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Clustering and regression analysis of micro panel data
Sobíšek, Lukáš ; Pecáková, Iva (advisor) ; Komárek, Arnošt (referee) ; Brabec, Marek (referee)
The main purpose of panel studies is to analyze changes in values of studied variables over time. In micro panel research, a large number of elements are periodically observed within the relatively short time period of just a few years. Moreover, the number of repeated measurements is small. This dissertation deals with contemporary approaches to the regression and the clustering analysis of micro panel data. One of the approaches to the micro panel analysis is to use multivariate statistical models originally designed for crosssectional data and modify them in order to take into account the within-subject correlation. The thesis summarizes available tools for the regression analysis of micro panel data. The known and currently used linear mixed effects models for a normally distributed dependent variable are recapitulated. Besides that, new approaches for analysis of a response variable with other than normal distribution are presented. These approaches include the generalized marginal linear model, the generalized linear mixed effects model and the Bayesian modelling approach. In addition to describing the aforementioned models, the paper also includes a brief overview of their implementation in the R software. The difficulty with the regression models adjusted for micro panel data is the ambiguity of their parameters estimation. This thesis proposes a way to improve the estimations through the cluster analysis. For this reason, the thesis also contains a description of methods of the cluster analysis of micro panel data. Because supply of the methods is limited, the main goal of this paper is to devise its own two-step approach for clustering micro panel data. In the first step, the panel data are transformed into a static form using a set of proposed characteristics of dynamics. These characteristics represent different features of time course of the observed variables. In the second step, the elements are clustered by conventional spatial clustering techniques (agglomerative clustering and the C-means partitioning). The clustering is based on a dissimilarity matrix of the values of clustering variables calculated in the first step. Another goal of this paper is to find out whether the suggested procedure leads to an improvement in quality of the regression models for this type of data. By means of a simulation study, the procedure drafted herein is compared to the procedure applied in the kml package of the R software, as well as to the clustering characteristics proposed by Urso (2004). The simulation study demonstrated better results of the proposed combination of clustering variables as compared to the other combinations currently used. A corresponding script written in the R-language represents another benefit of this paper. It is available on the attached CD and it can be used for analyses of readers own micro panel data.
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Global Economy Outlook - December 2016
Česká národní banka
Global Economic Outlook presents the regular monthly overview of recent and expected developments in selected territories, focusing on key economic variables: inflation, GDP growth, leading indicators, interest rates, exchange rates and commodity prices. In this issue, we also focus on a major phenomenon of the day: the migration of people into Europe, and Germany in particular. In this context, we present an analysis of the effect of the increased number of refugees on the German labour market. We show, among other things, that the incoming migrants will be far from enough to cover the demand for labour in Germany and also that they will compete more with workers arriving in search of jobs in Germany from Central and Eastern European countries than with German citizens.
Fulltext:  PDF; PDF
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Global Economy Outlook - November 2016
Česká národní banka
The November issue of Global Economic Outlook presents the regular monthly overview of recent and expected developments in selected territories, focusing on key economic variables: inflation, GDP growth, leading indicators, interest rates, exchange rates and commodity prices. In this issue, we also focus on the relationship between the Brent crude oil price and the US dollar exchange rate over the last ten years. The results show that the inverse relationship between the Brent price and the nominal effective exchange rate of the dollar still applies, helping dampen fluctuations in the dollar price of oil in “non-dollar” economies.
Fulltext: PDF; PDF
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Global Economy Outlook - October 2016
Česká národní banka
The October issue of Global Economic Outlook presents the regular monthly overview of recent and expected developments in selected territories, focusing on key economic variables: inflation, GDP growth, leading indicators, interest rates, exchange rates and commodity prices. In this issue, we focus in detail on the industrial producer price index (PPI), which, alongside the consumer price index (CPI), is a key indicator of inflation on the production side of the economy. We also explain the specifics of the PPI, especially in the EU, and present a model simulation indicating the sensitivity of the PPI to a change in oil prices.
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Convergence across the four Central and Eastern European states: Panel Data Approaches
Akhmetov, Daniyar ; Gregor, Martin (advisor) ; Cahlík, Tomáš (referee)
The aim of the work is to analyze the convergence in the Czech Republic for the period of 1996- 2006. The paper is based primarily on the Barro and Sala-i-Martin's theories of convergence of sub-national territorial units. The regression results proved assumptions to be realistic. The main model concentrates on a panel data approach that captures the extent to which new transport infrastructure influences within-nation regional convergence. This paper developed a regional approach to evaluate the impact of transport infrastructure, human capital and migration in four Central and Eastern European countries - the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and the Slovak Republic. The aim is to present an overview of the convergence process of the Czech regions between 1996 and 2006. A neoclassical growth model is used as a framework to study convergence across the 14 administrative units of the Czech Republic. Data on gross value added per capita are exploited. 1
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Subsidy Support of the Sustainable Waste Management
BEDNÁŘOVÁ, Renata
The subject of the dissertation is the issue of the waste management with special emphasis on the recycling of the construction and demolition waste. The recourse is an analysis of the key instruments regulating the activities and behaviour of market operators in this field toward fulfilling all-society priorities and principles of the sustainable development, where special accent is put on the area of subsidy policies and programmes. The aim of the dissertation is to analyse and evaluate the setting of the selected subsidy programme in terms of economic and ecological efficiency with the emphasis on the assessment of the impact on the recipient. The subject of the research will be a priority axis 4 "Improvement of Waste Management and Removal of Old Environmental Burdens" within the Operational Programme Environment 2007 - 2013. In the literature review basic concepts and important definitions are defined, followed by the comprehensive and complex searches of the problematics from different angles of view. First of all, the global aspect of environmental protection is discussed, broader historical, legal, economic and political contexts, that are essential fundament for understanding the current and future challenges both globally regionally, are summarized. Hereafter, a more detailed description of the situation of the European Union is followed, then the overview is completed by a detailed view at the state of the problematics in the Czech Republic. Subsequent chapters are devoted to a detailed analysis of the waste management sector, again in terms of global, European and national standpoint, in the end the view is focused on the key issue of the dissertation problematics of construction and demolition waste. In the application part the fulfilling of the stated objective of the dissertation through four defined hypothesis is solved. Hypotheses verify the efficiency and appropriateness of the setting of the system of subsidies in the frame of the monitored programme. The emphasis is imposed on the assessment of the impact of the allocated subsidies to the private entities on their economic and environmental efficiency.
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Summary of foreign knowledge about the origin and development of EDZ in crystalline rocks - research
Vavro, Martin ; Souček, Kamil ; Staš, Lubomír ; Vavro, Leona
Presented search summarizes findings of foreign research oriented on the origin and evolution of the excavation damaged zone in crystalline rocks with a particular focus on the essential results of experimental projects which were performed in Canada, Sweden, Finland, and Switzerland. The study is divided, excluding the introduction, into seven main chapters of the text, which gradually deal with: (1) definition of key terms, (2) overview of the main underground research laboratories in the world where EDZ assessment was conducted, (3) methods suitable for EDZ description and characterization, (4) main factors influencing the origin of failure around the excavations and time-dependent evolution of EDZ. An overview of important outcomes of EDZ experiments, focusing on the European hard rock laboratories (Stripa, Äspö, Onkalo/Olkiluoto and Grimsel), and their summary are presented in the final two chapters.\nThe review summarizing the published key findings and results of in situ experiments shows, that for rock in lower stress state, i.e. in no spalling environment, the extent and character of rock mass damage is typically dependent on the excavation method. Using mechanical excavation, rock damage zone with thickness less than 3 centimeters can be originated. The microcracks within this zone contribute to the increase of hydraulic conductivity of the rock mass. At some test sites (Äspö, Grimsel), where the tunnel boring machine technology was used, the damage zone was already detected in depth of less than 5 mm.\nOn the contrary, openings excavated by drilling and blasting are characterized by much more extensive damage zones up to several tens of centimeters in width. The damage progressively diminishes with the distance from the opening.
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Global Economy Outlook - September 2016
Česká národní banka
The September issue of Global Economic Outlook presents the regular monthly overview of recent and expected developments in selected territories, focusing on key economic variables: inflation, GDP growth, leading indicators, interest rates, exchange rates and commodity prices. In this issue, we also focus on the closing of the output gap in OECD countries in the current low-inflation environment. We point out that the output gap is currently closing at near-zero inflation rates rather than at rates close to 2% (corresponding to the generally accepted price stability criterion). The current output gap and inflation outlooks signal a gradual return to the output gap closing at consumer inflation rates of approximately 2%.
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