EurekAlert! News by Subject: Business & Economics

Business & Economics

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 21-Oct-2026 11:16 ET (21-Oct-2026 15:16 GMT/UTC)

13-Aug-2026

McCombs M.S. programs get new names

University of Texas at Austin
Business Announcement

The McCombs School of Business announced today that two of its most technology-focused graduate programs are getting new names that acknowledge the central role of emerging technologies in the curriculum.

Starting this academic year, the Master of Science in Business Analytics will be renamed the Master of Science in Business Analytics and Artificial Intelligence; the Master of Science in Information Technology and Management will be renamed the Master of Science in Business Technology and Artificial Intelligence.

13-Aug-2026

Robinhood users target simplicity in choosing stocks

Washington State University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Millions of investors using the Robinhood app tend to favor simpler, easy-to-understand stocks, according to new research from Washington State University — and those stocks outperformed more complex firms during the study period.

Journal: Finance Research Letters

13-Aug-2026

Chonnam National University study reveals how environmental responsibility improves financial performance

Chonnam National University, The Research Information Management Team, Office of Research Promotion
Peer-Reviewed Publication

As consumers increasingly favor environmentally responsible businesses, companies are under growing pressure to turn sustainability into a competitive advantage. A new study shows that environmental responsibility improves financial performance indirectly by increasing sales, identifying a key mechanism that has received little attention. The effect was strongest among large Chaebol firms and became more pronounced after the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the growing influence of green consumerism on business success.

Journal: Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management

12-Aug-2026

Credit ratings can shape corporate financial decisions

University of Texas at Austin
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Cesare Fracassi, associate professor of finance, shows that by defining a company’s risk level, agencies can sway some of its business decisions. When Moody’s Ratings reclassified some securities on companies’ balance sheets, it prompted them to borrow an average 22% more — perhaps because they could do so without hurting their credit ratings.

“They raised more debt, and they increased their investments, even though financially, nothing really had happened to the companies,” Fracassi says.

Journal: The Review of Corporate Finance Studies

12-Aug-2026

AI-powered shopping trolley users spend 32% more in supermarkets, pilot study finds

City St George’s, University of London
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Shoppers who use trolleys embedded with digital screens to assist trips to the supermarket spend up to a third more than those who do not, according to new research by Bayes Business School (City St George’s, University of London).

Journal: Journal of Business Research

12-Aug-2026

Negotiation is a routine part of daily life, not a rare high-stakes event, finds new study at ESMT Berlin

ESMT Berlin
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Many people think of negotiation as something reserved for salary talks, car purchases, or business deals: infrequent, high-stake encounters most people would rather avoid. A new study shows that this assumption is misleading. Negotiation is, in fact, a routine part of everyday life, occurring in roughly one in three social interactions, and it is more often collaborative than adversarial.

Journal: Negotiation and Conflict Management Research

12-Aug-2026

Women with endometriosis may lose a month’s salary each year

Semmelweis University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Menstrual leave and flexible work arrangements are the forms of support women with endometriosis say would help them most, according to a new study by researchers at Semmelweis University published in Preventive Medicine Reports. Pain and fatigue lead to more frequent absences from work and reduced job performance. The first large-scale study of its kind from Central and Eastern Europe found that women with endometriosis lose an average of €1,757 in income each year – roughly equivalent to one month’s average salary in Hungary. This estimate reflects income lost because of work absences and does not include the costs of reduced productivity at work or health care expenses.

Journal: Preventive Medicine Reports

12-Aug-2026

Good news, false expectations? How people assess potential returns in the stock market

University of Cologne
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A study by the Cluster of Excellence ECONtribute published in The Quarterly Journal of Economics shows why people often draw different conclusions from company news than financial economics would suggest and how much this has to do with the way they think markets work.

Journal: The Quarterly Journal of Economics

12-Aug-2026

Oxytocin selectively boosts trust

University of Zurich
Peer-Reviewed Publication

For over 20 years, it has been a matter of dispute whether oxytocin bolsters trust. A new study conducted with the involvement of the University of Zurich now provides robust evidence that the hormone selectively increases trusting behavior in men with a low disposition to trust.

Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences