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2012

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Articles 301 - 330 of 1363

Full-Text Articles in Economics

Wages And Informality In Developing Countries, Costas Meghir, Renata Narita, Jean-Marc Robin Sep 2012

Wages And Informality In Developing Countries, Costas Meghir, Renata Narita, Jean-Marc Robin

Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers

It is often argued that informal labor markets in developing countries promote growth by reducing the impact of regulation. On the other hand informality may reduce the amount of social protection offered to workers. We extend the wage-posting framework of Burdett and Mortensen (1998) to allow heterogeneous firms to decide whether to locate in the formal or the informal sector, as well as set wages. Workers engage in both off the job and on the job search. We estimate the model using Brazilian micro data and evaluate the labor market and welfare effects of policies towards informality.


The Strategic Impact Of Higher-Order Beliefs, Yi-Chun Chen, Alfredo Di Tillio, Eduardo Faingold, Siyang Xiong Sep 2012

The Strategic Impact Of Higher-Order Beliefs, Yi-Chun Chen, Alfredo Di Tillio, Eduardo Faingold, Siyang Xiong

Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers

Previous research has established that the predictions made by game theory about strategic behavior in incomplete information games are quite sensitive to the assumptions made about the players’ infinite hierarchies of beliefs. We evaluate the severity of this robustness problem by characterizing conditions on the primitives of the model — the players’ hierarchies of beliefs — for the strategic behavior of a given Harsanyi type to be approximated by the strategic behavior of (a sequence of) perturbed types. This amounts to providing characterizations of the strategic topologies of Dekel, Fudenberg, and Morris (2006) in terms of beliefs. We apply our …


What Have They Been Thinking? Homebuyer Behavior In Hot And Cold Markets — A 2014 Update, Karl E. Case, Robert J. Shiller, Anne K. Thompson Sep 2012

What Have They Been Thinking? Homebuyer Behavior In Hot And Cold Markets — A 2014 Update, Karl E. Case, Robert J. Shiller, Anne K. Thompson

Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers

Questionnaire surveys undertaken in 1988 and annually from 2003 through 2014 of recent homebuyers in each of four U.S. metropolitan areas shed light on their expectations and reasons for buying during the recent housing boom and subsequent collapse. They also provide insight into the reasons for the housing crisis that initiated the current financial malaise. We find that homebuyers were generally well informed, and that their short-run expectations if anything underreacted to the year-to-year change in actual home prices. More of the root causes of the housing bubble can be seen in their long-term (10-year) home price expectations, which reached …


Leverage And Default In Binomial Economies: A Complete Characterization, Ana Fostel, John Geanakoplos Sep 2012

Leverage And Default In Binomial Economies: A Complete Characterization, Ana Fostel, John Geanakoplos

Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers

Our paper provides a complete characterization of leverage and default in binomial economies with financial assets serving as collateral. Our Binomial No-Default Theorem states that any equilibrium is equivalent (in real allocations and prices) to another equilibrium in which there is no default. Thus actual default is irrelevant, though the potential for default drives the equilibrium and limits borrowing. This result is valid with arbitrary preferences and endowments, contingent or non-contingent promises, many assets and consumption goods, production, and multiple periods. We also show that no-default equilibria would be selected if there were the slightest cost of using collateral or …


Leverage And Default In Binomial Economies: A Complete Characterization, Ana Fostel, John Geanakoplos Sep 2012

Leverage And Default In Binomial Economies: A Complete Characterization, Ana Fostel, John Geanakoplos

Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers

Our paper provides a complete characterization of leverage and default in binomial economies with financial assets serving as collateral. Our Binomial No-Default Theorem states that any equilibrium is equivalent (in real allocations and prices) to another equilibrium in which there is no default. Thus actual default is irrelevant, though the potential for default drives the equilibrium and limits borrowing. This result is valid with arbitrary preferences and endowments, contingent or non-contingent promises, many assets and consumption goods, production, and multiple periods. We also show that no-default equilibria would be selected if there were the slightest cost of using collateral or …


On Confidence Intervals For Autoregressive Roots And Predictive Regression, Peter C.B. Phillips Sep 2012

On Confidence Intervals For Autoregressive Roots And Predictive Regression, Peter C.B. Phillips

Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers

A prominent use of local to unity limit theory in applied work is the construction of confidence intervals for autogressive roots through inversion of the ADF t statistic associated with a unit root test, as suggested in Stock (1991). Such confidence intervals are valid when the true model has an autoregressive root that is local to unity (τ = 1 + ( c/n )) but are invalid at the limits of the domain of definition of the localizing coefficient c because of a failure in tightness and the escape of probability mass. Consideration of the boundary case shows that these …


Leverage And Default In Binomial Economies: A Complete Characterization, Ana Fostel, John Geanakoplos Sep 2012

Leverage And Default In Binomial Economies: A Complete Characterization, Ana Fostel, John Geanakoplos

Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers

Our paper provides a complete characterization of leverage and default in binomial economies with financial assets serving as collateral. First, our Binomial No-Default Theorem states that any equilibrium is equivalent (in real allocations and prices) to another equilibrium in which there is no default. Thus actual default is irrelevant, though the potential for default drives the equilibrium and limits borrowing. This result is valid with arbitrary preferences and endowments, arbitrary promises, many assets and consumption goods, production, and multiple periods. We also show that the no-default equilibrium would be selected if there were the slightest cost of using collateral or …


Potential Effects Of The Affordable Care Act On The Award Of Life Care Expenses, Joshua Congdon-Hohman, Victor Matheson Sep 2012

Potential Effects Of The Affordable Care Act On The Award Of Life Care Expenses, Joshua Congdon-Hohman, Victor Matheson

Economics Department Working Papers

Plaintiffs in personal injury lawsuits are entitled to compensation for future medical expenses. We argue that the “guaranteed issue” and “individual mandate” requirements of the recently passed Affordable Care Act (ACA) will allow victims to address their health needs through the purchase of a simple health insurance plan rather than direct compensation for an itemized list of health care needs. As such, damage awards for health expenditures should be capped at a maximum of $5,950 per year. Furthermore, the role of a life care planner should evolve into determining which life care expenses are covered under covered by the minimum …


Regional Allocation Of Carbon Dioxide Abatement In China, Chu Wei, Jinlan Ni, Limin Du Sep 2012

Regional Allocation Of Carbon Dioxide Abatement In China, Chu Wei, Jinlan Ni, Limin Du

Economics Faculty Publications

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chieco.2011.06.002


Does Government Spending Undermine Monetary Policy In Nigeria?, Emmanuel T. Adamgbe, Peter D. Golit, Izuchukwu I. Okafor Sep 2012

Does Government Spending Undermine Monetary Policy In Nigeria?, Emmanuel T. Adamgbe, Peter D. Golit, Izuchukwu I. Okafor

Economic and Financial Review

In Nigeria, anecdotal evidence suggest that the fiscal/operations of government, especially disbursements from the Federation Account to the three-tiers of government, had over the years created liquidity challenges requiring aggressive monetary management. Against the background, this paper addresses two questions: (i) Does government spending have significant spill-over effects on inflation in Nigeria? (ii) Does government, spending induce a concomitant response by the CBN? ln addition, unlike the sparse literature in Nigeria on these two issues, which essentially relies on constant parameter model we use of time-varying parameter vector autoregressive (TVP-VAR) model with stochastic volatility. Applying this framework allows us not …


Reforming State Education Aid In New York State, John Yinger Sep 2012

Reforming State Education Aid In New York State, John Yinger

Center for Policy Research

It’s Elementary is a series of essays on topics in education and education policy. The main focus is on education finance in New York State, but general research findings in education and education policy issues in several other states are also discussed. John Yinger, Professor of Economics and Public Administration at the Maxwell School, Syracuse University is the author of most of these essays, although a few are written by or co-authored with other scholars.


On The Estimation And Testing Of Fixed Effects Panel Data Models With Weak Instruments, Badi Baltagi, Chihwa Kao, Long Liu Sep 2012

On The Estimation And Testing Of Fixed Effects Panel Data Models With Weak Instruments, Badi Baltagi, Chihwa Kao, Long Liu

Center for Policy Research

This paper studies the asymptotic properties of within groups k-class estimators in a panel data model with weak instruments. Weak instruments are characterized by the coefficients of the instruments in the reduced form equation shrinking to zero at a rate proportional to nTδ ; where n is the dimension of the cross-section and T is the dimension of the time series. Joint limits as (n,T )→∞show that this within group k-class estimator is consistent if 0 ≤δ ≤ ½ and inconsistent if ½ ≤δ ≤ ∞.


Asset Prices, Credit Growth And Monetary Policy In Nigeria, Kama Ukpai, Dinchi J. Yilkudi, Hannah Ukeje Sep 2012

Asset Prices, Credit Growth And Monetary Policy In Nigeria, Kama Ukpai, Dinchi J. Yilkudi, Hannah Ukeje

Economic and Financial Review

This paper contributes to the debate on the monetary policy transmission mechanism in Nigeria. The paper explores the impact of monetary policy on credit growth, and whether these credit developments are capable of influencing asset prices (stock prices) in the Nigerian economy. Using the VAR model spanning annual data from 1986 to 2012, the impulse response functions revealed that the relationship between asset prices, captured by the All-Share Index, and monetary policy, is not direct, but operates mainly through the response of inflation to key monetary aggregate. A positive shock to money supply growth would raise credit and inflation which …


Transmission Of Exchange Rate Shocks Into Domestic Pries Does It Exist For Nigeria, Toyin S. Ogunleye, Nkenchor N. Lgue, Adebola A. Aremu Sep 2012

Transmission Of Exchange Rate Shocks Into Domestic Pries Does It Exist For Nigeria, Toyin S. Ogunleye, Nkenchor N. Lgue, Adebola A. Aremu

Economic and Financial Review

The study re-examined the transmission of exchange shock into domestic prices in Nigeria. The non-recursive Structural VAR methodology was employed to examine long-run pass-through of exchange rate to domestic inflation. It found from the result of the lRFs that exchange rate pass-through to domestic prices in Nigeria do exist; and is incomplete. The results further shows that the response of core inflation to shocks in nominal exchange rate was more pronounced and persistent over time than the headline inflation. Using FEVD, the study found that exchange rate and supply constraints are key drivers of domestic prices in Nigeria. The study …


Does China Still Have A Labor Cost Advantage?, J. Ceglowski, Stephen S. Golub Sep 2012

Does China Still Have A Labor Cost Advantage?, J. Ceglowski, Stephen S. Golub

Economics Faculty Works

In recent years wages in China have been rising and the yuan has appreciated, potentially eroding China’s cost advantage in manufactures. This paper explores the evolution of China’s relative unit labor costs in manufacturing over 1998-2009. Between 1998 and 2003 China’s unit labor costs fell, but since 2003 they have increased both absolutely and relative to US unit labor costs. Much of the rise in China’s relative unit labor costs can be traced to a real appreciation of the yuan against the dollar. Despite the recent rise, China’s unit labor costs remain low relative to those in most other countries.


Ceos Off The Clock, Kevin F. Hallock Sep 2012

Ceos Off The Clock, Kevin F. Hallock

Economics Faculty Publications

There is new and interesting academic work on how executives spend their time and the personal choices they make to maximize utility. From a compensation point of view, one issue that has been at the forefront with respect to executives is perks. One CEO compensation perk that has also received increased scrutiny but is surviving better than club memberships is the use of private aircraft. In a related April 2012 paper, "Executives' 'Off-The-Job' Behavior, Corporate Culture and Financial Reporting Risk" (National Bureau of Economic Research working paper), Robert Davidson, Abbie Smith and Aiyesha Dey consider other off-the-clock behaviors of CEOs …


Forensic Economics, Eric Zitzewitz Sep 2012

Forensic Economics, Eric Zitzewitz

Dartmouth Scholarship

A new meta-field of "forensic economics" has begun to emerge, uncovering evidence of hidden behavior in a variety of domains. Examples include teachers cheating on exams, road builders skimping on materials, violations of U.N. sanctions, unnecessary heart surgeries, and racial biases in employment decisions, traffic stops, auto retailing, and even sports judging. In each case, part of the contribution of economic analysis is in uncovering evidence of wrongdoing. Although research questions differ, forensic economic work shares commonalities in approaches and limitations. This article seeks to draw out the common threads, with the hope of stimulating further research across fields. (JEL …


Endogenous Leverage In A Binomial Economy: The Irrelevance Of Actual Default, Ana Fostel, John Geanakoplos Sep 2012

Endogenous Leverage In A Binomial Economy: The Irrelevance Of Actual Default, Ana Fostel, John Geanakoplos

Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers

We show that binomial economies with financial assets are an informative and tractable model to study endogenous leverage and collateral equilibrium: endogenous leverage can be highly volatile, but it is always easy to compute. The possibility of default can have a dramatic effect on equilibrium, if collateral is scarce, yet we prove the No-Default Theorem asserting that, without loss of generality, there is no default in equilibrium. Thus potential default has a dramatic effect on equilibrium, but actual default does not. This result is valid with arbitrary preferences, contingent promises, many assets and consumption goods, production, and multiple periods. On …


Mountain Monitor-2nd Quarter 2012, Mark Muro, Kenan Fikri Sep 2012

Mountain Monitor-2nd Quarter 2012, Mark Muro, Kenan Fikri

Mountain Monitor Quarterly

Data for the second quarter of 2012 reveal that the large metropolitan areas of the Mountain region were undergoing some of both the strongest and weakest economic recoveries in the nation—even as the pace of recovery across the region as a whole slackened. The result is a new geography. Crash-blasted Boise and Phoenix, along with Utah’s metropolitan areas, are now recovering relatively strongly while Colorado’s metropolitan areas and Albuquerque, Las Vegas, and Tucson struggle.


The State Of Ohio's Steel Industry, Edward W. Hill, Iryna Lendel, Fran Stewart Sep 2012

The State Of Ohio's Steel Industry, Edward W. Hill, Iryna Lendel, Fran Stewart

All Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs Publications

No abstract provided.


Technology Growth And Expenditure Growth In Health Care, Amitabh Chandra, Jonathan Skinner Sep 2012

Technology Growth And Expenditure Growth In Health Care, Amitabh Chandra, Jonathan Skinner

Dartmouth Scholarship

In the United States, health care technology has contributed to rising survival rates, yet health care spending relative to GDP has also grown more rapidly than in any other country. We develop a model of patient demand and supplier behavior to explain these parallel trends in technology growth and cost growth. We show that health care productivity depends on the heterogeneity of treatment effects across patients, the shape of the health production function, and the cost structure of procedures such as MRIs with high fixed costs and low marginal costs. The model implies a typology of medical technology productivity: (I) …


Size Of Home, Home Ownership, And The Mortgage Interest Deduction, Andrew R. Hanson Sep 2012

Size Of Home, Home Ownership, And The Mortgage Interest Deduction, Andrew R. Hanson

Economics Faculty Research and Publications

This paper offers an empirical test of the effect of the mortgage interest deduction (MID) on both the extensive (own vs. rent) and intensive (size of home) housing purchase margins. Using state level differences in MID availability to identify, I examine this relationship using standard ordinary least squares, instrumental variables, regression discontinuity, and sample selection estimation techniques. I find the MID to be responsible for a 10.9–18.4% increase in the size of home purchased, but that no relationship exists between the MID and home ownership. These results imply an elasticity of home size with respect to changes in user cost …


The Impact Of Workers' Remittances On Macro Indicators:The Case Of The Gulf Cooperation Council, Majid Taghavi Sep 2012

The Impact Of Workers' Remittances On Macro Indicators:The Case Of The Gulf Cooperation Council, Majid Taghavi

Topics in Middle Eastern and North African Economies

No abstract provided.


Child Labor Supply In Palestine: Trends And Perspectives, Issam Abu-Ghallous Sep 2012

Child Labor Supply In Palestine: Trends And Perspectives, Issam Abu-Ghallous

Topics in Middle Eastern and North African Economies

No abstract provided.


Islamic Finance And Global Financial Crises: How To Keep Finance On Track?, Ayman Zerban, Eslam H. Elkady, Rafik F. Omar Sep 2012

Islamic Finance And Global Financial Crises: How To Keep Finance On Track?, Ayman Zerban, Eslam H. Elkady, Rafik F. Omar

Topics in Middle Eastern and North African Economies

No abstract provided.


The Impact Of Climate Change On Coastal Tourism In Mena Countries., Alain Safa, Nathalie Hilmi Sep 2012

The Impact Of Climate Change On Coastal Tourism In Mena Countries., Alain Safa, Nathalie Hilmi

Topics in Middle Eastern and North African Economies

No abstract provided.


Environmental Performance Of Developing Countries: A Comparative Study, Salpie Djoundourian Sep 2012

Environmental Performance Of Developing Countries: A Comparative Study, Salpie Djoundourian

Topics in Middle Eastern and North African Economies

No abstract provided.


The Impact Of Broadband Infrastructure On Economic Growth In Some Arab And Emerging Countries, Mona Farid Badran Sep 2012

The Impact Of Broadband Infrastructure On Economic Growth In Some Arab And Emerging Countries, Mona Farid Badran

Topics in Middle Eastern and North African Economies

No abstract provided.


Coral Reefs And Tourism In Egypt's Red Sea, Nathalie Hilmi, Alain Safa, Stéphanie Reynaud Sep 2012

Coral Reefs And Tourism In Egypt's Red Sea, Nathalie Hilmi, Alain Safa, Stéphanie Reynaud

Topics in Middle Eastern and North African Economies

No abstract provided.


Forecasting Energy Demand In Jordan Using Artificial Neural Networks, Bassam M. Abual-Foul Sep 2012

Forecasting Energy Demand In Jordan Using Artificial Neural Networks, Bassam M. Abual-Foul

Topics in Middle Eastern and North African Economies

No abstract provided.