A note on the optimal choice of monetary and fiscal policy

This paper studies the instrument-target problem associated with a simple macroeconomic model with conditions of uncertainty. The purpose of the paper is to demonstrate that if a model is linear with nonstochastic coefficients and with additive disturbances and if the policy objective is to maximize the expected value of the quadratic loss function, then it is the choice of endogenous variables that alters the expected loss value. This contrasts with the findings of Poole, Sargent, Turnovsky, et al., in which the expected losses are compared for different instruments while endogenous variables are changed at the same time. Thus, if basic model specifications are unchanged, an important cause for different expected losses under different policy instruments is seen to lie in the choice of endogenous variables.     

The impact of monetary and tax policy on income inequality in Japan

This paper assesses the effects of the most recent monetary policy behaviour of the Bank of Japan (in particular, zero interest rate policy and negative interest rate policy) and Japanese tax policy on income inequality in this country during the period of 2002Q1 to 2017Q3. The vector error correction model (VECM) that develops in this research shows that increase in money stock (m1) through Quantitative Easing (QE) and Quantitative and Qualitative Easing (QQE) policies of the BOJ significantly increases the income inequality. On the contrary, Japanese tax policy was effective in reducing the income inequality. Variance decomposition results show that increasing of income inequality by monetary policy is larger when comparing to decreasing effects of tax policy on income inequality. Cointegration and VECM results show that monetary policy has both short-run and long-run impacts but for tax policy paper could not find any significant short-run impact on income inequality. In addition, paper found that technological progress only in long-run can reduce the income inequality by increasing the marginal productivity of labour with positive impacts on employment and wages.     

全球国际收支失衡的可持续性、调整时机与对策建议

全球国际收支失衡是我们讨论的一个出发点,对此我们有着明显不同的观点.总的来说,我们没有考虑到美国国际收支失衡的可持续性.我们提到了有关解决全球国际收支失衡的一些问题和概念,比如美国的资产回报率可能比较高等问题;前面的讨论主要是考虑到亚洲的顺差,特别是中国的顺差;有时候政策制订者会对危机做出过度反应;余永定也提到中国实际上并不想拥有太多的外汇储备.     

An Estimation of the Impact of Oil Shocks on Crude Oil Exporting Economies and Their Trade Partners

This research evaluates the impact of oil price shocks on oil producing and consuming economies; we used a simultaneous equation framework for different countries with business relations. As expected, we found that oil-producers (here, Iran and Russia) benefit from oil price shocks. However contrary to previous findings, they also benefit from the indirect effect through their trade partners. For oil-consuming economies, the effects are more diverse. In some countries, output falls in response to an oil price shock, while some others seem to be relatively immune. Generally, those countries which trade more with oil producers gain indirect benefits via higher demand from oil-producers. For instance, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Italy, the US, the UK, and China get a negative direct effect and positive indirect effect from oil producing countries. This is exactly the result that we anticipated. India has both negative effects directly and indirectly and seems to suffer more in a positive oil price shock. For Japan, Spain, Switzerland and Turkey the results are reversed. They benefit from an oil shock directly and indirectly.     

Remarks on a copula-based conditional value at risk for the portfolio problem

We deal with a multivariate conditional value at risk. Compared with the usual notion for the single random variable, a multivariate value at risk is concerned with several variables, and thus, the relation between each risk factor should be considered. We here introduce a new definition of copula-based conditional value at risk, which is real valued and ready to be computed. Copulas are known to provide a flexible method for handling a possible nonlinear structure; therefore, copulas may be naturally involved in the theory of value at risk. We derive a formula of our copula-based conditional value at risk in the case of Archimedean copulas, whose effectiveness is shown by examples. Numerical studies are also carried out with real data, which can be verified with analytical results.