Default Rates in the Loan Market for SMEs: Evidence from Slovakia

The current crisis raises the question whether loans to SMEs in emerging markets areinherently more risky. We use a unique unbalanced panel of nearly 700 loans made toSMEs in Slovakia between 2000 and 2005. Several probit and panel probit models showthat liquidity and profitability factors are important determinants of SME defaults.Moreover, we find that indebtedness significantly increases the probability of default.Finally, liability as proxied by the legal form of SMEs has important incentive effects.In sum, default rates and factors converged to values found in developed financialmarkets

Firm's Evaluation of Location Quality: Evidence from East Germany

Our study provides evidence for firms' evaluation of location quality. We use a 2004 survey of 6,000 East German firms that contained questions on the importance and assessment of 15 different location factors ranging from closeness to customers and suppliers, transport infrastructure, and proximity to research institutions and universities, as well as questions about the local financial institutions and region's 'image'. The results show (1) a great deal of heterogeneity in terms of which firm- or regional-level characteristics are important in the evaluation of a specific location factor, (2) that the model's explanatory power is, overall, low and thus neither location characteristics nor internal factors are fully reflected in the perceptions, (3) that a firm's business situation and whether a location factor is considered important have explanatory power for perception. One policy-relevant conclusion that we derive from these findings is that location policy should consider firms' perception of a specific location in addition to improving the actual attributes of that location

Comparative study of hydrogel-immobilized L-glutamate oxidases for a novel thick-film biosensor and its application in food samples

Novel, thick-film biosensors have been developed for the determination of L-glutamate in foodstuffs. The sensors were prepared by immobilization of L-glutamate oxidase by using polycarbamylsulfonate-hydrogel on a thick-film sensor. L-Glutamate oxidases obtained from Streptomyces sp. with different degree of purification were compared with their characteristic response to L-glutamate at different conditions and for their specificity, inhibition, and storage properties. These sensors were applied to determine monosodium glutamate in soy sauce samples and show good correlation with colorimetric method

A novel iron-porphyrin-derived oxygen sensor working near 0 V (vs. Ag/AgCl) in neutral solution

A metalloporphyrin film modified platinum (Pt) electrode was prepared by electrochemical polymerizing of iron(III)-tetra(3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenyl) porphyrin on a platinum electrode. Cyclic voltammetry of the electrode in PBS pH 7.0 shows the dioxygen reduction peak close to 0 V (vs. Ag/AgCl). Rotating disk electrode experiments indicate a four-electron transfer mechanism of dioxygen reduction. The chemically modified electrode is recommended as a potential oxygen sensor working at a relatively low potential