Reference at Newman Library

Author: lklusek

Searching for Negative Business News

Both Factiva and NexisUni offer searchers easy access to negative news stories. In NexisUni you can narrow your search results to Negative News using the filters on the left of the results page. Run your news search, then select the Negative News filter. It will narrow your results to articles that contain negative or critical information about a person or a company. The results can be overwhelming so you might want to search within the results or limit by publication.

Factiva has pre-built searches for narrowing a search for news sentiment, either positive or negative. Set up your search on a person or company or industry and then click on Factiva Expert Search in the search options to choose “News Sentiment”.  The News Sentiment category is further subdivided by Negative News- Corporate, Negative News – People, Negative News – Political, and Negative News for various industry sectors. Make your choice by opening the plus sign to select English language. (You must select a language to add the category to your search).

Factiva Expert Searches are pre-defined search strings created by Factiva search experts to find not only News Sentiment but news on topics and subjects that are often difficult for searchers to compose on their own. Thought leadership, customer service, digital analytics, investor sentiment, and institutional investor risk are some of the topics in Expert Search. There are also a limited number of “Trending Topics” like Brexit.

New Industry Surveys in S&P NetAdvantage

Have a look at the current Industry Surveys in S&P NetAdvantage. Two new features have been added that are targeted to business students. First, there is a Porter five forces analysis in the section of the report that covers “Industry Trends”. This will be something that students taking BPL5100 can use.

For accounting and finance students, the other addition is forensic accounting information in the “How to Analyze a Company” section of the report. Boxes labeled “Watch Out” point out accounting gimmicks that companies can use to make their earnings look better than they actually are. They also identify items on the income statement or balance sheet that are key industry metrics that students should understand.

CFRA, the provider of the Industry Surveys to S&P, now offers coverage of 44 industries including new in 2019: Asset Management and Alternative Energy.

Reading the Mueller Report

For students or faculty who want to read a copy of the Mueller report whose official title is the Report on the Investigation into Russian Interference in the 2016 Presidential Election, we have two print copies in our collection. Call number: E911 .M84 2019.

A copy of the redacted report from the U.S. Government Printing Office can be found online.

The New York Times has posted a searchable and indexed version of the redacted report online with their “Key Takeaways” and list of who’s been charged.

In addition, DPLA, the Digital Public Library of America, has published an enhanced version of the report which is freely available in ebook format to read or download. This version has links to more than 740 of the original documents referenced in the footnotes.

A brief summary of the report from Attorney General William Barr was released in a letter to Congressional leaders and can be found on the House Judiciary Committee website.

Economic Data for North Korea

An Economics class is currently researching countries using economic data.  Students have been logging on to chat and asking where to find GDP, PPP and other economic indicators. We all know about the standard country data sources including World Bank open data and the IMF International Financial Statistics (in Periodicals).  But what happens when the student needs data on North Korea, a country not covered by the IMF?

Here is one way to proceed.  Check out the Europa World Yearbook (REF JN1 .E85). It includes basic data pages but it will also tell you if NK belongs to any international organizations. North Korea is a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as well as the United Nation’s Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).

The UN puts very little of its data on the web but you can find the annual Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific (from ESCAP) in reference HC411.U4A23 and their Statistical Yearbook for Asia and the Pacific in reference HA1665.S73.

ASEAN has economic data about its member countries on the web site including a PDF version (almost 300 pages) of its Statistical Yearbook.

I also found this blog from a policy researcher who follows the economy of North Korea and he posted an extensive list of sources that can be used for economic research http://www.nkeconwatch.com/north-korea-statistical-sources/

I haven’t looked at Datastream or Bloomberg but they might be worth a try.

Updating Reports in IBISWorld

Because a student asked for an IBISWorld report we couldn’t find, I called our rep to ask about their updating and retention policy.  Industry reports in the U.S. Core collection are updated from two to four times a year depending on the volatility of the industry.  Changes in the industry environment or new government regulations will prompt an update.  Special “one off” reports or reports on new emerging industries are covered in the U.S. Special collection and these  reports are only updated by client request. If they are not actively used, these reports are taken down after 18 months. At Baruch we have access to both the U.S. Core and U.S. Special collections and the IBISWorld Global reports.

Financial Segment Data for Multinationals

Students in MGT4880 are writing papers about crises faced by multinational companies. As part of this assignment they need to collect data on the geographical and business segments of their companies over the the time before, during, and after the crisis event. The best database to use for these revenue statistics is ThomsonOne.  Students should search for their company and then use the “Fundamentals” tab (at the top of the screen).  The Reuters Fundamentals cover multiple years with data that can be downloaded to Excel. Geographical segments often include country-level as well as a regional breakout of revenues.

ThomsonOne also includes historical company filings for international companies that can help students put the financial data in context.

ThomsonOne is available from the Library’s databases page as well as the Subotnick Center.

New Database – Statista

Statista is a portal for business, government and demographic statistics and reports.  What sets this database apart from others is that it features data as infographics, samples of which can be seen at their free “Chart of the Day.” All graphs/tables can be downloaded, saved or e-mailed.

Statista gathers statistical information from over 10,000 different sources in 23 major industry sectors. Their sources include reports from market researchers, trade and scientific organizations, and government sources.  Some sources come free from the web like World Bank data and reports from the EIA and FCC and other federal agencies. Others are subscription-based sources like Gartner, IDC, and ComScore. Reports from accounting firms Deloitte and PwC are included as are analyst reports from Credit Suisse, Jeffries, Deutsche Bank and others.

Geographic coverage is worldwide with excellent resources covering the U.S. and Europe (Statista is based in Germany) and expanding content for Asia and Latin America especially Brazil, India, and China.

Statista also aggregates data from multiple sources in company and industry Dossiers.  These are lengthy reports (some are 70 or more pages) in PPT and are free for download. They cover both U.S. and international companies and markets. Have a look at the company dossier on Apple  or the industry dossier on Beer Production and Distribution for example.

All graphs/tables come with “Reading Support” that explains the numbers, cites the source, and links directly to the source where available. Data can be downloaded to Excel, in JPG format or as a Powerpoint.

The big Goggle-like search box works well. Search results can be filtered by region or type of data (for example, rankings, forecasts or time series). Results can be sorted by date or by relevance. Browsing by category or keyword is available by clicking on the “Markets” tab. Opening up a “Category” will give direct access to data and reports on that industry category as well as a search box for searching within that category.

I’d especially recommend this database for students doing industry research because of its wide coverage of specialized industry research sources.

Shale Gas Industry

Students in MGT4880 will be researching the shale gas industry again this semester. The teams will focus on shale gas development in countries outside the United States. Outside the U.S., shale gas is often called unconventional gas and some databases like Business Monitor use that industry name.  I met with this class on Wednesday to introduce them to our databases and  I have posted a Shale Gas Industry guide on the Library Guides page.

The Latest Financial Reports for Non-profits

Both Guidestar and the Foundation Center post the IRS 990 forms for non-profits. Non-profits must file with the IRS on the 15th of the 5th month following their fiscal year end, so for December year-end, they file on May 15th. BUT there is a considerable lag in getting the forms online.  Here is what the Foundation Center says about how long it takes for the reports to make it to their website:

In most instances, the time between filing Form 990s and posting them on the Center’s Web site is 5-7 months. We receive the latest Forms 990-PF from the IRS every few weeks and add them to our collection, accessible through our various databases.

However, the total lag time between the end of a foundation’s fiscal year and the point when its IRS filing is publicly available can be anywhere from 12 to 18 months. Foundations have 4 1/2 months to file, and they can request filing extensions. Also, not all foundations end their fiscal year on December 31.

You can see when a foundation usually files its return by looking at “Date Received” stamp on past years’ returns. This filing pattern may help you estimate when a funder’s latest IRS filing will be publicly available online.

So what are your options if the current reports are not online?  First, I’d check the website of  the non-profit you are researching to see if they have posted the 990 form.

You could also make a request in person or in writing. According to IRS disclosure regulations, exempt organizations must make their three most recently filed annual 990 or 990-PF returns and all related supporting documents available for public inspection. Requests made in person must be fulfilled immediately, or within 30 days for a written request, with no charge other than a reasonable fee to cover photocopying and mailing expenses.