The Importance of Being Politically Connected. The literature on the importance of political connections to firms and their value implications is scant. This project aims to develop a framework that depicts the interplay of political connections, institutional factors, corporate governance, media coverage and firm value. In particular, it investigates how political connections enhance the value of firms in China and how this changes as the market transitions.
Surviving financial crises: a study of the Australian Government securities market. This project assesses the capacity of the Australian Government securities market to meet investor demand in times of financial crises. The outcomes will provide governments in Australia and other countries with the necessary tools to enhance the efficiency of securities markets and to flag liquidity problems in a timely manner.
The Aging Population, Superannuation and Corporate Dividend Policy. The project intends to examine how population wealth and age affect one important aspect of corporate decision-making, namely dividend policy. Researchers invest considerable effort in understanding how demographics impact upon the need for, and structure of, government systems including social security and taxation, but relatively little is known about its effect on capital markets or corporate decision-making. Although individ ....The Aging Population, Superannuation and Corporate Dividend Policy. The project intends to examine how population wealth and age affect one important aspect of corporate decision-making, namely dividend policy. Researchers invest considerable effort in understanding how demographics impact upon the need for, and structure of, government systems including social security and taxation, but relatively little is known about its effect on capital markets or corporate decision-making. Although individual investors are, by nature, atomistic, the project argues changes in investor preferences will ultimately prompt companies to alter their dividend policies. Pressure on firms to update these policies will come from superannuation and pension fund managers who, as fiduciaries, will invest money consistent with clients' revised preferences. The project aims to more fully characterise how Australia's ageing population will affect the public and private sectors.Read moreRead less
ARC Financial Integrity Research Network. The integrity of the financial system is constantly under stress because of the development of ever more complex financial instruments, structures and strategies, and the associated research technologies that continues to accelerate worldwide. FIRN's vision is to harness the considerable strengths of Australia's internationally renowned finance, accounting and economics researchers into a research agenda to address issues concerning the integrity of the ....ARC Financial Integrity Research Network. The integrity of the financial system is constantly under stress because of the development of ever more complex financial instruments, structures and strategies, and the associated research technologies that continues to accelerate worldwide. FIRN's vision is to harness the considerable strengths of Australia's internationally renowned finance, accounting and economics researchers into a research agenda to address issues concerning the integrity of the financial system. It will enable Australian research in this area to match the scale and impact of similar research in other major international financial centres, and play an essential role in placing Australia among the world's leaders in financial markets related research.Read moreRead less
Setting Priorities for Services Trade Reform. Services could be a deal maker in the Doha Round of trade negotiations, and Australia has much to gain if developing countries can be persuaded to make commercially meaningful commitments to liberalise services trade. Australia will also gain if the economies of the region are strengthened through regulatory reform. And Australia can gain from further regulatory reform at home. To these ends, the project will provide new understanding of regulatory b ....Setting Priorities for Services Trade Reform. Services could be a deal maker in the Doha Round of trade negotiations, and Australia has much to gain if developing countries can be persuaded to make commercially meaningful commitments to liberalise services trade. Australia will also gain if the economies of the region are strengthened through regulatory reform. And Australia can gain from further regulatory reform at home. To these ends, the project will provide new understanding of regulatory best practice that will reveal the priorities for services trade reform. Read moreRead less
Adoption of Australian IFRS: Are IFRS "fit for purpose"? The project seeks to explore the usefulness of modifications made to company earnings based on International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS; Australia’s mandatory accounting standards) by financial report preparers and users. The project intends to show how share markets respond to adjustments to IFRS earnings and provide evidence to assist standard setters and regulators in policy decisions to strengthen the financial reporting frame ....Adoption of Australian IFRS: Are IFRS "fit for purpose"? The project seeks to explore the usefulness of modifications made to company earnings based on International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS; Australia’s mandatory accounting standards) by financial report preparers and users. The project intends to show how share markets respond to adjustments to IFRS earnings and provide evidence to assist standard setters and regulators in policy decisions to strengthen the financial reporting framework and to improve the comparability and transparency of financial information. A more robust framework would improve capital market efficiency, promote economic growth in Australia and support the goal of making Australia a world-leading financial market.Read moreRead less
Expenditure needs and drawdown of retirement savings during later life: how important are demographic factors and financial resources? Projections of expenditure patterns in retirement which allow for population heterogeneity will provide individuals with a better appreciation of their income needs and their savings requirements for a comfortable retirement. It will also enable financial institutions to develop products which better target retirees' needs over the course of retirement, and in ad ....Expenditure needs and drawdown of retirement savings during later life: how important are demographic factors and financial resources? Projections of expenditure patterns in retirement which allow for population heterogeneity will provide individuals with a better appreciation of their income needs and their savings requirements for a comfortable retirement. It will also enable financial institutions to develop products which better target retirees' needs over the course of retirement, and in addition it will enable improved assessment of aspects of Government income support policy. Specifically, understanding the complex interactions between private and public pensions, and concession card receipt upon expenditure behaviour, will enable more accurate costings of the public support of elderly families as Australia's population ages. Read moreRead less
How do company announcements affect trading frequency in stocks? This project addresses the question of how financial markets respond to news by investigating how company announcements affect trading patterns in Australian banking stocks. Analysis will be based on new extensions to autoregressive conditional hazard (ACH) models, with research focussing on how to incorporate announcement variables into an ACH framework and how to modify standard ACH analysis to account for simultaneous transactio ....How do company announcements affect trading frequency in stocks? This project addresses the question of how financial markets respond to news by investigating how company announcements affect trading patterns in Australian banking stocks. Analysis will be based on new extensions to autoregressive conditional hazard (ACH) models, with research focussing on how to incorporate announcement variables into an ACH framework and how to modify standard ACH analysis to account for simultaneous transactions, market frictions and spillover effects. The results of this research will assist government and companies in choosing announcement times, aid traders in portfolio adjustment and will lead to a better understanding of the microstructure of Australian stock markets.Read moreRead less
China's Industrialisation and Demand for Energy and Minerals. Understanding China's medium and long-term growth prospects and the implications for both demand and supply of resources are critically important to Australian economic policy and performance, as well as to investment decisions of Australian resource producers, and professional decisions of Australians in a wide range of occupations. Analysis of the medium and long-term demand for resources from China would be beneficial for Australia ....China's Industrialisation and Demand for Energy and Minerals. Understanding China's medium and long-term growth prospects and the implications for both demand and supply of resources are critically important to Australian economic policy and performance, as well as to investment decisions of Australian resource producers, and professional decisions of Australians in a wide range of occupations. Analysis of the medium and long-term demand for resources from China would be beneficial for Australian resource industries. It is also important to Australian budget, education and infrastructure policy. Increasing Chinese demand for resources will be critical in shaping global environmental policies.Read moreRead less
The growth of Chinese foreign direct investment and its impact on developed-country regulation and Chinese institutions. This project will study the growth of Chinese foreign direct investment globally, identifying its causes and drivers, and the link between foreign investment and the liberalisation of the Chinese economy. This project's findings will inform the elaboration of Australia's policy response to Chinese direct investment.