Internal Versus External R&D: A Study of R&D Choice with Sample Selection

This paper extends previous analyses of the choice between internal and external R&D to consider the costs of internal R&D. The Heckman two-stage estimator is used to estimate the determinants of internal R&D unit cost (i.e. cost per product innovation) allowing for sample selection effects. Theory indicates that R&D unit cost will be influenced by scale issues and by the technological opportunities faced by the firm. Transaction costs encountered in research activities are allowed for and, in addition, consideration is given to issues of market structure which influence the choice of R&D mode without affecting the unit cost of internal or external R&D. The model is tested on data from a sample of over 500 UK manufacturing plants which have engaged in product innovation. The key determinants of R&D mode are the scale of plant and R&D input, and market structure conditions. In terms of the R&D cost equation, scale factors are again important and have a non-linear relationship with R&D unit cost. Specificities in physical and human capital also affect unit cost, but have no clear impact on the choice of R&D mode. There is no evidence of technological opportunity affecting either R&D cost or the internal/external decision.     

House prices, non-fundamental components and interstate spillovers: The Australian experience

Using Australian capital city data from 1984Q3--2008Q2, this paper utilizes a dynamic present value model within a VAR framework to construct time series of house prices depicting what aggregate house prices should be given expectations of future real disposable income - the “fundamental price” - and continues by comparing capital city fundamental prices with actual prices. The extent to which revealed capital city “non-fundamental” components spillover from state to state, as well as their long-term impact is also investigated. Results provide evidence of periods of sustained deviations of house prices from values warranted by income for all state capitals with the greatest deviations arising in the NSW market and starting around 2000. In general NSW is relatively more susceptible to spillovers transmitted from other states while ACT and WA are most isolated from the rest of the country.     

我国基金风格资产收益长记忆性分析——基于修正R/S方法的研究

证券市场是个典型的非线性复杂系统。本文运用修正R/S分析法对我国基金风格资产收益单一分形的基本统计特征进行检验,并与经典R/S方法进行对比分析。研究结果表明:在日、周、月等三种时间标度下Hurst指数均显著大于0.5,表现为持久相关性特征,说明股市风格具有长记忆性;从经典R/S分析结果看,我国股市风格具有显著的分形结构特征,风格资产指数收益率序列具有长记忆性,不同风格资产的业绩具有不同的周期性。     

Housing and the Macroeconomy: Inflation and the Financial Accelerator

Three themes connecting housing and the macroeconomy are discussed. First, evidence is presented for the property market as one of the drivers of U.S. consumer price inflation. Second, key drivers of house prices are explained to account for the remarkable diversity of international experience. Finally, three potential links between housing, credit, and the financial accelerator are discussed. These are the consumption channel, the investment channel, and feedback between bad loans and risk‐spreads via the financial system—and how institutional differences between countries can explain the presence, absence and magnitudes of these linkages.     

Explaining House Price Dynamics: Isolating the Role of Nonfundamentals

This paper examines the role of nonfundamentals‐based sentiment in house price dynamics, including the well‐documented volatility and persistence of house prices during booms and busts. To measure and isolate sentiment's effect, we employ survey‐based indicators that proxy for the sentiment of three major agents in housing markets: home buyers (demand side), home builders (supply side), and lenders (credit suppliers). After orthogonalizing each sentiment measure against a broad set of fundamental variables, we find strong and consistent evidence that the changing sentiment of all three sets of market participants predicts house price appreciation in subsequent quarters, above and beyond the impact of changes in lagged price changes, fundamentals, and market liquidity. More specifically, a one‐standard‐deviation shock to market sentiment is associated with a 32–57 basis point increase in real house price appreciation over the next two quarters. These price effects are large relative to the average real price appreciation of 71 basis points per quarter observed over the full sample period. Moreover, housing market sentiment and its effect on real house prices is highly persistent. The results also reveal that the dynamic relation between sentiment and house prices can create feedback effects that contribute to the persistence typically observed in house price movements during boom and bust cycles.     

Semiparametric Model of Hedonic Housing Prices in Japan

We propose a semiparametric hedonic model of housing prices with nonlinearity in age and cohort effects. The model avoids the simultaneity problem among age, cohort and year effects, which is a common problem in linear hedonic models. Applying the model to housing prices in Tokyo between 1990 and 2008 revealed significant nonlinearities in both the age and cohort effects, and significant interactions between these effects, with the shape of the age effect differing across housing cohorts. Estimates of the year effect indicated a declining trend in prices that was more pronounced compared with those of conventional linear hedonic models.     

Prices of deep discount bonds and the Revenue Act of 1978: An evaluation of market response

This article explores the market response of deep discount corporate bonds to the reduction in the capital gains tax rate incorporated into the Revenue Act of 1978. Such tax change should have increased the desirability of assets acquired for capital gains potential, such as deep discount bonds. Examining a time series of prices and returns for a sample of deep discount corporate bonds and a control group of comparable duration and credit risk corporate bonds selling at or near par did indeed provide evidence of a market price reaction. Moreover, the price changes for the deep discount bonds occurred well in advance of the implementation of the tax change.     

中俄能源合作现状分析及对策研究

在当今世界，能源已经成为各个国家最关注的问题之一。俄罗斯有着天然的能源优势，是能源供应大国，而中国是能源需求大国，因此，中俄两国开展能源合作拥有广阔的前景。本文在分析中俄能源合作的现状及战略意义的基础上，从理论的角度分析了两国进行能源合作的可行性，并从现实的角度分析了中俄能源合作的障碍，从而对如何进一步加深中俄能源合作提出了对策建议。     

Trade and industrial location with heterogeneous labor

It is shown in the context of a new economic geography model that when labor is heterogeneous trade liberalization may lead to industrial agglomeration and inter-regional trade. Labor heterogeneity gives local monopsony power to firms but also introduces variations in the quality of the job match. Matches are likely to be better when there are more firms and workers in the local market, giving rise to an agglomeration force which can offset the forces against, trade costs and the erosion of monopsony power. A robust agglomeration equilibrium is derived analytically and its properties illustrated with numerical simulations.     

层次分析法在出口玩具检验监管风险评估中的应用研究

在对出口玩具检验监管工作研究分析的基础上,选取了具有代表性的指标体系,并引入层次分析法科学地确定各个指标的权重。通过建立层次结构模型、构造判断矩阵、相对权重及合成权重的计算,利用较少的定量信息,将整个考核指标过程数学化。最后,针对进一步完善和改进出口玩具检验监管风险评估工作提出合理化建议。