THE TIME DIMENSION AND VALUE OF FLEXIBILITY IN RESOURCE ALLOCATION: THE CASE OF THE MARITIME INDUSTRY

Kostas Axarloglou, Ilias Visvikis and Stefanos Zarkos
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Kostas Axarloglou: Democritus University of Thrace, Department of International Economic Relations and Development, Postal: Department of International Economics, and Development, University Campus, Komotini, 69100, Greece
Stefanos Zarkos: ALBA Graduate Business School, Postal: Department of International Economics, and Development, University Campus, Komotini, 69100, Greece

No 2-2012, DUTH Research Papers in Economics from Democritus University of Thrace, Department of Economics

Abstract: The paper analyses empirically the time-varying properties of the spread between voyage and time-charter rates and presents evidence that these properties are directly related to the business cycle (market demand) of the maritime industry, to the expectations for the future market demand and to market volatility. Using a real options methodology, we demonstrate that the time-varying properties of the spread is the outcome of the strategic decision to time-commit company resources in the industry. It is shown that, during a market upturn (downturn) managers choose to commit company resources for a short period (long period), and thus, maintain flexibility (commitment) in better exploiting the upcoming business opportunities (protecting company resources from lack of business opportunities). Overall, the fluctuations of the time-varying spread, between voyage and time-charter rates, offer managerial insights in resource allocation that can better shape up chartering, budgeting and financial management decisions on the time commitment of resources in the maritime industry.

Keywords: Maritime Industry; Resource Allocation; Strategic Flexibility; Commitment; Real Options; Market Conditions (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A00 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 28 pages
Date: 2012-01-27
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http://utopia.duth.gr/~pgkogkas/duthwp/2-2012.pdf Full text (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: The time dimension and value of flexibility in resource allocation: The case of the maritime industry (2013)
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