• Agribusiness and Information Management
• /
• v.4 no.1
• /
• pp.24-31
• /
• 2012

This case study investigates the KIKO currency option that has been a social issue in recent years among developing countries, especially Korea, where the financial derivatives market is in a state of rapid growth. The forward transaction which becomes a basis of derivatives is intended to hedge risks that may be caused by a future change in asset prices. Although it originates from a simple form of agricultural transactions, there currently exists a variety of derivatives in more sophisticated forms. In the Korean agricultural industry, the need to use such derivatives is great, as there is a huge risk of price fluctuation in agricultural products due to frequent adverse weather. In addition, many developing countries with export-led industrial structures similar to Korea's, of necessity must resort to currency hedging as a method of reducing relevant risk. However, in most cases, the lack of understanding about financial derivatives results in an inappropriate application of these derivatives. The KIKO in this study represents such cases. Since 2007, KIKO has been sold in Korea to many small- and medium-sized export companies for the purpose of currency hedging when the exchange rate between the Korean won and the U.S. dollar was in a downward spiral. The main focus of this study is a case which is most representative of KIKO. As inflation rapidly increased during the financial crisis in the U.S. at the end of 2007, derivatives became a hot issue in the courts rather than in the financial markets. This case study investigates what KIKO and the fierce legal debates over it imply, from the perspective of the option of value evaluation in order to suggest not only a direction in which companies can utilize financial derivatives, but also a roadmap for the future derivatives market.

• Journal of Arbitration Studies
• /
• v.26 no.1
• /
• pp.89-105
• /
• 2016

2008 began with the American financial crisis which gave way to the liquidity crisis (Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) situation in which 'the withdrawal of investment initiated from the insufficiency of the U.S. subprime mortgage loan companies', 'the large size loss situation of the financial company (Bear Stearns) due to the American structured bond insufficiency' and the second half opening part national debt mortgage company. Within the American financial crisis was propagated the crisis of international derivatives. Due to this, the withdrawal of foreign investment progressed in the interior of a country with the considerable. By the end of 2007, the exchange rate fluctuation was absorbed in the domestic financial circle on the belief the potentiality of the domestic financial market had been growing drastically through the expansion of the foreign currency debt according to this and it came to the defence but while the exchange rate jumped up to the dollar shortage according to the international crisis, the small and medium companies making the banks and exchange rate-related derivatives contract were going bankrupt due to the derivatives loss. The small and medium factories establish the bank exchange rate-related derivatives has nose (KIKO), pivot (PIVOT), and snowball (Snowball) etc. at that time and the damage which it is the KIKO grasped at 6 end of the months in 2008 caused by reaches to 1 thousand billion 4 thousand hundred million dollars. Small and medium companies in which the dollar which it has to denounce among small and medium companies bearing the KIKO contract in fact with the Knock-In generation city bank exceeds the amount of sales were known to be 68 enterprises among 480 enterprises. This paper departs in this awareness of a problem and tries to look into the risk factor of the derivatives, including nose and study the essential ring risk management plan of small and medium manufacturer.

• Journal of Families and Better Life
• /
• v.28 no.3
• /
• pp.81-95
• /
• 2010

The purpose of this study was to examine the dissatisfaction level of consumers buying foreign goods through Internet shopping malls and their complaint behavior. As there is growing demand for foreign brands along with a rapid increase in the Internet user population, a lot of ongoing studies have focused on Internet-based transaction. The dissatisfaction level of selected consumers was checked in terms of system, price, quality, information/hype, shipping and refund/exchange, and it's found that complaint behavior linked to refund/exchange was most prevalent. The most dominant way for them to respond to such situations was talking friends, relatives or neighbors about that. And they had an intention to buy foreign goods through Internet shopping malls again to greater or lesser extents, though they were unsatisfied. It indicates that the consumers didn't have a wide option in the consumer market.

• East Asian Journal of Business Economics (EAJBE)
• /
• v.6 no.4
• /
• pp.1-12
• /
• 2018

Purpose - This paper tests the effect of the structure of manufacturing and marketing subsidiary network on FX exposure of Korean MNEs. Furthermore, the moderating effect of pass-through ability on the relationship between the subsidiary network and FX exposure is explored. Research design and methodology - This study utilizes a sample of 309 Korean MNEs constructed from database offered by KOTRA and KIS-VALUE. Results - As operational flexibility arising from having operations in multiple locations provides an option for firms to tackle FX exposure, greater breadth of manufacturing subsidiary network reduces FX exposure, and greater depth increases FX exposure. However, both the breadth and depth of marketing subsidiary network decrease FX exposure due to the firm's higher level of market presence and knowledge to devise an appropriate marketing strategy that can buffer adverse exchange rate movement. Such an effect is intensified when MNE's have FX exposure pass-through ability stemming from differentiated good. Conclusions - Empirical findings suggest that types and structure of Korean MNEs' foreign subsidiary network are closely related to the level of FX exposure they are experiencing. Also, they can utilize marketing subsidiary network more efficiently when having a higher R&D intensity.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
• /
• v.25 no.2
• /
• pp.114-120
• /
• 2022

Objectives: Antivenom serums have been used extensively for over a century and are the only effective treatment option for snake bites and other dangerous animal envenomations. In therapeutic serum centers, a wide range of antivenoms is made from animal serum, mainly equine and sheep, that are immunized with single or multiple venoms. This work aimed to use caprylic acid (CA) to purify therapeutic snake antivenom. Methods: Plasma was obtained from equine immunized with a mixture of venoms. Immunized plasma was obtained by precipitation of different concentrations (2-5%) of CA. This methodology was compared to that based on ammonium sulfate (AS) precipitation. Sediment plasma proteins were purified by ion-exchange chromatography. Protein assay, SDSPAGE, and agar gel diffusion were performed. Results: The total protein precipitation with AS was higher than precipitation with CA, but the best results were obtained when CA was added to the plasma until a final CA concentration of 5% was reached. Chromatography and electrophoresis indicated a stronger band for the 5% CA, and the gel diffusion assay showed antigen-antibody interaction in the purified serum. Conclusion: The use of CA compared to the routine method for purifying hyperimmune serums is a practical and cost-effective method for preparing and producing therapeutic serums. It constitutes a potentially valuable technology for alleviating the critical shortage of antivenom in Iran.

• New & Renewable Energy
• /
• v.18 no.2
• /
• pp.50-59
• /
• 2022

The Korean government announced the "1st Basic Plan for the Transition to Hydrogen Economy" in 2021 and declared the establishment of a hydrogen industry ecosystem by 2040. To build a low-carbon power system, resources that can efficiently accommodate renewable energy are required, and green hydrogen is considered a potential solution. This study analyzed the economic feasibility of green hydrogen-based sector coupling to reduce curtailment of renewable generation in the Jeju power system by 2025 under the scenario of with or without HVDC#3. The result showed that HVDC#3 significantly reduced the frequency of curtailment from 16.1% to 3.0%. In addition, green hydrogen-based sector coupling was an economically feasible option as result showed an IRR of 4.86% when HVDC#3 was connected and 11.45% when it was not under the condition of achieving 50% curtailment reduction. This study shows that the higher the level of renewable energy deployment, the more delayed the HVDC connection between Jeju and the main land, and the lower the SMP, the more economically feasible the green hydrogen-based sector coupling is. Furthermore, this study suggests that the policy goal of completely reducing curtailment is not economically efficient.

• Journal of Information Processing Systems
• /
• v.18 no.5
• /
• pp.637-649
• /
• 2022

Investors aim to increase their profitability by investing in the stock market. An adroit strategy for minimizing related risk lies through diversifying portfolio operationalization. In this paper, we propose a six-step stocks portfolio selection model. This model is based on data mining clustering techniques that reflect the ensuing impact of the political, economic, legal, and corporate governance in Mongolia. As a dataset, we have selected stock exchange trading price, financial statements, and operational reports of top-20 highly capitalized stocks that were traded at the Mongolian Stock Exchange from 2013 to 2017. In order to cluster the stock returns and risks, we have used k-means clustering techniques. We have combined both k-means clustering with Markowitz's portfolio theory to create an optimal and efficient portfolio. We constructed an efficient frontier, creating 15 portfolios, and computed the weight of stocks in each portfolio. From these portfolio options, the investor is given a choice to choose any one option.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business
• /
• v.14 no.4
• /
• pp.319-330
• /
• 2023

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine the connectedness between categorical economic policy uncertainty (monetary, fiscal, trade and foreign exchange policy uncertainty) indexes and option-implied volatility index in Korea, Japan and the US. Design/methodology/approach - This paper employs the Diebold-Ylmaz (2012) model based on a VAR and generalized forecast error variance decomposition. This paper also conducts regression analyses to investigate whether the volatility indexes are explained by categorical policy uncertainty indexes. Findings - First, we find the total connectedness is stronger in Korea and Japan relative to the US. Second, monetary, fiscal, and foreign exchange policy uncertainty indexes are connected to each other but trade policy uncertainty index is not. Third, the volatility index in Japan and the US is mainly associated with monetary policy uncertainty while the volatility index in Korea is explained by fiscal policy uncertainty index. Research implications or Originality - To our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate the connectedness among categorical policy uncertainty indexes and the volatility index in Korea, Japan, and the US. The empirical results on the connectedness suggest that transparent policy and communication with the market in one type of policy would reduce the uncertainty in other policies.

• Journal of Distribution Science
• /
• v.13 no.5
• /
• pp.53-60
• /
• 2015

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to shed light on the importance of the slope and curvature of the volatility curve implied in option prices in the KOSPI 200 options index. A number of studies examine the implied volatility curve, however, these usually focus on cross-sectional characteristics such as the volatility smile. Contrary to previous studies, we focus on time-series characteristics; we investigate correlation dynamics among slope, curvature, and level of the implied volatility curve to capture market information embodied therein. Our study may provide useful implications for investors to utilize current market expectations in managing portfolios dynamically and efficiently. Research design, data, and methodology - For our empirical purpose, we gathered daily KOSPI200 index option prices executed at 2:50 pm in the Korean Exchange distribution market during the period of January 2, 2004 and January 31, 2012. In order to measure slope and curvature of the volatility curve, we use approximated delta distance; the slope is defined as the difference of implied volatilities between 15 delta call options and 15 delta put options; the curvature is defined as the difference between out-of-the-money (OTM) options and at-the-money (ATM) options. We use generalized method of moments (GMM) and the seemingly unrelated regression (SUR) method to verify correlations among level, slope, and curvature of the implied volatility curve with statistical support. Results - We find that slope as well as curvature is positively correlated with volatility level, implying that put option prices increase in a downward market. Further, we find that curvature and slope are positively correlated; however, the relation is weakened at deep moneyness. The results lead us to examine whether slope decreases monotonically as the delta increases, and it is verified with statistical significance that the deeper the moneyness, the lower the slope. It enables us to infer that when volatility surges above a certain level due to any tail risk, investors would rather take long positions in OTM call options, expecting market recovery in the near future. Conclusions - Our results are the evidence of the investor's increasing hedging demand for put options when downside market risks are expected. Adding to this, the slope and curvature of the volatility curve may provide important information regarding the timing of market recovery from a nosedive. For financial product distributors, using the dynamic relation among the three key indicators of the implied volatility curve might be helpful in enhancing profit and gaining trust and loyalty. However, it should be noted that our implications are limited since we do not provide rigorous evidence for the predictability power of volatility curves. Meaning, we need to verify whether the slope and curvature of the volatility curve have statistical significance in predicting the market trough. As one of the verifications, for instance, the performance of trading strategy based on information of slope and curvature could be tested. We reserve this for the future research.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Machine Tool Engineers
• /
• v.14 no.1
• /
• pp.1-7
• /
• 2005

PEMFC (Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell) is considered as an attractive option to produce electric power in manyapplications. A fundamental step of theoretical fuel cell open circuit potential is examined and compared with the measured data from 1.2KW PEMFC module. The hydrogen pressure and stack temperature are also measured during the operation of PEMFC module. It is found that the stack voltage and current data agree in general with the results calculated by chemical potential approach though they still have a discrepancy. It is analysed that the discrepancy is due to activation polarization, concentration overvoltage and ohmic overvoltage.