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This research investigates (1) the impacts of working capital investment policy and working capital financing policy on firms’ performances (profitability and market value) and (2) the impact of profitability on market value. Data are gathered from 68 companies listed in the Stock Exchange of Thailand covering production sector. Data collected from 2012 to 2016 are analyzed using path analysis to measure the impacts of working capital policy on performances and examine the consistency of the model and the empirical data.

The model is found to be consistent with the empirical data; the probability level is 0.085, χ ²/df is 2.96, CFI is 0.951, GFI is 0.979, IFI is 0.957, and RMR is 0.004. The result reveals a statistically significant positive relationship between working capital investment policy and profitability. In addition, working capital investment policy affects market value through profitability as a mediator variable. However, there are significant negative impacts of working capital financing policy on profitability and market value. Overall, it can be implied that companies which adopt conservative working capital investment policy and conservative working capital financing policy can increase their profitability and market value.

The purpose of this study is to identify and review strategic government policies on agricultural financing in Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria and South Africa. Four factors dictated the choice of these countries. In the first place, the study is set in African emerging markets – and the four countries are the widely acknowledged emerging markets in Africa (Onyiriuba, 2015). Secondly, the spread of the countries, to a large extent, mirrors Africa in general – Egypt and Morocco are in North Africa; Nigeria is a West African country; and, of course, South Africa. Thirdly, other countries in Africa tend to look up to the four countries, apparently as the largest economies in their respective regions. Needless to say, Nigeria alternates with South Africa as the largest economy in Africa. In this capacity, the two countries influence – indeed, mirror – continental Africa's emerging economic progress. Fourthly, lessons from agricultural policy and financing experiences of the four countries will certainly be useful to the other African countries. The specific objective of this paper is to determine how the government seeks to address the financing issues attendant on the risk-laden nature of agriculture through policy interventions. With this end in view, the paper analyses the strategic goals, objectives and beneficiaries of the agriculture financing policies of the government, as well as the constraints on access to finance by the farmers and the policy response.

The study involves a review of empirical literature and government policies on agricultural financing in Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria and South Africa. The high risks in agriculture (Onyiriuba, 2015; Mordi, 1988), risk aversion behaviour of banks towards agricultural financing (Onyiriuba, 2015, 1990), and the reluctance of insurers to take on agricultural risks (World Bank, 2018; Federal Republic of Nigeria, 2016; Onyiriuba, 1990; Mordi, 1988) underpin this methodology. There are two other considerations: the needs to find out how government seeks to address the financing issues in agriculture through policy intervention, and to avoid unwieldy research, one that combines government and institutional policy perspectives on agriculture financing. Thus the study is not approached from the perspective of banks and other lending institutions; neither does it combine government and institutional policy perspectives. It rather focuses on government policy in order to properly situate implications of the findings.

The authorities seek to get rid of bottlenecks, ease participation and redress constraints on access to finance in agriculture through policy interventions as a means of sustainable economic growth. The findings are characteristic of emerging markets, rooted in the transitional challenge of opening economies, economic reforms and the March of progress. However, with agriculture and natural resources – rather than industrialisation – as the main stay of their economies, the African emerging markets face an uphill task in their development efforts. This is evident in the divergent and gloomy pictures in which the literature paints their agricultural economies.

Government should gear financing policies to boost output as a means of ensuring food security. It should address risk aversion tendencies among the lenders and feeble credit guarantee, subsidies and budgetary allocations to agriculture. This will ensure effective commitment of the lenders to agriculture and underpin agricultural insurance. However, it demands strengthening links in the chain of access to, and monitoring of, credit for agricultural production. A realistic policy response should target the rural economy – with youth, women and smallholder farmers as ultimate beneficiaries. These actions should be intensified as measures to boost farming and the rural economy.

Current literature fails to situate the empirical findings in emerging markets context, reflecting economies in transition. Besides, in its current state, the literature does not explicitly clarify that agriculture, like most other sectors in such economies, is bound to experience the observed financing constraints. Neither does it clearly reflect how and why the findings should be seen as fleeting realities of the March of progress in transitional economies. This study will help to fill the gap.

Today, the financing mechanisms to support small-and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) development have been a subject of great interest and a challenge to policy makers as SMEs are regarded as an important sector contributing to economic growth and stability. This paper is concerned with the bank financing policies to support SME development in China. The purpose of this paper is to examine the governmental financing policies and the innovation financing system of China. The discussions are focused on the bank financing policies to support SME development in China.

This study is a qualitative research with the use of case study methodology (Eisenhardt, 1989; Yin, 2003). The research is focused on the policy perspectives of bank financing to support SME development in the case of China, the world’s fastest-growing economy. To explore the role of financial institutions and banks in SME financing in China, the research also derives evidence from a collection of documentary investigation. The research fieldwork and interviews were undertaken in Beijing and Shanghai, major financial centers in China, with the use of semi-structured questionnaire. The analyses are undertaken to answer the key questions of: What are the Chinese government’s strategies to support the development of SMEs? To what extent the government policies in bank financing can support SMEs and promote the development of an innovative economy?

The empirical study has shown that despite the introduction of the 12th Five-Year National Economic and Social Development Plan to support SMEs development, China still needs to improve regulatory policies in support of innovative businesses which would help its transition to an innovation-driven economy. The study provides lessons and policy guidelines to improve the competitiveness of SMEs in China. The insights from this study can also be applied to other developing and emerging economies attempting to understand the role of financing mechanisms in building an innovative economy.

The study has addressed the policy challenges to support SME development in China, a major Asian emerging country and one of the fastest-growing economies in the world (with averaged growth rate of 10 percent per annum). The empirical study of policy challenges was undertaken in Beijing and Shanghai, major financial centers in China. The study offers insights which can be applied to other developing and emerging economies attempting to understand the role of SME financing policies and mechanisms in building an innovative economy.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of investment opportunities and corporate finance on dividend payout policy.

This issue is tested with a sample of 34 emerging market countries covering a 17‐year period, 1990‐2006. Fixed effects panel model is employed in our estimation.

A significantly negative relationship between investment opportunity set and dividend payout policy is found. There are, however, insignificant effects of the various measures of corporate finance namely, financial leverage, external financing, and debt maturity on dividend payout policy. Profitability and stock market capitalization are also identified as important in influencing dividend payout policy. Profitable firms are more likely to support high dividend payments to shareholders. However, firms in relatively well‐developed markets tend to exhibit low dividend payout policy.

The main value of the paper is in respect of the fact that it uses a large dataset from emerging market countries. The results generally support existing literature on investment opportunity set and dividend payout policy.

The recent recession provides us a good window to reveal fiscal problems and inadequate preparations of state and local governments. To address the fiscal crisis, and more importantly, to prepare for the potential economic downturns, this paper designs a framework of necessary tools to combat fiscal crisis. With matching policies of revenue diversification and counter-cyclical fiscal policy (CCFP), debt financing can be used as an effective tool to help state and local governments pull through fiscal crises. A brief example of local governments in Georgia proves the possibility and effectiveness of the counter-cyclical debt policy. It will be much better to institutionalize these policies to avoid the moral hazards of governments and politicians, which, in a great sense, requires engaging and educating the public and, finally, obtaining support from them.