Perturbation Methods in Credit Derivatives

The credit derivatives industry has come under close scrutiny over the past few years, with the recent financial crisis highlighting the instability of a number of credit structures and throwing the industry into turmoil. What has been made clear by recent events is the necessity for a thorough understanding of credit derivatives by all parties involved in a transaction, especially traders, structurers, quants and investors. Fully revised and updated to take in to account the new products, markets and risk requirements post financial crisis, Credit Derivatives: Trading, Investing and Risk Management, Second Edition, covers the subject from a real world perspective, tackling issues such as liquidity, poor data, and credit spreads, to the latest innovations in portfolio products, hedging and risk management techniques. The book concentrates on practical issues and develops an understanding of the products through applications and detailed analysis of the risks and alternative means of trading. It provides: a description of the key products, applications, and an analysis of typical trades including basis trading, hedging, and credit structuring; analysis of the industry standard 'default and recovery' and Copula models including many examples, and a description of the models' shortcomings; tools and techniques for the management of a portfolio or book of credit risks including appropriate and inappropriate methods of correlation risk management; a thorough analysis of counterparty risk; an intuitive understanding of credit correlation in reality and in the Copula model. The book is thoroughly updated to reflect the changes the industry has seen over the past 5 years, notably with an analysis of the lead up and causes of the credit crisis. It contains 50% new material, which includes copula valuation and hedging, portfolio optimisation, portfolio products and correlation risk management, pricing in illiquid environments, chapters on the evolution of credit management systems, the credit meltdown and new chapters on the implementation and testing of credit derivative models and systems. The book is accompanied by a website which contains tools for credit derivatives valuation and risk management, illustrating the models used in the book and also providing a valuation toolkit.

The complete guide to derivatives, from the experts at the CFA Derivatives is the definitive guide to derivatives, derivative markets, and the use of options in risk management. Written by the experts at the CFA Institute, this book provides authoritative reference for students and investment professionals seeking a deeper understanding for more comprehensive portfolio management. General discussion of the types of derivatives and their characteristics gives way to detailed examination of each market and its contracts, including forwards, futures, options, and swaps, followed by a look at credit derivatives markets and their instruments. Included lecture slides help bring this book directly into the classroom, while the companion workbook (sold separately) provides problems and solutions that align with the text and allows students to test their understanding while facilitating deeper internalization of the material. Derivatives have become essential to effective financial risk management, and create synthetic exposure to asset classes. This book builds a conceptual framework for understanding derivative fundamentals, with systematic coverage and detailed explanations. Understand the different types of derivatives and their characteristics Delve into the various markets and their associated contracts Examine the use of derivatives in portfolio management Learn why derivatives are increasingly fundamental to risk management The CFA Institute is the world's premier association for investment professionals, and the governing body for the CFA, CIPM, and Investment Foundations Programs. Those seeking a deeper understanding of the markets, mechanisms, and use of derivatives will value the level of expertise CFA lends to the discussion, providing a clear, comprehensive resource for students and professionals alike. Whether used alone or in conjunction with the companion workbook, Derivatives offers a complete course in derivatives and their markets.

Three experts provide an authoritative guide to the theory and practice of derivatives Derivatives: Theory and Practice and its companion website explore the practical uses of derivatives and offer a guide to the key results on pricing, hedging and speculation using derivative securities. The book links the theoretical and practical aspects of derivatives in one volume whilst keeping mathematics and statistics to a minimum. Throughout the book, the authors put the focus on explanations and applications. Designed as an engaging resource, the book contains commentaries that make serious points in a lighthearted manner. The authors examine the real world of derivatives finance and include discussions on a wide range of topics such as the use of derivatives by hedge funds and the application of strip and stack hedges by corporates, while providing an analysis of how risky the stock market can be for long-term investors, and more. To enhance learning, each chapter contains learning objectives, worked examples, details of relevant finance blogs technical appendices and exercises.

State-of-the-art techniques and tools needed to facilitate effective credit portfolio management and robust quantitative credit analysis Filled with in-depth insights and expert advice, Active Credit Portfolio Management in Practice serves as a comprehensive introduction to both the theory and real-world practice of credit portfolio management. The authors have written a text that is technical enough both in terms of background and implementation to cover what practitioners and researchers need for actually applying these types of risk management tools in large organizations but which at the same time, avoids technical proofs in favor of real applications. Throughout this book, readers will be introduced to the theoretical foundations of this discipline, and learn about structural, reduced-form, and econometric models successfully used in the market today. The book is full of hands-on examples and anecdotes. Theory is illustrated with practical application. The authors' Website provides additional software tools in the form of Excel spreadsheets, Matlab code and S-Plus code. Each section of the book concludes with review questions designed to spark further discussion and reflection on the concepts presented.

Social epidemiology is the study of how social interactions—social norms, laws, institutions, conventia, social conditions and behavior—affect the health of populations. This practical, comprehensive introduction to methods in social epidemiology is written by experts in the field. It is perfectly timed for the growth in interest among those in public health, community health, preventive medicine, sociology, political science, social work, and other areas of social research. Topics covered are: Introduction: Advancing Methods in Social Epidemiology The History of Methods of Social Epidemilogy to 1965 Indicators of Socioeconomic Position Measuring and Analyzing 'Race' Racism and Racial Discrimination Measuring Poverty Measuring Health Inequalities A Conceptual Framework for Measuring Segregation and its Association with Population Outcomes Measures of Residential Community Contexts Using Census Data to Approximate Neighborhood Effects Community-based Participatory Research: Rationale and Relevance for Social Epidemiology Network Methods in Social Epidemiology Identifying Social Interactions: A Review, Multilevel Studies Experimental Social Epidemiology: Controlled Community Trials Propensity Score Matching Methods for Social Epidemiology Natural Experiments and Instrumental Variable Analyses in Social Epidemiology and Using Causal Diagrams to Understand Common Problems in Social Epidemiology. «Publication of this highly informative textbook clearly reflects the coming of age of many social epidemiology methods, the importance of which rests on their potential contribution to significantly improving the effectiveness of the population-based approach to prevention. This book should be of great interest not only to more advanced epidemiology students but also to epidemiologists in general, particularly those concerned with health policy and the translation of epidemiologic findings into public health practice. The cause of achieving a ‘more complete’ epidemiology envisaged by the editors has been significantly advanced by this excellent textbook.» —Moyses Szklo, professor of epidemiology and editor-in-chief, American Journal of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins University «Social epidemiology is a comparatively new field of inquiry that seeks to describe and explain the social and geographic distribution of health and of the determinants of health. This book considers the major methodological challenges facing this important field. Its chapters, written by experts in a variety of disciplines, are most often authoritative, typically provocative, and often debatable, but always worth reading.» —Stephen W. Raudenbush, Lewis-Sebring Distinguished Service Professor, Department of Sociology, University of Chicago «The roadmap for a new generation of social epidemiologists. The publication of this treatise is a significant event in the history of the discipline.» —Ichiro Kawachi, professor of social epidemiology, Department of Society, Human Development, and Health, Harvard University «Methods in Social Epidemiology not only illuminates the difficult questions that future generations of social epidemiologists must ask, it also identifies the paths they must boldly travel in the pursuit of answers, if this exciting interdisciplinary science is to realize its full potential. This beautifully edited volume appears at just the right moment to exert a profound influence on the field.» —Sherman A. James, Susan B. King Professor of Public Policy Studies, professor of Community and Family Medicine, professor of African-American Studies, Duke University

Methods in Educational Research Methods in Educational Research is designed to prepare students for the real world of educational research. It focuses on scientifically-based methods, school accountability, and the professional demands of the twenty-first century, empowering researchers to take an active role in conducting research in their classrooms, districts, and the greater educational community. Like the first edition, this edition helps students, educators, and researchers develop a broad and deep understanding of research methodologies. It includes substantial new content on the impact of No Child Left Behind legislation, school reform, quantitative and qualitative methodologies, logic modeling, action research, and other areas. Special features to assist the teaching and learning processes include vignettes illustrating research tied to practice, suggested readings at the end of each chapter, and discussion questions to reinforce chapter content. Praise for the Previous Edition «A new attempt to make this subject more relevant and appealing to students. Most striking is how useful this book is because it is really grounded in educational research. It is very well written and quite relevant for educational researchers or for the student hoping to become one.» -PsycCRITIQUES/American Psychological Association «I applaud the authors for their attempt to cover a wide range of material. The straightforward language of the book helps make the material understandable for readers.» -Journal of MultiDisciplinary Evaluation

This book is written for the beginning student of communication disorders with a basic understanding of phonetics, or the practising speech-language therapist whose phonetic training may need updating. It introduces the reader to the main areas of phonetics, and the main methods through which the phonetician reduces speech data to a permanent record. The book, then, illustrates the three main approaches to the investigation of spoken language; articulatory, acoustic, and auditory. Further, it describes how impressionistic phonetic transcription through symbolisation differs from instrumental phonetic techniques. For each of these areas of discussion, chapters are provided that examine the general phonetic aspects, followed by chapters that illustrate their application to clinical data. The authors are both phoneticians with experience of investigating both normal and disordered speech through both impressionistic and instrumental means, and this is the first book in this market that describes a whole range of data reduction techniques and illustrates them with data relevant to the student and practitioner of communication disorders.

Understand derivatives in a nonmathematical way Financial Derivatives, Third Edition gives readers a broad working knowledge of derivatives. For individuals who want to understand derivatives without getting bogged down in the mathematics surrounding their pricing and valuation Financial Derivatives, Third Edition is the perfect read. This comprehensive resource provides a thorough introduction to financial derivatives and their importance to risk management in a corporate setting.

Materials and Methods in ELT is an essential resource for teachers or for those engaged in taking professional courses relating to all aspects of English language teaching. Now available in its 3rd edition, this popular teachers’ guide offers a comprehensive and useful introduction to the principles and practice of teaching English as a foreign/second language. It examines the ideas behind current methodology and teaching materials, in addition to offering a practical guide to approaching materials and methods, evaluation and adaptation, technology for materials and methods, and teaching in under-resourced classrooms. These principles are then related to the individual language skills of reading, listening, speaking, and writing. The authors examine the different methodologies available to teachers for organizing and running an ELT classroom; discussing group and pair work, individualization, classroom observation, and the teachers’ role in the contemporary ELT context. Updated throughout, the 3rd edition features a new section on technology for materials and methods, as well as a new chapter on IT in English language teaching, and inclusion of new samples from current teaching materials.