Analysis on “A Horse and Two Goats”

R.K. Narayan’s story entitled â€Å"A Horse and Two Goats† is a story of innocence and poverty. The narrator of the story illustrated how the main character was pushed into terrible situations due to poverty.Narayan discussed in his story the culture of India as it portrays some of the important traditions that exist within the whole country. It is a depiction of social construction that emerged through the issue of poverty and cultural differences.In the beginning of the story, the narrator illustrated the simple life of the main character and its wife. The couple is rich during their younger days together but as they grow old, all their richness slowly decreased until the time when only 2 of their 40 goats and sheep remain. It shows how poverty in India develops as its people grows old, which is different from other countries that older people are richer that younger people because they already established their lifestyle.In the latter part of the story, humorous atta ck emerged and developed as the author’s way of resolving the conflict of the protagonist. Based on my reading of the story, I have seen that the resolution caused another problem for the couple. It means that it is not a permanent but temporary resolution. It was depicted the humor of the author as he unravel the resolution of the conflict.Another thing is that the conflict lies within the middle part of the story and not in the beginning, which is somehow illogical in the field of literature. That is why confusion started to exists. However, I can see that the author imposed the conflict in the middle part of the story because he wanted to discuss the culture and tradition of India.Nevertheless, it can be seen that the author could not able to incorporate the things that he wanted to justify in the beginning of the story to the main conflict in order to make the audience hang from the beginning up to the end.ReferenceNarayan, R.K. A Horse and Two Goats. 273-290

Essay on Carol Berkin’s Revolutionary Mothers Essay

Carol Berkin clearly states her thesis in the introduction of Revolutionary Mothers. â€Å"Despite the absence of radical changes in gender ideology and gender roles for most women, the Revolution did lend legitimacy to new ideas about women’s capacities and their proper roles†. (Berkin 2005) In two thousand and fourteen it is questionable about how clearly women’s roles have changed especially in the areas of economics and politics at least it is obvious that the revolution did not bring equality. Legal status has changed. Of course, educational opportunities have expanded greatly; however, it often appears the more things change the more they stay the same. Even our popular vernacular demonstrates an entrenched gender inequality. â€Å"You throw like a girl† reveals poor physical performance. To concretely state subordination a person need only to make another their â€Å"bitch†. Female autonomy is usually used to denote weakness. While women now have the right to vote it is interesting that in the US Senate only 20 of the 100 senators are female. Look to Fortune 500 CEO’s and you will find only 24 female CEO’s. (Fairchild 2014) It is standard knowledge that while women are legally entitled to their wages they make 82 cents to the dollar of a male’s wages and even lower percentages for women of color. (US Department of Labor 2014) As a result of the Revolution, changes occurred. â€Å"While all those who debated the woman question agreed on the intellectual and moral equality of the sexes, few believed that the two sexed should  employ their abilities in the same arenas.† (Berkin 2005) If this is true of 1781, it is true of 2014 as well. Gender roles still ensure women are not equal social, economic, and political participants in the US. Clearly, women could not have demanded emancipation at the conclusion of the Revolution principally because of strict gender roles on the 1700’s. Yet to assume women did not contemplate greater political, economic, and social equality because of gender roles would relegate them to inferior intellect and place Victorian ideology onto them in 2014. Women questioned their position as any other individual even though they did not collectively seek radical change. Berkin makes a strong case steeped with evidence about an independent political conscience emerging. Feme covert was the status 18th century women found themselves in upon marriage. This status meant her legal personhood disappeared with marriage as she was assumed by her husband as a dependent. Berkin begins her argument with the role of women at the time of the American Revolution. Women could assume new responsibilities because of her helpmate responsibilities without seeing those responsibilities in light of a desire to change her status. However, more than that was occurring. â€Å"†¦across the colonies, women and girls developed concerns outside the private world of the family and began to ‘think nationly’.† (ibid, 11) Largely because of women’s roles in the process of boycotting goods, women utilized political power. Women became critical participants in the opposition to Britain. Gender could not stop the obvious question of what would be the meaning of the demanded changes. Purchasing power was used as an effective tool and the humanitiy that pushed women into participation must have also generated questions as to what ch anges would occure because of these protest. Gender roles might have inhibited the action of demanding change but it didn’t stop the question from beign raised. Being loving or even just obedient partners might explain their involvement but it could not surpress the natural inclienation of asking questions of why. The Edenton Resolves profess that although women owed obedience to their husbands their behavior was also for personal reasons, â€Å"Yet they also declared that it was the duty they owed to themselves.† (ibid, 22) Loyality and gender roles would impact female actions and motivations. â€Å"Catherine Schuyler, wife of the American general Philip Schuyler, tossed flaming torches on her fields of wheat rather than  see it used to feed General John Burgoyne’s invading army.† (ibid, 41) Still primal motivations of survival and self interst would dominate motivation. â€Å"The whole world appeared to me as a theatre, where nothing was acted buy cruelty, bloodshed, and oppression; where neither age nor sex escaped the horrors of injustice and violence; where lives and property of the innocent and inoffensive were in continual danger, and the lawless power ranged at large.† (idib, 36) Survival motivated. Whether refering to camp followers or Generals wives, self interest moved human action. The Baroness von Riedessel, Martha Washington, or Caty Greene were all tied to their husbands and their success. Their decision to follow their husbands and face the challenges facing soldiers on the front lines with a definite grace related to their own futures and status as much as their husbands and each of these women would have known that fact. Surely loyality and affection played a role in their behavior, but not necessarily many more that self interest. Nathaneal Greene instructs his wife on her options during his absence, â€Å"She chose neither of his suggestions.† (ibid, 78) Instead she made her own choice on her own interest. Self interest were linked to an emerging independent conscience. Grace Galloway exposes this point. When her loyalist husband left her in Philadelphia she found herself in dire straits. Even when the government confiscated her property, she worked to retain economic rights. â€Å"Grace did not surrender quietly. Throughout 1778, her journal entries show her determined attempts to separate and recover her dowry property from the rest of her husband’s property.† (ibid, 94) Female political conscience was also demonstrated by the shift in legal verbage. â€Å"Thus statutes defining treason began to speak of ‘persons’ rather than mne, of ‘he and she’ rathen than ‘he’ alonge.† (ibid, 100) These â€Å"†¦independent political choices† (ibid, 100) could be looked at as wifely duties but the law saw otherwise. Native America women also had to weigh self interest in dete rmining the best course of action and the wisest ally in the American Revolution. Gender roles among some Natives were quite different than most European gender roles. So a natural inability to compromise became extremely strained. â€Å"For those steeped in the English traditions of subordination of women, women’s councils and women warriors were a radical crossing of gender lines†¦There are few records of Indian women’s view of English colonial society. Those that exist suggest amazement at the female  dependency and exclusion from political life that marked a culture that was as alien to them as theirs was to the English.† (ibid, 109) Molly Bryant’s loyalty to Britain marked her belief in protecting her self-interest. â€Å"She believed her political commitment to the Crown honored her husband’s memory and, most importantly, served the best interest of her Mohawk kinsmen and women.† (ibid, 112) For her entire life she worked as a political leader attempting to secure lands and rights for her people. Several other female Native leaders worked to secure Native interest. The American Revolution would greatly limit the voice of Native people and particularly Nativ e women but many Natives had a definite political conscience which they voiced loudly and often. Gender norms did not stop African Americans women from questioning the ideas of liberty promoted in the American Revolution. Likewise, the self-interest of the British crown encouraged them to court African Americans for support as Dunmore’s Ethiopian Regiment attest. The chaos of the war offered opportunities for freedom and many sought refuge behind British lines. Usually these opportunities did not lend themselves to freedom with many Africans sold to the West Indies, yet the vast number and movement of Africans show the ability to work towards their own benefit and the ability to think politically. Berkin uses primary sources to lay out her claims including newspapers, letters, and diaries. Relying heavily on the work of Elizabeth Ellet’s Women and the American Revolution, her work was influenced by the gender roles of the 1840’s and 1850’s. The Cult of Womanhood cloud the political conscience of Revolutionary women but even so that voice questions personal sovereignty. At times Berkin seems superficial in her arguments; still she argues that change did occur with the American Revolution. There was no great revolution for women’s economic, political, and social equality. John Adams states, â€Å"We are obliged to g o fair, and softly, and in Practice We are the subjects. We have only the Name of Masters, and rather than give up this, which would completely subject Us to the Despotism of the Petticoats, I hope General Washington and all our brave Heroes would fight.† (ibid, 158) Even so the women’s debate did cause pause. â€Å"Reason rules, in every one, the same. No Right, has Man, his Equals to control, Since, all agree, There is no Sex in soul.† (ibid, 151) â€Å"Women’s participation in the war had given concrete, empirical evidence of their ability to think rationally and make ethical  judgments.† (ibid, 152) Carol Berkin uses both famous and obscure women. She looks at patriots and loyalistis, trulls and General’s wives, Native Americans, African Americans, and spies. The idea of Revolutionary mothers who would train the upcoming generations of Republican citizens guaranteed changes in women’s education but at the expense of extensions of rights for women. Yet changes in education would give voice to festering ideas. In spite of this revolution, political conscience began to develop. Suffrage was eventually won but not as an extension of the Revolution. Gender roles of 2014 still create a definite imbalance in society politically, economically, and socially. Women function, work, raise families, display citizenship, pay their bills, and interact within their communities within continued gender restrictions. Because we do not protest or demand immediate resolution does not mean we do not think about, contemplate these inequities. How could Abigail Adams prompt John Adams to â€Å"Remember the Ladies† if she did not have a conscience about the injustice of property and legal status of women? Berkin, Carol. Revolutionary Mothers Women in the Struggle for America’s Independence. New York: Vintage Books, 2005. Fairchild, Caroline. Fortune. July 8, 2014. http://fortune.com/2014/07/08/women-ceos-fortune-500-1000/ (accessed November 8, 2014). US Department of Labor. Bureau of Labor Statistics. October 24, 2014. http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/wkyeng.pdf (accessed November 8, 2014).

The Alltel Pavilion Case: Strategy and Cvp Analysis

ISSUES IN ACCOUNTING EDUCATION Vol. 19, No. 4 November 2004 pp. 555–561 The ALLTEL Pavilion Case: Strategy and CVP Analysis Edward Blocher and Kung H. Chen ABSTRACT: The ALLTEL Pavilion case is intended for the undergraduate management accounting or cost accounting course and the M. B. A. management accounting course. It provides an excellent context in which to examine strategic issues in using cost volume profit (CVP) in a service business.Based on an actual entertainment pavilion, the case develops many factors unique to a service business and illustrates how pavilion management can use CVP analysis to determine which artists to attract and what kinds of contracts to have with these performers. The Pavilion has two types of customers (paying ticket holders and free ticket holders) and earns profits from three types of revenues (ticket revenues, concession revenues, and parking fees).The case requires you to identify the best strategy for different types of artists, conduct cost-volume-profit analyses, consider the strategic issues related to operating leverage and how this affects the choice of performer and contract, and assess pricing strategies. O ne day in early November, Pam Berg, Manager of the ALLTEL Pavilion, was reviewing the operating results for the year just completed in preparation for the executive board meeting the following Friday. While the year ended in the black, she was disappointed that the ALLTEL Pavilion failed to earn the budgeted profit goal.This was the second year since Ms. Berg assumed the manager’s position at the ALLTEL Pavilion. After the somewhat disappointing first year, she was determined to exceed the budgeted profit in the coming year. While not all events developed exactly as expected at the time of preparing the budget for the year, there were no major surprises during the year. Yet, the operating results are below the budgeted goal. In addition, Pam was frustrated by the lack of clear guidelines for contra ct negotiations with artists, for setting ticket prices, and in dealing with unexpected low ticket sales for certain concerts.THE ALLTEL PAVILION FOR LIVE ENTERTAINMENT The ALLTEL Pavilion in Raleigh, North Carolina (http://www. alltelpavilion. com/) is an outdoor amphitheater that provides live concerts to the public from April through October each year, hosting as many as half a million patrons a year. The seven-month season usually hosts an average of 40 concerts, and 12 year-round staff plan and manage each season. SFX Entertainment Inc. (http://sfxyes. liveonline. net/) operates the pavilion. SFX is one of the largest diversified promoters, producers, and venue operators for live entertainment events in the United States.It has 71 venues either directly owned or operated under lease or exclusive booking arrangements in 29 of the top 50 U. S. markets, including 14 amphitheaters or pavilions in 9 of the top 10 markets. Edward Blocher is a Professor at The University of North Caro lina at Chapel Hill, and Kung H. Chen is a Professor at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. 555 556 Blocher and Chen ALLTEL Pavilion wants to be the nightlife for the Triangle (Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, NC) and eastern North Carolina, and one of the most beautiful, technologically advanced, and successful amphitheaters in the world.It features the most modern state-of-the-art acoustics and video of any facility of its kind. In the last few years, ALLTEL Pavilion staged shows by the Dave Matthews Band, Alan Jackson, Brooks & Dunn, Toby Keith, Santana, Tim McGraw, Aerosmith, James Taylor, Jimmy Buffett, and many other national, regional, and local artists. The Pavilion claims, â€Å"There isn’t a bad seat in the house. Whether you choose to spread a blanket on our gently sloping festival lawn or select a reserved seat in our pavilion seating area, you are guaranteed a great view of the action on the stage† (ALLTEL Pavilion website).Exhibit 1 shows the stage and seating of the amphitheater. History/Development The city of Raleigh and Pace Entertainment Company of Houston, Texas jointly built the ALLTEL Pavilion in 1991. Pace Entertainment and Cellar Door Inc. of Raleigh, NC had the initial contract to manage the Pavilion. Hardee’s Food Systems, Inc. of Rocky Mount, NC, the original sponsor of the amphitheater, paid an annual fee to carry its name and logo on all signs and ads regarding the amphitheater. On February 3, 1999 ALLTEL Corp (http://tel. com) became the title sponsor for the amphitheater.The demand for the outdoor facility came about because the rapidly growing city of Raleigh lacked a major entertainment complex. In the late 1980s Pace Entertainment and the city of Raleigh came to an agreement to build the facility. The city of Raleigh would own the land while Pace Entertainment would own the facility and assume sole operations of the facility; Cellar Door would do the booking for all the concerts. Pace Entertainment would pay income taxes on earnings from the use of the facility. In 1998, SFX Entertainment Inc. acquired Pace Entertainment Inc.The amphitheater facility and its employees became part of SFX Entertainment Inc. Also, in 1999 SFX Entertainment Inc. acquired Cellar Door Inc. and merged with Clear Channel Communications Inc. , one of the largest owners of radio stations in the country. This move brought together both worlds of the entertainment business. While the company has diverse holdings, the philosophy of SFX is â€Å"One Company, One Mission. † Many companies that are now owned by SFX were at one time bitter rivals in the concertpromoting business. These companies now maintain good working relationships within SFX.A key goal for SFX is for the net operating income of each of its holdings, including the ALLTEL Pavilion, to grow 5 percent each year. The Pavilion competes with the RBC Center (http://www. rbccenter. com) at North Carolina State University in Raleigh (NCSU), the De an Smith Activities Center (http://tarheelblue. ocsn. com/genrel/ 092301aad. html) at The University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, NC (UNC), and the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Charlotte, NC (http://www. verizonwirelessamphitheater. com/charlotte/), among others.In contrast to the facilities at NCSU and UNC that offer only indoor events, the Pavilion offers outdoor as well as sheltered seating for its events. Marketing, Operations, and Accounting When the marketing department plans a promotion for an upcoming event, it coordinates with the sales department to see if there is a conflict in sponsorship. Marketing also coordinates with the operations department to effectively manage the activities on show days. Finally, the budget of each department (sales, marketing, and operations) is reviewed by the accounting department, which provides overall financial anagement of the project. Bringing Concerts to Reality A concert becomes reality in many steps. First, a group or perform er with an interest in performing at ALLTEL will discuss with Cellar Door, Inc. and the Pavilion the possibility of performing at Issues in Accounting Education, November 2004 The ALLTEL Pavilion Case: Strategy and CVP Analysis 557 the Pavilion, and look at the open dates. Upon reaching an agreement, Cellar Door, on behalf of the Pavilion, signs a contract with the booking agent for the performer.A time is specified for gate openings, and once the gate is opened the show is underway. The job of the staff during a concert is to make sure every customer of the ALLTEL Pavilion has a pleasant experience and that the mission of the company is clearly seen by everyone that â€Å"a concert †¦ it’s better live. † Clean Sweep Inc. of Raleigh handles the cleanup after a show. Key Business Issues Marketing has an important role in the success of the ALLTEL Pavilion, but marketing expenditures are carefully watched. For every show, the marketing budget is limited to $20,000.F or many shows it is difficult to stay within the budget, since the Pavilion serves a five-market region consisting of Raleigh-Durham, Fayetteville, Wilmington, Greensboro, and the Carolina Coast. Most of the marketing budget is spent on advertising with radio, TV, and print media in the designated regions. Prior to developing advertising plans, the marketing staff analyzes ticket sales geographically over the five-market region. It is important to know the demographics of the five regions and compare them with the profile for each performer. The more ALLTEL Pavilion can know about the fans, the more they know where to spend the $20,000.SFX develops measures of performance and profitability for each advertising media, by region. This type of analysis is important to the ALLTEL Pavilion because increased ticket sales, through effective advertising, not only affect ticket revenues, but also revenues from parking, merchandise, and concessions. It is also important because of the increas ed cost of advertising. The advertising rates in the Raleigh-Durham region are comparable to the rates in Washington, D. C. The rates are up 200 percent over the last five years, while the budgets per show are only up 15 percent over this time.The cost of the performing artist has also increased dramatically. The average fee for an artist is approximately $160,000. Some artists are paid on a fixed-fee basis, while others are paid on a per capita basis. Generally, the most popular artists seek a per capita contract because they are confident of a high level of attendance. In contrast, the artist paid a fixed-fee is guaranteed the same fee whether 100 or 20,000 people attend (the capacity of the Pavilion is approximately 20,000 attendance). On average, the total number of paid tickets per fixed-fee concert is 7,000.The role of marketing and advertising is especially important for fixed-fee shows. One method the Pavilion uses in addition to advertising is to distribute â€Å"comp† tickets (comp tickets are free tickets distributed throughout the community) to build interest in the Pavilion that will later be realized in paying customers. Comp customers also bring in revenue for parking, concessions, and merchandise sales. In a fixed-fee concert, the number of comp tickets is approximately 25 percent of the number of paying tickets, while a per capita show has no more than 2. 5 percent.Because of the increasing cost of the performing artists, ALLTEL Pavilion tries to reduce nonartist costs. Nonartist costs at ALLTEL Pavilion include expenses for sales, marketing, parking, security, concessions, and merchandise. Since assuming the manager position, Pam has developed several avenues to reduce nonartist costs and/or increase revenues and profits, including reducing expenses, having the parking service pass out flyers for upcoming events, trading â€Å"comp† tickets for online spots in the radio industry, and giving local businesses tickets in exchange f or advertising on their premises.Revenues, Costs, and Flash Report for the KFBS Allstars Concert Exhibit 2 is a mock flash report for an illustrative fixed-fee show, the KFBS Allstars. A flash report is a projection of costs and revenues for a scheduled concert. The guarantee/talent cost ($160,635) is the amount the KFBS Allstars are guaranteed for the show. Projected sales is the number of projected paying ticket holders, while the â€Å"drop count† is total attendance, including both Issues in Accounting Education, November 2004 558 Blocher and Chen paid and comp tickets.Setting ticket price is often done together with the performer, taking into consideration SFX’s national and regional pricing policies, prices of comparable venues, and the Pavilion’s desired profit for the concert. Pam uses the flash report to plan potential concerts and to evaluate the success of concerts already presented. The report shows the variety of revenues and costs for a concert, an d the projected profit for the concert. The flash report projects total revenues including ticket sales, parking, food, and merchandise based on per capita (drop count) rates.Ticket sales are in four ticket categories: A seats and B seats are regular price tickets for the reserved and lawn seating sections respectively; C and D seats are promotional (discount) price tickets for reserved and lawn seating, respectively. Other revenues include per capita facility charges paid by the sponsoring corporation for naming rights (based on paid ticket holders) and a per capita service charge paid by the performer for food, transportation, and other services. Not included are the annual lease payments for VIP seats at $10,000 per year.Patrons to the VIP seats also have to pay the ticket price of A-level seats. Reserved and lawn seating areas are shown in Exhibit 1. The parking, food concession, and merchandise operations are outsourced to other service providers, so the direct costs for parkin g, merchandise and concessions are determined based on contracts with the service providers that include both a percentage (10 percent) of applicable revenues and a fixed fee. Operating expenses include an allocation of the total of fixed production and operations costs for the season, the advertising expenses for the KFBS Allstars event, and other variable expenses.These are then added to the direct costs for concessions, merchandise, parking, and insurance to determine total operating expenses. REQUIRED How would you describe the competitive strategy of the ALLTEL Pavilion? Given the firm’s strategy, what are the critical success factors for the Pavilion to achieve its goal of continuous annual growth in operating income? 2. Complete two selected cost-volume-profit analyses for the show illustrated in Exhibit 2, the KFBS Allstars: a) How many tickets must the ALLTEL Pavilion sell to break even? ) How many tickets must ALLTEL sell to earn $30,000 operating income after taxes , assuming a 40 percent tax rate? 3. What should be the average ticket price for the KFBS concert if the fixed-pay fee is $200,000 and the Pavilion expects to sell 7,000 tickets and wants to earn $30,000 after 40 percent in taxes? 4. Negotiating the fee for the KFBS Allstars: fixed-pay or per capita contracts? a) What is the maximum fixed fee that the Pavilion can pay the KFBS Allstars if the Pavilion wants to earn $45,000 after 40 percent tax and expects the show to have an average ticket price of $22. 12?Assume the show is expected to draw 6,000 paying ticket holders. b) What is the maximum fixed fee that the Pavilion can pay the KFBS Allstars if the Pavilion wants to earn $45,000 after 40 percent tax and expects the show to have an average ticket price of $22. 12? Assume, including 25 percent comp tickets, the show is expected to be a sell-out. c) Independent of (a) and (b), what is the maximum per capita fee that the Pavilion can pay the KFBS Allstars, whose concert is expected to be a sellout, if the Pavilion wants to earn $180,000 after 40 percent tax from an average ticket price of $22. 2 per ticket? 5. What role does CVP analysis and operating leverage play in contract negotiations with different types of performers (fixed-fee or per capita)? 1. Issues in Accounting Education, November 2004 The ALLTEL Pavilion Case: Strategy and CVP Analysis 559 EXHIBIT 1 ALLTEL Pavilion Stage and Seating The Pavilion can accommodate 20,000 fans with 7,000 reserved seats directly in front of the stage (covered seating in sections 1 through 9 and VIP seating) and another 13,000 on the spacious lawn. It has 78 theater-style VIP boxes that can accommodate 4, 6, or 8 people.In addition to positioning for prime viewing, patrons in VIP boxes also enjoy amenities such as wait staff service at their seats, personalized parking, and exclusive membership to the VIP Bar & Grill. Directly in front of sections 4, 5, 8, and 9 is seating with an elevated floor that provides excellent views of the stage for patrons with disabilities and additional seating for the hearing or visually impaired. Lawn Seating Reserved, Covered Seating Issues in Accounting Education, November 2004 560 Blocher and Chen EXHIBIT 2 Flash Report for the KFBS Allstars ConcertARTIST NAME ACTIVITY/EVENT NUMBER EVENT MONTH EVENT DATE Projected Sales (Number of Seats) A Seats B Seats C Seats D Seats TOTAL Number of Seats Projected Ticket Price A Seats B Seats C Seats D Seats PROJECTED NET AFTER TAX ADMISSIONS AVG TIX PRICE NET OF TAX PER PAYING PATRON TALENT % GUARANTEE/TALENT COSTS NUMBER OF PERFORMANCES DROP COUNT (includes comp tickets) Other Ticket-Related Revenue FACILITY CHARGE Per capita SERVICE CHARGE Per capita REVENUE FROM TICKETING Per capita ANCILLARY REVENUES PARKING Per capita FOOD CONCESSION Per capita MERCHANDISE Per capita RENTALS REVENUE FROM ANCILLARIES Per capita TOTAL REVENUE Per capita The KFBS Allstars 10310001 7 7/31/04 2,778 2,845 1,747 881 8,251 $36. 29 $22. 22 $11. 3 1 $ 4. 92 $182,479 $22. 12 88. 03% $160,635 1 10,349 $24,010 $2. 91 $16,172 $1. 96 $222,673 $26. 99 $19,767 $1. 91 $79,273 $7. 66 $36,428 $3. 52 $0. 00 $135,468 $13. 09 $358,141 $34. 61 (continued on next page) Issues in Accounting Education, November 2004 The ALLTEL Pavilion Case: Strategy and CVP Analysis 561EXHIBIT 2 (continued) Other Direct Costs PARKING CONTRACT CONCESSION CONTRACT MERCHANDISE CONTRACT TOTAL DIRECT COSTS Per capita PERCENT OF SALES TOTAL REVENUE (from above) TOTAL DIRECT COSTS (from above) GROSS PROFIT Operating Expenses TOTAL PRODUCTION EXPENSE TOTAL OPERATIONS EXPENSE TOTAL OTHER VAR. EXPENSE TOTAL ADVERTISING EXPENSE TOTAL OPERATING EXP Per capita PERCENT OF SALES OPERATING INCOME Per capita PERCENT OF SALES Detail: Other Concert Variable Expense Insurance Expense per person COGS—Concession per person COGS—Merchandise Inventory per person COGS—Parking per person Other Variable Concert Expense per person TOTAL OTHER VARIABLE EXPENSE $0. 1 7 $0. 35 $1. 12 $0. 08 $0. 02 $14,323 $4,448 $43,356 $17,826 $226,265 $21. 86 63. 2% $358,141 $226,265 $131,876 $15,506 $14,991 $14,323 $20,030 $64,850 $6. 27 18. 1% $67,026 $6. 48 18. 7% Issues in Accounting Education, November 2004

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Strategic Human Resource Assessment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Strategic Human Resource Assessment - Essay Example It has to be mentioned in this context that the first and the foremost strengths which companies often intend to obtain in order to compete in the market is efficient workforce through the enforcement of effective HRM strategies. In the contemporary era, Strategic HRM (SHRM) has been introduced in order to link the strategic objectives of the business with its HRM functions with the sole intention to reinforce crucial changes into its workforce which can in turn enhance its strategic positioning and competitive advantages within the industry structure over its rivals by a large extent (Deb, 2006). Based on this understanding, this paper would intend to illustrate the role of strategic HRM in improving the performance of the company (i.e. Rio Tinto) by a large extent. The paper would further evaluate the importance of strategic HRM in Rio Tinto Group within the Australian context proceeding through a critical literature review based on the significance and role of SHRM in the contempo rary managerial practices. Company Overview Rio Tinto is one of global largest companies in locating, mining as well as processing of the mineral resources. The vision of the company emphasizes on developing its products in a way which satisfies the need of the customers and also improves the standard of living of people all over the world. The company has its operations in around 40 countries including Australia with a total number of more than 77,000 people as employees in its worldwide dimensions. The company’s mission has been to build as well as maintain good relationship with the stakeholders associated with it. It has also been noticed that the company always seeks to contribute positively towards the society to secure a healthy relation with the community members. It has further been noticed in this context that the SHRM policies of the company changes in accordance to the requirement of its determined organizational objectives. The company runs a graduate level progr am through which it recruits educated and skilled workforces as per the requirement of its strategic planning. It is in this context that Rio Tinto is known to provide a competitive as well as a coordinative working condition to its employees in return for assurance of an improved performance (Rio Tinto, 2011). Role of Strategic HRM (SHRM) in Improving Organizational Performance SHRM mainly aims to enhance the performance of the business or the organization on a whole by encouraging different people associated with the company to work for the welfare of the organization to obtain the determined organizational objectives through shared values. It has often been argued in this context that SHRM typically helps to determine the strategic goals of the organizations in accordance with its internal strengths related to the workforce and therefore, assists managers to bind the HRM practices with its competitive objectives (Armstrong, 2008). It has been further learnt that SHRM is a planned pattern that is use for developing the human resource operations as well as activities to enable organizations to meet the determined goals (Darwish, 2009). It is worth mentioning in this context that SHRM practices, as applied in the modern era, functions on the basis of few key principles. Its foremost principle states that the objective or the goals of the company would have to be achieved through the

Global marketing strategy and product launch Essay

Global marketing strategy and product launch - Essay Example Besides providing an opportunity to the people to go beyond the ordinary, Dinner in the Sky’s mission is to provide a perfect environment to the customers with friendly services and utmost satisfaction (Mills et al, 2003). The restaurant marks its presence in more than 15 countries (Dinnerinthesky.com, 2012). The focus and the gist of this report would be to present the opportunity which the market of Pakistan presents Dinner in the Sky and to present a marketing plan and an audit of the market in order to successfully launch Dinner in the Sky in Pakistan. ... The idea of taking the diners literally in the sky and serving scrumptious food is being widely accepted throughout where the restaurant operates. The restaurant’s main aim is to provide a service and an experience which no one else in the market is providing. The big idea is to cater the client’s lavish needs of conducting their events such as important meetings, marriages etc in the sky but the primary purpose of the entity is to provide an ultimate dining experience to the customers. The restaurant’s vision is to mark its presence globally and promote the idea throughout the world (Dinnerinthesky.com, 2012). In line with the restaurant’s aim to promote the idea globally, Dinner in the Sky will launch its services in Karachi, which is the business hub of Pakistan. The market presents a good opportunity to the restaurant with a growing middle class. As the economic trend show a rise of investment and economic activity in the Asian countries, Dinner in the Sky must grab this business opportunity. Not only the economic side seems favorable but the marketing aspect of the market in accordance with Dinner in the Sky’s aims and objectives compliment the launching of the venture (Hotel, Restaurant & Tourism Directory of Pakistan, 2009; State Bank of Pakistan, 2011). 2 Environmental Analysis: 2.1 Political and Economic Analysis: Karachi, as mentioned above is the business hub of Pakistan. Apart from that, Karachi also is a home of people coming from many cultures and background. This becomes reason for some political disturbance in the city however, the higher end areas of the city, i.e. Clifton, Muhammad Ali Jinnah Society, Tariq Road, Defense Housing Authority remain calm (Hashmi, 1965). Apart from this, the economy of Pakistan is growing at a steady rate. Its

Popular Music, Television, and Film Stars Essay Example for Free

Popular Music, Television, and Film Stars Essay Everyone at all ages have grown up admiring and idealizing at least on celebrity, be that an actor, singer or any other famous person. What they do not ask while they are young is whether our idols are people we should be looking up to. Usually when people become older they realize that their role models at the time are not someone they would want their children idolizing now. They come to the conclusion that the person they looked up to wasn’t who they truly were, it was all an act. So should a celebrity be considered a true leader? That is worth debating. By using three characteristics of celebrities it will be known whether or not a celebrity has the potential to be a good leader. To begin, a celebrity can be known for many things, but a leader and great role model is not always one of them. One characteristic of a celebrity is being perfect. Is being perfect possible? No, but Paris Hilton is an example of someone who thinks they need to diet uncontrollably and get plastic surgery to make them seem perfect. This is not nearly close enough to be a true leader, because she is giving children the wrong idea; that it’s okay to be unhealthy and to bad things to your body just to look perfect so everyone likes them. The opposition may argue that it’s not always their fault. An example of this would be Demi Lavato. She suffered from bulimia and dieted because she didn’t like the way she looked. However they are wrong because although she couldn’t control her disease, there is no reason she should have hated herself in the beginning. We need to teach the children of this generation that it’s okay to look different. Not everyone needs to wear tons of makeup and be stick thin. A celebrity who can show all of these ideas is one who is truly a leader. Subsequently, everyone is selfish in their life for their own reasons, but should children look up to people who are selfish all the time? A successful celebrity gets money, fame, and anything they virtually want, but that is not a reason they should be selfish. An example of a selfish celebrity would be Kim Kardashion. Everything she does is related to how she can get more fame. Her tv show, her clothes line, her perfume, even her marriage was to give her more publicity. This is not what a leader would do. The opposition would argue that everyone is selfish so why can’t celebrities be who they are; however, they are wrong because although everyone is selfish it’s not as bad as celebrities and non-famous people aren’t the ones trying to get children and  fans to be just like them. Children need to learn that it is important to set aside time to help those who need more help than they do. John Cena is a great example of this. He is a famous wwe wrestler who gets paid a lot and has many fans, however, he takes the time to support the American Red Cross and goes to see children with diseases and cancer to try and make their day better. This is a great way to show how to be a leader. Lastly, something very common in the celebrity world is failed marriages. How are the newer generation’s children supposed to know that, although what t hey see on the tv and in magazines, they are really supposed to marry someone because they love them and want to be with them for the rest of their lives? â€Å"Till death do us part.† right? Wrong the tv, music, and famous world is showing that it’s okay if marriages don’t work out, that they can just find someone else or someone’s at that matter. These celebrities like Kim Kardashion and Kris Humphries were married for 10 months. The only reason they got married was because marrying a famous basketball player with lots of money would defiantly give Kim the publicity she wanted. The opposition may argue that it’s their life and there’s no reason they should be judged by their private life; however, they are wrong because when someone is brought into this industry, their private life is all everyone hears about. Just because they are famous doesn’t mean they can’t get married because of love. An example of a good couple that shows a leader quality would be Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. They are both country singers and have been married for 16 years with three children. Who said that marriage in showbiz had to end so soon? A leader isn’t someone willing to stage a fake marriage for a bigger fan base. Concisely, these days it is getting increasingly hard to tell the difference between a true leader and role model from a fake one. In the celebrity business there are three characteristics such as, perfection, selfishness, and fakeness that results in, are once role models turning into people who we look down upon. It is important to look at people for who they are as a person and what they can do for the people around them, rather than idolizing people for their fashion, money and fame.

Business Plan for Start-Up

Business Plan for Start-Up The business Plan. Synopsis. For this assignment we as a group have been asked to produce a business plan with supporting analysis and justification. The aim of the business plan is to focus on convincing the company stakeholders of the viability of your company start up. The justification includes evidence relating to the rigour of the product selection and the content of our plan. Introduction. A business plan is a written documentation of which describes the business, the objectives of the business, its strategies, the market of which the business is in and the financial forecasts. The business plan has many functions, from securing external funding to measuring the success with the business itself. It essential when starting up a business for a business to have a realistic working business plan. Our business plan is a statement of intent and provides details on how we as a company are going to develop our business, when we are going to do it, whos going to play a part and how we as a group will manage the money. The Business Plan. The executive summary: Our company is a Young Enterprise company trading in imported and homemade products for the product market. We as a company aim to produce and sell a variety of greeting cards and candles of which are homemade to the general public. An aging population will enhance demand for specific card types. The types of cards that there may be an increased demand of cards that there may be an increased demand for include: Retirements Anniversary Birthdays Christmas Easter Valentines Day, mothers and fathers day cards Handmade cards are likely to continue growing in popularity as card sender seek more and more to express their own individuality. The business, its products and services: The business. ASGO4 is a unique candle and cards selling company we offer a variety range of products which include all sorts of various candles and cards for any all kind of special occasions to meet all needs. The company ASGO4 consists of 5 dedicated members who aim to grow this company to achieve a successful business. Product and services. We have a wide range of cards to suite various needs and for all special occasions, i.e. birthdays, anniversarys, valentine and exams. Exam congratulation cards and best wishes for courses can have a wide range of market; these cards will have a good selling point within Staffordshire University. (Refer to appendix 1.) Competition comparison ASG04 products contain many features that distinguish them from those produced by competitors. ASGO4 products are handmade and are to suite all special occasions. The quality of the candles and cards are produced at a magnificent level, even to the untrained eye, which makes ASGO4 products more realistic. ASGO4 are unique and offer a wide range of candles, not many similar products is available in the domestic market. Technology ASGO4 products are mainly handmade some of the products produce by, ASGO4 will be provided by wholesalers, these products that are produced by wholesalers will be produced at a professional level. Future products ASGO4 aim to turn into a successful business, by providing a wide range of candles and cards to meet all requirements. The candles that are provided by ASGO4 have a potential market, as they can be used for many special occasions. What benefits its offers. ASGO4 products offer great benefits to its customers because what we provide to you cannot be provided to you from else where. Customers would buy our products because our products are different compared to whats already available on the market, so this makes ASGO4 more appealing to its customers. Product facilities The main facility, we will use is the market store, within our market store e will have a wide range of space to display our products, we will use tables and colourful table cloths which we will hire, we will use the table cloths to make our tables of display colourful and appealing. Some candles and cards will be hand made by the members of the ASGO4, but these will be simple products, we will do this simply to widen our range of products. Information technology Information technology is of a part of the almost every business day to day life. We will use a promotional information technology tool which will done by are of our class colleagues, he will promote our company ASGO4 and this will create awareness of our company, what we offer and where we are based in Newcastle. The markets and competitors: There are a number of competitors of which we have to consider, the types of candle competitors of which we have to consider are: Johnson Wax Glade known as air-care candles. Bousius (UK) Ltd. Dane. Yankee Candle Ltd. British Candlemakers Federation. Colony Gift Corporation Ltd. Prices Patent Candle company Ltd. The types of card competitors of which we have to consider are: Birthdays. Clintons. Hallmark. Card Factory. Marketing and sales: Market Segmentation Enhancement candles unscented Retail sales of unscented candles were  £48 million in 2000, a rise of 27% over 1996. They account for 50%, by value, of the enhancement sector, compared with a share of 62% in 1996. Figure 7 provides trends since 1996. Growth within the unscented candles sector is decelerating, as purchase of scented candles becomes more popular. Unscented candles include coloured household candles, which can be used as ornaments as well as for lighting. Many are purchased to match household dÃÆ' ©cor, as well as to create a relaxing ambience during dinner parties. Enhancement candles scented It is the fragranced candle sector which is fuelling growth within the candles market overall. Retail sales of scented candles are estimated at  £48 million for 2000. This demonstrates a rise of 106% since 1996. Scented candles account for an estimated 34% of the total candle market and 50% of the enhancement sector by value. Functional candles tea lights Tea lights have reached the mature stage of the product lifecycle, being one of the first candle variations to be introduced into the UK after traditional white household candles. For this reason, value market growth is set to slow over the next few years, although they remain popular as they are so versatile. In 2000, tea light sales were  £27 million, a 10% increase on 1996. They accounted for some 19% of all candle sales in 2000, which is a decline of 6 percentage points since 1996, reflecting a drop in price points rather than usage. Emergency candles Retail sales of emergency candles (primarily white household candles) are declining slowly and were  £4 million in 2000. This compares to almost  £7 million in 1996. Mintel s consumer research indicates that as many as 18% of housewives had either bought or received white household candles within the six months to January 2001, although not all will have been bought for emergency use only. Figure 10 demonstrates trends since 1996. Air care candles Air-care candles designed for freshening air/masking odours are increasing in popularity. According to Mintel s consumer research, around a third of housewives use candles as air fresheners in 2001 and one quarter claim to have bought or received scented candles made by air freshener companies. The air-care candles market was worth  £14 million in 2000, almost three times the value of 1996 sales. It is still at the growth stage of the product lifecycle, with many of the products being relatively new. Figure 11 provides trends in the air-care candles market between 1996 and 2000. Target market segment strategy Target market: Enhancement candles scented Scented candles have experienced a considerable growth in popularity since 1998, with 63% of housewives having purchased or received them during the six months prior to the survey. This reflects trends within the market place generally. A quarter of candles purchased or received are scented. Consequently, our company aims to import and sell scented candles since the scented candle is the most popular and profitable candle category so far. Candle industry Major factors influencing the market The candles market is influenced by a number of factors. Purchased primarily by women, the growth in the number of women working has impacted positively on candles sales, because of a subsequent increase in discretionary income and financial independence. There has been a shift in lifestyle patterns, with a growing trend towards alternative healthcare and aromatherapy, and a revival in the popularity of pot pourri and incense, all of which have had a positive influence on candle sales, especially within the fragranced sector. There are also seasonal variations, with garden candles naturally performing better in the summer during usage of barbecues, or Christmas candles with special Christmas colours and fragrances for the Christmas period. Changes in the age structure of the population have also served to boost sales of certain candle types. For example, the young age group has expanded, boosting sales of the more fashionable floating candles which have a high purchase rate among this age group. Industry participants (Main competitors) Colony Gift Corporation Ltd Colony Gift Corporation is the UKs leading quality candle manufacturer and claims to be the largest producer of scented candles in Europe. Colonys turnover in 1999 was  £22 million, up 21.5% on 1998 turnover of  £18.1 million. It employs more than 460 people and its brands are available in over 70 countries. Prices Patent Candles Company Ltd The company produces candles and related accessories. It offers a wide range of candles for all occasions, including: scented and aromatherapy; outdoor lighting; Christmas and Easter; as well as decorative candles and the more traditional church-style candles. Yankee Candle (Europe) Ltd Yankee candles are positioned as premium-quality, giftworthy candles for the purpose of home fragrancing. Fragrances are numerous and include sage and citrus, spiced apple, honeysuckle, French vanilla and spiced pear. Bolsius (UK) Ltd Bolsius (UK) Ltd is owned by NLD Bolsius International BV. The company has been active in the UK for over 15 years. Only about 40% of the companys output is sold through retail outlets, while approximately 25% of sales are to religious institutions and 35% to the catering trade. Johnson Wax Johnson Wax is owned by the US company SC Johnson Son Inc and is a major player in a number of household goods products, notably household cleaning agents and polishes. The company leads the air freshener sector, with most of its marketing effort placed behind the Glade brand. (Refer to the business justification Ansoff product/market matrix and Boston matrix to assess marketing and business development strategies). The team skills: Within ASGO4 there is in total five dedicated staff members of whom all have different roles within the business itself. Below is a list of the roles each of the staff members have and also entails a description of what they are responsible for within the roles and what types of skills are required for each of the roles: Team skills should identify the strengths of the teams the plans to deal with any obvious weakness. Leadership. Managing director is ultimately responsible for the other members of staff, shareholders of the business; the managing director needs to exercise all of the leadership skills as well as diplomacy fairness strength. A managing director is responsive for encouraging teamwork. Administration. Company secretary are responsible for the co -ordination, communication organisation of all the areas relating to our company ASGO4. The specific roles of being the companys secretary include the following Completing registration documents Keeping the share register Keep records Administrating company meetings Organising agendas minutes Finance. Finance director is responsible for financial resource management, it is the job of the finance director to keep track of the money and also need to plan, know and record where the money is coming from, whos got it and where its going. All financial transitions should be recorded by the financial director and to communicate financial progress to members of the team. Other roles of the financial director includes doing the banking and work a alongside with the company secretary on the company share and responsibilities to shareholders. The financial director is also responsible for calculating and paying the young enterprise and corporation tax. Marketing. Marketing director need to use their innovation and creative skills in taking a key role in identifying market and opportunities as well as defining product or service charlatanistic. The main responsibilities include PR and advertising for the company, as well as carrying out market research and customer observation to help to maintain customer satisfaction. Operations. Operations director are responsible for product and service development, their role is the ensure that a method of operation is decides and organise the production of the company products and service, an operations director is responsible for purchasing raw materials, stock, supply and demand of finished items. Health and safety of the other staff members and customers should be one of the operation director concerns. The operation: ASGO4 will buy candles from its wholesalers and then put its products on the market, we will use a market store in Newcastle market, and we will display all our products there within the market. Newcastle market is amongst one of the biggest markets in Stoke-On -Trent, so this enables us to target a wide range of audiences this will make our products more appealing as there are huge crowds in the market that we could attract. The main advantage of our locations is that as Newcastle market is one of the busiest markets to people from all background and different social class attend this market and this is a great opportunity to take advantage of this because we will have a wide range of audiences. Financial forecasts: After financial forecast, such as cash flow and Profit and Loss Account, we have just started our business ASG04. And we are only preceded in one month preceded January 2005. Our business is running slow. So, it will take time to pick up. We have a good target market in Newcastle market. We have a wide range of target range in this aspect. Newcastle market is amongst one of the busiest open market in Stoke-On-Trent. We only have a few expenses, such as motor petrol, premises and equipment hire. As our expenses are very low, this allows us to increase our profit margin. Because of low expenditure, we have a low cost that means our price of product will not be set very high. Our business will have enough working capital to survive because of our low cost. We intended to raise a huge amount of money as our product attracts a wide range of target audience. We expect to make a substantial amount of profit as we proceded without business. (Refer to appendix 2.) Business Justification. A business plan is produced to convince shareholders, banks to invest into our business. The concept of the business is purchasing pre-produced products i.e. candles and some cases producing products. The products that will be sold will be aimed to various age groups. In order for the business to see success and make a profit it is important to ensure that costs are kept to a minimum. the business will focus on selling various types of candles i.e. scented, unscented, floating etc. our products bought from manufactured will not be sold as they are, they will be bundles and sold as gift packs for example. This methods makes the product unique and be able to make a profit. For example, 1 large candle will cost the business approximately 60p. If the product was sold as apart of a set of various candles i.e. sizes, colures and sold for  £5.00. This one candle may make a profit of excess of  £2.00. Researching into this product and market is important, so the company is able to forecast its success. It is clear there is a market for this product. The correct location is also important. As the products will be sold on a market stall, our company will see less overhead costs compared to high street stores. Above shows a table showing the sales of scented candles between 1996-2000. This information is important so that company is able to see the changing trends over time. Un-scented candles are not as popular as scented candles. These products often uses to create a desired atmosphere and also used for show. Increasing sales can only mean that there is a demand for these types of products. This project has no major overhead expenses. Our main expense will be renting the stall that will cost approximately  £16 per week. As no other major resources are required for example water, electric, our costs will be kept to a minimum and be able to transfer bargains to our customers. Analysing the business plan there is a big chance for success with this project. Sales for these products are increasing every year and the public are looking for new products to buy. Demand for candles are created by women and often purchased more by women. With busy, stressful lifestyles combined with working, looking after families has created an environment for candles. The below illustrates UK manufacture sales between 1996 and 1999. It shows that there is a drop in sales in the UK. In 1999 it shows that sales were down to  £1.57 per candle. Source: candles UK April, 2001 Ansoffs product/market The Ansoffs product-market matrix helps to understand and assess marketing or business development strategy. ASG04 is able to use Ansoffs product matrix to see what mix strategic options to use. Product development is developing or finding new products to take to an existing market. This is a strategy if the company has a strong market share in a particular market. Developing products are often a very expensive process. In this case, ASG04 does not have any market share, but with the product being sold are in demand and play apart of the market share in the UK. A business should try not to have any Dogs, but focusing on cash cows, problem child and stars that need to be kept in a kind of equilibrium. Funds generated by cash cows are used to turn problem child into stars that may turn into cash cows. Boston matrix. The Boston matrix model is a tool for assessing existing and development products in terms of their market potential. Our products lay between stars and soon to be turning into cash cows. The market already exists and has various types of candles that are sold. ASG04 is purchasing ready produced candles and developing them by making them more appealing to the public to buy.

Risk Management Of Ambuja Cement Economics Essay

Risk Management Of Ambuja Cement Economics Essay Ambuja Cements was set up in 1986. In the last decade the company has grown tenfold. The total cement capacity of ACL as on CY07 is 18.5 million tonnes. Its plants are some of the most efficient in the world. Its environment protection measures are on par with the finest in the developed world. ACL follows a unique home grown philosophy of giving people the authority to set their own targets, and the freedom to achieve their goals. This simple vision has created an environment where there are no limits to excellence, no limits to efficiency. It has presence in the North, East and Western regions of India. Its domestic market share stands at 10.2% as on CY07. ACL has developed a unique homespun channel management model called Channel Excellence Programme (CEP). Over 7,000 dealerships and 20,000 retailers across India are covered under this model. This program emphasizes the relationship management approach to build strong business ties with the dealers and retailers. ACL largely expor ts to the Middle East. ACL was one of the first companies to be equipped with shipping fleet and make use of sea as a medium to transport cement across the globe. Sea transport costs one-third of road transport. It has a port terminal at Muldwarka, Gujarat that handles ships with 40,000 DWT. It is also equipped to export clinker and cement and import coal and furnace oil. ACL is the one of the most profitable cement companies in India, and one of the lowest cost producers of cement in the world. GACL has bulk cement terminals at Muldwarka (Gujarat), Panvel, Navi Mumbai and Surat. Risks in Company- Demand-supply mismatch could take time to stabilise, thereby putting further pressures on margins- Recently due to Slowdown of the cement demand a mismatch come into effect so due to excess production and supply of the cement company is bearing on the front of lower margins. Cement price / realisations to dip on account of demand slowdown- As mentioned above the demand slowdown impacted the prices to take it lower so company is having less profits which is adversily effecting the future growth projects lead out by GACL. Rise in input costs affecting OPMs- GACLs OPMs were at its peak in Q1CY07 after which it has seen a constant fall due to the rising prices of commodities like fly ash, gypsum, coal, crude oil, etc, rise in power fuel costs and rise in other expenditure. Higher clinker purchase pulls down margin- Higher clinker purchase pulled down the margin of the company. Ambuja is trading at a steep premium to its peers despite the fact that it does not have the best return ratios and best margins in the industry. Thus, we are maintaining our UNDERPERFORMER rating on the stock. Demand-Supply gap, overcapacity: The capacity additions distort the demand-supply equilibrium in the industry  thereby affecting profitability. Risks in Industry- Increased cost of production due to increase in coal prices. High Interest rates on housing: The re-pricing of the interest rates in the last four years from 7% to 12% has resulted in the slowdown in residential property market. Imports from Pakistan affecting markets in Northern India: In 2007, 130000 tonnes in 2008, 173000 Metric tones of  cement  was exported to India. This was done to keep the price of cement  under check. Effect of global recession on real estate: The real estate prices are stabilizing and facing steady slowdown especially in metros. There has been drastic reduction in property prices due to reduced demand and increased supply. Shifting supplies from export market to domestic market: ACL is the largest exporter among the Indian cement players. Its exports account for nearly one-third of the total exports from the country by listed players. ACL witnessed reduction in exports by 28% to 1.3 mn tonnes in CY07 vis-à  -vis 1.8 mn tonnes in CY06 due to diversion of exports to the domestic market on account of more lucrative prices in the domestic markets. The recent lifting of the ban on export of cement in the backdrop of waning demand for this crucial construction input from the real estate sector will have marginal impact on exports from India as the government had allowed export of cement from ports in Gujarat (accounting for 85% of the exports from India) on May 27, 2008. The ban was imposed on April 11 this year to curb the rapidly rising inflation. Competitors:  The Indian cement industry has a large number of fragmented firms. There is also a dearth of new players as incumbents have already procured key raw material sources, like limestone reserves on long-term leases. Further, large firms are continuously consolidating by acquiring smaller ones that find it difficult to attain minimum efficient scale of production. Product: Cement is a bulk commodity and a low value product. It is sold in 50 kg packs as OPC grade 33, 43, and 53. It is used in all construction activities as a primary constituent of concrete. Due to similar raw material inputs and production processes, there is no significant differentiation in the cement produced across firms. Environmental Issues:  Greenhouse gas emissions from cement manufacturing pose a serious environmental threat. Currently, the cement industry generates 5% of Indias total carbon-dioxide emissions.2  With stringent emission norms, the production process needs to be made environmentally sustainable. The cost of implementing new production processes that help reduce emissions can be offset by trading certified emission reductions (CERs). CERs are a component of national and international emissions trading schemes, implemented through Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects, in an attempt to mitigate global warming.3  Credits obtained through implementation of such projects can be traded in international markets. Risk Techniques used by Company- Company is expanding its operations by purchasing more units and invreasing the production capacity to further lower down the overall production costs to remain competitive in the industry. It also is reducing costs by making to reach to the Big suppliers which can provide quality materials in less prices. It is how company responded to the challenges. Post Impact of Risk Management techniques- Company has come forward in the industry and increased the operations in many states, also enhanced its exports and has posed a challenge before other companies.

Social Anxiety :: Biology Essays Research Papers

Social Anxiety A woman hates to stand in line in the grocery store because she's afraid that everyone is watching her. She knows that it's not really true, but she can't shake the feeling. While she is shopping, she is conscious of the fact that people might be staring at her from the big mirrors on the inside front of the ceiling. Now, she has to talk to the person who's checking out her groceries. She tries to smile, but her voice comes out weakly. She's sure she's making a fool of herself. Her self-consciousness and anxiety rise to the roof...(Richards 1) (1). A student won't attend her university classes on the first day because she knows that in some classes the professor will instruct them to go around the room and introduce themselves. Just thinking about sitting there, waiting to introduce herself to a roomful of strangers who will be staring at her makes her feel nauseous. She knows she won't be able to think clearly because her anxiety will be so high, and she is sure she will leave out important details...The anxiety is just too much to bear---so she skips the first day of class to avoid the possibility of having to introduce herself in class... (Richards 2) (2). These are just two examples of how people who suffer from social anxiety disorder feel about social situations and everyday interactions. Their fears can be paralyzing. Social anxiety disorder is the third largest psychological problem in the United States. It affects approximately 15 million Americans every year. It is a widely misunderstood disorder, where nearly 90% of people with social anxiety disorder are misdiagnosed. They are often misdiagnosed with schizophrenia, manic-depression, clinical depression, panic disorder, and or personality disorder (Richards 1-3). Misdiagnosis and undertreatment of anxiety disorders, according to "The Economic Burden of Anxiety Disorders," a study commissioned by the ADAA, costs the United States more than $42 billion a year and more than $22.84 billion is linked to the repeated use of healthcare services for symptoms that mimic physical illness. In addition, people with anxiety disorder are three-to-five times more likely to go to the doctor and six times more likely to be hospitalized for psychiatric disorders when compared to those who do not suffer from anxiety disorders ("Brief Overview of Anxiety Disorder s" 2) (3). Social anxiety disorder can be defined as the persistent fear of one or more social or performance situations in which the person is exposed to unfamiliar people or to possible scrutiny by others, and where exposure to such situations provokes anxiety.

Fighting Rising College Tuition Costs Essay -- Education Policy

Declining state support, educational race for top rankings, uneven financial aid, or economy downfall: there are reasons all across the board as to why the cost of college tuition is getting out of hand. Envision a senior girl whose heart had been set on her dream college for years. An elite, honorable college where everyone seems to want to go. She has been telling her parents from an early age she was going to one day be a member. While on a visit to the college in late fall of her senior year, she fell in love with the beautiful campus which seemed to spread for miles. The advisers and professors she met with were polite and unquestionably convincing. Her favorite part of the visit was seeing how happy all of the current students seemed to look with their college decision. Overall, she believed she had found her home for the next four years. She went home excited to tell her parents the good news. This is where the excitement soon ended. 35,000 dollars a year was the out rageous sticker price for her dream college. Her parents said there was no way possible they could ever afford to send her. Tears started flooding down her face; her dreams were crushed. Now what was she going to do? Where was she going to go? Although this story has been made up, similar situations like these are arising more and more often. College tuition has reached an all time high; with the economy in its current standings, there needs to be solutions so every young adult has an equal opportunity to go to college. No one disputes the importance of a college education in today’s job market. Society has taken on a much higher demand for the well educated. With this being a growing trend, why does it seem colleges are trying to make gettin... ...ons need to be fulfilled if results are to be seen in the pocketbooks of every young adult looking for an equal opportunity to go to college. Works Cited â€Å"Barack Obama and Joe Biden: Making College Affordable For Everyone.† Web. 6 Dec. 2010. Berman, Talia. â€Å"Student Debt Crisis: Are There Any Solutions?† WireTap. 23 Aug. 2006. Web. 6 Dec. 2010. Block, Sandra. â€Å"Rising costs make climb to higher education steeper.† USA TODAY. 12 Jan. 2007. Web. 6 Dec. 2010. Dickeson, Robert. â€Å"COLLISION COURSE: Rising college costs threaten America’s future and require shared solutions.† Lumina Foundation for Education. 2004. Web. 6 Dec. 2010. Ehrenberg, Ronald. â€Å"Tuition Rising: Why College Costs so Much.† Cornell University. Web. 6 Dec. 2010. â€Å"Rising College Costs.† Web. 6 Dec. 2010. â€Å"What is a 529?† Web. 6 Dec. 2010. â€Å"What It Costs to Go to College.† Web. 6 Dec. 2010.

Cultural studies

? â€Å"Literature is the mirror of life† is one of the main quotes which our lecturer, Mr. Puveneswaran keep on telling to us in his every lesson. This quote answered my question which I asked myself since the first lesson of Literature in English. A great literature is the mirror upon which the realities of life are reflected. A term that used to describe written or spoken material is known as literature. By studying this subject, I could understand that literature is all about the obsession with ideas and also a way in which we can capture and interpret what has happened and is happening to us personally and to the world as a whole.Broadly speaking, the study of literature allows people to develop new ideas and ethical standpoints and can help individuals to present themselves as educated members of society. There are many short stories that I have studied in this semester such as A Dream of China, The Mahogany Table, No Place For A Woman and so on. As the requirement of my coursework, I choose two short stories such as Everything’s Arranged and Dey Raju. This Everything’s Arranged by Siew Yee Killingley tells about a Ceylonese girl named Rukumani having secret affair with a Ceylonese boy named Devanayagam while studying at University.Their secret affair discovered by their parents. Rukumani have struggle and suffer because of their family members, relatives and their community as they try to get together in life. The Ceylonese, however educated, still hold to their tradition, beliefs and family values so adamantly. At the end their marriage was called off. Dey Raju by Saras M Manickam is a story about a boy named Raju. Raju’s father arranged a marriage for him. Raju wrongly saw the ‘bride’. He refuses to get married because the lady that he thought his bride was fat.Amazingly, he found out that the fat lady was not his bride. His bride was beautiful. Raju got to know the truth and talked to his bride. They both love each other. According to Mathew Arnold, literary criticism is a disinterested endeavor to learn and propagate the best that is known and thought in the world. Using the theories and principles of theoretical criticism, the practical critic defines the standards of taste and explains, evaluates, or justifies a particular piece of literature.Since there are a few literary criticisms in those two short stories, I found cultural criticism is the most suitable one for those two short stories that I have been chosen. Cultural criticism is known as criticism or analysis of a specific culture and society on a continuing basis with the end result being some sort of practical solution being found to fix any problems. In the Everything’s Arranged short story, Indian culture is well depicted and portrayed. As a Ceylonese, Rukumani’s parents believe that marriage is a spiritual thing and if a girl has an affair with a guy before marriage, it is considered as a sin.The girls shouldn ’t be in love before marriage. This can be clearly seen when a man who is a visitor to Rukumani’s house said that â€Å"When we were young our mother never mentioned the word ‘marriage’ to any of my seven sisters until two days before they were to be married. Everything fixes first, then talk. † We can know that they are very possessive and exposed to Indian culture that were truly practiced when Rukumani’s mother scolded her by telling that Rukumani have been so brazen and shameless as to spoilt yourself with her beloved ones.Even though she protested herself that she never did anything wrong, her mother cried and told her not to tell about shameful things. I also found evidence for the culture that they belief where the girls shouldn’t choose a guy as their life partner by themselves. For an example, â€Å"How dare you choose somebody for yourself? † wept her mother. Moreover, sex is an issue that cannot be mentioned in home. There was stated that Rukumani’s parents liked to pretend Rukumani was too spiritual to know anything about sex and that topic was never mentioned at home.The Ceylonese, however educated, still hold to their tradition, beliefs and family values so adamantly. Education failed to change their thinking. Social life is a taboo for their young sons what more for a daughter. Dey Raju is one of the most favorite short stories of mine where I found the pure love between married to be couple. The cultural criticism in this short story is arranged marriage. Raju who works in Kuala Lumpur received a telegram from his father states that â€Å"Marriage arranged. Come immediately†.Even though he hasn’t seen his bride, he agreed to his father’s statement and went back to his hometown immediately by train without thinking for a second. When the mates at work ribbed Raju mercilessly about marrying a bride that he had never seen before, he said that â€Å"Mine was traditi onal Indian culture with five thousand years of history. By golly, I was proud of it†. This shows that Raju is still conservation and holds his Tamil culture which is arranged marriage. This is also can be clearly seen when an elderly neighbor from home, Auntie Rukku asked him whether he has set eyes on his bride and know his bride’s name ornot. â€Å"It’s our tradition, Auntie Rukku† replied Raju. It is being a common thing to modern culture where people can find their own spouses and didn’t depend on their parents but yet Raju follows the Indian culture. In a conclusion, I could understand more clearly and well about cultural criticism by reading and interpreting those two short stories. I also able to know that the formal study of literature enables us to explain our responses to any text, allows us to articulate the function of literature in an academic and a personal way.

Factors Affecting Share Prices

International Research Journal of Finance and Economics ISSN 1450-2887 Issue 30 (2009)  © EuroJournals Publishing, Inc. 2009 http://www. eurojournals. com/finance. htm Determinants of Equity Prices in the Stock Markets Somoye, Russell Olukayode Christopher Dept. of Banking & Finance, Faculty of Management Science Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye, Nigeria P. O. Box 1104 Ijebu-Ode, Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State, Nigeria E-mail: [email  protected] com Akintoye, Ishola Rufus Dept. of Accounting, Faculty of Management Science Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye, Nigeria E-mail: [email  protected] com Oseni, Jimoh Ezekiel Dept. f Banking and Finance, Faculty of Management Science Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye, Nigeria E-mail: [email  protected] com Abstract Brav & Heaton (2003) alleges market indeterminacy (a situation where it is impossible to determine whether an asset is efficiently or inefficiently priced) in the stock market. Kang (2008) argue that empirical tests of linear asset pricing models show presence of mispricing in asset pricing. Asset pricing is considered efficient if the asset price reflects all available market information to the extent no informed trader can outperform the market and / or the uninformed trader.This study examined the extent to which some â€Å"information factors† or market indices affect the stock price. A model defined by Al-Tamimi (2007) was used to regress the variables (stock prices, earnings per share, gross domestic product, lending interest rate and foreign exchange rate) after testing for multicollinarity among the independent variables. The multicollinarity test revealed very strong correlation between gross domestic product and crude oil price, gross domestic product and foreign exchange rate, lending interest rate and inflation rate.All the variables have positive correlation to stock prices with the exception of lending interest rate and foreign exchange rate. The outcomes of the study agree w ith earlier studies by Udegbunam and Eriki (2001); Ibrahim (2003) and Chaudhuri and Smiles (2004). This study has enriched the existing literature while it would help policy makers who are interested in deploying instruments of monetary policy and other economic indices for the growth of the capital market. Keywords: Stock prices, CAPM, models, coefficient, efficient, stock market. International Research Journal of Finance and Economics – Issue 30 (2009) 78 1. 0. Introduction The price of a commodity, the economist makes us to believe is determined by the forces of demand and supply in a free economy. Even if we accept the economists’ view, what factors influence demand and supply behavior? Price? Yes, but not all the time, at least there are some other factors. In the securities market, whether the primary or the secondary market, the price of equity is significantly influenced by a number of factors which include book value of the firm, dividend per share, earnings p er share, price earning ratio and dividend cover (Gompers, Ishii & Metrick, 2003).The most basic factors that influence price of equity share are demand and supply factors. If most people start buying then prices move up and if people start selling prices go down. Government policies, firm’s and industry’s performance and potentials have effects on demand behaviour of investors, both in the primary and secondary markets. The factors affecting the price of an equity share can be viewed from the macro and micro economic perspectives. Macro economic factors include politics, general economic conditions – i. e. how the economy is performing, government regulations, etc.Then there may be other factors like demand and supply conditions which can be influenced by the performance of the company and, of course, the performance of the company vis-a-vis the industry and the other players in the industry. In a study of the impact of dividend and earnings on stock prices, Ha rtone (2004) argues that a significantly positive impact is made on equity prices if positive earnings information occurs after negative dividend information. Also, a significantly negative impact occurs in equity pricing if positive dividend information is followed by negative earning information.Docking and Koch (2005) discovers that there is a direct relationship between dividend announcement and equity price behavior. Al-Qenae, Li & Wearing (2002) in their study of the effects of earning (micro-economic factor), inflation and interest rate (macro-economic factors) on the stock prices on the Kuwait Stock Exchange, discovered that the macro-economic factors significantly impact stock prices negatively. A previous study by Udegbunam and Eriki (2001) of the Nigerian capital market also shows that inflation is inversely correlated to stock market price behaviour.A number of models developed for asset pricing are two variable models. For instance the Capital asset pricing model (CAPM) developed by Sharpe (1964) considers the risk-free return and volatility of the risk-free return to market return as the determinants of asset price. Asset price as described by CAPM is linearly related to the two independent variables. Many studies have concluded that over the years assets were being underpriced (Smith, 1977; Loderer, Sheehan & Kadlec, 1991) and this raises the question of the adequacy of the various asset pricing models to ensure efficient asset pricing.Brav & Heaton (2003) alleges market indeterminacy, a situation where it is impossible to determine whether an asset is efficiently or inefficiently priced. Kang (2008) found that empirical tests of linear asset pricing models show presence of mispricing in asset pricing. Asset pricing is considered efficient if the asset price reflects all available market information to the extent no informed trader can outperform the market and / or the uninformed trader. This study aims at examining the extent to which some â⠂¬Å"information factors† or market indices affect the stock price.The rest of the paper is designed as follows: Section 2 reviews literature on factors influencing asset prices, effects of inefficient asset pricing and some of the existing asset pricing techniques. Section 3 states the data and the sources, the data restructuring and the model used for data analysis while Section 4 discussed and interpret the results of the data analysis. Lastly, section 4 is the conclusion. 2. 0. Conceptual Framework and Literature Review 2. 1. Conceptual Framework Several attempts have been made to identify or study the factors that affect asset prices.Some researchers have also tried to determine the correlation between selected factors (internal and external, 179 International Research Journal of Finance and Economics – Issue 30 (2009) market and non-market factors, economic and non-economic factors) and asset prices. The outcomes of the studies vary depending on the scope of the st udy, the assets and factors examined. Zhang (2004) designed a multi-index model to determine the effect of industry, country and international factors on asset pricing. Byers and Groth (2000) defined the asset pricing process as a function utility (economic factors) and non-economic (psychic) factors.Clerc and Pfister (2001) posit that monetary policy is capable of influencing asset prices in the long run. Any change in interest rates especially unanticipated change affects growth expectations and the rates for discounting investment future cash flows. Ross’ (1977) APT model which could be taken as a protest of one factor model of CAPM which assumes that asset price depends only on market factor believe that the asset price is influenced by both the market and non-market factors such as foreign exchange, inflation and unemployment rates.One of the defects of APT in spite of its advancement of asset pricing model is that the factors to be included in asset pricing are unspecif ied. Al – Tamimi (2007) identified company fundamental factors (performance of the company, a change in board of directors, appointment of new management, and the creation of new assets, dividends, earnings), and external factors ( government rules and regulations, inflation, and other economic conditions, investor behavior, market conditions, money supply, competition, uncontrolled natural or environmental circumstances) as influencers of asset prices.He developed a simple regression model to measure the coefficients of correlation between the independent and dependent variables. SP = f (EPS, DPS, OL, GDP, CPI, INT, MS) Where, SP: Stock price; EPS: Earnings per share; DPS: Dividend per share; OL: Oil price; GDP: Gross domestic product; CPI: Consumer price index; INT: Interest rate and MS: Money supply. He discovered that the firm’s fundamental factors exercise the most significant impact on stock prices.The EPS was found to be the most influencing factor over the mark et. Studying the effects of the Iraq war on US financial markets, Rigobon and Sack (2004) discovered that increases in war risk caused declines in Treasury yields and equity prices, a widening of lower-grade corporate spreads, a fall in the dollar, and a rise in oil prices. A positive correlation exists between the price of oil and war. They argue that war has a significant impact on the oil price.Tymoigne (2002) argue that in the financial market, banking convention and financial convention work together to fix the assets’ market prices. According to him the financial convention creates a speculative sentiment of whether capitalists are more prone to sell, or to buy assets while the banking convention determines the state of credit as evidenced by the confidence of the banking sector and ability of investors accessing credit leverage for asset acquisition purpose.He concluded that â€Å"conventions do not determine asset-price, it is the â€Å"law of supply and demand† that does so, conventionsâ€Å"only† influence the behaviors of financial actors† Inflation as an external factor exerts a very significant negative influence on the stock prices in Nigeria (Zhao,1999 & Udegbunam and Eriki, 2001). Factors affecting asset prices are numerous and inexhaustible. The factors can be categorized into firm, industry, country and international or market and non-market factors, and economic and noneconomic factors. All the factors can be summarized into two classes – micro and macro factors.Factors in each class of the classification are inexhaustible. For instance, the firm factors include, ownership structure, management quality, labour force quality, earnings ratios, dividend payments, net book value, etc. have impact on the investor’s pricing decision. Molodovsky (1995) believes that dividends are the hard core of stock value. The value of any asset equals the present value of all cash flows of the asset. 2. 2. Effects Of In efficient Asset Pricing Inefficient asset pricing could be a catalyst to inefficient resource allocation among competing productive investment opportunities.Underpricing can serve as positive signal to the market (Giammariano & Lewis, 1989) to compensate the uninformed and get them to participate in the new International Research Journal of Finance and Economics – Issue 30 (2009) 180 offer (Rock, 1986; Allen & Faulhaber, 1989; Grinblatt & Hwang, 1989; Welch, 1989). The market is information-sensitive. Prices tend to take a declining trend few days to the release of a firm’s new offer and the price recovery starts few days after the completion of the offer, especially if he offer is fully subscribed (Barclay and Litzenberger, 1988). Easley, Hridkjaer and O’Hara (2001) agree that market is information sensitive at least to the extent that private (insider) information affect asset returns and advised that it should not be ignored for efficient asset pricing. The f irm’s beta ratios, its market value to book value, its current price to earnings ratio and the historical growth rate in earning per share are identified by Moore & Beltz (2002) as possessing strong influence on the equity price of the firm.They also argue that the identified factors have varying effects on the price and the effects vary from time to time, sector to sector and even from firm to firm within the same industry. For instance, they argue that equity prices of individual firm in heavy industries (chemical, petroleum, metal and manufacturing) are exclusively influenced by the firm’s beta and market to book value while firms in the technology sector are influenced by the historical growth rate in earning per share as well as beta and market to book value ratio.The equity price in transportation industry is affected by beta and price to earning ratio. Though, Moore & Beltz (2002) constructed a tree relating the impact of each identified factors in each of the s elected model but did not construct a model that could be used in assessing direct impact of the identified factors on the equity price. Asset pricing could be a challenge.Hordahl & Packer (2006) argue that a clear understanding of the asset’s stochastic discount factor and future payoffs is necessary to understand the factors that determine the price of an asset. Unfortunately, only Government instruments provide their stochastic discount factor in advance while the future payoffs are not observable directly but could be derived from some other data. Corwin (2003 identifies uncertainty and asymmetric information as a strong influence on the firm’s equity pricing and as a matter of fact lead to underpriced instrument.In the light of the preceding literature review, many factors both micro and macro-economics, have impact on equity pricing in the stock market, the impact differs from firm to firm, industry to industry, economy to economy and from time to time, but one c omforting conclusion is that most of the factors appear to have the same behaviour regardless of time, industry or firm constraints.For instance, increased inflation and interest rates, declining dividends, earnings, poor management leave negative impact on equity pricing and vice-versa 2. 3. Asset Pricing Techniques There are several asset pricing models aside from CAPM and APT which are both linear model. A few of the available (non-linear) asset pricing techniques are reviewed in this section. 2. 3. 1. Residual Income Valuation This is one of the oldest valuation model with a trace to the work of Preinreich (1938).The valuation model discounts the future expected dividends and potential value of shareholders’ funds to the present value, giving effect to a proposition that the price of equity can be derived from the present value of all future dividends. Lo and Lys (2000) reviewed the Olhson Model (OM) developed in by Ohlson (1995) and which has been acknowledged with wide acceptance (Joos & Zhdanov, 2007; Chen & Zhao, 2008). The OM provides a platform for the empirical test of the residual income valuation (RIV).Lo and Lys (2000) defined RIV as: RIV = Pt = ? R-r Et (dt+r) Where Pt is defined as the equity market price at time t, dt represents dividends at the end of time t, R is the unity plus the discount rate (r) and Et is the expectation factor at time t. The RIV from the present value of expected dividend is based on the assumptions that (i) the accounting system meets the â€Å"clean surplus relation† i. e. 181 International Research Journal of Finance and Economics – Issue 30 (2009) To derive RIV from PVED, two additional assumptions are made.First, an â€Å"accounting system† that satisfies a clean surplus relation (CSR) is assumed: bt = bt-1 + xt – dt, bt represents the book value of equity at time t, xt represents the earnings at time t, and (ii) it is assumed that the book value of equity would grow at a rate les s than R, that is R-r Et (bt+r) —————) 0 The assumptions form the basis to argue that the present value of expected dividend is a function of both the book value and discounted expected abnormal earnings.In that case RIV signifying the price of the asset can be stated thus: Pt = bt +? t=1 R-r Et (xat+r) Where xat = xt – rbt-1. Testing RIV empirically could be a contention on the premises that it has only one sided hypothesis: asset price is a function present value of future dividends. A rejection of the hypothesis when tested empirically may arouse dissenting voices from researchers who had believed in the efficacy of the model. In fact, Lee (2006) expressed the view that residual income valuation model provides a better valuation than the dividend model.John and Williams (1985), and Miller and Rock (1985), argue that dividend is a communication tool for the firm to pass information to the market in the event of information asymmetry which implies that there is a positive correlation between information asymmetry and a firm’s dividend policy. 2. 3. 2. Economic Valuation Model This model traced to Tully (2000) is developed to recognize economic profits as against the use of book profit in the valuation of asset.The model builds on the premises of profit maximization by owners of the firm and the profit is not to be restricted to book value, rather it covers the opportunity cost of not investing in profitable projects. Economical profit is differentiated from the book profit as the difference from revenues and economical costs (i. e. book costs plus opportunity cost of failure to invest in profitable project. The book profit can be defined as revenue less costs while economic profit is defined as total revenue from investment less cost of capital.Economic profit is higher than normal book profit because of the opportunity cost considered in the former. There are two approaches to the estimation of economic value added (Koller, Goedhart & Wessels, 2005; Jennergren, 2008). The first is NOPLAT less capital charge (i. e. WACC multiplied by initial capital outlay). The value of the operating assets is therefore the initial capital outlay plus the present value of cash flows derived from economic value added.To obtain the equity value, the value of debt is deducted from the value of the operating assets. The second approach involves EBIT less taxes (i. e. PAT). PAT less capital charge after recognizing deferred taxes as part of the invested capital. The operating assets remain as the initial capital outlay (having considered the effect of deferred taxes) plus the present value of all income derived from the economic value added.Economic Valuation of Asset (EVA) Model as defined by Kislingerova (2000) is stated as: EVAt = Pt = NOPATt – Ct x WACCt where NOPATt is Net Operating Profit After Tax or the profit after tax (PAT), Ct is long-term capital (Ct is the sum of equity and invested capita l or alternatively, it is the total of fixed assets and net working capital), WACC is Weighted Average Cost of Capital. Whenever EVA > O, the shareholders’ wealth is maximized, if EVA =0 then there is a break-even point and at EVA < 0 the shareholders’ wealth is in decline.EVA model serves as a tool in measuring both the performance of the firms as well its value. WACC serves a dual purpose. It is used in the calculation of EVA and its serves as the rate for discounting the present value of future earnings to the present time t. The value of the firm is therefore the addition of the book value of capital and the present value of future EVA. To derive the value of equity the value of debt would be deducted from the value of the firm. International Research Journal of Finance and Economics – Issue 30 (2009) 182 2. 3. 3.Discounted Cash Flow Model The model uses accounting data as input and the objective of the model is to derive equity value of a going concern. The value of equity is derived by deducting the value of debt (excluding deferred taxes and trade credits) from the total assets. Deferred taxes are regarded as part of equity (Brealey, Myers & Allen, 2006). There are several variations to the adoption of the model (Jennergren, 2008). The discounted cash flow (DCF) is more adaptable to the valuation of a firm with high level of assets in place and low level of uncertainty about future cash flows (Joos & Zhdanov, 2007).Cash flows available for discounting include dividends, free cash flow to equity and free cash to the firm (debt and equity). A firm can experience three types of growth ranging from stable growth, high growth to stable growth and high growth through transition to a stable growth. The discount rate could be either cost of equity, cost of debt or the weighted cost of capital (WACC). The choice of discount rate should depend on the type of cash flow (equity or firm) to be discounted. At least two models can be derived from the cash flow model.The Dividend Discount (DD) Model is suitable for a firm that pays dividends close to the free cash flow or where it is difficult to estimate the free cash flow to equity. The second model, Free Cash Flow Model is suitable where there is a significant margin between dividends and free cash flow to equity or if dividends are not available. The value of firm witnessing stable growth is given as: C:UsersjoseniD esk top D esk to pDISCOUNTED CA SHFLOW MODELS WHA T THEY A RE A ND HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT ON E__filesImage8. if or a firm that experiences two stages of growth (i. e. high growth to stable growth), the value of the firm is: C:UsersjoseniDesk topDesk topDISCOUNTED CA SHFLOW MODELS WHA T THEY A RE A ND HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT ONE__filesImage9. gif The value of a firm experiencing three levels of growth (i. e. high growth through transition to stable growth) is given as: C:UsersjoseniDesk topDesk topDISCOUNTED CA SHFLOW MODELS WHA T THEY A RE A ND HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT ONE__filesImage10. gifWhere V0 represents equity value or firm value depending on which is discounted, CFt represents cash flow at time t, r represents cost of equity (for dividends or free cash flow to equity) or cost of capital ( for free cash flow to firm), g represents expected growth rate, ga represents initial expected growth (high growth period) and gn represents growth in a stable period; n and n1 are defined as the period in a two stage growth and high growth in a three stage growth models respectively while n2-n1 represents the transition period in the three stage growth model. . 3. 4. Dividend Valuation Model This is one of the commonest and simplest models for valuation of equity in the secondary market. The equity value is taken as the summation of discounted dividends receivable each year till the year of maturity and the price the equity is expected to be sold at maturity. The value of an investment is taken to be the discounted value of the cash flows.There are different variations to the model ranging from: One period valuation one Period to multi-periods Po = D1/(1 + ke) + P1/(1 + ke) Po = D1/(1 + ke)1 + D2/(1+ke)2 +†¦+ Dn/(1+ke)n + Pn/(1+ke)n – multi- period and to indeterminate length of time Infinity and, growth Po = D/(1+ke) (including Gordon growth) variations. D0(1+g)1 + D0(1+g)2 +†¦.. + D0(1+g)? Po = (1+ke)1 (1+ke)2 (1+ke)? or 183 Po = International Research Journal of Finance and Economics – Issue 30 (2009) D0– ke – g) Where: D = dividend paid / expected g = dividend’s growth rate = cost of equity or equity rate of return ke 1 – – n = period variation One of the motives behind the use of this valuation model is to identify over and underpriced shares. Moving away from the simplest form of this model Go and Olhson (1990) introduced a more tasking process for generating dividends and returns on equity investment which they adopted in some more specific valuation models .The process is based on some assumptions such that equity holders would receive net dividends and there exists a linear relationship between variables. John and Williams (1985), and Miller and Rock (1985) argue that dividend is a communication tool for the firm to pass information to the market in the event of information asymmetry which implies that there is a positive correlation between information asymmetry and a firm’s dividend policy. 3. 0. Research Methodology We define the research hypotheses, sampling and data collection techniques as well as the statistical techniques used to test the data. . 1. Research Methodology We test the following hypotheses: Ho1: The earning per share significantly affects the stock price Ho2: The national gross domestic products significantly affect the stock price Ho3: The lending interest rate significantly affect the stock price Ho4: The foreign exchange rate significantly affect the stock price 3. 2. Model From the hypotheses, the stoc k price is a function of the impact of earning per share, dividend per share, gross domestic, interest rate and oil price.We restricted the influencing factors to five as representatives of the firm’s fundamental factors and external (country) factors. A simple linear regression model derived from Al-Tamimi (2007) is adopted for the study. Unlike Al-Tamimi (2007) who included consumer price index (CPI) and money supply (MS) as independent variables, those variables were replaced with inflation rate (INFL) and foreign exchange rate (FX) in view of the significant impact they have on the economies of developing countries.SP = f (EPS, DPS, GDP, INT, OIL, INFL, FX) Where, SP is the stock price; EPS is the earnings per share; DPS is the dividend per share; GDP is the gross domestic product, INT is the lending interest rate, OIL is the oil price; INFL is inflation and FX is the foreign exchange rate. SP is the dependent variable and it is used to regress the other independent varia bles (EPS, DPS, GDP, INT, OIL, INFL, FX) in the stock market. The outcome of the regression would be the variance on the dependent variable as resulting from the impact of the independent variables.To explain the effects of multicollinearity normally associated with multi-variables in regression analysis, multicollinearity test is conducted to explain the extent of correlation between the independent variables.. A multiple regression software (WASSA) was used to test the multicollinearity among the independent variables before proceeding to conduct the regression analysis. International Research Journal of Finance and Economics – Issue 30 (2009) 3. 3. Data Sampling 184 There are over 130 companies whose shares are being traded in the Nigerian capital market.The Banking sector in the last five years has dominated the market in terms of trading volumes and market performance. The earning per share (EPS) and dividend per share (DPS) of twelve companies listed on the Nigerian Sto ck Exchange (NSE) and (average) annual GDP, crude oil price (OIL), lending interest rate (INT), inflation rate (INFL) and foreign exchange rate (FX) are used are analysed for effect on the stock price. The period covered by the data is year 2001 to 2007. The choice of the companies and period used for the data gathering depend on availability of data. . 4. Data Restructuring Weights are attached to EPS and DPS for each of the companies sampled for each of the year. The weight is derived as a ratio of the company’s EPS or DPS to the total EPS or DPS of all the companies for each of the years. The weight is thereafter multiplied with the respective company EPS or DPS to derive â€Å"weighted stock price (SP), EPS or DPS and thereafter all the companies weighted SP, EPS or DPS are summed together for each of the year (APPENDIX I). 4. 0. Findings and InterpretationIn a linear expression where more than two variables are deployed, multicollinearity between variables may not be ru led out. A multicollinearity test is therefore conducted for all the independent variables. Using the Pearson coefficient of correlation, we consider any correlation between two variables > + 0. 75 as strong. For instance, from Table 1 below there is no significant correlation between earnings per share and dividend per share. Our explanations for it are into parts.First, all the companies in the sample reported earnings per share for each of the years covered by the study though in some instances the EPS are negative but not all the companies declared and /or paid dividends throughout all the periods. Secondly, EPS movement unlike DPS is largely outside the control of the Management. There is a strong correlation between crude oil price and GDP. The justification for the correlation between crude oil price and GDP can be found in the fact that the Nigerian economy predominantly depends on oil revenue.Table I: DPS EPS GDP OIL INT INF FX Outcomes of the Multicollinarity Test (Pearson Coefficient of Correlation DPS 1 -0. 302 0. 609 -0. 395 -0. 498 -0. 521 0. 724 EPS 1 -0. 523 -0. 596 0. 366 0. 778 -0. 037 GPD 1 0. 959 -0. 702 -0. 492 0. 795 OIL INT INFL FX 1 -0. 706 -0. 434 0. 614 1 0. 988 -0. 424 1 -0. 313 1 A strong correlation also exist between INFL and INT which might be the result of manufacturers and service providers passing increased lending interest rate to consumers. A strong correlation exists between FX and GDP.Unexpectedly, there is a strong correlation between INF and EPS, we do not have any explanation for this relationship. For our regression analysis, OIL and INFL were dropped from the model. Though there is a strong correlation between FX and GDP, both variables are used in the regression. FX and GDP variables are significant to the economy of developing nations like Nigeria, therefore their exclusion from the regression would result in a very high constant (? ). 185 International Research Journal of Finance and Economics – Issue 30 (20 09)A regression analysis was run on the independent variables DPS, EPS, GDP and INT after dropping OIL, INFL and FX. Table I shows the result of the regression analysis. Table II: Summary of the Regression Analysis R2 0. 99996 ? – 67. 2385 0. 3835 0. 0869 0. 3805 – 0. 8236 – 1. 9741 Adjusted R2 0. 99978 T – Test – 9. 597 36. 259 33. 369 21. 809 – 7. 375 – 11. 214 Standard Error of Estimates 0. 4752 F – Test 5385. 033 R 0. 99998 Constant DPS EPS GDP INT FX The stock price (P) is highly sensitive to variation as indicated by R2 of 0. 99996. In other words there is 99. 9% and as a matter of fact 100% in stock variation caused by the independent variables. The variability as measured by coefficient of variation (? ) is expectedly positive for DPS, EPS and GDP and expectedly negative for lending interest (INT) though quite significantly. The ? for DPS and EPS though positive were not significant. Many of the companies resorted to bo nus issues instead of dividends and the Nigerian investors are more interested in incomes rather than capital appreciation especially where the stock market performance is poor.The failure to declare and pay dividend leaves two negative impacts on stock prices. The existing investors are denied additional funds to invest and the potential investors seeking investment incomes are discouraged. The hypothesis that EPS affect stock price significantly is accepted. The positive GDP’s coefficient in relation to the stock price is in agreement with some other studies (Udegbunam and Eriki,2001; Ibrahim 2003; Mukherjee and Naka 1995; Chaudhuri and Smiles, 2004). The ? is insignificant at 0. 805 and this might not be unconnected with the increasing foreign reserve maintained by CBN from the proceeds of crude oil sales. The proceeds of the crude oil sales are not released to the economy for investment in various productive sectors of the economy but rather held in foreign economies as p art of the CBN’s monetary policies. The domestic economy is denied of the investments that would have occurred if the funds in the foreign reserve are released for spending in the domestic economy. The hypothesis that the GDP affects stock price significantly is accepted.The coefficient of interest which is negative is expected and found to be significant. The negative coefficient of the lending interest rate is in agreement with the findings of Al-Qenae, Li & Wearing (2002), and Mukherjee and Naka (1995). Lending interest rate is a strong tool in the hands of CBN to influence the economy and where the interest is high as it is Nigeria where lending interest rates hovers between 22% and 25%, the accessibility of the investors to access funds is curtailed and the impact on the stock price would be negative as shown.The hypothesis that lending interest rate affects the stock price significantly is accepted The foreign exchange rate’s coefficient is significantly negative at significant level of 10%. This is not unexpected. Local and foreign investors tend to invest in an economy that has a very high currency exchange rate to foreign currencies. The local investors are discouraged from taking their funds out of the economy for fear of reduced purchasing while foreign investors are encouraged otherwise for increased purchasing power. The hypothesis that foreign exchange rate affects the stock price significantly is accepted.Lastly, the constant (? ) is 67. 2385 (negative). This suggests that the minimum stock price in the market is < 0. We had initially excluded FX from the regression for the reason of its collinearity with GDP but the constant was negative and excessively high. The inclusion of FX has reduced the negativity which is an indication that there are other important variable(s) that significantly affect the stock prices but not considered in this study. The stock price cannot be < 0 except the company is in liquidation. International Rese arch Journal of Finance and Economics – Issue 30 (2009) 186This raises an important question of what factor(s) could have accounted for the extra ordinary stock market performance in Nigeria between 2005 and 2007 where some stocks return over 1000% per annum. The nation House of Representative’s Committee on Capital Markets expressed disgust at the hike in the stock prices of companies in the banking and oil sectors (Thisday Newspapers, 2008). The â€Å"hike† which may not be a non-economic factor (such as political, unhealthy competition, profiteering by issuers who are at the same time market investors) may be the omitted important variable accounting for the high ?. . 0. Conclusions and Recommendations The forces of demand and supply have direct effect on the stock price while the other indeterminate number of firm, industry and country factors influences the demand and supply factors. The effect, positive or negative the other factors apart from the demand a nd supply leave on stock price are not static rather changes. For instance, lending interest rate effect could be positive or negative depending on the aim of the CBN in deploying it as one of the tools for implementing monetary policy.The study has contributed to existing literatures in confirming or raising new issues with respect to other factors influencing stock prices. 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Frank (2004) â€Å"Information Uncertainty and Stock Returns† An Article Submitted to The Journal of Finance Manuscript 1149 www. afajof. rg/afa/forthcoming/zhang_information. pdf Zhao, Xing-Qiu (1999), â€Å"Stock prices, inflation and output: evidence from China,† Applied Economics Letters, 6 Appendix Appendix I: Selected Market Indices (2001 – 2007) YEAR PRICE* DPS* EPS* GDP** INT** 42. 53 430. 00 393. 29 431,783. 10 21. 34 2001 43. 70 432. 72 412. 52 451,785. 60 29. 70 2002 109. 21 577. 63 459. 83 495,007. 10 22. 47 2003 116 . 76 552. 48 600. 59 527,576. 00 20. 62 2004 110. 56 466. 97 708. 90 561,931. 40 19. 47 2005 102. 33 553. 87 1,666. 03 595,821. 61 18. 43 2006 95. 87 549. 93 894. 96 561,776. 34 19. 1 2007 Source: Central Bank of Nigeria Statistical Bulletin** : Cashcraft Asset Management Limited / APT Securities and Fund Limited * OIL** 24. 50 25. 40 29. 10 38. 70 57. 60 66. 50 54. 27 INFLE** 18. 90 12. 90 14. 00 15. 00 17. 90 8. 20 13. 70 FX ** 111. 94 120. 97 129. 36 133. 50 132. 15 128. 65 131. 43 189 International Research Journal of Finance and Economics – Issue 30 (2009) Appendix II: Regression Analysis Of Selected Market Indices (2001 – 2007) Multiple Linear Regression – Estimated Regression Equation SP[t] = +0. 38353330161483 DPS[t] +0. 086971432931437 EPS[t] +0. 38049146437789 GDP[t] -0. 82357353121514 INT[t] -1. 740597666311 FX[t] -67. 238476376193 + e[t] Multiple Linear Regression – Ordinary Least Squares Variable DPS[t] EPS[t] GDP[t] INT[t] FX[t] Constant Var iable %DPS[t] %EPS[t] %GDP[t] %INT[t] %FX[t] %Constant Variable Parameter 0. 383533 0. 086971 0. 380491 -0. 823574 -1. 97406 -67. 238476 Elasticity 2. 201042 0. 359282 2. 221624 -0. 200986 -2. 822992 -0. 75797 Stand. Coeff. S. E. 0. 010577 0. 002606 0. 017447 0. 111666 0. 17603 7. 006084 S. E. * 0. 060703 0. 010767 0. 101869 0. 027251 0. 25173 0. 078979 S. E. * T-STAT H0: parameter = 0 36. 259468 33. 368601 21. 808584 -7. 375331 -11. 214366 -9. 597156 T-STAT H0: |elast| = 1 19. 785697 -59. 07274 11. 992081 -29. 320395 7. 241855 -3. 064493 T-STAT H0: coeff = 0 2-tail p-value 0. 017553 0. 019073 0. 029171 0. 085794 0. 056618 0. 066096 2-tail p-value 0. 032148 0. 010697 0. 052964 0. 021704 0. 087356 0. 200805 2-tail p-value 1-tail p-value 0. 008776 0. 009536 0. 014585 0. 042897 0. 028309 0. 033048 1-tail p-value 0. 016074 0. 005349 0. 026482 0. 010852 0. 043678 0. 100402 1-tail p-value 0. 008776 0. 009536 0. 014585 0. 042897 0. 028309 0. 5 S-DPS[t] 0. 763848 0. 021066 36. 259468 0. 017 553 S-EPS[t] 0. 69251 0. 020753 33. 368601 0. 019073 S-GDP[t] 0. 729372 0. 033444 21. 808584 0. 029171 S-INT[t] -0. 09814 0. 013307 -7. 75331 0. 085794 S-FX[t] -0. 48017 0. 042817 -11. 214366 0. 056618 S-Constant 0 0 0 1 Computed against deterministic endogenous series *Note Multiple Linear Regression – Regression Statistics Multiple R 0. 999981 R-squared 0. 999963 Adjusted R-squared 0. 999777 F-TEST 5385. 033289 Observations 7 Degrees of Freedom 1 Multiple Linear Regression – Residual Statistics Standard Error 0. 475177 Sum Squared Errors 0. 225793 Log Likelihood 2. 086595 Durbin-Watson 3. 380955 Von Neumann Ratio 3. 944448 # e[t] > 0 3 # e[t] < 0 4 # Runs 6 Runs Statistic 1. 333946 NB: Regression analysis was done using a software developed by Wessa (2008)