacks clarity. Another instance where we might raise a brow is authenticity of replies by the questionnaire respondents, thou gh the answers were confidential, the respondents prior knowledge of the end purpose of the survey might have influenced their answers so as to improve theirs or their divisions position (McSweeney, 2002). Yet hofstedes reliance on his supposition that the answers are immune to respondents gaming and were the pure outcomes of unconscious pre-programmed values (1980a,1991; Hofstede Peterson, 2000). Another aspect is the comprehensiveness of the questionnaire to elicit all the necessary inputs to assess a culture. As McSweeney stated in any circumstance the IBM subsidiary had many nationally atypical characteristics. When initially IBM had centralized control and its US ownership during a period in which foreign direct investment was comparatively new. In instances where working for high technology was rare in third world countries like Bangladesh and India than in an industrialized nation like United states. What happens when countries are integrated, for instance the integration of Hongkong into the Peoples Republic of China (McSweeney, 2002).Does the national characterization change? Does the attitude and behavior of people at work place change immediately? Do we immediately consider a nation with a larger sample to portray the national culture of two countries? Political influences and social institutions, law are the non cultural feature that influence culture in a large way and that Hofstede excludes and denies having a link with national culture. For example, Christmas was once illegal in England, during 1647, during which singing Christmas carols could end a person in prison for almost six months but it was later reinstated in 1660. Dont you think this must have has an obvious effect on the culture (mental programming) that children born and raised in that 22 year period developed. Though this is dated way before the study was undertaken I have quoted it as an example to say there might have been other consequences that might have likely influenced any cultural feature. Hofstede might acknowledge these as exceptions but they have to considered when drawing conclusions about a nations culture. Has Hofstede really identified all the primary cultural level dimensions? Many others like Schwartz have tried to identify some national cultures using different questionnaires and have produce very different descriptions. In fact Schwartz(1994) found seven cultural level dimensions which indeed was acknowledged by Hofstede as simply not being identified because questions related to those dimensions /descriptions were not asked in his survey. Hofstede gave a bipolarity to each of his dimensions for example the individualism and collectivism , but as Triandis (1994) puts it , the two can coexist and are simply emphasized more or less depending on the situation. But Hofstedes dimensions do not consider such co-existence and blindly ignores such important cultural qualities.(McSweeney forthcoming) Another obvious flaw I found on the credibility of his typology is his addition of the fifth dimension: Confucian Dynamism (1991) or long versus short-term orientation'(1999). He extracted this from a Chinese Values Survey (CVS) by the Chinese culture connection group which identified hofstedes fourth dimension (Uncertainty avoidance) as irrelevant to their population and downgraded it to a non universal dimension.(Bond,1988;lowe Oswick,1996).As stated by Mcsweeney(2002) from the wide literature of culture , it is still essentially a thing to be grasped and cannot be described by dimensions and units. Another consideration advanced by researchers is if Hofstedes model reflects the present day (Roberts and Boyacigiller, 1984; Sondergaard, 1994). Hofstede (1980a, 1991) assumes that cultural values are stable over time. But is his work out of date after thirty years? Hofstede claims to have identified entire nations culture and not that which is specific to workplaces (McSweeney, 2002) and Producers of scientific knowledge, it seems, not only misrepresent the Rest (the primary emphasis of postcolonial writing; e.g., Said, 1978) but also misrepresent the West. (G.Ailon, 2008) There is no denial that Hofstedes work has given substantive findings. His findings do tap some of underlying significance of nations culture. However interpreting them and using it to deal with other nations requires a certain degree of caution. Hopefully, these findings eventually lead to a valid measure that captures the richness of the various cultural dimensions and can be deployed at an individual level. Given the diversity of the world marketplace, it is essential for marketers have a proper measure of culture in order to understand consumer behavior. (Blodgett et al, 2008) As McSweeney puts it Hofstedes research can legitimately be called a cross-national opinion comparison only from the point that data from organizations in different countries were compared Culture is conceptualized as a force, as a determinant, but descriptions of it are based on analysis answers to fixed-choice questions.(McSweeney, forthcoming), which I think were manipulative enough (even if it wasnt in certain cases, they were justified by researcher to correlate with his findings) to extract the desired answers of the researcher. It was argued that what Hofstede identified is not national culture, but an averaging of situational specific opinions from which dimensions or aspects of national culture are unjustifiably inferred. Hofstedes claim to have empirically measured national culture differences relies on crucial but unwarranted assumptions. (Mc Sweeney, forthcoming). Hofstede has given bipolarity to each dimensions for example his masculinity and Femininity any culture will present a number of contrary adages (All good things come to those who wait and time and tide wait for none as a part of its repertoire (Mcsweeney, 2002) Hofstede miserably failed to identify that theses bipolarities could co-exist in any situation. Hofstedes replies to McSweeney were evasive and non-adhering to the main aspect of the critique. As G.Ailon (2008) put is If one accepts the framework, it basically follows that one must also accept the logic of the critique. Generalizations about national culture are no good. Him identifying a nations culture with the responses from a very small sample in each country (compared to the countrys population except for those 6 countries with more than 1000 respondents), and also using the questionnaires that werent created purely for research purpose is a very visible flaw. He tried to expropriate the meaning of the answers from his respondents, claiming, in so many words, that anything they said proves his point and used their voices to turn his hypotheses into axioms (G.Ailon, 2008) The analysis throws light on the dominance of western theories, regardless of intentions, it reinforces a certain set of values of managers, Westerners, Europeans while at the same time devaluing the Rest. Though he tried to compensate and praise the east by adding his fifth dimension. I would say Hofstede tried to provide like a Single Magical formula (Elman Service, 1968:409) and easily valued culture using statistics and scientific stamps and Xs and Ys. Just so that this would allow research to be completed more quickly and easily through employment of his prefabricated depictions of causal national culture. This actually in my view devalues culture that has a myriad of ethos. His employment of very unusually sophisticated statistical techniques in the late 1970s probably were a reason for his models legitimacy (Oyserman et al. 2002a, for an overview) To conclude, from what I infer from all the readings, more research is needed to give a tough measure of culture and also identify the shifting cultural maps which is greatly influenced by, and influences, globalization and technology, however this is difficult to achieve and may have temporal value due to the dynamic nature of culture. References: McSweeney, Brendan. (2002) Hofstedes Model of National Cultural Differences and Their Consequences: A Triumph of Faith a Failure of Analysis. Human Relations. 55, no. 1: 89-118. Ailon, Galit. (2008) Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: Cultures Consequences in a Value Test of Its Own Design. Academy of Management Review. 33, no. 4: 885-904. 3. Blodgett,Jeffrey, Aysen Bakir, and Gregory Rose. 2008. A Test of the Validity of Hofstedes Cultural Framework. Journal of Consumer Marketing. 25, no. 6: 339-349 Baskerville, Rachel. (2003) Hofstede Never Studied Culture. Accounting, Organizations Society. 28, no. 1: 1-14. Testa, Mark. (2009) National Culture, Leadership and Citizenship: Implications for Cross-cultural Management. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 28(1): 78-85. Jones, M. (2007) Hofstede Culturally questionable?. Oxford Business Economics Conference. Oxford, UK, 24-26. Triandis, H. (1993) Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind. Geert Hofstede. , 38(1), 132-134. In my opinion Mikael SÃ ¸ndergaard on Cultural differences by Mikael SÃ ¸ndergaard.Available: http://geert-hofstede.international-business-center.com/Sondergaard.shtml, (Accessed:2009, December 27) McSweeney, Brendan. (Forthcoming) Dynamic Diversity: Variety and Variation Within Countries , 1-25.

Real Estate Bubble and Financial Crisis

Real Estate Bubble and Financial Crisis Introduction The most significant economic event in 1990s was the Financial Crisis in East Asian, which also affected the world economy in the next few decades. People probably question the specificity of the East Asian Crisis. Radelet and Sachs (1998.p.1) gave a response to this question: The East Asian financial crisis is remarkable in several ways. The crisis has hit the most rapidly growing economies in the world. It has prompted the largest financial bailouts in history. It is the sharpest financial crisis to hit the developing world since the 1982 debt crisis. It is the least anticipated financial crisis in years. In my view, Asian financial crisis is triggered by real estate bubbles. This paper is organized around the topic the collapse of real estate bubble causes Financial Crisis as below. Section 1 introduces what is real estate bubble; what are the factors inducing the occurrence of a real estate bubble; and by what measurements to identify this phenomenon. Then, Section 2 discusses the effects of real estate bubble in Financial Crisis reflect in different approaches: theoretical economic approach statistical data and historical facts. In conclusion, besides summarize the main idea of the overall contents, the exposure of the limitation of the theoretical economic approach will be mentioned. Real estate bubble The real estate bubble, also known as property or housing bubble is considered as an economic bubble, which is also a cyclical phenomenon occurs in the local or worldwide real estate market. Its prime feature is that the valuation of housing is growing swiftly, however, once the peoples financial situation and economic indicators unable to sustain such upward trend of price that follows the collapse of housing pricing. That implies a negative equity in investment for the proprietors. (Investor Dictionary. Com) There are several factors that induce the burst of the real estate bubble in Asia from 1997 to 1998. The following focuses on several main reasons: An excessive support of bank lending The developers are unable to cope with the investment of the real estate based on their own capital due to the function of this industry-capital-intensive. Thus, bank lending becomes a major source of funds. Before the mid-90s, the Asian real estate is fairly booming. However, because of the lack of a formal system of banking supervision, banks competed for developers by lowering interest rate. (Koh, Mariano, Pavlov, Phang, Tan and Wachter, 2004) Governments improper macro-guidance and control Government intervention influences the real estate bubble in two perspectives: On the one hand, the land market and economic system is not mature or perfect enough. On the other hand, it is the limitation of the land resources and the market mechanism. Therefore, inappropriate regulation contributes to the growing of the real estate bubble. (An International Comparison of the Real Estate Bubble, 2009) Some other reasons For example, the relaxed financial environment; excess international capital flows (An International Comparison of the Real Estate Bubble, 2009); excessive amount of house ownership; speculate in purchasing; and bad lending practice ( Merriam, 2009) When economists acknowledge the reasons of bubble burst, they strive to distinguish the breading real estate bubble by the measurements of financial ratios and economic indicators. That aims to prevent the bubble burst. Housing affordability index Monthly housing affordability index (HAI) is a method to identify whether housing is becoming more or less affordable for the typical household. The HAI incorporated changes in key variables affecting affordability: housing prices, interest rates, and income. The formula is: HAI= (Median Family Income/Qualifying Income)*100% HAI ratio denotes the level of affordability. When HAI ratio is high, more people are able to buy a house. (Dr. Econ, 2003) This index facilitates banks to adjust fiscal policy. Assumed that the HAI is high, banks probably adopt liberal policies to extend loans, such as decrease the lending rates. Price to earnings ratio The real estate price to earnings ratio (P/E ratio) is the basic measurement to evaluate the comparatively assessment of the equities. This ratio is determined by three factors: The price of purchasing a house; the price of renting a house; and the spending on renting a house. The formula is: Real Estate P/E Ratio: House price/ (RentExpenses) This ratio provides an intuitive analysis that how purchasing houses restricts other family expenses. (The Real Estate Bubble in the 2000s-Housing Market Indicators, n.d.) Give an example of Washington DC House P/E ratio, which provides an integrated thinking about how purchase interacts with rent. The graph below states a rapidly grow in the ratios, which implies that the speed of raising purchasing price is extremely faster than that of renting price. It seems that such increasing trend will lead to real estate bubble, if none approaches is using to control it. (Eric, 2006) Some other financial ratios or economic indicators: Such as real estate price to rent ratio; gross rental yield; ownership ratio; housing debt to income ratio; housing debt to equity ratio; or deposit to income ratio. (The Real Estate Bubble in the 2000s-Housing Market Indicators, n.d.) Real estate bubble cause Asian Financial Crisis The growing booming economy of Southeast Asia is known as the the tiger economies between the late 90s and early 20s. Counties in Southeast Asia such as Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, South Korea and Hong Kong (China) were regarded as the states with the most remarkable economic growth worldwide. According to the Gross Domestic Product, it seems that economies of these states increased by 6% to 9% annually. However, good times do not last long, from June 1997 to January 1998, the burst of financial crisis this Asian miracle was dashed to the ground. In the end of 1997, collapses of the stock and currency markets in these state occurred frequently, then, at the beginning of 1998, the stock market lost more than 70% of their profits. (Hill, n.d.) In the economy system, real estate, compare with other sectors, it is the most highly leverage sector that cause a financial crisis of the utmost probability. The increasingly compound of issues or difficulties lead to the real estate deviates from the normal development. That not only generates a breeding ground of the real estate bubble, but also potential risks for financial crisis. Because of the rapidly decrease of real estate price, there was a disastrous loss of bank lending in some Asian countries, which also affects the current monetary assets. (Lanka Rating Agency Limited, n.d.) There is a theoretical economic approach (Koh, Mariano, Pavlov, Phang, Tan, and Wachter, 2006) that analysis the correlation between the return of real estate and the fluctuation in the spreading of bank loans. If the numerical value of the correlation is below zero, which indicates a phenomenon of under pricing, which prick up the exacerbation of financial crisis. This assumption could be explained though a formula, that calculates the housing price for trade: P=V () M (, s ()) +B Here are the meanings that each symbol denotes: V denotes the basic valuation of a house; M denotes the valuation of bank lending for having a mortgage on a house and the par valuation of bank lending for having a mortgage on a house with certain deposit rate; denotes the intending fluctuating level of a house; s denotes spreading of the bank loan according to certain deposit rate. Assumed that set an accurate price for mortgage, a houses marketable valuation is equivalent to par valuation, in addition, price for trade is equivalent to the basic valuation of a house. Suppose that is an independent variable, while s is a dependent variable, thus: 0 = 0 is equivalent to zero, as the spreading of the bank loan modulates according to recoup the bank for the transformations in the value as a result of the put option is included in the mortgage lending. When is equivalent to zero, it means the transformations in the growing fluctuating level of a house ( is completely spread round. However, when is below zero, it means the intending fluctuating level of a house ( has an impact on the covariance of the house return with the market. When the house price changes in response to the spreading: = 0 ; = 0 ; 0 Thus, if the growing fluctuating level of a house ( is completely spread round, then the correlation between the house price for trade and the spreading of bank loan is equivalent to zero. Furthermore, if this correlation influences the covariance between the house and the whole market is influences, it on the verge of zero. From another point of view, assumed that the spreading of the bank loan transforms according to under price rather than the intending fluctuating level of a house (, the house price changes in response to the spreading is completely distinctive: = 0; = 0; and 0 Therefore, correlation between the house price for trade and the spreading of bank loan is below zero, as following equations: = ) ) 0 These two distinctive house prices which are influenced by default spreading generate an appropriate effect of under price: Under pricing of the default risk in non-recourse lending produces a negative correlation between asset returns and changes in the default spread. Correctly pricing the default risk in non-recourse lending produces no correlation between asset returns and changes in the default spread. Countries that experience under pricing, experience larger market crashes following negative demand shocks. On the base of this theoretical economic approach, we could analyze the practical cases, in 1997 Asian Financial crisis, to support the idea that the collapse of real estate bubble causes Financial Crisis The financial crisis was began from Thailand and then extended over the whole Asian even the whole world. During that period, the characteristic of its economy is overheating with a deficit of 8% in 1997. The valuation of housing increased swiftly and collapsed swiftly. The main element that generated difficulties for financial institutions was the loans to real estate. (Hunter, Kaufman, and Krueger, 1999) According to the data from the Investment Property Databank , (Koh, Mariano, Pavlov, Phang, Tan, and Wachter, 2006) the figure below is obtained. Based on the theoretical economic approach, the numerical value of correlation below zero will lead to a result of under pricing. Such under price may cause a great amount loss of funds, which will finally deteriorate into a financial crisis. From the above figure, Thailand is the typical example that explains the real estate bubble causes financial crisis. At the beginning of the 1990s, a massive amount of foreign funds continued to flow in the Asia market until the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis started. During that period, the lower deposit interest rate in the country encouraged people to seek investment channels with higher return. Meanwhile, foreign funds benefited the growing of the real estate industry. Additionally, because bank expanded the total amount of lending though decreasing the lending rate, under pricing became uncontrollable. (Koh, Mariano, Pavlov, Phang, Tan, and Wachter, 2006) In the In 1996, Thailand loaned to the real estate sector US $160 billion, which accounted for 30% to 40% of the total lending. (Mera and Renaud, 2000) The figure below illustrates the amount of funds finance companies lend to industries related to the real estate and manufacturing from 1987 to 1996 in Thailand. It is obviously that the loans to real estate sector rapidly grew between 1989 and 1990, after that the percentage of real estate loan to the total loan maintained at a relative high level, which was between 20% and 30%. (Source: Bank of Thailand) Another support case is Malaysia. Between 1992 and 1996, over 70% of the bank lending was invested in real estate sector and stock market. (Mera and Renaud, 2000) The massive amount of funds injected into the real estate industries lead to a rapidly increase in GDP in that period. It is the fact that GDP increased by 40%, 62% 115% and 70% in Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand respectively, that was much greater than that in Germany (19%), United Kingdom(16%) and United States (21.5%). However, this accelerated the formation of the Asian real estate bubble. (Koh, Mariano, Pavlov, Phang, Tan, and Wachter, 2006) It shown in the below figure that Malaysia, Philippine, and Singapore also generated an negative correlation before the occurrence of financial crisis Conclusion To summarize this paper, at the beginning a briefly introduction of the real state bubble is given. In this part it includes the definition, the reasons for breeding real state bubble, for example banks compete by lower lending interest rates to excessive support the real estate industry, and governments improper macro-guidance and control. Follow that are the measurements of financial ratios and economic indicators, such as housing affordability index and price to earnings ratio, which benefit to identify the signal of bubble burst. The most important part in the paper is to analyze the relationship between the real estate bubble and the financial crisis to produce a result that the real estate bubble is a factor that triggers the start of the Asian financial crisis. A theoretical economic approach is given with some statistical data, figure and real facts of Asian financial crisis. However, there some limitations in this theoretical economic approach, that do not agree with the reality. In the above figure, Hongkong and Japan generate positive correlation, according to theory this do not according with under pricing lead to financial crisis. The fact is that Japan is a typical example to illustrate that governmental action has negative impacts on the real estate industries. The Nikkei 225 index increased rapidly from 10000 to 38916 (peak value) between 1985 and 1989. Facing this, the manager of the Bank of Japan focused on dealing with the inflation rather than shrinking monetary policy, which reflected a decrease trend in housing price. The real estate bubble burst. (Frankel and Tschoegl, 1993) This is one of the limitations of the economic approach, which need further improve.

Huck Finn :: essays research papers

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn The conflict between society and the individual is a very important theme portrayed throughout Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Many people see Huckleberry Finn as a mischievous boy who is a bad influence to others. Huck is not raised in agreement with the accepted ways of civilization. He practically raises himself, relying on instinct to guide him through life. As seen several times in the novel, Huck chooses to follow his innate sense of right, yet he does not realize that his own instincts are more right than those of society. Society refuses to accept Huck as he is and isn't going to change its opinions about him until he is reformed and civilized. The Widow Douglas and Miss Watson try to "sivilize" Huck by making him stop all of his habits, such as smoking. They try to reverse all of his teachings from the first twelve years of his life and force him to become their stereotypical good boy. However, from the very beginning of the novel, Huck clearly states that he does not want to conform to society. "The Widow Douglas she took me for her son, and allowed she would sivilize me...I got into my old rags and my sugar hogshead again, and was free and satisfied." (page 1) Huck says this shortly after he begins living with the Widow Douglas because it is rough for him to be confined to a house and the strict rules of the Widow Douglas. Huck’s father, a dirty and dishonest drunk, was also a problem. He was so angry that his son could read, that he severely beat him and then forced him to stay in a secluded cabin. Huck then devises a plan to escape and heads down river were he teams up with Jim, a runaway slave. The theme becomes even more evident once Huck and Jim set out down the Mississippi. As they run from civilization and are on the river, they ponder the social injustices forced upon them when they are on land. The river never cares how saintly they are, how rich they are, or what society thinks of them. The river allows Huck the one thing that Huck wants to be, and that is Huck. Huck enjoys his adventures on the raft. He prefers the freedom of the wilderness to the restriction of society. Also, Huck's acceptance of Jim is a total defiance of society. Society automatically sees a black person, and even further, slaves, as inferior. They never think of slaves as human beings, only as property.

Owning Your Own Business Essay -- Essays Papers

Owning Your Own Business There are many advantages and disadvantages when owning your own business. When you own you own business, it’s known as a sole proprietorship. But with any type of business, there will always be advantages and disadvantages. Five advantages for owning your own business are: 1) The owner receives all profits, meaning that all earnings go to the sole proprietor, or the owner, and isn’t shared with anyone else. The profit is not split among partners, or split among a corporation. So when you own your own business, you’re the first and only one that receives all earnings and profit. So if a person has a successful firm, he/she is the first to reap the success and rewards. 2) Another advantage of owning your own business is that you’re your own boss. You can set your own hours, decide what you want to do with the company, no manager to answer to. Basically, you’re in charge of everything. The owner solely makes all decisions. Or in other words, you’re running the show. 3) An additional advantage is that a sole proprietorship can be easily organized. It’s easy to start your own business. First of all, it costs very little money to start your own busines s. As a sole proprietor, you have minimal legal requirements. The owner doesn’t have to establish a separate legal entity. All that is needed is to register the company with the state and apply for an occupational license and any additional licenses required for the state. ...