While the lowering of trade barriers made globalization of markets and production a theoretical possibility, which of the following has made it a tangible reality? a: the advances in communication, information processing, and transportation technologiesb: the rise of communism and the need for independent economies on a global scalec: the increasing diversity in consumer tastes and preferences worldwided: the increasing differences in the material culture the world overe: the decreasing significance of the world trade organization

Assume today is december 31, 2013. barrington industries expects that its 2014 after-tax operating income [ebit(1 – t)] will be $400 million and its 2014 depreciation expense will be $70 million. barrington's 2014 gross capital expenditures are expected to be $120 million and the change in its net operating working capital for 2014 will be $25 million. the firm's free cash flow is expected to grow at a constant rate of 4.5% annually. assume that its free cash flow occurs at the end of each year. the firm's weighted average cost of capital is 8.6%; the market value of the company's debt is $2.15 billion; and the company has 180 million shares of common stock outstanding. the firm has no preferred stock on its balance sheet and has no plans to use it for future capital budgeting projects. using the corporate valuation model, what should be the company's stock price today (december 31, 2013)? round your answer to the nearest cent. do not round intermediate calculations.

This exercise illustrates that poor quality can affect schedules and costs. a manufacturing process has 130 customer orders to fill. each order requires one component part that is purchased from a supplier. however, typically, 3% of the components are identified as defective, and the components can be assumed to be independent. (a) if the manufacturer stocks 130 components, what is the probability that the 130 orders can be filled without reordering components? (b) if the manufacturer stocks 132 components, what is the probability that the 130 orders can be filled without reordering components? (c) if the manufacturer stocks 135 components, what is the probability that the 130 orders can be filled without reordering components?

In a fixed-term, level-payment reverse mortgage, sometimes called a reverse annuity mortgage, or ram, a lender agrees to pay the homeowner a monthly payment, or annuity, and expects to be repaid from the homeowner’s equity when he or she sells the home or obtains other financing to pay off the ram. consider a household that owns a $150,000 home free and clear of mortgage debt. the ram lender agrees to a $100,000 ram for 10 years at 6 percent. assume payments are made annually, at the beginning of each year to the homeowner. calculate the annual payment on the ram.