The relationship between carbon dioxide emissions and economic growth: quantile panel-type analysis

This paper samples the data of 138 countries during the 1971–2007 period, and performs an empirical test to validate the relationship between carbon dioxide emissions and economic growth. It first performs panel data analysis and quantile regression analysis to estimate the long-run elasticity relationships, and then analyzes the short-run error correction model to verify the causal relationship between the two. The empirical results indicate the following. (1) The long-run relationship between global carbon dioxide emissions and GDP is stable, with 32.6% of the sampled countries showing cross-coupling of the two (with an elasticity value of greater than 1), 47.1% reporting relative-decoupling (with an elasticity value between 0 and 1), and 20.3% seeing absolute-decoupling (with an elasticity value of smaller than 0). (2) The quantile regression shows that long-run elasticity declines along with the rise of carbon dioxide emission quantiles. In other words, cross-coupling turns into relative-decoupling. (3) The analysis of short-run panel data and quantile regressions mostly support the feedback relationship between carbon dioxide emissions growth and economic growth. This is consistent with the hypothesis developed by Kuznets. (4) According to the results of the quantile regression, the higher the quantiles, the faster and more stable of the short-run error-correction mechanism of the adjustments from short-run disequilibrium to long-run equilibrium. (5) Under the low-quantile carbon dioxide emissions growth and economic growth, the relationship between these two is not stable of the short-run disequilibrium adjustments in the error-correction adjustment process. However, the relationship between these two is steady and feedback in the case of high quantiles. Therefore, the first priority to combat global warming is to focus on the countries with high economic growth and high carbon dioxide emissions growth.     

Investigating properties of commodity price responses to real and nominal shocks

This paper studies dynamic adjustments of 49 world commodity prices in response to innovations in the nominal exchange rate and the world real GDP. After we estimate the dynamic elasticity of the prices with respect to these shocks, we obtain the kernel density of our estimates to establish stylized facts on the adjustment process of the commodity price toward a new equilibrium path. Our empirical findings imply, on average, that the law of one price holds in the long-run, whereas the substantial degree of short-run price rigidity was observed in response to the nominal exchange rate shock. The real GDP shock tends to generate substantial price fluctuations in the short-run because adjustments of the supply can be limited, but have much weaker effects in the long-run as the supply eventually counterbalances the increase in the demand. Overall, we report persistent long-lasting effects of the nominal exchange rate shock on commodity prices relative to those of the real GDP shock.     

Capitalization of Costs and Expected Earnings Growth

Abstract

This paper offers a model that shows how the capitalization of costs affects contemporaneous earnings and the growth path of expected earnings. It makes three points. First, reported earnings under successful efforts are more price relevant than earnings under full costing or full expensing. Second, whether conditional or unconditional, conservatism always enhances the growth rate of expected earnings. Third, independent of capitalization policy, the long-run expected earnings growth rate converges either to the long-run expected free cash flow growth rate or to the depreciation rate. Therefore, while capitalization policy affects the price relevance of earnings and short-run expected earnings growth, it does not affect long-run expected earnings growth.     

The business cycle in the G-7 economies

In this paper the Hodrick–Prescott filter is used to decompose real GDP for the G7 countries into cyclical and trend components. The resulting series of cyclical components are then examined for static relationships, using correlations and graphs; long-run relationships using autoregressive-distributed lag models; and short-run relationships, using error–correction models. The main result is that the patterns of cyclical behaviour changed following the oil price shocks in the 1970s. Since 1980, cyclical fluctuations have been smaller as a result of a decline in synchronisation of the cycles in the G7. Two separate cycles seem to be developing since 1990. One is for Germany, Italy and France, whilst the other is for the US, UK and Canada. Within each of these groups there are both long-run and short-run relationships between the cyclical components of GDP.     

The term structure of cross-sectional dispersion of expectations in a Learning-to-Forecast Experiment

In this paper, we present the results of a Learning-to-Forecast Experiment (LtFE) where we eliciting short- as well as long-run expectations regarding the future price dynamics in markets with positive and negative expectations feedback. Comparing our results on short-run expectations with the LtFE literature, we prove that eliciting long-run expectations has no impact on the price dynamics nor on short-run expectations formation. In particular, we confirm that the Rational Expectation Equilibrium (REE) is a good benchmark only for the markets with negative feedback. Interestingly, our data show that while the term structure of the cross-sectional dispersion of expectations is convex in positive feedback markets, it is concave in negative feedback markets. Differences in the slope of the term structure stem from diverse degrees of uncertainty regarding the evolution of prices in the two feedback systems: (1) in the negative feedback system, the convergence of the price to the REE reflects a tendency for coordination of long-run expectations around the fundamental value; (2) conversely, oscillatory price dynamics observed in the positive feedback system is responsible for the diverging pattern of long-run expectations. Finally, we propose a new measure of heterogeneity of expectations based on the scaling of the dispersion of expectations over the forecasting horizon.

     

Dynamic interactions between Main Street and Wall Street

The paper examines the time-varying relationship between Main Street and Wall Street (proxied by the Dow–Jones industrial index and the Standard & Poor’s 500 index) using cointegration and error-correction techniques. Preliminary results reveal that each pair of series is bounded by a long-run, common stochastic trend and is characterized by significant short-run interactions. The results point to significant inverse effects of lagged GDP changes on the stock price index fluctuations but not vice versa. A suggested interpretation of this finding is that when the economy is doing well then increases in interest rates are expected which would, in turn, adversely affect the stock market.     

Dynamic relationship between stock prices and exchange rates for G-7 countries

There are two major findings from our time-series estimations. First, we find that there is no long-run significant relationship between stock prices and exchange rates in the G-7 countries. This result interfaces with Bahmani-Oskooee and Sohrabian’s (1992) finding, but contrasts with the studies that suggest there be a significant relationship between these two financial variables. Our second finding is that the short-run significant relationship has only been found for one day in certain G-7 countries. For instance, currency depreciation often drags down stock returns in the German financial market, but it stimulates the Canadian and UK markets on the following day. However, an increase in stock price often causes currency depreciation the next day in Italy and Japan. In addition, we also find that the record of stock price and the value of the dollar cannot be depended on when predicting the future in the US, either in the short-run or long-run.     

需求价格弹性和销售收入关系的数学探析

文章认为,许多经济学教材中关于需求价格弹性对销售收入影响的结论存在明显缺陷,通过严格的数学分析,无论如何都不能得出需求价格弹性大于1时,降价会使销售收入增加这样的结论。正确的结论应该是:对同一条需求曲线,对应不同的点有不同的弹性,中点的价格弹性为1,是销售收入最大点,销售收入的变化由销售点在需求曲线上的位置及移动方向共同决定。     

Prioritization of government expenditure on health in India: A fiscal space perspective

Unequal distribution of fiscal resources and lower prioritization of budget towards healthcare are the most important challenges in achieving universal health coverage in India. This study has examined relationships between government health expenditure and fiscal space (i.e. tax revenue, non-tax revenue, fiscal transfer, and borrowings) in twenty-one states of India for the period of 1980–2014. Our panel regression results imply that mobilization of tax revenue has a positive impact, while borrowings have a negative impact on the allocation of government expenditure on healthcare in the long-run. The panel quantile regression results show that states associated with the low and middle level of revenue growth have been mobilizing finance through central government transfer and borrowings in short-run. Further, the panel vector error correction models show that sum of the lagged coefficients of borrowings have a greater impact on health financing process as compared to other sources of fiscal space at short-run, and the speed of adjustment towards long-run equilibrium is relatively slower. The overall analysis concludes that less domestic revenue mobilization and higher dependency of borrowings for healthcare financing may create fiscal stress on state finances in the long-run, and thereby it could possibly reduce the prioritization of spending. Therefore, improvement in revenue growth and proper utilization of fiscal transfer would be appropriate policy implications from this study.     

The paradox of inelastic sports pricing

Rodney Fort's (2004) article in Managerial and Decision Economics attempts to explain the recurrent phenomenon of inelastic ticket pricing in professional sports. In his explanation, Fort mistakenly substitutes the marginal revenue generated by the acquisition of talent for the marginal revenue generated by lowering the gate ticket price. This article corrects the mistake, pointing out that inelastic ticket pricing is still inconsistent with profit maximization. In addition, it is demonstrated that the marginal revenue generated by additional talent cannot be negative. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Gambling on Lotto Numbers: Testing for Substitutability or Complementarity Using Semi-weekly Turnover Data

The impact on the demand for a gambling product of the introduction of a competing product is a topical issue in Britain, Ireland and elsewhere. We consider empirically the demand for Lotto itself and for fixed-odds betting on the Lotto draw. The evidence suggests that these products are complements. Problems are posed by the need to rely on turnover data instead of price and quantity data in testing for substitutability or complementarity and by the semi-weekly nature of Lotto draws, which raises the possibility of a `seasonal' unit root in the turnover time series.     

Inconsistency of the OLS estimator of the partial adjustment-adaptive expectations model

Following elimination of unobservable quantities it is assumed that the disturbance in the partial adjustment-adaptive expectations model follows a first-order moving average. The inconsistency of OLS is derived and calculated for different parameter values. The results indicate that the inconsistency in the estimate of the long-run elasticity is very small but that the short-run elasticity is likely to be seriously overestimated. Also, if OLS is used, it is quite probable that the model will be incorrectly rejected in favour of the partial adjustment (or the adaptive expectations) model by itself.     

Explanation for market response to seasoned equity offerings

In this paper, we use a multivariate framework to extend the recent univariate seasoned equity offering (SEO) research that investigated the valuation impact of inside ownership. Our multivariate findings re-enforce and add to the univariate findings as we show that the inside ownership level is a consistent factor in accounting for short-run and long-run returns around SEOs, while the decrease in inside ownership has no impact on short-run returns but influences long-run returns in a manner inconsistent with signaling theory. Compared to prior research, our regression tests do a much better job of accounting for returns associated with SEO announcements. For short-run regression tests, the four major factors associated with superior stock returns are: lower underpricing; greater profitability prior to SEO; lower inside ownership level; and, less stock price variability prior to SEO. For long-run regression tests, the four major conditions linked to superior returns are: greater profitability prior to SEO; smaller inside ownership level; relative size of the offering; and, greater decrease in inside ownership level.     

Household borrowing and metropolitan housing price dynamics – Empirical evidence from Helsinki

This article argues that, especially in the absence of sufficient direct data on credit constraints, it is reasonable to add a household debt variable in an empirical model studying housing price dynamics. This is because household borrowing is likely to reveal information regarding the credit constraints faced by households. Moreover, debt may also give information on expected income growth and interest rate movements. The aim of this study is to examine empirically if household borrowing data, indeed, is of importance in a dynamic housing price model. In line with the prior expectations, it is found that housing appreciation in the Helsinki Metropolitan area is Granger caused by the household debt-to-GDP ratio both in the short and in the long run. Causality from the housing market to credit, in turn, seems to run only through a cointegrating long-run relation. While the estimated long-run relation between housing prices, income and debt-to-GDP ratio appears to have remained stable through the sample period (1975Q1-2006Q2), the short-run dynamics changed somewhat due to the financial liberalization in the late 1980s. The stability of the long-run relation implies that the loan data are able to cater, at least to a notable extent, for the effect of the changes in Finnish households’ liquidity constraints on housing demand. In line with previous literature, it is also found that housing price adjustment is sluggish and includes notable backward-looking features.     

Transport improvements,commuting costs,and residential location

This paper develops a theoretical framework for evaluating one of the long-run or secondary effects of a transport improvement. The familiar model of residential location is manipulated to derive an estimating equation relating changes in travel costs to changes in the household's preferred location. When estimated for a particular transport situation the major finding is the importance of the price effect. Although direct cost savings are important, especially in the short-run, in the long-run and especially for innovations with substantially increased speed or reduced operating costs the price effect may completely dwarf the income effect.     

Hedonic estimation of housing demand elasticity with a markup over marginal costs

We show that recent developments in hedonic pricing theory allow modeling of the equilibrium pricing function as the marginal cost of an additional housing unit plus a markup that varies inversely with the elasticity of demand. Useful information about demand elasticity at a given point on the envelope function can be recovered from the hedonic regression and limited information on marginal costs. In particular, the elasticity of the envelope with respect to any characteristic such as interior area provides information on the elasticity of demand. Relative price elasticities (i.e., elasticities that vary from a base value in a known way with interior area, unit type or neighborhood characteristics) can be computed from the elasticity of the hedonic envelope. Like Yinger (2010), our method is based on a single hedonic equation.We test our method using sales of new high rise condominiums in two districts within Shenzhen, China: Futian and Longgang. The results strongly confirm the main hypothesis of this paper: price elasticity with respect to size is increasing for more complex types of units. Together with estimates of marginal costs of production, these results imply that relative demand elasticity is declining for larger, more complex units.     

The effect of oil supply shocks on US economic activity: What have we learned?

Estimated responses of real oil prices and US gross domestic product (GDP) to oil supply disruptions vary widely. We show that most variation is attributable to differences in identification assumptions and in the model specification. Models that allow for a large short-run price elasticity of oil supply imply a larger response of oil prices and a larger, longer lived contraction in US real GDP. We find that, if we condition on a range of supply elasticity values supported by microeconomic estimates, the differences in the oil price responses diminishes. We also examine the role of lag length, of using pre-1973 data, alternative measures of real economic activity and using the median response function instead of the modal structural model.     

A keynesian macro-econometric model of the UK: 1955–1984

In this paper we present a small Keynesian macro-economic model in which wage-price determination is linked to the working of goods and money markets. By explicitly treating the Keynes effect we derive a general expression for the employment-money supply elasticity, and draw the IS-LM loci in the employment-interest rate space Our empirical specification allows for short-run disequilibrium dynamic adjustments around the static long-run relations predicted by the theoretical model. By careful use of our specification search strategy we obtain a statistically sound econometric model, which exhibits sensible long-run properties. A remarkable finding implied by our estimates is that equilibrium unemployment is negatively affected by both money supply and incomes policy.     

Forecasting using a periodic transfer function: with an application to the UK price of ferrous scrap

The familiar concept of cointegration enables us to determine whether or not there is a long-run relationship between two integrated time series. However, this may not capture short-run effects such as seasonality. Two series which display different seasonal effects can still be cointegrated. Seasonality may arise independently of the long-run relationship between two time series or, indeed, the long-run relationship may itself be seasonal. The market for recycled ferrous scrap displays these features: the US and UK scrap prices are cointegrated, yet the local markets exhibit different forms of seasonality. The paper addresses the problem of using both cointegrating and seasonal relationships in forecasting time series through the use of periodic transfer function models. We consider the problems of testing for cointegration between series with differing seasonal patterns and develop a periodic transfer function model for the US and UK scrap markets. Forecast comparisons with other time series models suggest that forecasting efficiency may be improved by allowing for periodicity but that such improvement is by no means guaranteed. The correct specification of the periodic component of the model is critical for forecast accuracy.