In this study, we examine the presence and consequences of CEO overconfidence in the Swedish market. We identify overconfidence with two insider-trading based measures and find that overconfidence is apparent among one third of CEOs in companies listed on the Swedish stock market. We also find that these CEOs are more prone to carry out acquisitions, as the probability of conducting an acquisition increases by 27 % if the CEO is overconfident. However, we do not find evidence that acquisitions by overconfident CEOs are more value-destroying. This finding contradicts results from previous studies conducted on Anglo-Saxon markets that suggest that overconfidence has a negative impact on the value-creation in acquisitions.

In the post Cold-War era, world politics was transforming itself through its emerging complex issues such as terrorism and influential and interdependent actors such as the European Union. In this new era, the European Union was developing its Common Foreign and Security Policy pillar both to present a coherent and unified EU policy and to prove its political potent in order to become an influential actor on world politics. On the other side, security environment was also transforming its content through emerging actors and issues. As one of the most prominent actors of the world politics, the EU was influenced by the transformation of security environment, whose economic ?soft power? proved necessary but insufficient for being a global power in this emerging security environment.

This thesis follows a qualitative method and aim to describe firms? international business at an emerging market seen from a network perspective. The purpose of the thesis is to study in what way business relations and networks influence the process of internationalization and describe the way in which companies handle the external network in relation to acquisitions. Further does our purpose include analyzing if a firm?s network may be the main factor for why international business occurs.

Forces of innovation alter the course of many industries. Currently there is a restructuring of the Swedish energy sector due to deregulation. This in combination with advanced technologies generates an innovative and a highly changeable environment. The result is differentiation of services and products. New actors are emerging and corporations grow larger.

Introduction: Interplay between all the different subsystems of the financial markets is currently considered as an important internal force in the market. In a financially liberalized economy exchange rate stability is a basis for a wellbeing stock market. If these interactions between all the different subsystems of the financial markets are not detected, this means that there is information inefficiency in the markets.Problem: Can we find any correlation between changes in currency, interest rate and bonds with the stock market index? If so, how do these changes affect the Stockholm Stock Exchange?Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine if there is any linkage between the interest rate, currency and bonds with the stock market. The researchers wanted to find out how these variables affect the stock market index OMX S30 which consists of the 30 largest companies on the Stockholm Stock Exchange.Method: This research has been based on a quantitative approach.

A recent development in the field of accounting has been an increasing use of fair values in financial reporting. In 2005, this development was reinforced in Sweden by the adoption of the International Financial Reporting Standards. The aim of this thesis is to discuss the problems related to the use of fair values, through a case study of the Swedish investment bank Carnegie. In May 2007, Carnegie announced that the result had been overly stated by 630 MSEK, due to the valuation of derivatives within the trading department. The empirical material consists of documents produced in the legal process between Carnegie and the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority.

Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to test for the existence of Capital Structure Arbitrage oppertunities in the equity-credit markets. Methodology: The mispricing of Credit Default Swap contracts are calculated and used as input in an Equity-Credit market trading strategy. The returns are then evaluated with a modified Value-at-Risk simulation. Theoretical perspectives: A Merton-based structural model, CreditGrades, is used for credit pricing and a mispricing-convergence trading-strategy between the credit and equity markets is implemented. Empirical foundation: Daily quotes for the Credit Default Swap spread of 37 European firms were collected for a period of two years, as well as equity-prices for the same period and the previous two years, used for model calibration.

Stock lending is primarily a professional activity. The supply of stocks in the lending market comes mainly from pension funds and insurance companies, while intermediaries provide valuable services by taking positions as borrowers as well as lenders. Borrowers use stock lending for various reasons. For instance, hedge funds usually borrow stocks to cover a short position. There has been a lot of controversy in the stock lending industry and the debate has mainly concerned its effects for the stock markets.

Stock lending is primarily a professional activity. The supply of stocks in the lending market comes mainly from pension funds and insurance companies, while intermediaries provide valuable services by taking positions as borrowers as well as lenders. Borrowers use stock lending for various reasons. For instance, hedge funds usually borrow stocks to cover a short position. There has been a lot of controversy in the stock lending industry and the debate has mainly concerned its effects for the stock markets.

Syfte:Författarna ämnar beskriva hur teknisk analys fungerar medutgångspunkt i hur stort marknadsvärde ett bolag har. Ettdelsyfte är att bidra till den praktiska och teoretiskakännedomen om teknisk analys. Metod:För att uppfylla vårt syfte använder vi oss av en kvantitativmetod med en deduktiv ansats. Vi undersöker totalt 30bolag från OMX nordiska lista under en tioårsperiod (1997-2006), bolagen indelas i grupper baserade påmarknadsvärde och den tekniska analysen representeras avGlidande medelvärde, RSI och Stochastic. Resultat:Det kan statistiskt säkerställas att teknisk analys, i form avGlidande Medelvärde, fungerar bäst på Small-Cap bolagen,genom att resultera i högre avkastning än Buy & Holdstrategin.

The purpose of this thesis is to create a greater understanding of relationships and networks on regulated markets. This includes what the climate are like on such a market and how different aspects within relationships and networks are affected by regulations. By the use of a deductive approach, a qualitative study was performed. This was carried out by interviewing different actors on the Swedish market of alcoholicbeverages. The theoretical framework includes relationship quality, consisting of power and dependence, cooperation,adaptation and trust.

White-Nose Syndrome, WNS, is an emerging fungal disease in the Northern American bat population causing mass mortality in infected hibernacula. Geomyces destructans is a newly discovered psychrophilic fungus causing WNS but the pathogenesis and epidemiology of the disease is not yet fully clarified. Geomyces destructans has been found in Europe but has not been a cause of mass mortality there. This study is the first investigation done to see if G. destructans is present in Sweden.

In recent years, global organizations safeguarding financial stability has started to track commercial property markets. One of the reasons for this refers to the fact that commercial property constitutes a large share of bank lending. Simultaneously, bank exposures to commercial property are extensive and risky since collateral values are strongly correlated to borrowers cash flows. Since banks are viewed to play a key role for financial stability, studying the relationship is well motivated. To better understand how commercial property markets interact with financial stability, this paper develops an econometric model for studying the commercial rental market.

The globalization of today?s society has enabled consumers to acquire products and services from all over the world. Global organizations have the entire world as a playfield and offer products and services across markets. Regardless perception and transparency of the global market, consumers are still individuals. Consumers may have different perceptions and ideas about products, their functions and usage.

Within the interconnected global markets of today; people, products, and information travel at a pace never met before. In light of the global retail markets recent integration, consumers are opened up to new products and are beginning to develop a vetted interest in the heritage of those products. Within literature this process has been coined "Country of Origin" COO, and its impacts on consumer attitudes, product value- assessment, and overall behaviors has been one of the most emphasized areas of "international business" studies, during the last three decades. Numerous studies have shown a correlation between positive or advantageous associations to a country of origin, and the actual products representing and coming out of that country. It is by this synergetic process that so-called positive COO-effects are brought forth.The goal of this thesis stems directly from the still unexplored potential for Swedish firms to differentiate their products and brands on new international markets, through a strategic and coherent communication of relevant Swedish COO-effects.