Life Sciences Commons^™

Exchange Rate Volatility And Bilateral Agricultural Trade Flows: The Case Of The United States And Oecd Countries, Kashi Ram Kafle

LSU Master's Theses

The abandonment of fixed exchange rate systems has caused exchange rate movements to become a major concern for traders, policy makers and researchers. During the previous four decades of floating exchange rates, numerous studies have been conducted to determine whether exchange rate volatility affected international trade flows. Researchers have not yet reached a general consensus as to the magnitude and direction of the impact of exchange rate volatility on trade flows. This study documents the effect of exchange rate volatility and real exchange rates on bilateral agricultural exports, imports and total trade flows between the United States and OECD countries. …

Three Essays On The Labor Allocation Decisions Of The Modern Farm Family, Jeremy Michael D'Antoni

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The goal of this dissertation is to address the role of government payments in the allocation of off-farm labor through three essays. Government payments have been a part of agriculture since 1933 and at no time has the government stated a policy objective of decreasing the agricultural labor force. Using time series data and new econometric techniques, the first essay finds agricultural policy may have an unintended impact on labor migration. Specifically, we find that government payments increased labor migration from the farm. From 1939 to 2007, increased direct government payments resulted in greater migration of labor from agriculture. The …

Economics Of U.S. Government Debt Accumulation, Carlos Ignacio Garcia Jimenez

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The United States of America is an indebted nation in the early years of the new millennium, changing from $469 billion in 1973 to $14 trillion in 2010, as spending is justified on the basis that it promotes GDP growth which in turn increases societal benefits. Despite the benefits of debt, its effectiveness and the transmission mechanisms of fiscal policy are still on debate. Consequently, the economic effects of U.S. government debt accumulation are studied in three empirical research articles.

The dissertation is composed of five chapters. The first chapter is an introduction wherein the problem statement, the purpose, objectives …

The Economics Of Processing Ethanol At Louisiana Sugar Mills: A Three Part Economic Analysis Of Feedstocks, Risk, Business Strategies, And Uncertainty, Paul Michael Darby

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The development of an efficient processing infrastructure is critical for the budding cellulosic ethanol industry. Developing a diverse feedstock portfolio is one crucial part of this process which can lead towards economically feasible cellulosic ethanol production. Cellulosic ethanol production requires the production and transportation of large quantities of biomass. Sugarcane and other dense grasses offer a compelling path towards a successful biomass supply chain. The Louisiana sugar belt already has an infrastructure adapted to the task of biomass supply, and taking advantage of this is one key way that a cellulosic ethanol plant can benefit from the region’s endowment. Additionally, …