A Note on the (Continued) Ability of the Yield Curve to Forecast Economic Downturns in South Africa

In 2002‐2003, the South African yield spread falsely signalled a downswing that never materialised. This paper provides two reasons for this false signal. First, while the Reserve Bank never actually officially declared the start of a downswing, by alternative measures a downswing did actually occur. It is this severe weakness in economic activity at that time that the yield curve pointed to. Second, short‐term interest rates in 2003 were higher than they should have been because of a mistake made in measuring consumer price inflation. Because South Africa had recently introduced an inflation‐targeting regime, policy interest rates were, as a result of this error, kept too high for too long. This policy mistake was rectified as soon as the error in the Consumer Price Index was discovered. Thus, the yield curve in 2003 pointed to the reality that short‐term interest rates were too high and risked pushing the economy into full blown recession. This is demonstrated by the fact that it was a fall in long bond interest rates that caused the yield spread to turn negative, indicating expectations that short‐term interest rates would need to be cut – as indeed they were.     

宁夏各经济区差距、特点和演进趋势研究

宁夏在我国区域经济发展格局中战略地位的研究对西部大开发宁夏的定位具有重要的意义。本项目通过分区采用差异率、EXCEL图表等研究方法分析了宁夏各经济区发展现状,归纳了宁夏各经济区发展的差距并对宁夏各经济区经济发展的特点进行了探讨,最后提出了宁夏各经济区的演进趋势。     

Forecasting macroeconomic variables using disaggregate survey data

We construct factor models based on disaggregate survey data for forecasting national aggregate macroeconomic variables. Our methodology applies regional and sectoral factor models to Norges Bank’s regional survey and to the Swedish Business Tendency Survey. The analysis identifies which of the pieces of information extracted from the individual regions in Norges Bank’s survey and the sectors for the two surveys perform particularly well at forecasting different variables at various horizons. The results show that several factor models beat an autoregressive benchmark in forecasting inflation and the unemployment rate. However, the factor models are most successful at forecasting GDP growth. Forecast combinations using the past performances of regional and sectoral factor models yield the most accurate forecasts in the majority of the cases.     

“粮食银行”发展趋势初探——以吉林省榆树市“粮食银行”为例

2007年初,被称为我国第一家正式挂牌的“易裕粮食银行”在江苏太仓挂牌营业。农户走进”粮食银行”,就好像走进了银行的储蓄所,只不过存取的内容从现金变成了粮食。而“粮食银行”所承担的,则是代农储粮、代农加工和品种兑换的功能。所谓“粮食银行”就是粮食企业面向粮食生产者开展的一种粮食代储代销业务。把粮食这一特殊商品与现代银行的经营管理方式结合起来,让农民利益与企业利益、生产者与经营者联系在一起,构建了粮食企业与粮农的新型关系。“粮食银行”发展8年有余,参与的角色、形式、功能多样,各有千秋,发展的良莠不齐。本文通过对吉林榆树“粮食银行”的深入调研,对粮食企业、粮户的利弊分析,寻找粮食企业与粮农的合作新路径,为“三农”经济的发展有着重要意义。。     

Credit Indicators as Predictors of Economic Activity: A Real‐Time VAR Analysis

Using readily available indicators of the profitability, price, and availability of credit—the term spread, junk‐bond spread, and banks’ “willingness to lend” as reported by the Federal Reserve—we show that it is possible to significantly improve on the real‐time output and employment predictions of forecasting professionals at the medium‐run horizons that are most relevant to policymakers and private decision makers. Key to this improvement is a flexible state–space model of data revisions. The willingness‐to‐lend variable is the best real‐time predictor of GDP growth. For forecasting job growth, all three credit indicators prove helpful.     

林业经济预测模型库系统的设计与多模型组合研究

在综合前人林业经济预测模型和方法成果的基础上,研究开发了林业经济预测模型库系统。该系统有效地实现了模型的表示、生成及预测等功能,特别是多模型的灵活选择与组合,解决了多年来运用孤立模型进行预测的问题,提高了预测的效率与效果。此外,该系统的可视化界面方便了用户的使用。最后结合林业经济预测实例说明了多模型组合的应用及使用林业经济预测模型库系统进行预测的有效性。     

Innovation forecasting: A case study of the management of engineering and technology literature

The following paper contributes to the methodology of innovation forecasting. The paper analyzes the literature of engineering and technology management. A brief history and justification for interest in engineering and technology management is presented. The field has a sixty year history of interdisciplinary, and is therefore a ripe source for closer investigation into time trends of knowledge. The paper reviews the literature of innovation forecasting, examining a range of theoretical and methodological literatures interested in the evolution of knowledge. A new application of a model, suitable for sparse and count-like publication data, is presented. A mathematical presentation of the model is offered. A discussion is offered on how the model may be implemented in an approachable way within spreadsheet software. A time history of engineering management literature is extracted from a database and analyzed using the model. A projection of keyword growth is offered, and key features of the emerging knowledge base within engineering management are discussed. Recommendations for future research, as well as for those monitoring the status of the discipline of engineering management, are made.     

How long until human-level AI? Results from an expert assessment

The development of human-level AI has been a core goal of the AI field since its inception, though at present it occupies only a fraction of the field's efforts. To help understand the viability of this goal, this article presents an assessment of expert opinions regarding human-level AI research conducted at AGI-09, a conference for this AI specialty. We found that various experts strongly disagree with each other on certain matters, such as timing and ordering of key milestones. However, we did find that most experts expect human-level AI to be reached within upcoming decades, and all experts give at least some chance that some milestones will be reached within this time. Furthermore, a majority of experts surveyed favor an integrative approach to human-level AI rather than an approach centered on a particular technique. Finally, experts are skeptical about the impact of massive research funding, especially if it is concentrated in relatively few approaches. These results suggest that the possibility of achieving human-level AI in the near term should be given serious consideration.     

粮食供求变化的分析与Logistic模型预测——以云南省粮食供求研究为案例

以云南省的粮食供求为研究对象,就区域性粮食安全问题讨论了影响云南粮食生产若干因素及未来发展趋势,应用Logistic阻滞增长模型对云南省粮食单产、粮食总产量和人口进行预测。通过估算云南省未来粮食需求状况,就云南省未来的粮食供求平衡进行了测算,认为云南省未来粮食供求的格局仍有很大的不确定性,其区域性粮食安全形势严峻。     

地区主网规划的负荷预测方法研究

随着经济的快速发展和人民生活水平的不断提高,社会用电需求量不断增加,据统计,我国目前的用电负荷每年以10%左右的幅度增长。用电负荷持续增长主要是由于人口增加、企业发展、产业增多、工业生产等多方面因素所致,这对电力主网的运行造成了巨大的压力。为了避免主网在超负荷状态下运行,维持社会电力系统的稳定、安全、可靠运行,做好主网规划工作是必不可少的。针对这一点,文章主要阐述了主网规划中负荷预测方法的运用。