Joshua Shackman, Quinton Dai, Baxter Schumacher-Dowell and Joshua Tobin
The purpose of this paper is to examine the long-term cointegrating relationship between ocean, rail, truck and air cargo freight rates, as well as the short-term dynamics between…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the long-term cointegrating relationship between ocean, rail, truck and air cargo freight rates, as well as the short-term dynamics between these four series. The authors also test the predictive ability of these freight rates on major economic indicators.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors employ a vector error-correction model using 16 years of monthly time series data on freight rate data in the ocean, truck, rail and air cargo sectors to examine the interrelationship between these series as well as their interrelationship with major economic indicators.
Findings
The authors find that truck freight rates and as well as dry bulk freight rates have the strongest predictive power over other transportation freight rates as well as for the four major economic indicators used in this study. The authors find that dry bulk freight rates lead other freight rates in the short-run but lag other freight rates in the long run.
Originality/value
While ocean freight rate time series have been examined in a large number of studies, little research has been done on the interrelationship between ocean freight rates and the freight rates of other modes of transportation. Through the use of data on five different freight rate series, the authors are able to assess which rates lead and which rates lag each other and thus assist future researchers and practitioners forecast freight rates. The authors are also one of the few studies to assess the predictive power of non-ocean freight rates on major economic indicators.
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Theresa Gunn and Joshua Shackman
– The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of the Muslim religion on firm capital structure.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of the Muslim religion on firm capital structure.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors compare financing patterns in Muslim versus non-Muslim countries using 658 firms in 16 countries covering a period of seven years.
Findings
No significant differences between Muslim and non-Muslim countries were found in terms of total debt ratios. However, significant differences were found in the choice of short-term versus long-term debt, with firms in Muslim countries showing a strong preference for short-term debt.
Research limitations/implications
The findings confirm existing theories on the impact of the Islamic religion on short-term versus long-term debt preferences. However, the findings concerning the lack of an impact of the Islamic religion on total debt preferences are surprising and contrary to existing theories.
Practical implications
Firms in Muslim countries appear to have the flexibility to adopt overall leverage ratios comparable to those in non-Muslim countries. However, firms in Muslim countries may be disadvantaged in that there appear to be impediments to the use of long-term debt.
Originality/value
This paper presents one of the first empirical studies of the impact of the Muslim religion on corporate financing choices across a large cross-section of firms in Muslim and non-Muslim countries.
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Deborah Bloomfield and Joshua Shackman
The objective of the study is to provide empirical evidence of the impact of non‐audit services (NAS) as well as other auditor characteristics on auditor independence by testing…
Abstract
Purpose
The objective of the study is to provide empirical evidence of the impact of non‐audit services (NAS) as well as other auditor characteristics on auditor independence by testing the relationship of NAS fees to the occurrence of financial statement restatements.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors tested whether firms that restate their financial statements have higher levels of total service fees or higher levels of NAS fees than non‐restatement firms. The testing also includes an examination of the relationship between the audit firm size and the audit firm industry specialization to financial statement restatements.
Findings
The study found only limited evidence to support the concept that firms with higher NAS fees are more likely to restate earnings, thereby casting doubt on the public perception that NAS impairs auditor independence and the legislative approval of Section 201 of the Sarbanes‐Oxley Act prohibiting external auditors from providing certain NAS to audit clients as necessary to preserve auditor independence. The study did find stronger evidence that the level of total fees paid to the audit firm is significant in the predictability of a restatement. In addition, the study also found stronger and more conclusive evidence of a negative association to audit firm industry specialization and a strong positive association to Big 5 audit firms.
Practical implications
Results demonstrate the necessity of regulations concerning NAS and conflict of interest.
Originality/value
This paper is an original contribution that demonstrates the importance of auditor characteristics over audit fees in predicting earnings management.
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William C. Auden, Joshua D. Shackman and Marina H. Onken
The paper seeks to address four key Top Management Team (TMT) demographic characteristics in their relationship with firm performance: age, functional background, educational…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper seeks to address four key Top Management Team (TMT) demographic characteristics in their relationship with firm performance: age, functional background, educational field, and team tenure. The study extends research on the TMT by explicitly introducing team performance as a new context measured in the form of International Risk Management Factor, in addition to demographic characteristic effects. International Risk Management Factor is developed based on multiple international risks trading off theory. In order to calculate that factor International Risk Management Index is introduced.
Design/methodology/approach
In the paper a sample of 212 firms was used, including 4,009 executives; also four hypotheses were tested. The hypotheses were tested using multiple regression analysis.
Findings
The findings in this paper support the proposition that top management team is an appropriate unit of study, due to its impact on firm performance. The results indicate that there is a significant correlation between TMT demographic characteristics and firm performance. This study concluded that three of the proposed four TMT demographic characteristics, including age, functional background, and team tenure influence firm performance. Results validate the proposition that TMT demographic characteristics show a significant positive correlation with firm performance, particularly when the accounting measure is applied. In addition, Top Management Team performance was positively correlated to team tenure, suggesting that as team tenure progresses team performance improves.
Originality/value
The paper differs in many features from previous research. Some of the most important aspects include scope of the study, scale of the sample, complexity of the moderated variable, uniqueness of moderated variable operationalization, and innovation in calculating International Risk Management Factor. For the first time, the study focuses exclusively on Top Management Team performance. The concept, which captures complexity of all TMT characteristics, is not included in demographic characteristics of TMT.
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In the 1960s those on the political left flattered themselves that the vast number of publications by socialists, anarchists, feminists, and other groups on that wing of the…
Abstract
In the 1960s those on the political left flattered themselves that the vast number of publications by socialists, anarchists, feminists, and other groups on that wing of the political spectrum were evidence of the rich intellectual life of the struggle to create a progressive America. Conversely, the lack of publishing by the right was evidence of a general lack of intelligence. But that was then, and this is most certainly now. The right in America has moved from margin to center over the last two decades, vindicating former Attorney General John Mitchell's boast that “the country is going so far to the right that you won't recognize it.”