As a portfolio manager with an eye on the emerging and frontier economies, Asha Mehta has what many would say is an insiders view on what global investors are seeing and thinking as they source opportunities–not just alpa–in markets not necessarily making major headlines. The BRIC nations–Brazil, Russia, India and China–still garner much attention, but many others, including Nigeria, Egypt, Argentina to name a few, are no less relevant in the eyes of those who see opportunity within smaller and newly evolving markets.
Mehta, a CFA charter member, is a lead portfolio manager with Boston-based Acadian Asset Management. A Goldman Sachs alumna, Mehta's work today is focused on quant strategies with a thematic focus on the emerging and developing economies. Sustainability, which she explains arises more and more these days in investor conversations, is also an area she and a team at Acadian are focused on.
Her focus on the frontier economies has taken her around the globe and not only for client requests. Having carried out microfinance work in India (where she traces family roots), she holds a keen perspective on developing economies and the unique and often dynamic situations present in many of them.
With an MBA from The Wharton School (University of Pennsylvania), Mehta is keen on financial literacy and is today active in numerous organizations that seek to educate and empower women. Girls Who Invest and 100 Women In Hedge Funds are a few of the organizations she uses as a forum to leverage her unique investing skills to a broader demographic.
Asha sat down with me earlier this year to talk emerging markets and where, in a period of slowing growth and rising global debt, the opportunities may be. She has become well-known as a go-to expert not only for razor-sharp quant strategy, but as plugged in portfolio manager with her ear to the ground across the frontier markets. She touched on her upbringing, what drives her and her work, and and the ongoing allure of the markets that today many still shy away from.
What keeps you so interested in the frontier markets and why?
Frontier and emerging economies have transformed in recent decades with vast improvements in not only economic measures but human development ones as well. Global integration has driven this development, and it's been a lifelong ambition of mine to be part of the change.
My maternal and paternal families came to the US from various impoverished countries (India, Russia and beyond). They escaped both violence and poverty and came to the US for stability and opportunity. As a child, I traveled often to my father's home in rural India. I did my first solo trip there at age 4, where I learned to sleep on outdoor cots on dusty summer nights, to eat naan bread cooked on an open fire, and to learn customs by attending school alongside my cousins.
At the age of 10, on a return journey, I was struck by the advantages my US upbringing afforded me with my rickshaw driver, who while hauling my large family and our suitcases through poorly-lit gravel paths, let me know that he, too, was ten years old. Following that, in my academic programs at Stanford and Wharton, I studied International Development.
As today's frontier countries emerge, I find it both fascinating and rewarding to participate in their development. I see the public markets as a vehicle to drive capital to well-run business, to encourage transparency and accountability, and to fairly and efficiently distribute wealth. In addition, as these markets liberalize and attract investment, they offer a very compelling opportunity for international investors.
Acadian is a pioneer in public markets investing. We were early entrants into emerging market and non-US small cap stocks decades ago. I joined the firm in 2007, at which point we were the first to launch an institutional Frontier strategy. We have been on the leading edge (sometimes the bleeding edge) since in accessing remote, less trafficked markets. More recently, we were early to launch a China-A strategy that invests across the entire onshore market.
Acadian is also unique because of our systematic investment approach. While we invest in stocks with strong fundamentals like other traditional managers, we apply our insights through a quantitative lens. This model-driven approach enables us to cover 40,000 stocks across the globe and into the frontier.
Along with breadth, our approach also affords buy-sell discipline in these retail-driven, volatile markets; our inherent multi-factor analysis accounts for frontier risk drivers like country-specific themes and high transaction costs that result from characteristically low liquidity.
Do you find it difficult when discussing these markets with investors? What's the pitch?
Frontier markets have emerged as an investable asset class for several reasons: improved economic stability resulting from lessons learned from emerging markets' crises, the formation of the WTO that broke down global barriers and supported trade, and the emergence of the communication age that allows analysts, traders and PMs to communicate with each other within seconds.
Many global investors approach frontier markets with an excitement for their exotic qualities–they are intrigued by the potential of these rapidly growing countries with large populations that are increasingly educated and integrated and that offer a demographic dividend with a growing consumer class. Vietnam is a case example, with a strong economy supported by both growing domestic demand and foreign direct investment (FDI). It is important to note that with these more nascent markets comes heightened volatility as a result of issues such as perceived corruption, autocracy and regulatory intervention – These can sometimes dissuade investors from investing in frontier markets.
Acadian is also unique because of our systematic investment approach. While we invest in stocks with strong fundamentals like other traditional managers, we apply our insights through a quantitative lens.
Ultimately, investors who allocate to this asset class believe these markets can offer meaningful opportunity from both a beta and alpha standpoint. Beta-wise, the markets will grow via earnings expansion (capitalizing on domestic demand and global free trade), multiple expansion, and capital deepening.
Active management can seek to further deliver possible outsized returns given the inefficiency of these markets. Further, we can potentially deliver a lower volatility profile as country risks are idiosyncratic and offer offsetting effects in a diversified portfolio. While corruption and governance is a concern, we find that frontier markets, perhaps surprisingly, score no worse than their emerging market peers.
Have you seen investor interest remain the same or dip or rise over the years? What do you think keeps global investors interested in these markets?
Investor interest has risen substantially since the formation of the asset class a decade ago and stabilized more recently. As many investors are looking to go passive in their portfolios, frontier markets investing may offers a particularly inefficient asset class where active management may be able to generates net-of-benchmark active returns.
Also because frontier market drivers are distinct from those in the more mainstream markets, the frontier return profile is less correlated to developed and emerging markets; this provides diversification in a broad asset allocation plan.
Pedestrians shop at a busy Balogun Market in Lagos, Nigeria, Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2017.
Going forward, frontier markets are going through an evolution, as many large markets have been upgraded to EM status. These countries include UAE, Qatar, Pakistan, Argentina and Saudi Arabia. The markets that are left outside of Developed and Emerging Market indices constitute a very small portion of investable markets.
Given this, investors will be re-defining how they characterize a frontier market to likely include small emerging market countries. While this classification may generate some confusion for benchmark-sensitive investors, it is likely that the core characteristics (growth, inefficiency, uncorrelated return) will remain.
What do you believe is the long-term appeal of frontier markets such as Vietnam, Mozambique and some Gulf states?
These countries have both short-term and long-term opportunity.
In the nearest term, our outlook for Saudi Arabia in H1 2019 is very strong. The country has liberalized substantially over the last few years as it targets its Vision 2030. For the first time, Saudi will be included in mainstream emerging market benchmarks in 2019. Passive and active equity investors will increase their exposures as a result, resulting in substantial market appreciation opportunity.
Likewise, we see meaningful opportunity for Vietnam to benefit from global flows as its economy develops. This country is a darling of the Frontier Markets, given rapid growth, limited sociopolitical risk and economic orientation. Further, the market is both broad and deep, providing an attractive environment for active stock picking.
Mozambique is a longer term story. The country has significant growth potential over the long-term but is still in the early stages of its emergence. It remains nearly uninvestable given limited breadth and liquidity.
More than a dozen African countries are scheduled to hold elections this year. What risks do you see on the continent?
Our long term outlook for Africa is positive, but over the next year, key risks relate to macroeconomic considerations. In West Africa, the largest investable market is Nigeria, where elections are now complete, despite sociopolitical risk particularly around the voting delay, currently the key risk relates to oil, both the price itself as well as whether there will be production disruptions as well as the price of oil.
In East Africa, we continue to be concerned about Zimbabwe's newly established currency and the country's capital controls. While Kenya's private sector is thriving, we are concerned about high valuations in this low liquidity market as well as the unfavorable regulatory environmental for the financial sector. In both countries, the central bank will play a significant role in transitioning these countries toward the next wave of growth.
South Africas's May election is on the horizon. What should investors be ready for? Are there risks surrounding an ANC fracture or Ramaphosa loss?
We anticipate volatility into the upcoming South Africa election. While a Ramaphosa victory would offer the President a mandate to enact the reforms and structural changes that the economy needs, the South African economy remains weak. We find few positive drivers of return, given the weak macro environment, slow growth among South African corporates, meaningful volatility, and potential for a credit downgrade. A Ramaphosa loss or ANC fracture would introduce additional uncertainty and risk.
Among the other countries that will be voting this year, where do you see the most opportunity for global investors?
With Nigeria's election behind them, we do see some risks. However, Nigeria is among the more liquid African markets, and there are technical drivers that could lead a rally in the second half of this year. For example, the country's risk profile has driven valuations to quite attractive levels, with many Frontier countries "graduating" from the frontier benchmark to emerging. Longer term, investors will be watching the impact of President Buhari's anticorruption initiatives enacted in his prior term. While these efforts have had a modest impact recently, an improving transparency backdrop would be beneficial as corporates return to growth.
Short-term and long-term, are any of the countries on the [African] continent a good bet this year?
We believe North Africa broadly is poised for potential opportunity. Our view is driven by both technical elements, including the coming liquidity rotation among international investors, and fundamental considerations, as we believe Egypt is competitive in the current macro environment and Morocco offers exposure to what we believe to be high quality companies.


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I'm attending a wedding on Saturday so thoughts of formal dresses, nylons, stilettos, pedicures and hairstyles have been floating around in my head throughout the week. I may end up just letting my locks flow naturally, but I loved these styles too much not to share. Whether high and dramatic or low and messy, a chignon gets me every time.
Photos via Non Stop Style.


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TheMeetingPoint.ie
WexfordPeople.ie
Ballygarrett's bid for glory
Leinster Junior hurling crown up for grabs in Bellefield
Centre-forward Patrick Naughter celebrates with manager John Nolan and selector Murt Kavanagh after the county final victory over Geraldine O'Hanrahans
Alan Aherne
Ballygarrett will be bidding to become only the third Wexford outfit to capture the AIB Leinster Club Junior hurling championship crown when they travel to Bellefield on Saturday to take on Conahy Shamrocks of Kilkenny at 1.30 p.m.
https://www.wexfordpeople.ie/sport/gaa/ballygarretts-bid-for-glory-38727868.html
https://www.independent.ie/regionals/enniscorthyguardian/sport/gaa/16a0a/38725947.ece/AUTOCROP/h342/2019-11-26_wex_55184178_I1.JPG
It's been a fairytale year thus far for the Gorey District crew, and a victory in a game of this magnitude would be something special.
And if the John Nolan-managed side are seeking inspiration, there is a perfect recent example as a club from the opposite end of the county - Fethard - beat Kilkenny opposition in the final as recently as 2017.
John Lockes from Callan were defeated in Innovate Wexford Park two seasons ago by 1-17 to 2-11, bridging a 17-year gap since the sole previous success by a Slaneyside club.
That arrived in 2000 - the inaugural competition - when Askamore accounted for Boardsmill of Meath on a 1-13 to 0-11 scoreline at a time when there wasn't an All-Ireland dimension.
Between those two Wexford successes, just one more club contested a final, with Clongeen losing to Tullogher-Rosbercon of Kilkenny in Nowlan Park in 2008 by 1-19 to 3-8.
Ballygarrett's sole bid for Leinster honours before this year arrived after their Junior championship victory of 2004.
On that occasion, they beat Ros Glas of Kildare by 1-14 to 1-3 in Monasterevin, and Kilcoole from Wicklow on home soil (5-9 to 0-4), before bowing out to Trumera (Laois) in Portlaoise by 3-8 to 2-8.
The Redmond brothers, Eddie and Stephen, Patrick Naughter, Colm Kennelly and substitute goalkeeper Mark Doyle - then an outfield player - are all survivors from that campaign, and their collective experience will carry a lot of weight next Saturday.
The record of Kilkenny clubs in this championship is a daunting one. Quite remarkably, their representatives have contested every final with the exception of that first clash between Askamore and Boardsmill 19 years ago.
A total of 14 titles have ended up on Noreside, with the balance made up by the two that went to Wexford along with St. Oliver Plunkett's of Westmeath in 2001, Erin's Own from Carlow in 2005, and Ballinamere (Offaly) in 2013.
And, even more significantly, next Saturday's opponents know what it takes to go all the way to All-Ireland glory in Croke Park.
Conahy beat Castlepollard (Westmeath) by 3-10 to 1-4 in the 2007 final, and followed up with a win over Glen Rovers from Armoy in Antrim before seeing off Moyle Rovers (Tipperary) at headquarters on a 0-19 to 1-9 scoreline.
And while survivors from twelve years ago may be thin on the ground, that is the type of know-how that can be passed from one generation to the next within a tight-knit club.
Interestingly, Conahy didn't win the Kilkenny title this year, but they are representing the county because second strings aren't allowed to compete.
O'Loughlin Gaels - who also boast a strong Senior side - defeated them by 1-17 to 1-15 in the decider, but they recovered with an away win over Fingallians (Dublin) by 2-17 to 1-9 before defeating the Longford Senior winners, Clonguish Gaels, on their home sod of the Polo Grounds in Jenkinstown by 1-22 to 0-7.
A notable figure among their backroom team is Diarmuid Healy, a native of the parish who was synonymous with the rise of the Offaly hurlers in the late seventies and early eighties.
Conahy is the home club of former G.A.A. President Nickey Brennan, and they had two stints in Senior ranks during his own playing days after winning Intermediate titles in 1977 and 1986, against Dicksboro and Piltown respectively.
Their most potent player is full-forward and captain James Bergin, still only 20 years old, while two of the teenagers in 2007 - Brian Healy and Kieran Mooney - will offer a lot of experience in the half-back line and at midfield respectively.
These are days that the good folk of Ballygarrett will remember for a long time to come, and it's all a far cry from the lows they were faced with at the start of 2018.
A 0-16 to 1-11 loss to Rathgarogue-Cushinstown at the end of 2017 saw them relegated to Intermediate 'A', and then they lost star attacker Cathal Dunbar in a transfer to Naomh Eanna.
Last year brought a two-point quarter-final exit to Duffry Rovers (3-13 to 1-17), but a victory at the same stage in early September against District rivals Craanford after extra-time (1-25 to 2-15) acted as a major fillip.
That game gave them the appetite for hard battles, and two more were needed as they subsequently defeated Gusserane by 2-15 to 1-16 and Geraldine O'Hanrahans (1-14 to 1-13) to claim a first-ever Intermediate 'A' title.
Since the introduction of this new third grade in 2012, the victors at that level have gone on to represent the county in the Leinster Junior championship.
In contrast to Conahy, their rivals next Saturday have never been a Senior team, and the closest they came was in 2011 when eventual champions Adamstown pipped them by 1-10 to 1-9 on their sole Intermediate semi-final appearance.
Indeed, Ballygarrett didn't feature in a Junior decider until the 1990 loss to Davidstown-Courtnacuddy, and they also missed out to Bannow-Ballymitty in 2003 before making it third time lucky when Our Lady's Island were beaten by 0-14 to 0-9 in the final twelve months later.
They were on the road for their two games in the province so far, stumbling over Naomh Bríd from Carlow in the Training Centre in Fenagh by 3-9 to 1-12 before showing their true capabilities in a 4-20 to 1-13 rout of Westmeath's Cullion in Mullingar.
Jack Hobbs has been in super scoring form all year from play and placed balls, while the Corcoran brothers, Cormac Moore-Kavanagh and Killian Doyle bring a lot of youthful verve to complement their more experienced players.
It will be a tall order, but Ballygarrett are capable of bringing a Leinster title home.
Incidentally, a jersey change may be on the cards since both wear black and amber, although the latter colour is a lot more prominent on the Conahy jerseys.
Wexford People
Pres girls put up gallant fight
Dean Goodison in Coolcotts There was disappointment for Presentation (Wexford) on Friday as they exited the Leinster Colleges Senior 'A' camogie championship in Coolcotts at the semi-final stage against a talented Presentation (Kilkenny) side.
Nolan's goal leads to big win against Kilkenny
Alan Aherne in John Locke Park, Callan Two of the more experienced players produced the goods when they were needed most in sunny John Locke Park, Callan, on Sunday as the Wexford Senior hurlers marched on to a third successive Bord na Móna Walsh Cup final with a decisive twelve-point win over depleted Kilkenny.
Heavy defeat for U20 team
Dean Goodison in Monroe, Co. Tipperary Having lost by 19 points nine days earlier against Carlow, the Wexford Under-20 footballers went two worse when being crushed by Tipperary in the Moyle Rovers club grounds in Monroe, near Clonmel, on Sunday.
Raw emotion as Rathgarogue-Cushinstown make footballing history GAA
Nolan's goal leads to big win against Kilkenny GAA
Pat's power their way to title GAA
Pres girls put up gallant fight GAA
Around Wexford town
What next? - Wexford Credit Union is hosting a free seminar for 5th and 6th year students at the Ferrycarrig Hotel on Thursday, January... Local Notes
Curtain comes down on panto in Dún Mhuire for last time
The doors have closed... Out & About
Corner Boy set for New Orleans
Local act Corner Boy are getting set to embrace the... Out & About
HSE spends €225k in rent on vacant building
The HSE has spent nearly a quarter of a million euro... News
Panto Society to move to National Opera House for 2021
Every January since 1968... Out & About
Blue Light Ball a success
A night which saw local Gardaí replace their uniforms with black ties and... Wexford People
Community unites in support of baby Lucy Wall
The local community has come out in force to... Local Notes
Private hospital plan gets the green light
Wexford County Council has granted planning... Wexford People
Charities share €54,510 from Christmas fast
Reverend Arthur Minion and Fr. Aodhan Marken had... Wexford People
Public outcry after Tommy's heart surgery cancelled eight times
Following a major public... News
© WexfordPeople.ie

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text:
History: Movement of Peoples
Use this link to the above database while the widget is down.
African-American History Database
Books in the CBL
There is a CLOSED RESERVE trolley of books available for use in the library.
These books are not to be borrowed. You may scan and photocopy any information.
The Making of Australia by David Hill This is the story of how a struggling convict settlement grew into six dynamic colonies and then the remarkable nation of Australia. Told through the key figures who helped build it into the thriving nation it is today, David Hill once again offers up Australian history at its most entertaining and accessible.
In his latest book, David Hill traces the story of our nation from its European beginnings to Federation. When James Cook landed on the east coast of Australia, the rest of the world had some idea of how empty, vast and wild this continent was, but so little was known of it that in 1788 most people thought it was two lands.
In the subsequent years, its coastline was charted, its interior opened up, and its cities, laws and economy developed. In this riveting, wide-ranging history, David Hill traces how this happened through the key figures who built this country into the thriving nation it is today: from its prescient and fair-minded first governor, Arthur Phillip, to the unpopular William Bligh, the victim of the country's first and only military coup; from the visionary builder and law-maker Lachlan Macquarie to William Wentworth, the son of a convict who secured Australia's first elected parliament; from Henry Parkes, the grand old man of politics who started the fraught process of Federation, to the first prime minister, Edmund Barton. It was Barton who formed the first Australian government just in time for the inaugural celebrations on 1 January 1901, when the nation of Australia was born!
Call Number: 994 HIL
A Concise History of Australia by Stuart Macintyre Australia is the last continent to be settled by Europeans, but it also sustains a people and a culture tens of thousands years old. For much of the past 200 years the newcomers have sought to replace the old with the new. This book tells how they imposed themselves on the land, and brought technology, institutions and ideas to make it their own. It relates the advance from penal colony to a prosperous free nation and illustrates how, as a nation created by waves of newcomers, the search for binding traditions was long frustrated by the feeling of rootlessness, until it came to terms with its origins. The third edition of this acclaimed book recounts the key factors - social, economic and political - that have shaped modern-day Australia. It covers the rise and fall of the Howard government, the 2007 election and the apology to the stolen generation. More than ever before, Australians draw on the past to understand their future.
Call Number: 994 MAC
The Making of Australia by Robert Murray In The Making of Australia historian Robert Murray draws on a lifetime's fascination with Australian history and 45 years writing about it to give a clear, concise history of the country. From the coming of the first Aborigines perhaps 60,000 years ago, certainly 40,000, to the election of the Abbott government in 2013, Murray traces the forces that have shaped the nation. In Murray's mainly chronological account the main periods and events in the Australian story are all present. The content is political, social and economic, showing how these strands of Australian life interacted in eras of exploration, in boom periods and depressions and droughts, and in a number of wars. The transition from a convict society to a free one is traced, as is development of representative government and of Federation, the growth of cities, and the careers and influence of key politicians. A notable feature is the systematic treatment given to Aboriginalsettler relations and how they have evolved over more than two centuries. In doing this Murray gives, briefly, both sides of controversies that have led to heated disputes in recent times. This is done in a way that allows the reader to continue to follow developments and modern debates. He is similarly even-handed in his consideration of the White Australia Policy, and the reforms and scandals of the Whitlam era and the Dismissal, and still unresolved questions relating to climate and to refugee policy. Another strength of the book is the manner in which Murray puts developments in a broad international context, as Australians negotiate their heritage and their geographical location. The illustrations include many cartoons from the periods covered, which give added insights into contemporary attitudes.
Call Number: 994 MUR
The Fatal Shore by Robert Hughes The history of the birth of Australia which came out of the suffering and brutality of England's infamous convict transportation system. With 16 pages of illustrations and 3 maps.
Call Number: 994.012 HUG
The Story of Australia's People by Geoffrey Blainey The vast, ancient land of Australia was settled in two main streams, far apart in time and origin.
The first stream of immigrants came ashore some 50,000 years ago when the islands of Australia, Tasmania and New Guinea were one. The second began to arrive from Europe at the end of the eighteenth century. Each had to come to terms with the land they found, and each had to make sense of the other. It was not – and is still not – an easy relationship, and the story of Australia's people is as complex as it is rich.
The long Aboriginal occupation of Australia witnessed spectacular changes. The rising of the seas isolated the continent and preserved a nomadic way of life as agriculture revolutionised other parts of the world. Over millennia, the Aboriginal people mastered the land's climates, seasons and reserves.
Traditional Aboriginal life came under threat the moment Europeans crossed the world to plant a new society in an unknown land. Australia was to be a land that rewarded, tricked, tantalised and often defeated the new arrivals. The meeting of the two cultures is one of the most difficult meetings in history.
In The Story of Australia's People, Professor Geoffrey Blainey returns to the subject of his most celebrated works on Australian history, Triumph of the Nomads (1975) and A Land Half Won (1980), retelling the story of our history up until 1850 in light of the latest research and archaeological findings. Some of those findings have led him to change his mind about vital aspects of Aboriginal history, examined more fully here than in any other popular history of Australia yet published.
Compelling, groundbreaking and brilliantly readable, The Story of Australia's People is the first installment of an ambitious two-part work, and the culmination of the life work of Australia's most respected historian.
Call Number: 994.02 BLA
Convicts by Michael Bogle CONVICTS explores some of the issues surrounding the banishment of thousands of convict men, women and children to Australia. It provides discussion and documentation on many transportation-era topics such as convict labour and skills, prisoners' diets, the role of the British military in the penal settlement, the Female Factory system, the difficulties of forming and maintaining a family under the convict system and the bitter struggle to bring convict transportation to this sea-bound continent to an end. With an evocative new cover and including a foreword by the Hon Justice Michael Kirby AC CMG, this publication is among the first to explore the nation's criminal past on a national scale.
Call Number: 994.02 BOG
Australian Colonists by Ken S. Inglis In Australian Colonists, the author examines the period beginning with British settlement in 1788, to 1870, the year when the last British soldiers sailed home from the colonies. We read of convicts, currency lads and emigrants. We are shown the holidays the newcomers carried with them from the old world and the new fetes they made as colonists. We see them facing their natural enemies in the land, and having their tranquillity pierced by bushrangers and by rebellious convicts, military officers and gold diggers. We hear with them the sound of distant war. We meet the men they honoured and we read of efforts by poets and orators to turn the Australian experience into history.
Call Number: 994.02 ING
Exploration and Settlement in Colonial Australia by Joel Weston The Europeans who stepped ashore on January 26, 1788 knew next to nothing about the land that was to be their home. Almost immediately they began to explore the region around Sydney Cove, pushing further and further out, uncovering the rich agricultural lands and the hostile, barren landscapes. They found their way across the Great Dividing Range to the vast plains where their sheep would flourish and their crops would grow in abundance. Following closely behind the explorers were the settlers. These were hardy pioneers, each desperate to carve out their own slice of the new colonies. Some prospered, creating a particular type of person who knew the land and its possibilities well, but many failed. This book shows how brave, sometimes foolhardy, explorers opened up the continent to the rest of the world.
Call Number: 994.02 WES
Australians by Thomas Keneally Now in paperback, the outstanding first volume of acclaimed author Thomas Keneally's major new three-volume history of Australia brings to life the vast range of characters who have formed Australia's national story Convicts and Aborigines, settlers and soldiers, patriots and reformers, bushrangers and gold seekers—it is from their lives and their stories that Tom Keneally has woven a vibrant history to do full justice to the rich and colorful nature of Australia's unique national character. The story begins by looking at European occupation through Aboriginal eyes, moving between the city slums and rural hovels of 18th-century Britain and the shores of Port Jackson. Readers spend time on the low-roofed convict decks of transports and see the bewilderment of the Eora people as they see the first ships of turaga, or "ghost people." They follow the daily round of Bennelong and his wife Barangaroo and the tribulations of warrior Windradyne. Convicts like Solomon Wiseman and John Wilson find their feet and even fortune, while Henry Parkes' arrival as a penniless immigrant gives few clues to the national statesman he was to become. Chinese diggers trek to the goldfields, and revolutionaries like Italian Raffaello Carboni and black American John Joseph bring readers the drama of the Eureka uprising. Tom Keneally has brought to life the high and the low, the convict and the free of early Australian society. This is truly a new history of Australia, by an author of outstanding literary skill and experience, whose own humanity permeates every page.
Call Number: 994.03 KEN
FOOTNOTES Use this link for a reliable guide of Oxford Footnotes.
Movements of People
TASK: You are to complete an extended response outlining the experiences of either: Australian Convicts; Australian Free Settlers; or African Slaves. As well as a two sentence introduction and conclusion, your extended response should include the following three paragraphs:
why they migrated (the push and pull factors)
the experience of their migration
what life was like for them upon their arrival at their final destination
Questia e-books
Generations of Captivity: A History of African-American Slaves
From Slave Ship to Harvard: Yarrow Mamout and the History of an African American family
Tasmania's Convicts
Australian Convicts and Free Settlers
Convicts and colonisers: the early history of Australia
Convict and Colonial Australia - ABC Education
Port Arthur - Useful Facts
Investigating Pastoral Settlement in Australia in the Nineteenth Century This weblink is to a pdf produced by the National Museum of Australia.
Colonial Period 1788-1901 This weblink is produced by the Australian War Memorial and covers content on free settlers.
The following links are to videos produced by ABC Splash in accordance with this unit of work.
Convict Life in The Rocks, Sydney
Convicts and their Descendants
The Convict Voyages
Female and Child Convicts
Free Settlers to Australia
Britannica - Free Settlers
African Slaves
Slavery in America
Transatlantic Slave Trade - Encyclopaedia Britannica article
The Understanding Slave Initiative is a British learning project which supports the teaching and learning of transatlantic slavery and its legacies using museum and heritage collections. Content on this website is classified across the following themes: Europe Before Transatlantic Slavery; Africa Before Transatlantic Enslavement; Trade and Commerce; Atlantic Crossing; Plantation Life; Resistance and Rebellion; The Campaign for Abolition; Emancipation; and Legacies. On the left of these links be sure to check out the related case studies and artefacts.
International Slavery Museum This weblink is to the History of the Slave Trade on the International Slavery Museum's website. Follow the links on the left to discover more content.
Enslaved Africans: our truth Follow four Africans on their harrowing journeys into slavery with an interactive feature. The year is 1780 - the year European traders took thousands of Africans into slavery.
Transatlantic Slave Trade This weblink is to United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization website. Follow the links on the left to more information on the slave route.
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Anglo French offer a wide range of removals services to and from France. As well as full removals and part loads, we can also transport your car or motorcycle to France, provide storage facilities for your possessions and even help you pack! In fact, if you're looking to move to France from the the UK – or you're coming back the other way – we offer a complete one-stop solution to getting your possessions transported quickly, securely and with the minimum of fuss.
The removals experts at Anglo French can help you move to France wherever you're located in the UK. We now have branches in the South East and South West, so whether you're moving from Bristol to Brittany or Newcastle to Normandy, you can rely on Anglo French to make the transition as smooth as possible. Plus, as we only provide removal services to and from France we have extensive knowledge of all of the regions in the country.
As well as helping individuals move to and from France, we also help companies of all sizes transport equipment and items across the Channel. Our experience and expertise in commercial relocation to France will ensure that your move will be completed quickly and professionally, and any disruption to day-to-day activities will be kept to a minimum.
Whether you're moving a part of your business or undertaking a complete business relocation, our relocation staff will ensure that, however far you are moving, your business and customers will not suffer as a result of the move.


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Eddie Van Halen Among Google's Top 2020 Searches
Michael Ochs Archives, Getty Images
There are many ways to quantify someone's impact on the world and one of the many qualifiers in today's Internet-dominated society is through Google searches. The death of Eddie Van Halen this year struck a chord with not only those in the rock world but across all forms of entertainment and life, so it's not a surprise that Eddie and his self-titled band turn up on multiple Google Year-End "Search" lists.
Google Trends has broken their year-end analysis into categories, with Eddie Van Halen turning up in the "loss" list of deaths and the Van Halen band being among the year's most searched music acts.
Eddie's death placed No. 6 on the "Loss" list behind Kobe Bryant, Naya Rivera, Chadwick Boseman, George Floyd and Ruth Bader Ginsberg. The remainder of the Top 10 behind Eddie were King Von, Kelly Preston, Pop Smoke and Ahmaud Arbery. Bryant actually finished third for the entire year in all searches on Google behind Election Update and Coronavirus.
Van Halen also placed sixth amongst Musician and Band searches. The list was almost exclusively pop acts with Shakira topping the list, followed by August Alsina, Adele, Doja Cat and Grimes just ahead of Van Halen. Lizzo, Tamar Braxton, Quando Rondo and Tory Lanez rounded out the top 10.
Van Halen died on Oct. 6 at the age of 65 after a long battle with cancer. Looking beyond the Google numbers, Eddie's impact on the world of music was immeasurable. His tapping guitar playing style influenced a whole generation of musicians as he graced many a guitar magazine cover in the '70s and '80s.
During his time with Van Halen, the band released 12 studio albums, including the Diamond certified 1984, which has sold over 10 million copies in the U.S. Other accolades included a Grammy in 1992 for Best Hard Rock Performance With Vocal for their album For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge. Van Halen were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007.
Eddie's skills were also heavily sought out by many of his peers. He famously delivered the guitar solo for Michael Jackson's "Beat It" off the Thriller album. He's also worked with KISS, Black Sabbath, Brian May, Roger Waters, Steve Lukather and LL Cool J among others. He was a true talent that eclipsed the worlds of rock and metal, impacting so many that marveled at his music. That interest is reflected among other places in the Google Year-End search stats. See more year-end Google search trends for 2020 here.
Rockers We've Lost in 2020
Source: Eddie Van Halen Among Google's Top 2020 Searches


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LVB Recruitment 2018 2019 has released for various vacancy such as Chief Financial Officer Posts. It has released its application form. Want to know more details? Here we have updated latest information such as process of examinations and interview, eligibility criteria, Offline registration processes, payment of prescribed application fee/intimation charges, LVB pattern of examination, LVB Syllabus, LVB Question Paper, LVB Admit Date Release Date, LVB Exam Date, LVB Result Date. Now check below all details.
Lakshmi Vilas Bank (Tamil: லக்ஷ்மி விலாஸ் வங்கி) was founded in 1926 by a group of seven businessmen of Karur under the leadership of Shri V.S.N. Ramalinga Chettiar. Their objective was to cater to the financial needs of people in and around Karur who were occupied in trading businesses, industry and agriculture. The bank was incorporated on November 3, 1926 under the Indian Companies Act, 1913, and obtained the certificate to commence business on November 10, 1926. Subsequent to introduction of the Banking Regulations Act, 1949 and Reserve Bank of India as the regulator for the banking sector, the bank obtained its banking license from RBI on 19 June 1958, and on 11 August 1958 it became a 'scheduled commercial bank' signifying capability to operate as a full-fledged commercial bank.


UT Southwestern Simmons Cancer Center researchers have shown that a first-in-class molecule can prevent breast cancer growth when traditional therapies stop working.
UT Southwestern Medical Center scientists have identified a key protein that helps trigger ketamine's rapid antidepressant effects in the brain, a crucial step to developing alternative treatments to the controversial drug being dispensed in a growing number of clinics across the country.
Body fat can seem mysterious and confounding, but Dr. Philipp E. Scherer aims to unravel those mysteries – especially in regard to fat's relationship with disease.
Stories below from UT Southwestern's Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center, UT Southwestern Medical School, and Obstetrics and Gynecology Department garnered the most mouse clicks during 2017.
The inability to lend a tangible hand to homeless individuals had long bothered UTSW Police Cpl. Phillip Starr. That led him and other officers to assemble and hand out basic comfort kits for those in need.
Learn how to make healthier versions of some favorite holiday foods – turkey, sweet potatoes, desserts, and more.
Tips on how to cut back on sugars during the holidays.
A novel drug belonging to a new class of medicines called HIF-2 inhibitors show promise in treating metastatic kidney cancer.


We, at Sudeep Industries, give utmost priority to Product Quality. We understand that any business, irrespective of its size and shape grows in an environment of credibility and assurance. Hence, we have an uncompromising commitment to quality consistency.
Sudeep Industries is GOTS and ISO 9001:2008 Certified Company who promises to offer excellent industry standard with quality and safety. We are concerned about the environmental issues and consistently adhere to strict pollution control criteria's, and thus have made considerable investments in our treatment plants. Our state-of-the-art plant includes advanced equipment such as R.O. plant, Softeners, large size vessels, M.S. jacketed Reactors, Glass Lined Vessels, Big Size Blenders and Ball Mills for the flawless production of dyestuffs.
The record test results and batch samples are conserved under most favourable storage conditions, for future Standard reference. The diverse parameters that we check during the manufacturing of dyes are PH, volume control, time, and temperature. Some tests are conducted to adhere to quality compliance are coupling test, Diazotization test, Cynuration test, Condensation test, Salt content analysis (salt-free solution after R.O. process etc).
More importantly, our quality control parameters include analysis of incoming raw material, conducting analytical in-process checks and inspecting the finished products for compliance to specifications in order to ensure that the products reaching the customers meet their prerequisite quality conformance..


Life happens. I went into the hospital two weeks ago last Sunday and for a week I have been recuperating at home. As a consequence, my wife canceled going a biennial humor workshop, dedicated to the late Erma Bombeck in Dayton, Ohio this past weekend.
We "married up", my friends and I say, about our spouses. And a good thing, too. I was most fortunate that I married a nurse, as left to myself, I would only have mortar, JB Weld and some Band Aids for a first aid kit. When Dexter had ear surgery, it was my wife who bandaged and passed out medicine. Yet the best medicine has been each other. For nearly twenty years we have laughed together; for the last third, Sheri's humor has made others laugh as well.
But I am fortunate that I am not a struggling plant, neither rose nor cactus. Sheri kills with kindness or neglect any herb or potted plant that crosses our threshold. Erma was on point with that one.


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If a officer indicates on a speeding ticket that they without a radar clocked me for 0.19 of a mile but there was only 0.13 of a mile from where the officer was to the upcoming stop sign. Can I use that information in court to help me.
If a officer indicates on a speeding
ticket that they without a radar
clocked me for 0.19 of a mile but there
was only 0.13 of a mile from where the
officer was to the upcoming stop sign.
Asked on April 23, 2016 under General Practice, Pennsylvania
You can try, but it will be very difficult to get anywhere with this:
1) If the officer simply says he or she was further back than you say, who do you think the court will believe: the sworn, trained law enforcement officer who has no personal stake in the outcome; or the man/woman who has a strong incentive to lie to avoid a ticket?
2) Even if the court doesn't believe you are lying, to be credible, you'd need a surveryor to measure the distance for you--and that could cost more than the ticket would. A court will offer little weight to what a layperson says about the distance.
3) Even if the court does believe you about the distance, the court could say, "So what? The officer may have typed the wrong digit in the hundredths-of-a-mile place, but that doesn't mean he or she was wrong about you speeding."
In short, this argument will probably not let you defeat the ticket.


Friday Night Track Gathering - If you are interested in a social ride around the club velodrome at East Burwood Reserve on a Friday evening, come down to the track and try your hand at track cycling or ride your road bike. This is an hour or so session followed by a chat, laugh and refreshments are welcome. Senior riders welcome. The Club velodrome is situated on the western side of East Burwood Reserve, 298 Burwood Highway, East Burwood, Victoria.
The Blackburn Cycling Club has developed a partnership with the Rowville Rider (RR) Group to enhance its recreational cycling element within the Club. The RR's are a local cycling group in the eastern suburbs who regularly conduct rides out of the Rowville vicinity. Rides are conducted every Thursday evening into the Dandenong Hills and on Sunday morning they alternate between various ride routes including Beach Road. New rides are introduced regularly and special rides occur on specific dates, e.g. Good Friday Crucifix and Around the Bay. All information about the RR's is found on their TeamApp. If you are interested in enjoying a safe ride with likeminded individuals that is likely to include a coffee stop, please download and join the Rowville Rider TeamApp page or call Aaron Twigg on 0414 797 636. All riders must hold a Cycling Australia (CA) Race or Ride Licence Membership within Blackburn Cycling Club to be entitled to receive CA and club benefits. Junior riders under the age of 17 years old cannot ride with the RR's without a parent/guardian present or unless approved by RR's.


UC defines an online course as one in which more than half of the course's primary instruction is conducted through Internet-based methods with time and/or distance separating the teacher and student. Courses that meet these criteria must comply with the University's policy for online courses.
You will be prompted to complete an "Online Course Self-Assessment" on the course submission form to assess the course using the iNACOL Standards for Quality Online Courses.
Online courses must meet the 15 "power-standards" and at least 27 of the remaining standards.
Online courses are approved for a three-year term to ensure their quality and required components are maintained. Every three years, online courses must complete the two-step approval process.
As of the 2017-18 submission period, UC will accept an online visual and performing arts courses with no restrictions tied to the proportion of online delivery vs. face-to-face interaction between student and teacher.
Any institution that offers an online course must certify in the A-G CMP that their institution is in compliance with UC's online learning guidelines and policy.
This certification is part of the course submission process when an online course is added to an A-G course list for the first time and must be completed in subsequent years as part of the demographic information submission required for each annual A-G course submission period. It is important that an appropriate representative from the school, district or program complete this certification.
The school, district or program has read and understood the Requirements for Online Courses and Program to Receive "a-g" Approval [PDF].
All students in the school, district or program have equal access to all courses for which they are qualified, regardless of socioeconomic status, disabilities or other factors.
The school, district or program provides qualified teachers who are content experts and are capable of supporting students' learning throughout the online courses.
Teachers of online courses from the school, district or program receive adequate professional development to effectively support students in their online learning.
Teachers of online courses from the school, district or program are assigned a number of students that allows for the interaction necessary for positive learning outcomes.
The technology infrastructure at the school, district or program is adequate for effective learning, and students have access to both the necessary hardware and software required to be successful in an online course.
Students in the school, district or program who enroll in an online course can expect to receive appropriate advising to ensure that they have the necessary background and technology to succeed.
Students in the school, district or program have local access to qualified professionals (teachers, mentors, counselors, etc.) or paraprofessionals who can support their online course participation.
The school, district or program has processes in place to ensure that the person submitting material for assessment is actually the student enrolled in the online course.
The school, district or program is willing to provide UC with performance data on the students in all online courses.
Online courses must provide opportunities for substantial interactions between students and the teacher, and between students and other students. Learning is not merely the acquisition of facts. It is a dynamic, social activity that requires inquiry, dialogue, exploration, and engagement with other learners and feedback from teachers.
In addition, the University recommends that schools, districts and programs offering online courses implement practices and policies found in the California Department of Education (AB 294) guidelines and the iNACOL Standards for Quality Online Programs.
Schools offering an online course created by a program or online course publisher that maintains an A-G reference list must add the course to their school' A-G course list using the "Adopt a program course" or "Adopt an online publisher course" feature on the A-G Course Management Portal.
Program and online publisher reference lists can be found on the A-G Course List website.
An online laboratory science course may earn A-G approval if at least 20 percent of class time will include teacher-supervised, hands-on laboratory activities that are directly related to, and support, the other class work, and that involve inquiry, observation, analysis, and write-up of investigations consistent with the practices of the scientific field. Teacher supervision may be synchronous or asynchronous, depending on whether the learning environment is classroom-based, fully online, or a hybrid.
Online course publishers offering online laboratory science courses without a required, teacher-supervised, hands-on lab component can submit their courses for A-G review and UC will provisionally approve the online laboratory science courses. Final A-G approval will be awarded per institution based on the teacher-supervised, hands-on laboratory activities the individual high school, district or program developed to supplement the online curriculum purchased or licensed from the publisher. Institutions will be prompted to include descriptions of the required labs when submitting their new course submission to adopt the online course publisher's laboratory science course onto their A-G course list.
The International Association for K-12 Online Learning (iNACOL) has established quality standards for online courses, teaching and programs. Specifically within the area of online curriculum, iNACOL has developed 52 quality standards for content, instructional design, student assessment, technology, and course evaluation and support, known collectively as the National Standards for Quality Online Courses.
Institutions must self-assess online courses against the iNACOL Standards for Quality Online Courses when submitting the course for A-G review.
Standards highlighted in bold below are the 15 "power standards" that UC faculty have identified as essential parts of online learning. All online courses must satisfy the 15 "power standards" and fulfill at least 27 of the remaining standards. Online courses will be re-reviewed every three years to verify their compliance with these standards.
The course provides online learners with multiple ways of engaging with learning experiences that promote their mastery of content and are aligned with state or national content standards.
The goals and objectives clearly state what the participants will know or be able to do at the end of the course. The goals and objectives are measurable in multiple ways.
The course content and assignments are aligned with the state's content standards, common core curriculum or other accepted content standards set for Advanced Placement courses, technology, computer science or other courses whose content is not included in the state standards.
The course content and assignments are of sufficient rigor, depth and breadth to teach the standards being addressed.
Information literacy and communication skills are incorporated and taught as an integral part of the curriculum.
Multiple learning resources and materials to increase student success are available to students before the course begins.
A clear, complete course overview and syllabus are included in the course.
Course requirements are consistent with course goals, are representative of the scope of the course and are clearly stated.
Information is provided to students, parents and mentors on how to communicate with the online instructor and course provider.
The course reflects multi-cultural education and the content is accurate, current and free of bias or advertising.
Expectations for academic integrity, use of copyrighted materials, plagiarism and netiquette (Internet etiquette) regarding lesson activities, discussions and e-mail communications are clearly stated.
Privacy policies are clearly stated.
Online instructor resources and notes are included.
Assessment and assignment answers and explanations are included.
The course uses learning activities that engage students in active learning; provides students with multiple learning paths to master; the content is based on student needs; and provides ample opportunities for interaction and communication — student to student, student to instructor and instructor to student.
Course design reflects a clear understanding of all students' needs and incorporates varied ways to learn and master the curriculum.
The course is organized by units and lessons that fall into a logical sequence. Each unit and lesson includes an overview describing objectives, activities, assignments, assessments and resources to provide multiple learning opportunities for students to master the content.
The course and course instructor provide students with multiple learning paths, based on student needs that engage students in a variety of ways.
The course provides opportunities for students to engage in higher-order thinking, critical reasoning activities and thinking in increasingly complex ways.
The course provides options for the instructor to adapt learning activities to accommodate students' needs.
Readability levels, written language assignments and mathematical requirements are appropriate for the course content and grade-level expectations.
The course design provides opportunities for appropriate instructor-student interaction, including opportunities for timely and frequent feedback about student progress.
The course design includes explicit communication/activities (both before and during the first week of the course) that confirm whether students are engaged and are progressing through the course. The instructor will follow program guidelines to address non-responsive students.
The course provides opportunities for appropriate instructor-student and student-student interaction to foster mastery and application of the material.
Students have access to resources that enrich the course content.
The course uses multiple strategies and activities to assess student readiness for and progress in course content and provides students with feedback on their progress.
Student evaluation strategies are consistent with course goals and objectives are representative of the scope of the course and are clearly stated.
The course structure includes adequate and appropriate methods and procedures to assess students' mastery of content.
Ongoing, varied, and frequent assessments are conducted throughout the course to inform instruction.
Assessment strategies and tools make the student continuously aware of his/her progress in class and mastery of the content.
Assessment materials provide the instructor with the flexibility to assess students in a variety of ways.
Grading rubrics are provided to the instructor and may be shared with students.
The grading policy and practices are easy to understand.
The course takes full advantage of a variety of technology tools, has a user-friendly interface and meets accessibility standards for interoperability and access for learners with special needs.
The course architecture permits the online instructor to add content, activities and assessments to extend learning opportunities.
The course accommodates multiple school calendars; e.g., block, 4X4 and traditional schedules.
Clear and consistent navigation is present throughout the course.
Rich media are provided in multiple formats for ease of use and access in order to address diverse student needs.
All technology requirements (including hardware, browser, software, etc.) are specified.
Prerequisite skills in the use of technology are identified.
The course uses content-specific tools and software appropriately.
The course is designed to meet internationally recognized interoperability standards.
Copyright and licensing status, including permission to share where applicable, is clearly stated and easily found.
Course materials and activities are designed to provide appropriate access to all students. The course, developed with universal design principles in mind, conforms to the U.S. Section 504 and Section 508 provisions for electronic and information technology as well as the W3C's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.0).
Student information remains confidential, as required by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
The course is evaluated regularly for effectiveness, using a variety of assessment strategies, and the findings are used as a basis for improvement. The course is kept up to date, both in content and in the application of new research on course design and technologies. Online instructors and their students are prepared to teach and learn in an online environment and are provided support during the course.
The course provider uses multiple ways of assessing course effectiveness.
The course is evaluated using a continuous improvement cycle for effectiveness and the findings used as a basis for improvement.
The course is updated periodically and re-reviewed every three years to ensure that the content is current.
Course instructors, whether face-to- face or virtual, are certificated and "highly qualified." The online course teacher possesses a teaching credential from a state-licensing agency and is "highly qualified" as defined under ESEA.
Professional development about the online course delivery system is offered by the provider to assure effective use of the courseware and various instructional media available.
The course provider offers technical support and course management assistance to students, the course instructor and the school coordinator.
Course instructors, whether face-to- face or virtual, have been provided professional development in the behavioral, social, and when necessary, emotional aspects of the learning environment.
Course instructors, whether face-to- face or virtual, receive instructor professional development, which includes the support and use of a variety of communication modes to stimulate student engagement online.
The provider assures that course instructors, whether face-to-face or virtual, are provided support, as needed, to ensure their effectiveness and success in meeting the needs of online students.
Students are offered an orientation for taking an online course before starting the coursework.


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Tom is an unincorporated community in McCurtain County, Oklahoma, United States. The post office was established in 1916 and named for Tom Stewart, an early settler. It is the southeasternmost community in Oklahoma, in the midst of the Ouachita National Forest.

Recreation
Tom is a few miles east of Ward Lake, which is  in size.

Further to the west is the Red Slough Wildlife Management Area, which covers 5,814 acres and is managed cooperatively by the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, the U.S. Forest Service, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

The Red River, a few miles to the south, has generally clear waters and an abundance of giant alligator gar, channel, blue and flathead catfish, and stripped, spotted, white, hybrid and largemouth bass; but there is limited river access.

References

External links

Map:

Unincorporated communities in McCurtain County, Oklahoma
Unincorporated communities in Oklahoma

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Burton Malkiel on China
Burton Malkiel, professor of economics at Princeton, is the author of the venerable investment tome, A Random Walk Down Wall Street. Malkiel, 77, has served on the US President's Council of Economic Advisors, was Dean of the Yale School of Management, and is the Chief Investment Officer of AlphaShares.
I. CHINA
Why are you bullish on China?
China has been the world's growth story. Its rate of expansion over the last 20 years has been unprecedented. No country, during its growth phase, has grown at anything like this–not South Korea, not Japan, not the US.
That said, I'm certainly concerned about the smoothness of 9 and 9.5% annual growth rate. Some observers say, for example, there is a disconnect between automobile production and gasoline sales. The former is booming; the latter is not. But then GM tells us that the Far East is the only part of the world in which they are selling cars.
Power generation and GDP growth are also not in sync, though one would think they should be well correlated. And there is competition among local governments to meet imposed growth goals, regardless if they actually do or not.
But it's the people's hard-working nature and entrepreneurial skills, unleashed by Dung Xiaoping's reforms, that's really compelling. Even if you don't trust the numbers, if you visit Shanghai once a year, you know darn well that something quite real is happening.
Will this growth rate last?
I think so. So far, all the growth has been in the eastern part of the country. The center and west are still dirt poor. There are over 500 million unemployed or underemployed, educated workers, or potential workers who would like to enjoy the riches and better life that 's been created in the east. And you have a government policy that wants to bring that growth to the country's underdeveloped regions. I am convinced that they will be able to do so.
The key reason comes from Nobel laureate, Sir W. Arthur Lewis. He was one of my teachers in graduate school and helped invent the curriculum of emerging market economics. I remember Arthur telling me that while economists worried about the efficacy of central planning, 5-year plans, and protecting infant industries, he found that emerging markets succeeded for other reasons: You give me a people who revere education, like the Chinese have done since the time of Confucious; you give me a people who are hard working; you give me a people who are entrepreneurial; and as long as you give them the freedom to do their own thing, you will see economic growth.
China went from the collective farms under Mao, that couldn't feed the people tilling the land, to the reforms of this practical man Xioping who said that "if you produce a little more, you can keep some of the profits.
This has worked extremely well in the east. There is tremendous labor capacity in the center and the west. And the government knows that to build a harmonious society, it needs to support pro-growth policies. I'm convinced it will continue to do so.
Further, China designed a fiscal stimulus package, that relative to GDP, is much larger than the US' package and is much better designed in its focus on infrastructure spending on highways, railroads and power plants.
The government has a fiscal position that's also unparalleled in the world. Japan has Debt/GDP exceeding 200%; The European Union and the US are approaching about 100%. But China's ratio is less than 25%.
China's got one of the strongest fiscal positions in the world, with $2.3 trillion in reserve.
There will be hiccups along the way, sure. But growth will continue for at least another decade or two. And China will soon pass Japan as the second largest economy in the world. My own guess is that in another 20 years, its economy will be as large as the US'.
What are the biggest risks to investing in China?
Practically speaking, China's growth has been unbalanced and unsustainable because it's largely export lead. Leaders admit that can't continue, if for no other than political reasons. People in the US and the European Community, experiencing high unemployment, are fed up with so many of their goods being manufactured in China.
At the same time, China potentially has the largest consumer market in the world. Currently, consumption is less than 40 percent of GDP in China. That ratio hasn't changed over the past decade. In the US, that ratio is about 70 percent.
One reason for relatively low consumption is that Chinese traditionally have to save more because there are no safety nets in place for catastrophic events, unemployment insurance, social security, illness, and retirement. The one-child policy makes it very difficult to count on one's kids to bail you out. The Chinese must save.
I imagine we will see consumption grow to maybe 45 or 50 percent of GDP. That may be propelled by the government's stimulus program, which includes the genesis of a safety net. This will help free up some savings and direct it toward consumption. With a small debt-to-GDP ratio, China has plenty of room to keep current government spending going.
Politically, I'm not worried about communists and capitalists pulling the country apart. I think the old guard knows that capitalism works. It has produced wealth and growth. I don't imagine even the most ardent communists are going to destroy it.
I am concerned, however, about the potential divide between the Haves and the Have Nots. People complain about the income distribution in the US, but China's is far worse, not only between rich and poor but between East and the Center/West. And this has already led to some unrest. Potential instability is a great danger. But that's why the government is now throwing a lot more money into these poorer regions. While this effort is nascent, the government is starting to develop infrastructure, education, and a social safety net.
The only likely way to assuage this risk over the near term would be through significant wealth transfers. Will that happen?
No. But the Chinese are developing unemployment insurance and welfare for those that need it. But it's somewhat countered by the government's hard approach to individual responsibility and work, even if there isn't much opportunity. And with its various ethnic groups, there is a cultural source to this tension as well.
How would you react as a player in the Chinese market if the authorities responded violently again to unrest, such as what we saw in Tianamen Square?
That's a tough question. I'm not sure I can answer it at this moment. We certainly would be upset and shocked if we saw the government resort to another such crackdown. It wouldn't be unprecedented. But I think that the Chinese are slowly learning that its country's fortunes are as linked to its people's well being as it is to its own authority.
Accepting Professor Niall Ferguson's description of Chimerica, do you surmise there will be fundamental changes in the way in which the US and China deal with one another?
Chimerica is an apt description of the model in which the US consumer borrows and buys and the Chinese produce goods and lend dollars at a fixed exchange rate to support our spending. Premiere Wen has conceded that the yuan can't remain pegged to the dollar. This is indeed unfair for all other regional trading partners, and for US manufacturing. I believe that the Chinese will ease its currency control as early as this year, pursuing a dirty float against a basket of currencies, where the yuan may appreciate by as much as five percent.
Remember, the Chinese move very slowly, especially when change is not in their interest. But this matter is more a response to US discontent. I don't expect this to materially affect the structural imbalances of Chimerca. And that's the real problem.
In fact Chimerica is not sustainable. It made us vulnerable to the crisis we're in. Chimerica worked only when the US savings rate went to zero and US consumers took on more debt. In 1990, US consumer balance sheet had a debt-to- income ratio of approximately 40 percent; now it's 120 percent. This has been largely the result of consumer access to cheap money to buy cheap goods.
How do you respond to hedge fund manager James Chanos' view that China is a bubble ready to burst, which should be shorted?
Look, Chanos is a short seller. I think Tom Friedman responded most aptly to Chanos' concerns. He said: If you think the big winners of this century will be based on education, hard work, and the worth derived from human capital, don't be so quick to sell China short.
China is growing very rapidly, and when anything grows fast, bubbles occur. China has had them in the past in real estate. But the country is going through intense urbanization, and I think that real estate bubbles are more likely to be temporary as migration and increasing wealth catches up with where jobs are being created and development.
China has also known banking crises. This has occured when many borrowers and banks are partially state-owned, and officials simply decided to force banks to keep lending to financially broken companies rather than restructure or close them and send thousands of people out of work.
The result: non-performing loans soared. When the banks' balance sheets got desperate, the government has done what governments do all over the world: they bailed the banks out, without necessarily addressing the underlying problems.
The government can do this because the related costs, relative to GDP, is small. But the Chinese are slowly shutting down the poorest state-owned businesses.
The Chinese stock market is one of the most volatile in the world, making Brazil's bourse look tame. And it too goes through the same boom and bust cycle. We may be in a bubble now. Will the economy collapse because of this? Absolutely not. It will correct, and then restart because of the strength of the underlying story.
You are a believer in investing in China; do the Chinese permit their nationals to invest outside of the mainland?
There is some investment in Hong Kong by Chinese nationals. But the broad answer to your question is no. There is virtually no foreign equity investments by the local citizenry, save for a few institutional accounts. I think this is unfortunate. It does not foster the openness necessary for healthy, dynamic global markets. It has created discrepancies in the value of the same Chinese stocks that trade in China versus those that trad in Hong Kong and the US. The Chinese fear that substantial investment outflows could make it more difficult for them to maintain the yuan's link with the dollar. Long term, I don't see how such restrictions can persist as China continues to grow wealthier.
II. INVESTING
How does your Chinese AlphaShares deal with the issue of market capitalization?
Our indices are typically float-weighted, which only partially addresses the issue you raise. Companies with government stakes, especially some banks, are problematic. China's stock market may not be as efficient as ours in determining fair values. But this doesn't mean that active managers are going to be able to do better than passive indexers. We have the concrete advantage of lower expenses. Typical actively managed China funds have annual expenses of 200 basis points; ours are 70 basis points.
How does your broad-market ETF compare with its main competitor?
The largest ETF is the FTSE/Xinhua China 25-stock index [FXI], with annual expenses 73 basis points. Ours range between 65 and 70 basis points. Our broad-market index has more stocks [150 stocks], and is more broadly diversified. One-third of our All-Market portfolio [YAO] is financial services, 17.67% is energy, 10.95% is information technology, and 10.38% is industrials. FXI is nearly half financial services; 21% energy; 3.05% information technology, and 7.30% industrial materials.
YAO has 6.40% exposure in Consumer Discretionary, where FXI has none. However, FXI has a heavy exposure to 16.34% versus about half that in YAO. Data is of 31 December 2009.
A key difference between the two funds is that FXI is restricted to Hong Kong-traded stocks, where YAO also buys US-traded stocks that are not available in Hong Kong. This means we have exposure to all the most important companies. Take the Internet giant Baidu.com. Because foreigners can only buy the ADRs that sell in the US, we have it in our portfolio; FXI does not.
Are they better ways for foreign investors to invest in China than through an equity index?
It's very hard to do. We are looking at developing a government bond product. But there are restrictions on doing that.
Where does the corporate bond market stand in China?
The yuan-denominated corporate bond market is the third largest in the world, following the US dollar and euro market. While most issuers are state-linked, more than 100 companies have bonds outstanding that trade primarily in China's Interbank market. Some are also listed on the Shenzhen and Shanghai exchanges. But trading is relatively thin, given that most buyers hold these securities until maturity.
There are also Chinese corporate bonds trading in Hong Kong and Singapore. These are typically denominated in Hong Kong or U.S. dollars.
Will Hong Kong's firm peg to the dollar stand?
That's an interesting question. I do think that will change when the yuan's link is altered. But the fate of the HK dollar is less certain.
How many funds do you surmise Alpha Shares will end up with?
We plan to expand the number of our specific industry funds. But we are currently running some other funds privately. They include an enhanced-index fund–the Red Dragon Fund. In it, we tile our weighting towards smaller, value stocks which we believe will generate greater returns.
We have a China-linked portfolio, which invests in countries and markets that are directly benefiting from China's growth. These include Australian resource plays BHP Biliton, and Rio Tinto, Brazil's energy giant Petrobras, and US fast-food giant YUM brands. This fund is actively managed because an index of such companies doesn't formerly exist.
And we are managing a buy-write strategy through our Green Dragon Fund. Because China is so volatile, one can get very large option premiums. A buy-write strategy is based on going long the index–including the FTSE Xinhua Index–and write options against it to pick up premia. At some point we may take all three of these public.
How do you square this decisively active management approach with your long-held belief in passive investing?
There are inherent inefficiencies in the way the Chinese market functions and is tracked. Simply put, I believe unprecedented growth, trifurcated shares [Mainland, Hong Kong, and foreign classes], and volatility present special opportunities, which can't be captured through traditional indices.
Could you describe your ideal asset allocation for a family man in his mid-40s?
First and foremost, I believe in diversification and rebalancing annually to take profits and reinvest them in securities that have underperformed.
I would suggest 20 percent in safe bonds–US Treasurys, Agency, AAA-rated Corporates, and certain foreign country sovereigns–80 percent in equity.
In selecting both equities and even bonds, a key is to avoid a home-country bias. This is a significant, well-documented handicap. I would want half my equity exposure in foreign stocks, with half of this position in emerging markets, including China, Brazil, and India.
This is not your traditional asset allocation because I believe significant future growth will be in emerging, not developed, markets. They also provide significant exposure to commodities. Take Brazil. Its economy is extremely rich in natural resources, with the largest oil find in the Americas having been found recently off its coast. Brazil could also become the breadbasket for the entire world, greatly assisting China, which is perennially short of water.
The other half of the equity portfolio should probably be in MSCI EAFE. But I have no problem if people want to bulk up on specific country exposure within this context, such as Australia, whose representation in EAFE is relatively modest, under 10 percent.
Australia's commodities make it among the most desirable developed markets, supported by refined corporate governance and laws. Higher interest rates and sound government finances make Australia's sovereigns attractive as well. I would double up on my Australian exposure.
So it seems you believe one can enhance the returns of broad market index funds?
My portfolio strategy remains passive, I'm not picking stocks. But I'm adjusting for economic realities. And we see the need for such investment modification in China where a low free float [on which most indices are based] undercounts China by at least a factor of four. A purchasing power-adjusted GDP weighting, which adjusts for the yuan's significant undervaluation, suggests investor equity exposure of between 6 and 12 percent.
Why did you shift your thinking that broader exposure to the likes of the Wilshire 5000 is superior to the S&P 500?
Research in asset pricing has shown that smaller company stocks tend to outperform larger stocks. This is probably due to the fact that smaller companies have more growth potential than larger-cap stocks. If you look at the Ibbotson numbers since 1926 through the present, stocks as a whole have generated annualized returns of 9.5%. Small-company stocks have generated a rate of return of over 10%. So you want exposure to some of the smaller stocks as well, which you get in a broader index. But you must be mindful of liquidity issues involving stocks that may be too small.
With Alpha Shares currently offering 4 Chinese industry funds and 3 broader market funds, how would you advise an investor to blend them?
I would just buy the All-Company index [YAO]. But our Small-Cap Index fund [HAO] has the most trading activity because these companies are virtually all privately owned, with no government ownership stake, offering a pure private play on China. One could use our technology and forthcoming consumer shares to tweak exposure.
Do you know the long and short interest in your Chinese indices?
We have found the small-cap shares are the most popular funds with clear long interest. The real estate fund [TAO] has probably been shorted of late due to skepticism about overdevelopment and a property bubble.
Are you concerned about a spread risk between your fund's prices and their NAVs?
Investors can trade in and out of the funds and their underlying securities. This ensures that their spreads remain modest. But because the Chinese market isn't as efficient as ours, and given the time difference between operational hours, significant spreads have appeared.
The All-Cap Fund [YAO] has seen premium and discounts of less than 3%, with the average spread being a slight premium of 29 basis points. As you move into more riskier shares, the spread has widened, with premium and discount of the Real Estate Fund [TAO] running around 9%. But its average spread is a modest 7 basis point premium. The Small-Cap index has seen its premium reach nearly 14% and fund shares trading at a discount that has exceeded 11%. But on average, the spread remains a manageable 80 basis points.
Who do you find are buying these shares?
It's been largely individuals, but we are finding that some institutions are buying. These include Polaris Asset Management in Taiwan, Migdal Asset Management in Israel, FUH-HWA in Taiwan.
Have their been foreign investor interest in your products? Are there equivalent foreign ETFs that are available in other markets?
There are several ETFs based on the FTSE Xinhua 25 in Asia and Europe that would be somewhat similar to our YAO All Cap ETF. We feel the YAO has a much better underlying index that the FTSE 25. But our sector indices, including the China Real Estate Index ETF [TAO] and our China Small-Cap Index ETF [HAO], are unique.
III. FINANCIAL CRISIS & POLICY
What are thoughts about how Obama has been handling the crisis?
I think Obama was pretty much forced to the follow the lead of the Bush administration. I didn't like the way the latter put money into the banks. I think it was far too generous, and I think the government made a bad deal.
When Warren Buffet put money into Goldman Sachs, he got a 10% coupon on preferreds and scads of equity. When the government put money into Citi and Bank of America, we got a 5% coupon and less equity. If the government made a much tougher deal at the outset, I'd be feeling a bit better about the banks new-found riches.
I'd also would have liked to have seen haircuts on some of AIG's credit default swaps. Why should the CDS people get 100 cents on the dollar? And why should the bondholders have gotten off with 100 cents on the dollar? I think it would've been much better if some of the financial pain had been spread around, because you want a system where the private market absorbs the risk. But now the market thinks there is little risk because it knows the government will bail such firms out.
Where are we in the financial crisis?
We have probably passed the worst. The real economy is improving. I think it's going to continue to improve. The Federal Reserve will be very slow in unwinding its balance sheet, as it should. I'm glad Ben Bernanke was reappointed because I think what he and the central bankers all over the world have done the right thing.
But looking forward, I think of what the British like to say: we will be muddling through. I don't expect the system to crumble, as many feared just a year ago. I think we are going to see regulators being extra careful in requiring banks to maintain more and more capital. It's like, "God, make me virtuous, but not quite yet."
Look, we haven't solved the real problems that caused the crisis, and we still have a hulluva lot of risk. There are a lot of economists, like Joseph Steiglitz and Nouriel Roubini, who believe we should've let the banks go bankrupt and wiped out shareholders. We didn't do that.
Would that have fixed some of the structural problems? I don't know.
Our policies have allowed banks to remain under capitalized and overleveraged, while we are requiring them to earn their way out of government obligations. Yet, at the same, time, we are considering moves that may undercut their earnings power. That's a bit confusing.
I'm skeptical about the Volker policy towards the banks, which is seeking to restrict investment risks of banks that enjoy the government backstop of deposit insurance and access to cheap borrowing. There is a logic to what he has proposed. You don't want banks to take on huge risks when they have government backing, which essentially means that profits are privatized while risks are socialized.
This isn't a complete return to Glass-Steagall. But it's going in that direction. Volker probably prefers that–where you have very narrowly-defined banks, and where insured banks don't do hedge funds, private equity, and other such ventures.
But it is very difficult to define proprietary trading. For instance, if customers show demand for my Chinese ETFs, is it wrong for banks to make a market in the underlying shares? How do you really separate proprietary trading that's legitimate from that which is not legitimate?
And I don't think the break from Glass-Steagall was the root cause of the crisis. Look at Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns. These were dedicated investment banks. Look at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. These were government-sponsored enterprises. I think what these examples clearly show is that we need to enforce strict capital requirements, we must limit leverage, and we must insist that there is adequate liability and asset matching to help ensure sufficient liquidity at all times. Setting hard standards for just these three issues would go a long way to preventing the kind of crisis we've just experienced.
One answer could be to consider enacting such changes to the banking system after they earn their way out.
You could do that. But you run the risk of another crisis hitting as they are trying to earn their way out, especially given that our economic future is far from transparent since we haven't solved many of the underlying problems that caused the crisis.
We have not come to grips with the Too Big Too Fail problem. And if firms like Goldman Sachs decide to revert to their former status–largely out of regulatory reach and government aid–what happens if they again run into trouble? Does the government bail them out anyway to avoid the potential catastrophic impact of its collapse?
What are thoughts on high-frequency trading?
There are a lot of villains in the world. But I don't think high-frequency traders are one of them. I don't think they make the market more volatile. To the contrary, I think they make it more efficient. Consider our ETFs. When there is a discrepancy between our NAV and market values, high-frequency traders are the ones who identify the gap and swoop down and close it. You want those guys in there, and I think they've gotten a bad rap.
What do you think of the proposed tax on security transactions?
There are a lot of people, including my colleague Paul Krugman, who thinks such a tax will make the markets less volatile by discouraging high-frequency trading, which would eat away at their small profit margins. But I think such a tax will have the opposite effect, making the market less liquid and efficient.
What's wrong with tapping the securities markets to help reduce our huge deficit?
I believe the effect would reduce the amount of trading, and result in raising far fewer dollars than one would have thought. You generally want to tax people in a way where there is the least distortion to the economic system. And you generally don't accomplish that by targeting taxes narrowly on one thing or another. That's why I'm not thrilled with the proposed new taxes on banks.
How then do we close the budget deficit and reduce our national debt?
Much our budgetary problems can only be addressed by changing the growth rate in discretionary spending and entitlement programs. But we need the political will to fix the things that can be easily be fixed.
Take social security. There are three levers you could pull which would help fix the entire problem. One of them is raising the income limit of $90,000 or $100,000 that's subject to the social security tax. We could raise it to $120,000 without changing marginal tax rates.
Secondly, we could increase retirement ages. What we know is that most people who keep on working are healthier, happier, more involved with life, and there is no reason why we should encourage people to retire early. I'm in my 70s, still working, very glad that I am. I'm in much better shape because of that. We could start this process by increasing the retirement age by just one month a year. This can make a huge difference.
Thirdly, we could index initial benefits to prices rather than wages, which would help change the spending trajectory of this entitlement program.
Social security is technically an easy problem to solve. But politically, it involves the same challenges we face in dealing with most other budgetary related issues.
Are you against raising taxes?
We will undoubtedly have some taxes raised. But we must be very careful by how much we do so. The private economy that's going to generate growth to improve living standards shouldn't be harnessed with a tax burden that's so high that it kills incentives.
What's your investment outlook over the next year?
I have no idea. Nobody can time the market. Studies of behavioral finance repeatedly show that people who try to invariably do the wrong thing: buying at the tops and selling at the bottoms. I believe in dollar-cost averaging. I believe in rebalancing annually. I have no idea what the market is going to do over the short run. I'm a long-term optimist, who believes in the growth of our western-style economies. I believe in equities.
Outlook for the US dollar?
Economist and currency traders do a terrible job forecasting exchange rates. I'm only going to make one comment on currencies: the Chinese yuan will appreciate over the next year or two against the dollar.
FXI=FTSE/Xinhua 25;
GXC= S&P China Index
FCHI=iShares FTSE China Hong Kong listed Index PGJ = PowerShares Golden Dragon Halter
HAO=AlphaShares China Small-Cap
TAO=AS China Real Estate
YAO=AlphaShares China All-Cap
Tags: Asia, Burton Malkiel, China, currency, debt, Emerging Markets, equity, Europe, Finance, Government Policy, Recession, Recovery
This entry was posted on Friday, January 29th, 2010 at 8:17 am	and is filed under Asia, COUNTRIES, INTERVIEWS/PROFILES. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.


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