Consumers’ Perceptions of Price Steering in Shopping Online for Tourism

When confronting discriminations during the buying process, the consumers may perceive unfair transactions and some untrustworthy providers. Price steering is a common manipulation of listing offers tailored to a customer’s request. The consumers receive a same-products list in a different order for the same query on e-shop. The study questions whether its performance is related to discrimination among consumers. This paper mobilizes the theory of Justice to explore perceptions of fairness and trust in the practice of price steering. The proposed framework states that the post-purchase stage reveals perceptions intervening in the effect of price steering on willingness to pay.An experiment with a total 883 respondents is simulating an online shopping. The list of options shown online is manipulated. This study documents the main effect of price steering such as a higher willingness to pay and driving online purchasers toward certain choices. This effect is found to generate up to 20% of extra revenue. The analysis also finds a negative influence on perceptions with no difference between the discriminated segments of the market. Implications for researchers and managers: the pricing schemes should be carefully tailored to maintain fairness, as well as profitability, by considering rate parity across online channels and purchasing experiences.

Arbitrage Capital of Global Banks

We show that the role of unsecured, short-term wholesale funding for global banks has changed significantly in the post-financial-crisis regulatory environment. Global banks mainly use such funding to finance liquid, near risk-free arbitrage positions—in particular, the interest on excess reserves arbitrage and the covered interest rate parity arbitrage. In this environment, we examine the response of global banks to a large negative wholesale funding shock as a result of the U.S. money market mutual fund reform implemented in 2016. In contrast to past episodes of wholesale funding dry-ups, we find that the primary response of global banks to the reform was a cutback in arbitrage positions that relied on unsecured funding, rather than a reduction in loan provision.

Impact of Interest Rate Differential and Exchange Rate Movement on the Dynamics of Nigeria’s International Private Capital Flows

The study examines the impact of interest rate differential and exchange rate movement on the dynamics of Nigeria’s international private capital flows from 2010Q1 to 2019Q4. It uses the interest rate parity theory and the Markov Switching Time Varying Transition Probability Modelling approach. Findings show that interest rate differential does not explain the dynamics of aggregate capital and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) flows, but significantly explains Foreign Portfolio Investment (FPI) flows. Also, Movement in real exchange rate is significant in explaining outflows and inflows in FPI, and inflows in FDI, but neutral to aggregate capital flows. The study concludes that deviations from interest rate parity provides opportunities for interest rate and currency arbitrage in Nigeria but using aggregate capital flows mask this evidence. The study therefore recommends that the CBN should focus on exchange rate stabilization policies, so as not only to discourage FPI reversal but to also enhance FDI inflow. This can be done by putting in place foreign reserve accretion measures to boost the ability of the CBN to defend the Naira. The new policy initiative on remittances is a right step in the right direction as it could boost external reserve.