Producer price adjustment to commodity price shocks: An application of threshold cointegration

During the 1980s and 1990s, most developing countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America implemented structural adjustment reforms, which included the liberalization of export crop markets and the abolition of marketing boards. The emergence of new marketing systems may have altered price transmission mechanisms, especially if collusion behaviors have appeared among domestic stakeholders along the marketing chain. I use threshold cointegration tools to analyze the dynamics of world price transmission to coffee growers in three deregulated markets. The methods I use allow me to test the presence of a threshold in both the cointegrating relationship and its corresponding error correction model. Over the pre-reform period, I detect asymmetric price adjustments that appear favorable to producers - deviations from the long-run equilibrium resulting from largest increases in world prices being eliminated relatively quickly - and disappear in the post-reform period. On the contrary over the post-reform period, the results suggest that largest decreases in world prices may be transmitted relatively quickly to growers. These results can be seen as expressions of a favorable pricing policy over the pre-reform period and an unfavorable influence of new private agents over the post-reform period, meaning that in some cases reforms may have failed to create competitive market structures.     

Has the structural break slowed down growth rates of stock markets?

In this paper, we use the common structural break test suggested by Bai et al. (1998) to test for a common structural break in the stock prices of the US, the UK, and Japan. On the basis of the structural break, we divide each country's stock price series into sub-samples and investigate whether or not the structural break had slowed down the growth of stock markets. Our main findings are that when stock markets are modelled in a trivariate sense the common structural break turns out to be 1990:02, with the confidence interval including several episodes, such as the asset price bubble when housing prices and stock prices in Japan reached a peak in 1988/1989, the early 1990s recession in the UK, the business cycle peak of July 1990, the August 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait and the March 1991 business cycle trough. Annual average growth rates suggest that the structural break has slowed down the growth rate of the US, the UK and Japanese stock markets.     

Volatility transmission between Islamic and conventional equity markets: evidence from causality-in-variance test

This study examines whether a volatility/risk transmission exists between the Dow Jones Islamic stock and three conventional stock markets for the United States, Europe and Asia during the pre- and the in- and post-2008 crisis periods. It also explores the volatility spillover dynamics between those markets and US Monetary policy, oil prices, global financial risk and uncertainty factors. The recently developed Hafner and Herwartz (2006)’s causality-in-variance test provides evidence of risk transfers between these seemingly different equity markets, indicating a contagion between them during the full sample and the subperiods. The volatility structure of these markets is dominated by short-run volatility in the first period and by high long-run volatility in the second period. The volatility impulse response analysis indicates a similar volatility transmission pattern although it is characterized by a more volatile and short-lived structure in the second period. It also appears that the Islamic equity market responds to shocks from the risk factors and not from the oil price and the US economic policy uncertainty index during both periods.     

Have food and financial markets integrated?

This article analyses comovements and discusses possibly greater market integration between aggregate food commodity and stock prices in the period 1990 to 2012. Return correlations, price return distributions, cointegration and Granger-causalities are tested in subsamples on monthly FAO Food Price Index and MSCI World Stock Market Index. Empirical results suggest that while there is only weak indication of greater comovements concurrent with structural changes such as changed agricultural policies, new demand due to growth in emerging markets and energy mandates and the financialization of food markets since the early 2000s, they did start to increase substantially in particular during the financial stress of the Lehman crisis and the Great Recession. While structural changes may have amplified price linkages across markets, results do not suggest that they are the key factors for greater price comovements. Instead, the effects of the late-2000s recession as a time of great economic weakness and uncertainty may have changed concurrently the behaviour of both food and financial market participants, such that different market prices exhibit large comovements.     

Cointegration and price discovery in US corn cash and futures markets

Using prices from 182 cash markets from seven states and the Chicago Board of Trade futures, we investigate cointegration and price discovery for corn. Analysis based on cash–futures pairs reveals that cointegration holds for 52 cash markets and failures tend to happen farther away from futures delivery locations. Cash generally are as important as futures prices as information sources in the long run and cash to futures information flow is most likely in the short run. Contributions to price discovery also are measured quantitatively for cointegrated cases. Analysis based on state-level cash prices indicates bidirectional information flow between cash and futures prices under a bivariate model, and futures to cash information flow under the octavariate model with all cash and the futures series. Comparisons of the two models show that including local cash markets in a price relationship model highlights cointegration and the futures’ price discovery role and could benefit cash price forecasting. Finally, evidence of nonlinear causality is found.     

THE AGRICULTURAL TERMS OF TRADE IN BANGLADESH: AN ECONOMETRIC ANALYSIS OF TRENDS AND MOVEMENTS, 1952–2006

This paper investigates the trends and movements of agricultural prices, industrial prices and the agricultural terms of trade in Bangladesh with annual data for the period 1952–2006. The ADF and KPSS tests results suggest that both agricultural and industrial prices have a unit root while the agricultural terms of trade is trend-stationary. These results remain unchanged if allowance is made in the unit root test for the possibility of a structural break during 1971–1975 (when Bangladesh gained independence from Pakistan and experienced economic shocks) by applying the two-step procedure of Perron (1989 ). A simple Nerlovian agricultural price determination model is specified within the framework of aggregate demand and aggregate supply. The Johansen cointegration test results for the periods 1953–2006 and 1973–2006 suggest that there exists a cointegral relationship between agricultural prices, industrial prices, per-capita real income and the real exchange rate between the Bangladeshi taka and the US dollar under the restriction that per-capita real income and the real exchange rate are 'long-run forcing variables' in the sense of Pesaran and Shin (1995 ), and Pesaran, Shin and Smith (1996 ). The paper estimates a four-variable vector error-correction (VEC) model and conducts an impulse response analysis for the post-independence period, 1973–2006.     

Estimating the optimal hedge ratio in the presence of potential unknown structural breaks

We propose a new approach in the estimation of the optimal hedge ratio that allows the hedge ratio to vary over time but without the necessity of frequently rebalancing the portfolio. We apply this in the context of the US and UK equity markets using weekly spot share prices and future share prices during the period 5 January 1999 to 29 September 2009. Our method is to test for cointegration in the presence of two potentially unknown structural breaks by determining the timing of each via the underlying data. The empirical findings reveal that the spot and future prices are strongly cointegrated in each market. The estimated parameters disclose that the optimal hedge ratio is not constant in case of the US and the UK. We find one negative and one positive shift in the optimal hedge ratio in the US. However, we find only one significant and positive shift in the optimal hedge ratio in the UK. The implication of these findings from the perspective of both investors as well as policy-makers is elaborated on in the main text.     

Exchange rate pass-through, menu costs and threshold cointegration

This paper investigates exchange rate pass-through (ERPT) in the presence of menu costs. Assuming exports prices are negotiated in the exporter’s currency, menu costs give rise to two thresholds around (within) which incomplete ERPT is (not) observed. An error correcting process is triggered from a deviation in the ERPT cointegrating relation only when the deviation is large enough in absolute value to fall outside of a band defined by symmetric thresholds. Threshold autoregressive (TAR) cointegration techniques are used to investigate Quebec and Ontario pork meat export prices in the US and Japanese markets. Through Monte Carlo simulations, we find that our Equilibrium-TAR tests have greater power than a standard unit root test. Our empirical application suggests that Canadian pork exporters exercise market power in the US market. The evidence of incomplete ERPT in the Japanese market is weaker and differs across provinces. Evidence of thresholds is reported for both destinations, thus indicating the existence of significant menu costs for Canadian pork exporters in these markets.     

Study on the price co-movement among the Asia Pacific,European and Chinese coal markets – based on the empirical analysis of MS-VEC model

In this article, based on weekly data of the three major coal markets (the Asia Pacific, Europe and China) from March 2008 to November 2014, an empirical research on their mutual influence and price co-movement effect among the three major coal markets is conducted by using the Co-integration Theory, Granger Causality Test and markov switching-Vector Error Correction (MS-VEC) model. The conclusions are as follows. (1) There exists a long-term cointegration relationship and bidirectional causality relationship between coal prices at home and abroad, and the influences of foreign coal markets on the domestic coal markets are stronger than the influences of domestic coal markets on foreign coal markets, and thus the interaction between the two markets leads to asymmetric linkage effects. (2) Compared with the VEC model, the MS-VEC model can reflect the nonlinear feature of price co-movement effects. (3) There exists an inherent adjustment mechanism between domestic and foreign coal markets, i.e. the coal prices will be self-revised continuously until a long-term equilibrium state is achieved when a deviation from the equilibrium state occurs. (4) There exists a co-movement effect which varies with the change of regime among the three coal prices, and the self-maintenance is strong and the status transfer phenomenon is clear in different regimes.     

国际油价波动对经济增长的影响——基于中国的实证分析

基于1990年1月至2009年3月的月度数据,本文实证分析了我国经济增长与国际石油价格之间的长期变动关系,其特点在于,采用稳健性较强的T-Y因果检验来分析油价与经济增长的Granger因果关系,同时,运用非对称协整技术以考察油价与经济增长之间的非线性关系。研究发现：①长期中油价是我国经济增长的单向Granger原因;②油价与我国经济增长之间存在非对称协整关系,油价上涨对经济活动的负面影响大于油价下跌的积极影响。基于中国经济运行的实际,本文还分析了实证结果背后的原因,并提出当前国际金融危机背景下,油价呈下跌趋势,需抓住有利时机,动用外汇储备,大力购入石油资源,建立起石油战略储备;在经济复苏、油价上涨时,可以启动石油战略储备来减少石油供应冲击,从而有助于及时保证我国经济平稳快速增长的政策建议。     

The price relationship between organic and non-organic vegetables in the U.S.: evidence from Nielsen scanner data

This study investigates price relationships between organic and conventional carrots, tomatoes, and lettuce in the U.S. utilizing Nielsen scanner data from 2006–2015. We employ a threshold vector error correction model (TVECM), threshold vector autoregressive model (TVAR), and threshold cointegration test to test whether market integration exists between organic and conventional vegetables as well as the existence of asymmetric price transmission. The results find positive long-run relationships between organic and conventional prices of carrots and tomatoes and show the existence of asymmetric price transmission in price pairs of lettuce and tomatoes. Our findings suggest that the price relationship between organic and conventional vegetables varies by characteristics, such as shelf life, volatility in the price premium, and substitutability.     

Fourier ADL cointegration test to approximate smooth breaks with new evidence from Crude Oil Market

Economic data is typically subject to a number of different forms of structural breaks. Ignoring structural breaks in a model can lead to misspecification issues and false conclusions. This paper proposes a new Autoregressive Distributive Lag (ADL) cointegration test in the presence of nonlinear breaks approximated by a Fourier function. The test offers a simple way to capture smooth structural change in time series data. Exact break dates are not required, and the suggested methodology can accommodate unknown number and form of gradual structural change. The testing procedure circumvents the potential power loss which can result from adding more dummy variables in the testing equation. Simulation results show that our procedure has good size and power properties. We demonstrate our test on the empirical example of real oil prices, oil production, and real economic activity, which are subject to structural breaks. The new test suggests that variables are cointegrated, while a conventional ADL test ignores structural breaks and concludes the opposite. This result casts some doubt on conventional oil price models.     

Non-storables, Simultaneity and Price Determination: The Australian (Finished) Live Cattle Market

Empirical studies of simultaneous rational expectations (RE) models of spot and futures markets for non-storable commodities, such as finished live cattle, are rare. Indeed, only two countries, the US and Australia, have produced data sets for the study of such markets. This paper develops, and presents estimates of a simultaneous RE model of the live cattle market in Australia, the world's leading beef exporting country. The model contains functional relationships for short hedgers and short speculators, long hedgers and long speculators, and consumers, and is completed with a spot price equation and market clearing identity. Augmented Dickey-Fuller and Phillips-Perron tests for unit roots are executed, and Johansen cointegration tests are employed to investigate whether the I(1) variables are cointegrated. Structural equations are estimated by maximum likelihood when ARCH effects are present, by instrumental variables in the absence of serial correlation, and by non-linear least squares when a correction for autocorrelation is required. The estimates of all structural parameters are significant at the five per cent level. Post-sample, the model forecasts spot and futures prices with per cent RMSE's of 4.4 per cent and 2.5 per cent, respectively. In forecasting the spot price, the model outperforms but not significantly, a random walk, an ARIMA model, and a lagged futures price as a predictor of the spot price. The outcome of this last comparison implies that the efficient markets hypothesis cannot be rejected.     

The impact of subprime mortgage on correlation between stock and FX markets

Our researching period contains the American subprime mortgage crisis, an insignificant financial crisis and the Asian financial crisis periods. We analyse and compare the interrelations between the stock and Foreign Exchange (FX) markets in Taiwan by the daily data of stock prices and NTD/US exchange rates. The empirical results found that there is no effect on the long-term equilibrium between the stock and FX markets during the American subprime mortgage crisis. It also shows that, whether financial crisis occurs or not, there is no cointegration between the stock and FX markets. Furthermore, the results find that there exists bidirectional causality between the stock and FX markets among the American subprime mortgage crisis and the Asian financial crisis period. However, there is only unidirectional relationship from stock prices to exchange rates during insignificant financial crisis period. Such results imply that two financial crises do significantly affect the short-term interrelationships between the stock and FX markets and lead to more importance for the connection between two markets.     

The empirical study on price discovery of cornstarch futures market in China

This article aims at exploring the performance of the price discovery function of cornstarch futures market in China. In order to test the stationarity of the cash and futures prices of cornstarch, the augmented Dickey–Fuller test is applied. Both prices are integrated of order one. Then, the Johansen cointegration test is conducted to test the cointegrating relationship between those two prices. Finally, the Granger causality test is performed to observe the direction of causality. The evidence shows that there is a long-run relationship between cash and futures prices and the futures price Granger causes cash price. As a whole, price discovery of cornstarch market in China is present although it is a newly emerged market.     

The risk of falling house prices in Italy

This paper shows that Italian house market is less exposed to price shocks than the American one. Variations in the house price index in real terms have been studied along with the affordability ratio and the relation between house prices and rent levels for the period 1995–2004 in Italian provinces. Comparison with US data reveals greater overpricing in the US during the expansion phase (2000–2004). Although a speculative bubble in all US metropolitan areas considered does not emerge, US financial and economic structural factors make the US real estate sector more exposed to price shocks. To test the compatibility of Italian house prices with fundamentals an econometric model is designed to analyze the provincial house prices from 1995 to 2003.     

美元、石油和金属价格——基于VAR模型的实证研究

近年来,美元贬值以及石油价格上涨一直被认为是造成有色金属价格上涨的两个可能的原因。在这一背景下,笔者采用VAR模型分析了美元价值和石油价格变化对我国铜、黄金、白银等金属价格的冲击影响,以及在此冲击下三种金属价格间的相互影响关系。结果表明:美元价值以及黄金和白银二者之间的相互影响关系在很大程度上决定了我国黄金和白银的价格行为;而美元、石油、黄金以及白银价格的变化对于我国铜金属价格的冲击尽管是显著的,但是四者均不是铜金属价格上涨的主要原因。     

A cointegration analysis of agricultural,energy and bio-fuel spot,and futures prices

This article features an analysis of the cointegration relationships among agricultural commodity, ethanol and Cushing crude oil spot, and future prices. The use of grains for the creation of bio-fuels has sparked fears that these demands are inflating food prices. We analyse approximately 10 years of daily spot and futures prices for corn, wheat, sugar ethanol, and oil prices from Datastream for the period 19 July 2006 to 2 July 2015. The analysis features Engle-Granger pairwise cointegration and partial cointegration. Pairs of series, that are cointegrated, are analysed using Markov-switching VECM and Impulse Response Analysis, which confirms that these markets have significant linkages that vary according to whether they are in low or high volatility regimes.     

Exchange Rates and Stock Prices in the MENA Countries: What Role for Oil?

This paper considers the linkage between stock prices and exchange rates in four MENA (Middle East and North Africa) emerging markets. In contrast to the existing evidence that uses a global market index to uncover such a relationship it is found that for the sample countries oil prices emerge as the dominant factor in the above relationship. The paper considers the presence of regime shifts and evidence is found of cointegration only for the period following the 1999 oil price shock. Readjustment towards equilibrium in each stock market occurs via oil price changes. Finally, a number of robustness checks are performed and persistence profiles produced.