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With the rapid growth of global urbanization and the rising demand for sustainable development, it is essential to study the performance and durability of building materials. As a traditional and widely employed building material, Chinese clay tiles play a significant role in traditional Chinese architecture. However, traditional methods for assessing structural surface damage necessitate the time-consuming and labor-intensive assessment and judgment of trained professionals. Consequently, it is crucial to employ machine learning techniques for automatic damage type identification. This study identifies the types of damage to Chinese clay tiles in Macau by employing machine learning techniques and the YOLOv4 object detection model. A total of 363 photographs of on-site Chinese clay tiles were used as training samples, and 200 epochs of the model training were performed. The primary findings of this study are as follows: (1) The machine learning method, based on the YOLOv4 model, provides an effective and precise solution for the automatic identification of Chinese clay tiles damage types, overcoming the human and time-cost constraints of conventional evaluation methods. (2) The detection accuracy of the detection model in this study is 95.42% for the detection of Chinese clay tiles cracks, 80.91% for the detection of stains, and 89.34% for the detection of surface wear, with an overall accuracy of 88.98%, which meets the basic detection requirements. (3) The experimental results demonstrate the viability and efficacy of the proposed method for identifying clay tile damage types and provide a method reference for the preservation and sustainable development of historical buildings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How to leverage the advantages of state-owned capital to promote the high-quality development of private enterprises is a central issue of mixed-ownership reform. We empirically explore the effect of reverse mixed-ownership reform on the cost of equity financing for private enterprises and the underlying mechanism from two perspectives: equity structure and high-level governance using fixed-effect and IV regressions. We find that reverse mixed-ownership reform significantly reduces the cost of equity financing for private enterprises. The mediation effect tests suggest that the improvement of information disclosure quality and equity liquidity partially play intermediary roles in the relation between the reform and the equity financing cost. Heterogeneity tests suggest that cost of equity financing for private enterprises are significantly reduced for firms operating in highly competitive industry environment and firms located in regions with lower level of marketization. We contribute to the understanding of the economic consequences of reverse mixed-ownership reform and provide policy insights for further advancing the reform in private enterprises while effectively harnessing the advantages of state-owned capital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine the incremental predictive power of credit rating on a firm's future financial distress using a sample of Chinese credit ratings from 2008 to 2019. Our findings suggest that such credit ratings, especially those using investor-pay mode, improve the incremental predictive power of firms' future financial distress. Specifically, a one notch rating level increase of issuer-pay (investor-pay) credit rating translates into 1.69% (10.24%) lower probability of financial distress. The findings are robust to using a propensity score matching sample and an alternative metric for financial distress. Additional analysis suggests that the incremental predictive power of credit rating on financial distress is more salient for subsamples of credit ratings 1) issued by credit rating agencies (CRAs) with large market shares, 2) when a CRA has a low likelihood of collusion with a firm, or 3) when a firm receives both investor-pay and issuer-pay credit rating. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the data of Shanghai and Shenzhen A-share listed companies from 2009 to 2018, we explore the impact of delayed disclosure of annual report on the accuracy of financial distress prediction. We find that the information of disclosure delay can significantly improve the accuracy of financial distress prediction. After using alternative measurement of the disclosure delay and considering the endogeneity problem, our conclusions are robust. Our study provides reference for regulatory authorities to standardize the companies' disclosure behaviours and prevent and resolve their major risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aim:Several recent studies showed that the genetic polymorphisms in the PNPLA3 region (rs738408, rs738409, rs2294918, rs2294919 and rs2281135) were with related to various kinds of liver diseases. We analyzed the five single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for major HBV outcomes in Han Chinese. Methods:A total of 2410 samples were involved and peripheral blood samples were collected in this study. The SNPs in the PNPLA3 region were genotyped by using Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass spectrometry. Results:Our study indicated the clear relationship between the PNPLA3 rs2294918, rs2294919 and HBV-related HCC after control for the effects of sex, drinking and smoking. Health subjects with the PNPLA3 rs2294919 TC genotype would have a 0.605 (95%CI: 0.413, 0.886;p = .010) times lower odds of having HCC, and those with the rs2294918 AG genotype would have a 1.872 (95%CI: 1.256, 2.792;p = .002) times higher odds of having HCC, whereas the values of sex, age, drinking and smoking were fixed. In addition, CA haplotype of the haplotype block of rs738409 and rs2281135 was also associated with HBV-related HCC. Conclusions:Our study suggested that PNPLA3 loci (rs2294918, rs2294919) were associated with HBV-related HCC in Han Chinese. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study investigated correlations between polymorphisms in DNA mismatch repair (MMR) genes and the risk of primary hepatocellular carcinoma (PHC). Methods. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the DNA MMR genes MLH3 (rs175080), PMS1 (rs5742933), PMS2 (rs1059060), MSH3 (rs26279), MSH5 (rs1150793, rs2075789) and MSH6 (rs1042821) were detected using the SNaPshot method in 250 PHC cases and in 308 patients without PHC in the Han population in northern China. Results. The AA genotype in MLH3 (rs175080) increased the risk of PHC (odds ratio [OR] = 3.424; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.097–10.689). The AG and GG genotypes in MSH3 (rs26279) increased the risk of PHC (OR: 1.644 and 3.300; 95% CI: 1.112–2.428 and 1.765–6.168, respectively). The AA genotype in MSH5 (rs2075789) increased the risk of PHC (OR: 9.229; 95% CI: 1.174–72.535). The CT genotype in MSH6 (rs1042821) reduced the risk of PHC (OR: 0.629; 95% CI: 0.428–0.924). Conclusions. Our study suggests that polymorphisms in MLH3 (rs175080), MSH3 (rs26279), MSH5 (rs2075789) and MSH6 (rs1042821) may be independent risk factors for PHC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]