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As one of the increasingly important alternative property sectors, data centres are a technology-focused property sector that is taking advantage of the growing investment intensity in technology-related infrastructure, against the backdrop of constant innovation and advancement in technology. The purpose of this paper is to assess the preliminary risk-adjusted performance and portfolio diversification benefits of data centre Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) in the USA, Australia and Singapore. The strategic implications going forward for data centres as an innovative property sector in the property investment space are also highlighted.

Using monthly total returns, the average annual return, annual risk, risk-adjusted performance and portfolio diversification benefits of data centre REITs in the USA, Australia and Singapore over 2016–2018 are assessed. Optimal asset allocation analysis is performed to investigate the value-added role of data centre REITs in a mixed-asset portfolio.

Data centre REITs delivered strong average annual return performance, outperforming the composite REITs in all three markets. This also sees data centre REITs being riskier than the overall REIT sector due to the non-traditional and maturing status of the data centre property sector. On a risk-adjusted basis, competitive performance was recorded for data centre REITs, with data centre REITs in the USA and Singapore outperforming their respective composite REITs. This performance is also delivered with significant portfolio diversification benefits with the stock market, resulting in data centre REITs contributing to the US mixed-asset portfolios across a diverse risk spectrum.

Institutional investors are now giving increased emphasis to alternative property sectors with better risk-return trade-offs. Improved performance and diversification benefits are achieved by supplementing existing property portfolios with non-traditional property sectors with counter-cyclical risk-return profiles, one of which is the data centre property sector. This sees data centres as an important alternative property sector, having technology-based drivers and being recognised as having a clear path towards institutionalisation with the major investors in the near future.

This paper is the first published empirical research analysis that specifically assessed the preliminary performance and diversification benefits of data centre REITs in the USA, Australia and Singapore. This research enables empirically validated, more informed and practical property investment decision making by institutional investors regarding the future strategic role of the data centre property sector as an innovative sector in the institutional property investment space.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether downside-risk measures help to explain why households largely refrain from investing in Exchange Traded Funds that replicate broad and internationally diversified market indices, so-called XTFs, although studies frequently recommend to do so.

The paper analyzes whether evaluating risk in terms of downside-risk measures which reflect households' interpretation of risk closer than the standard deviation (SD) of returns, yields less risk-return-enhancements, and thus, fewer incentives for households to invest in XTFs. Household portfolios are compiled by combining stylized portfolio compositions that involve multiple asset classes and German households' security holdings. The data set covers the period from January 2014 to December 2016 and includes 47,388 securities.

The results indicate that none of the downside-risk measures can help to explain the reluctance of households to invest in XTFs. On the flip side, the results show that all stylized household portfolios can enhance the risk-return position from employing XTFs, regardless of the underlying risk measure. This supports the advice to invest in XTFs and extends it upon households that evaluate risk in terms of downside-risk.

To the best of the authors' knowledge, this study is the first to investigate risk-return-enhancements from XTFs while simultaneously considering various downside-risk measures and multiple asset classes of household portfolios.

Argues that although flexible working is becoming increasingly common, training departments are not creatively adapting their strategies. Provides a framework within which to redefine the role of flexible trainers in more opportunistic, value‐added directions. Suggests the need to recognise non‐permanent professional trainers as a distinct group from permanent staff. Analyses attitudes of six English as a second language (ESL) peripheral practitioners, who typify one coherent group of the free agent training sector. Indicates concept of flexibility was viewed positively but lacked adequate support from employing organizations. Proposes various approaches for redefining flexibility to enhance organizational competitiveness and effectiveness, and individual performance and commitment.

This paper reappraises the global and regional integration for 6 Southeast Asian stock markets. A time‐varying analysis based on Barari (2004) suggests that Malaysia, South Korea and Thailand have shown significant movement towards international financial integration.The estimates based on TARCH model imply significant support for returns and volatility spillover effects from the World as well as regional markets to all the stock markets except Pakistan. The stock market liberalization measures such as First Country Fund, First Depository Receipt, and First Cross Listing appeared to have induced more positive return spillover effects from the World to India, Indonesia and South Korea. These results have policy implication for the international portfolio investors in sense that portfolio diversification advantages are rather less in Malaysia, South Korea compared to India and Pakistan which still provide higher returns through portfolio diversification.

Mexico REITs are a significant and important REIT market, both in a regional and in emerging property market context. As one of the few emerging economies in the world with an active REIT market, Mexico REITs are specifically designed to provide an effective pathway to participate in the investment opportunities offered by the Mexico commercial property market for both domestic and international investors. Importantly, Mexico REITs provide additional property investment benefits such as a high degree of transparency, governance and liquidity. The main focus of this research is to highlight the significance of Mexico REITs and assess their performance dynamics, as well as the added-value benefits of Mexico REITs in mixed-asset investment portfolios.

Using monthly total returns, the risk-adjusted performance and portfolio diversification potential of Mexico REITs over April 2011–December 2019 were assessed. A constrained mean-variance portfolio optimisation framework was used to develop a three-asset portfolio scenario using the historical returns, risk and correlation of Mexico REITs and the other two major financial assets.

Despite being more volatile than the mainstream asset classes, Mexico REITs delivered the strongest risk-adjusted performance versus stocks and bonds over April 2011–December 2019, which was made possible by the high premium of their total return performance. Notably, Mexico REITs offered excellent diversification potential with bonds, whilst demonstrating a marginal positive correlation with the stock market. These investment attributes of Mexico REITs have brought immediate benefits towards their ability to add value to the Mexico mixed-asset portfolio fabric across a wide portfolio risk–return spectrum.

Whilst their initial establishment in 2004 was considered unsuccessful, the ongoing regulatory improvements have been pivotal in providing a supportive investment environment to nurture the organic growth of Mexico REITs. This now sees the Mexico REIT market as an exemplar of success for REIT establishments amongst its peers in the Latin American region, as well as for emerging economies worldwide. Mexico REITs are now an important REIT market, as the second largest emerging REIT market in the world. The empirical investigation of this research has established the investment attributes of Mexico REITs as a listed property investment vehicle. The strong risk-adjusted performance of Mexico REITs compared to stocks and bonds sees Mexico REITs contributing to the mixed-asset portfolio across the portfolio risk–return spectrum. This is particularly important as it provides insights into the broader strategic implications of Mexico REITs as an effective, transparent and tax-efficient conduit for high-quality Latin American property exposure in a liquid format.

This paper is the first published empirical research that elucidates the investment attributes of Mexico REITs, highlighting their significance, risk-adjusted and portfolio performance enhancement role as an emerging REIT market. The main outcome of this research enables empirically validated, more informed and practical property investment decision-making regarding the strategic role of Mexico REITs in an investment portfolio.

Outlines research on the factors which reduce stock market efficiency and the particular characteristics of the Athens stock exchange (Greece). Uses 1988‐1994 Greek monthly returns data for share actively traded during the period to test for random walk behaviour in share prices. Explains the methodology, which is based on Lo and Mckinlay’s (1988) variance ratio test procedure and Robinson’s (1991) test for fractional integration; and presents the results which support the random walk hypothesis, i.e. suggest weak‐form efficiency. Notes inconsistency with some previous research on the Athens stock exchange and other emerging stock markets, but consistent with the idea that recent institutional changes have succeeded in increasing efficiency.

Divides investors into two types: tax‐paying investors and tax‐exempt pension funds. Tax‐paying investors will worry about the expected after‐tax variance of return on real estate, while tax‐exempt pension funds will worry about the expected pre‐tax variance of return. States this is an important observation because the after‐tax variance of return is apt to be significantly less than the pre‐tax variance of return (particularly during the early 1980s when tax‐paying investors were able to use real estate losses to offset other income). The model developed by the author suggests this reduced expected after‐tax variance of return helps explain the seemingly irrational construction that took place in US office markets during the 1980s.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the time‐varying risk return relationship and the persistence of shocks to volatility within GARCH framework both in developed and emerging markets.

This paper uses nonlinear ARCH and GARCH‐family models for testing the volatility both in developed and emerging markets.

The findings of the paper suggest that there is a long‐term persistence shock in emerging markets compared to developed markets.

The data set used for the developed and emerging markets is not consistent in terms of sample period. However, this paper explores the venues for further research on the global diversification.

The implication of volatility measurement is vital in determining the cost of capital for investment and portfolio management, option pricing and for market regulations.

The unique features of the paper include large sample size with updated data set that reveals the nature of world economy and empirical evidence on volatility testing that reports the risk return characteristics of both developed and emerging markets.