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This article examines the creation of an accurate market projection designed with easy-to-use, cost-effective data analytic techniques. Many of the techniques explored are derived from the subdisciplines of decision support and data warehousing found in the information technology arena. Two significant contributions are presented: a simple mathematical technique that eliminates the need for heuristics, and the simplification of the process to the point where no computer or sophisticated statistical analysis is needed.

The purpose of this study, is to deals with capacity design (strong column – weak beam) in reinforced concrete frames, slightly slender, which depends on the determination of a capacity ratio necessary to reach a structural plastic mechanism. To find the capacity ratio allowing to achieve a fairly ductile behavior in reinforced concrete frames, it is necessary to validate this concept by a non-linear static analysis (push-over). However, this analysis is carried out by the use of the ETABS software, and by the introduction into the beams and columns of plastic hinges according to FEMA-356 code.

This approach makes it possible to assess seismic performance, which facilitates the establishment of a system for detecting the plasticization mechanisms of structures. It is also necessary to use a probabilistic method allowing to treat the dimensioning by the identification of the most probable mechanisms and to take only those that contribute the most to the probability of global failure of the structural system.

In this study, three reinforced concrete frame buildings with different numbers of floors were analyzed by varying the capacity ratio of the elements. The results obtained indicate that it is strongly recommended to increase the ratio of the resistant moments of the columns on those of the beams for the Algerian seismic regulation (RPA code), knowing that the frameworks in reinforced concrete are widespread in the country.

The main interest of this paper is to criticize the resistance condition required by RPA code, which must be the subject of particular attention to reach a mechanism of favorable collapse. This study recommends, on the basis of a reliability analysis, the use of a capacity dimensioning ratio greater than or equal to two, making it possible to have a sufficiently low probability of failure to ensure a level of security for users.

Using real-time data from the University of Luxembourg’s COME-HERE nationally representative panel survey, covering more than 8,000 individuals across France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Sweden, the author investigates how income distributions and poverty rates have changed from January to September 2020. The author finds that poverty rates increased on average in all countries from January to May and partially recovered in September. The increase in poverty is heterogeneous across countries, with Italy being the most affected and France the least; within countries, COVID-19 contributed to exacerbating poverty differences across regions in Italy and Spain. With a set of poverty measures from the Foster–Greer–Thorbecke family, the author then explores the role of individual characteristics in shaping different poverty profiles across countries. Results suggest that poverty increased disproportionately more for young individuals, women, and respondents who had a job in January 2020 – with different intensities across countries.

Liner shipping plays a crucial role in facilitating the movement of manufactured goods around the world. While previous literature has shown that liner shipping is an important trade driver, potential differences across trade routes and world regions have not as yet been explored. This paper examines whether the impact of liner shipping on bilateral trade flows differs significantly across world regions, as well as exploring other geographical patterns.

Using state-of-the-art gravity modelling, this paper investigates the impact of the UNCTAD's Liner Shipping Bilateral Connectivity Index on bilateral trade in manufactured goods using a comprehensive database of disaggregated trade data for the period from 2006 to 2019.

The results show that the trade effect of liner shipping is greater in long-distance and interregional bilateral flows. For some regions, such as North America and Oceania, the effect is greater than the world average, while for others, such as Africa and South America, the effect is significantly smaller. The trade effects of liner shipping connectivity on the main east–west routes are average, but clear asymmetry emerges when analysing China's inward and outward trade flows separately.

The results of this paper show that the major east–west routes determine the baseline trade effects of liner shipping, demonstrate that some north–south trades such as those involving Oceania generate larger trade effects and confirm that the trade effects of liner shipping can be improved for some world regions such as South America and Africa.

Data protection requirements heavily increased due to the rising awareness of data security, legal requirements and technological developments. Today, NoSQL databases are increasingly used in security-critical domains. Current survey works on databases and data security only consider authorization and access control in a very general way and do not regard most of today’s sophisticated requirements. Accordingly, the purpose of this paper is to discuss authorization and access control for relational and NoSQL database models in detail with respect to requirements and current state of the art.

This paper follows a systematic literature review approach to study authorization and access control for different database models. Starting with a research on survey works on authorization and access control in databases, the study continues with the identification and definition of advanced authorization and access control requirements, which are generally applicable to any database model. This paper then discusses and compares current database models based on these requirements.

As no survey works consider requirements for authorization and access control in different database models so far, the authors define their requirements. Furthermore, the authors discuss the current state of the art for the relational, key-value, column-oriented, document-based and graph database models in comparison to the defined requirements.

This paper focuses on authorization and access control for various database models, not concrete products. This paper identifies today’s sophisticated – yet general – requirements from the literature and compares them with research results and access control features of current products for the relational and NoSQL database models.

This paper investigates whether sustainability performance (SP) protects financial performance (FP) for firms in both developed and emerging economies during the COVID-19-induced economic downturn.

Using a recent sample of firms in 34 countries between 2003 and 2021, the authors employ ordinary least squares regressions, moderations and the Heckman two-step method to test the hypotheses.

Firms with strong SP have higher FP in developed and emerging economies in the upcoming year. During the COVID-19 crisis in 2020–2021, the impact of sustainability on FP is pronounced in developed but not in emerging economies. Furthermore, cross-listings expose firms in emerging economies to high-standard institutional mechanisms in developed economies. Thus, sustainable firms in emerging economies cross-listed on European stock exchanges are more profitable.

For regulators and standard setters, the global-level comparative analysis helps them find solutions that may assist firms in improving SP globally (e.g. mandatory reporting) and enduring crises resiliently. For institutional investors, the study reveals the relatively different impact of sustainability risk for firms in developed and emerging economies. For practitioners and private sector firms, this study contributes to the dialogue on what makes firms more resilient in COVID-19. Although COVID-19 might be temporary, the lessons learned could protect firms from future crises.

The authors contribute to the contingency perspective between sustainability and financial performance by providing recent empirical evidence in a global setting during the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors demonstrate how different external institutional mechanisms (rule-based governance and relation-based governance) and cross-listing affect the SP-FP relationship during a crisis. The authors extend the knowledge in crisis management literature with a comparative study and fill the research gap on how SP affects FP for firms in emerging economies compared to developed economies.

The purpose of this paper is to estimate the effects of human resource management (HRM) practices on firm outcomes at the firm level in Vietnam.

The paper employs a fixed-effects framework for the estimation using a panel sample of manufacturing firms from small- and medium-sized enterprise surveys between 2009 and 2013.

The paper finds that, on average, a firm that provides the training for new workers gains roughly 13.7, 10 and 14.9 percent higher in output value per worker, value added per worker and gross profit per worker, respectively, than the counterpart. Moreover, an additional ten-day training duration for new employees on average leads to a 4.1 percent increase in output value per worker, a 3.0 percent rise in value added per worker and a 3.0 percent growth in gross profit per worker. The paper also uncovers that a marginal 10 percent of HRM spending results in about 2 and 1.6 percent rises in output value per worker and value added per worker, respectively.

Using the case of Vietnam, this paper shows the important roles of HRM practices in explaining firm outcomes.

Independent directors are important corporate decision participants and makers. Based on the Chinese cultural background, this paper interprets the listing order of independent directors as independent directors’ status, exploring their influence on the corporate research and development (R&D) behavior.

This paper studies A-share listed firms in China from 2008 to 2018 as the sample. The main method is ordinary least square (OLS) regression. We also use other methods to deal with endogenous problems, such as the firm fixed effect method, change model method, two-stage instrumental variable method, and Heckman two-stage method.

(1) Higher independent directors’ status attribute to more effective exertion of supervision and consultation function, and positively enhance the corporate R&D investment. The increase of the independent director’ status by one standard deviation will increase the R&D investment by 4.6%. (2) The above effect is more influential in firms with stronger traditional culture atmosphere, higher information opacity and higher performance volatility. (3) High-status independent directors promote R&D investment by improving the scientificity of R&D evaluation and reducing information asymmetry. (4) The enhancing effect of independent director’ status on R&D investment is positively associated with the firm’s patent output and market value.

This paper contributes to understanding the relationship between the independent directors’ status and their duty execution from an embedded cultural background perspective. The findings of the study enlighten the improvement of corporate governance efficiency and the healthy development of the capital market.

This paper aims to study the impacts of groundwater seepage on artificial freezing process of gravel strata, the temperature field characteristics of the strata, and the strata process, closure time and thickness evolution mechanism of the frozen wall.

In this paper several laboratory model tests were conducted, considering different groundwater seepage rate.

The results show that there is a significant coupling effect between the cold diffusion of artificial freezing pipes and groundwater seepage; when there is no seepage, temperature fields upstream and downstream of the gravel strata are symmetrically distributed, and the thickness of the frozen soil column/frozen wall is consistent during artificial freezing; groundwater seepage causes significant asymmetry in the temperature fields upstream and downstream of the gravel strata, and the greater the seepage rate, the more obvious the asymmetry; the frozen wall closure time increases linearly with the increase in the groundwater seepage rate, and specifically, the time length under seepage rate of 5.00 m d⁻¹ is 3.2 times longer than that under no seepage; due to the erosion from groundwater seepage, the thickness of the upstream frozen wall decreases linearly with the seepage velocity, while that of the downstream frozen wall increases linearly, resulting in a saddle-shaped frozen wall.

The research results are beneficial to the optimum design and risk control of artificial freezing process in gravel strata.