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The main objective of this paper is to determine the optimum portfolio of the Tehran Stock Exchange with respect to the Value at Risk (VaR) index. Daily data are on the shares of 30 active companies traded in the Tehran Stock Exchange with daily expected return above 0.4 percent in 2004. Optimum portfolio is selected subject to the investors' budget, risk and VaR confidence levels. Results reveal that the higher confidence level of VaR requires more diversified portfolio. Therefore, beginner investors and those with higher degree of risk aversion should diversify their budget among shares of various companies. Also, the level of investment affects the combination of the selected portfolio. Results also show that the Risk-Return trade off are in favor of risk averse investors and the change in time length period can also change the optimal portfolio.

This study attempts to investigate the effects of some government spending on poverty reduction in rural areas of Iran. Using time series data of 1971-2001, a system of equations including variables affecting poverty and productivity growth was considered. The system equations included poverty, total factor productivity, nonagricultural employment, road, irrigation, power, wage and terms of trade. Using the simultaneity and diagonolity tests, the results showed three stage least square method is more suitable in this study. Marginal effects of government spending on poverty were calculated. Based on the results, government spending on rural and community development, roads agricultural research and development and irrigation, have the large impact on poverty reduction, respectively.