OPTIMAL DEBT AND ENDOGENOUS GROWTH IN MODELS OF INTERNATIONAL FINANCE

The International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the bond rating agencies did not anticipate the crises in Asia 1997–98 and in Argentina 2001 . With this statement in mind, we consider some multi-stage inter-temporal stochastic optimisation models in international finance that imply theoretically founded and empirically measurable Early Warning Signals. The mathematical technique is dynamic programming/stochastic optimal control (DP/SOC).
The variables of interest are the optimal foreign debt, consumption, capital and the growth rate of GDP. They are used as benchmarks of economic performance. By comparing the actual debt to the optimal debt we derive a measure of the sustainability of the debt and vulnerability to default problems. The two sources of uncertainty – the productivity of capital and the real interest rate on the foreign debt – are modeled as stochastic processes. Specific applications of the DP/SOC techniques are given for country defaults in Asia and Latin America, and the US current account deficits.     

AN ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF PERSONAL DEBT

The treatment of debt in conventional economic theory is considered and compared with recent writings on the economics of self-control and cognitive dissonance. The paper considers factors influencing the level of debt, conditional on debt being greater than zero and goes on to report a multivariate analysis of a sample of individuals in this position. The data comes from the case records of money advisers in Citizens Advice Bureaux (CABS) in Staffordshire. The amount of debt is found to be correlated with indicators of life cycle and a measure of the exercise of self-control.     

基于全口径政府债务率数据的 我国最优债务率估算

本文在充分考虑中央和地方政府隐性债务和或有债务的基础上,根据审计署的统计口径,详细测算了我国政府的全口径债务规模,进而估算我国最优政府债务水平。研究结果表明,1998年以来,政府债务进入快速增长阶段,2009年中国政府债务率达到4028%,创历史最高;我国经济增长与政府债务率之间呈倒U型曲线关系,我国最优债务率在334%~346%之间。目前我国政府债务率高于最优债务水平,说明我国政府债务水平偏高。最后,本文提出了相关的政策建议。     

中国人口转变与经济增长的实证分析

本文从现代协整理论出发,研究了中国人口转变、实际工资与实际产出之间的长期动态均衡关系及信忠传导机制。结果表明:在出生率、婴儿死亡率、实际人均工资、实际 GDP 之间,至少存在单向的 Granger 因果关系;对数序列均为非平稳Ⅰ(1)序列。长期来看,死亡率的降低将导致出生率的降低。此外,还证明了出生率与死亡率均为经济系统的内生变量。     

A SEARCH FOR CLOSER ECONOMIC RELATIONS IN EAST ASIA

In recent years, growing interdependence in East Asia through trade and financial cooperation heightened the need for East Asian Economies to engage in closer regional economic relations. This paper attempts to discuss emerging economic integration efforts in East Asia with special reference to bilateral and regional free trade agreements. It discusses backgrounds for recent developments of East Asian regionalism in terms of deepening intraregional economic dependence and financial cooperation, and South Korea's position towards FTAs with major trading partners as well as East Asian economic integration. Important issues and challenges for an East Asian FTA are presented.     

中国经济增长中土地资源的“尾效”分析

土地资源是人类赖以生存与发展的重要物质基础。根据大卫·罗默的假说,由于土地与其他自然资源的限制,实际的经济增长将呈下降趋势,即存在因土地与其他自然资源的消耗而引起的"尾效"。1978—2005年,中国经济增长中土地资源的"尾效"平均每年约为1.26个百分点。也就是说,由于土地资源的消耗,在1978—2005年期间,中国的经济增长速度平均每年降低了1.26%。按照这一数据推算下去,到2030年,中国的年经济增长率将会因为土地资源的"尾效"而降低到目前经济增长率的74%;到2050年,中国的年经济增长率将会因为土地资源的"尾效"而降低到目前经济增长率的57%。     

基于异质面板模型的我国省际旅游业发展与经济增长研究

利用1999—2007年中国31个省市的入境旅游人次、国际旅游(外汇)收入、国内旅游人次和国内旅游收入四个指标的面板数据衡量旅游业发展水平,并运用异质面板协整方法检验中国省际旅游业发展与经济增长之间的关系。研究发现:国内旅游与入境旅游的发展对全国及所有省市的经济增长均有显著的正效应,其中,入境旅游对经济增长的促进作用更显著;与此同时,经济增长和入境旅游人次、国际旅游(外汇)收入和国内旅游收入存在长期单向Granger因果关系,表明经济增长也推动着入境旅游和国内旅游的发展。     

OPTIMAL SEARCH FOR OVERTIME WORK1

A search problem frequently encountered by workers is one in which wage and normal hours elements of employment contracts are uniform across firms in an industry, but opportunities for overtime working vary. Under these circumstances workers, in general, will not be indifferent between alternative contracts and may wish to exercise utility-maximizing choice by searching out acceptable overtime opportunities. This paper discusses the nature of this decision problem, and the worker's response to various changes in the market environment.     

转型期中国经济增长方式转变的金融支持——基于经济学文献的探讨

本文基于经济学文献探讨了转型期中国经济增长方式转变的金融支持问题。研究发现,不论从整体还是从区域层面来看,中国的金融发展主要是通过加速资本积累来促进经济增长的;而对资本配置效率的改善、技术进步及TFP增长率的提高,作用并不明显。因此,这种金融发展模式不利于中国经济增长方式从"粗放型"向"集约型"的转变。本文进一步指出,财政分权背景下的地方政府行为及其对区域金融发展的影响,是造成金融资金配置效率低下和经济增长方式转变困难的重要原因。     

FDI对上海经济增长影响的实证研究

经济全球化、加入、WTO以及国家经济中心的地位使得上海成为我国外商直接投资的"高地".基于1981-2006年上海市时间序列数据,运用ADF检验、Granger因果检验以及多元回归模型,对FDI与上海市经济增长之间的关系进行了实证分析,发现FDI是上海市经济增长的Granger原因.同时从资金本身、资金附着物以及资金运行的角度来看,FDI的外溢效应亦相当明显,从而对上海市的经济增长产生了积极的影响.     

台湾地区要素投入对经济增长的作用

经济增长是由资本、劳动力、技术等多种要素共同推动的,各要素投入的数量、质量和效率决定了产出的增长。文章以经济增长相关理论为基础,通过合理选取和度量有关变量数据,构建台湾地区经济增长模型,并对模型进行计量检验和要素分析,从而揭示台湾地区要素投入与经济增长的关系,以及各要素在经济增长中的作用。     

PUBLIC DEBT AND PUBLIC INVESTMENT IN AN ENDOGENOUS GROWTH MODEL WITH REAL WAGE RIGIDITIES

We present an endogenous growth model with public capital, public debt and real wage rigidities due to labor market imperfections. Assuming that the primary surplus relative to gross domestic produce (GDP) is a positive function of the debt to GDP ratio, we study growth and employment effects of deficit‐financed public investment using simulations as well as how fiscal policy affects stability of the economy. Further, we contrast the growth rate and the unemployment rate in the deficit scenario with that of the balanced budget scenario. Finally, we compare our results with those obtained in case of flexible wages and full employment.     

外贸对经济增长的影响分析:理论与经验模型验证

国际贸易理论的核心问题是探究贸易利益的产生及其分配,国际贸易与经济增长具有密切联系。理论分析和经验证据均表明,一国外贸规模对经济增长有着重要作用,对外贸易的变动往往成为决定一国经济增长趋势的关键因素。文章从理论和经验模型上对我国近10多年来外贸和经济增长的关系给出了相关的实证检验,旨在探讨并揭示国际贸易促进经济增长的内在机制。     

ECONOMIC GROWTH WITH TRADE IN FACTORS OF PRODUCTION

We study the world trading equilibrium in a Ricardian model, where factors of production are produced and traded. Even in the absence of technology transfer, international investment, research and development, and aggregate scale effects, trade affects economic growth through comparative advantage. Trade may raise the growth rate or leave it unchanged, depending on the patterns of comparative and absolute advantage. Trade in factors of production can effectively equalize technology even when technology transfer does not occur. Factor price equalization may hold, but the Stolper–Samuelson and Rybczynski theorems do not. The transition dynamics can be monotonic or oscillatory.     

A CLOSED‐FORM SOLUTION FOR DETERMINING THE BURDEN OF PUBLIC DEBT IN NEOCLASSICAL GROWTH MODELS

This paper develops a new approach, termed as the stock approach, to calculate the steady‐state output loss caused by public debt in neoclassical growth models. The novelty of our stock approach is that it provides a closed‐form solution to the steady‐state output‐debt relationship. The main conclusion of the paper is that the steady‐state burden of public debt is country‐specific in neoclassical growth models and it decreases with the private saving rate and increases with the population growth rate, with the exception of the special case where Ricardian equivalence holds.     

OPTIMAL CONTRACTS FOR CENTRAL BANKERS AND PUBLIC DEBT POLICY*

We consider how the second‐best allocation corresponding to an optimal rule under the policy commitment of a central bank and a fiscal authority with a consolidated government budget constraint can be achieved, even though these authorities are unable to commit themselves to their optimal policies and ignore the strategic interaction between their policies. Our results show that the best practical institutional arrangement is to have an instrument‐independent central bank that controls the money supply to determine the rate of inflation and commits itself to an inflation target that depends on fiscal variables.     

AN ECONOMIC EXPLANATION FOR THE INEFFECTIVENESS OF ADDICTION TREATMENT

The addiction literature treats as a stylized fact that formal treatment programs have little long-run efficacy. Treated addicts have no better prospects for long-run abstinence than do addicts who do not enter treatment programs. A logical consequence of this is that if treatment enhances the prospects of long-run abstinence for some treated addicts, then it diminishes the prospects for others. This paper offers a simple cost-benefit argument explaining how treatment can interfere with certain natural processes conducive to permanently abandoning an addiction. The paper argues that a stable remission from addiction depends on the historic costs of the addiction relative to the historic benefits as perceived by the user. Because treatment intrinsically mitigates the cost of addiction but does not directly influence the benefits of addiction, treatment can make returning to an addiction more likely.