On Indexed Bonds and Aggregate Demand Elasticity

Bonds indexed to the price level or inflation have become popular and more common in the industrialized world. This paper examines the impact of indexed bonds on the price level elasticity of aggregate demand. With a model of aggregate demand based on the standard IS-LM framework and expanded to differentiate between bonds which are indexed to the price level and bonds which are not so indexed, we find that the existence of indexed bonds decreases the elasticity of aggregate demand with respect to the general price level.

几乎理想需求系统面板数据模型的非参数估计分析

本文探讨几乎理想需求系统的估计问题,充分考虑到各类商品价格数据的局限性和模型中各类商品消费份额的联立内生性,逐步建立一个可以得到估计的几乎理想需求系统非参数面板数据模型;给出其非参数局部线性估计方法,并将非参数估计方法应用于珠三角地区城镇居民消费支出结构的估计和分析,由此对消费支出进行弹性分析。     

Temporal variance of revealed preference on-street parking price elasticity

This paper utilises revealed-preference parking trend data from parking meters ex ante and ex post of a general 50% price increase in the hourly cost of on-street parking to estimate the on-street parking price elasticity of demand in an area of Dublin, Ireland. Estimates are presented for the aggregate price elasticity of demand level and individual estimates for specific time periods and days of the week. In terms of reduced parking frequency, the average price elasticity of demand reported is −0.29. Daily average estimates are consistent, with one notable exception being Thursday, a ‘late night shopping’ day for which a lower price sensitivity is reported. Morning periods are also shown to be more responsive than other time periods in the test area, indicating some potential for influencing morning inbound peak traffic levels.     

Macroeconomic uncertainty,growth and inflation in the Eurozone: a causal approach

In this article, we evaluate the causal relationship between macroeconomic uncertainty indices, inflation and growth rate for 17 Eurozone countries on a county-level examination. In performing a series of linear and nonlinear causality tests, we find little evidence of a causal relationship between uncertainty and macroeconomic variables. Thus, macroeconomic analysis based on uncertainty indices should be treated with caution.     

城镇居民不同收入群体消费行为分析

按照家庭收入由低到高将城镇居民划分成四个收入群体,并应用带有家庭属性的AIDS模型分析每个收入群体的消费行为。研究结果表明,随着家庭收入的上升,城镇居民对于大多数商品消费的支出弹性和价格弹性呈下降趋势;城镇居民家庭用品和交通通讯消费富有支出弹性和价格弹性。因此,政府提高低收入群体的收入水平,通过财政政策使家庭用品和交通通讯商品的价格降低,可以有效地刺激城镇居民的消费。     

河北省技术进步的就业效应研究

随着工业化改革进程的纵深化发展,经济增长方式正在由依赖资本、劳动等要素投入转向对科技进步的依赖。河北省经济高速增长的同时面临着严峻的就业形势,研究技术进步的就业效应,建立二者良好的联动机制对河北省至关重要。在梳理文献的基础上,采用恒定替代弹性生产函数来测算河北省技术进步指数;构造最优雇佣函数来测算出技术进步对就业总量具有微弱的挤出效应,运用就业结构模型测算出技术进步使得第一产业从业人数下降,而第二产业、第三产业从业人数上升,尤其第三产业从业人数随着技术进步升幅较大。     

四川省农业科研机构的产出能力测评

本文从四川省农业科研机构的产出能力入手来分析科研机构投入产出的效率及其影响因素,产出能力评价结果显示,四川省农业科研机构产出能力普遍较低并且差异巨大,差异主要来自于潜在产出能力;科研机构产出的现实能力和潜在能力不完全吻合.进一步分析投入产出之间的关系显示,产出的效率受到投入总量、投入结构、体制改革和机构内部管理四个要素的影响.     

中国工业部门要素分配份额决定因素研究

本文讨论我国工业部门要素分配份额的决定因素问题。在标准的新古典要素分配份额模型中,本文引入Dixit-Stiglitz垄断竞争以及企业目标函数的差异,建立了要素分配份额的决定模型。根据这个理论模型,本文建立了中国工业部门要素分配份额的计量模型,并利用系统GMM方法进行估计。回归结果表明,垄断能力越高,资本收入份额越高,国有和非国有企业的资本收入份额存在明显差异,国有企业的资本收入份额明显低于非国有企业,各类经济性质企业的资本收入份额从高到低依次为外商投资企业、港澳台企业、法人投资企业、集体企业、私有企业和国有企业。传统新古典分配模型考虑的技术因素,包括要素投入比的变化和技术进步,对要素分配份额的变化没有显著影响,表明我国工业部门要素替代弹性为1,因而劳动与资本相对价格的变化对要素分配份额没有显著影响。我们的结论是,工业部门要素分配份额变化的主要原因是产品市场垄断增加和国有部门改制引起的劳动力市场环境改变。     

Forecasting inflation with an uncertain output gap

The output gap is a crucial concept in the monetary policy framework, indicating demand pressure that generates inflation. However, its definition and estimation raise a number of theoretical and empirical questions. This paper evaluates a series of univariate and multivariate methods for extracting the output gap in Norway, and compares their value added in predicting inflation. We find that models including the output gap have better predictive power than models based on alternative indicators, and they forecast significantly better than simple benchmark models. Furthermore multivariate measures of the output gap perform better than the univariate gaps. Comments from two anonymous referees, Q. Farooq Akram, Tommy Sveen, Ken West, Fredrik Wulfsberg and seminar participants in Norges Bank are gratefully acknowledged. All mistakes remain our own. The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of Norges Bank.     

Output Expectations and Forecasting of UK Manufacturing

This paper analyses both quarterly data from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) Survey on respondents’ expectations of recent and forthcoming manufacturing output and monthly Office of National Statistics (ONS) figures on actual manufacturing output within the UK. Quarterly output expectations of the CBI manufacturers are explained from the monthly ONS observations using a bounded rationality approach. The logistic formulation models the diffusion process across respondents. There is a backward-looking CBI Survey perspective, explained by past ONS observations, and a forward-looking perspective, explained from future ONS statistics. Also, the forecasting of monthly manufacturing output from earlier values, along with the quarterly CBI Survey information, is examined and tested against the alternative Pesaran/Thomas method. The study provides econometric evidence for the validity of the logistic model and shows that bounded rationality can explain the formation of predictions among business managers in the UK manufacturing sector. The emerging consensus from the literature, supported by this paper, is that the logistic format is a superior approximation to the true data generating process compared with the earlier standard Anderson/Pesaran/Thomas approach. An adjustment to the Survey is used, which achieves perfect symmetry with up and down versions of the data. The benefits of this adjustment are tested in the forecasting section.