Unemployment in Cyprus: Comparison Between Two Alternative Measurement Methods

Unemployment in Cyprus is measured by the Statistical Service of Cyprus using two alternative methodologies: Registered Unemployment (RU), as calculated by the number of unemployed registered with the district labour offices on a monthly basis, and unemployment as calculated by the Labour Force Survey (ULFS), which is conducted on a quarterly basis. The RU series dates back to 1960 whereas the ULFS series began in 1999. The two methodologies lead to different results, mainly because of measurement differences in three unemployment categories: long-run unemployed, unemployed newcomers and recently retired unemployed. The differences in the first category appear to be associated with the counter cyclicality of the unemployment series, which is reflected in the ULFS but not in RU. In the other two categories, the differences reflect demographic and structural factors. This paper reconciles the data from the two methodologies, thus providing an indispensable tool for further work on: (a) the construction of a longer historical series for ULFS, which will be useful for economic analysis; and (b) the creation of a flash estimate of ULFS based on RU, given the time lag of the published ULFS, which is the internationally accepted unemployment measure.Unemployment measurement, labour force survey, registered unemployment

Fermi Liquid Theory and Ferromagnetic Manganites at Low Temperatures

Fermi liquid characteristics for ferromagnetic ~manganites, A$_{1-x}$B$_x$MnO$_3$, are evaluated in the tight-binding approximation and compared with experimental data for the best studied region $x\simeq0.3$. The bandwidths change only slightly for different compositions. The Sommerfeld coefficient, $\gamma$, the $T^2$-term in resistivity and main scales in optical conductivity agree well with the two band model. The ``2.5'' - transition due to a ``neck'' forming at Fermi surface, is found at $x=0.3$. The mean free path may change from 3 to 80 interatomic distances in the materials, indicating that samples' quality remains a pressing issue for the better understanding of manganites.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures. Submitted to Solid State Com

Possible link of a structurally driven spin flip transition and the insulator-metal transition in the perovskite La1−x_{1-x}Bax_{x}CoO3_{3}

The complex nature of the magnetic ground state in La$_{1-x}$A$_{x}$CoO$_{3}$ (A = Ca, Sr, Ba) has been investigated via neutron scattering. It was previously observed that ferromagnetic (FM) as well as antiferromagnetic (AFM) correlations can coexist prior to the insulator-metal transition (IMT). We focused on a unique region in the Ba phase diagram, from x = 0.17 - 0.22, in which a commensurate AFM phase appears first with a propagation vector, k = (0, -0.5, 0.5), and the Co moment in the (001)$_{R}$ plane of the rhombohedral lattice. With increasing x, the AFM component weakens while an FM order appears with the FM Co moment directed along the (001)$_{R}$ (=(111)$_{C}$) axis. By x = 0.22, a spin flip to new FM component appears as the crystal fully transforms to an orthorhombic (Pnma) structure, with the Co moments pointing along a new direction, (001)$_{O}$ (=(110)$_{C}$). It is the emergence of the magnetic Pnma phase that leads to IMT.Comment: 5 page