Browsing by Issue Date, starting with "2021-08-18"
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- The CSPP impact on non-financial firms’ cost of borrowing and debt choicePublication . Kanda, Joana F.; Pinto, João M.; Silva, Beatriz P.In this study, we examine the impact of the European Central Bank’s (ECB) corporate sector purchase programme (CSPP) on euro area non-financial firms’ cost of borrowing and choice between bank and public debt. Using a large sample of corporate bonds and syndicated loans closed between 2000 and 2019, we find that the CSPP reduced corporate bond spreads significantly, in both announcement and implementation periods. Findings also suggest that the CSPP had a positive spillover effect into the syndicated loan market during the implementation period. Our results show that there is a substitution effect between eligible bonds and equivalent loans, with non-financial firms choosing to use more corporate bonds than syndicated loan deals after the CSPP announcement, and that this effect is more important for non-switchers, those that may have more difficulty in accessing the bond market. Finally, we provide evidence that, when controlling for the CSPP, borrowers that choose corporate bonds are larger, more profitable, and have larger growth opportunity sets; and switchers with high agency costs of debt prefer bank debt.
- Screening of bioactive properties in brown algae from the Northwest Iberian PeninsulaPublication . Silva, Aurora; Rodrigues, Carla; Garcia-Oliveira, Paula; Lourenco-Lopes, Catarina; Silva, Sofia A.; Garcia-Perez, Pascual; Carvalho, Ana P.; Domingues, Valentina F.; Barroso, M. Fátima; Delerue-Matos, Cristina; Simal-Gandara, Jesus; Prieto, Miguel A.Algae are an underexploited source of natural bioactive compounds in Western countries, so an increasing interest in the valorization of these marine organisms has emerged in recent years. In this work, the effect of extracting solvent on the extraction yield, phenolic content, antioxidant capacity, and antimicrobial activity of nine brown macroalgae species (Ascophyllum nodosum, Himanthalia elongata, Undaria pinnatifida, Pelvetia canaliculata, Saccharina latissima, Bifurcaria bifurcata, Laminaria ochroleuca, Sargassum muticum, and Fucus spiralis) was assessed. Total phenolic content (TPC) and the antioxidant properties of extracts by different assays: radical scavenging activity (DPPH-RSA) and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) were performed. The antimicrobial activity of extracts was studied against six different foodborne microorganisms: Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Bacillus cereus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella enteritidis, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The highest extraction yield was achieved in ethanolic extracts. However, the highest TPC and FRAP values were obtained on the ethyl acetate extracts, especially from A. nodosum. Concerning algal species, the highest TPC and FRAP values were found in A. nodosum, while the highest DPPH-RSA values were achieved in the hexane extracts of B. bifurcata. The antimicrobial activity of algal extracts varied according to the solvent and alga selected, suggesting the species- and solvent-dependent behavior of this property, with B. bifurcata extracts showing the highest results for a wide range of bacteria. Our results provide insight on the characterization of widespread brown algae in the coasts of the North-Western region of the Iberian Peninsula, reflecting multiple health-enhancing properties which may lead to their exploitation in food, pharmacological, and cosmetic industries.