Structural change in the presence of network externalities: a co-evolutionary model of technological successions

The paper uses a two-stage, multi-agent simulation model to examine the conditions under which technological successions can occur in the presence of network externalities. Data is used to identify a robust econometric model of the probability of succession. Four key factors are identified. First, the trade-off between higher direct utility from new technology goods and the network utility of old technology goods. Second, the relative innovative performance of new and old technology firms. Third, cost (price) differentials due to increasing returns in production. Fourth, the time old (new) firms have to develop their product designs prior to entry.JEL Classification: O30, C15 Correspondence to: Paul WindrumThe authors would like to thank Richard Nelson and Uwe Cantner for their helpful comments on an earlier draft of the paper, and for the comments provided by the anonymous referees. The usual disclaimers apply. The authors gratefully acknowledge supportive funding through SEIN-Project, European Commissions Framework 4 Programme (contract# SOEI-CT-98-1107) and through the Policy Regimes and Environmental Transitions (PRET) project funded by the Dutch Scientific Research Council (NWO).     

发现新的增长源泉：金融市场化

实体经济部门需求和金融部门的供给的高度不匹配,严重制约了中国经济的发展。依靠传统的国企投资来拉动,已不再奏效,低效率和泡沫泛滥的并存,经济增长难以为继。推动中国经济增长的动力之一,民企的内源性融资是否还能持续下去？近年来地方政府和企业共同推动金融市场化的实践,表明可以通过金融市场的竞争解决不对称信息问题,把过去银行认为不符合贷款条件的无效融资需求最大限度的转化为有效需求,就能够有效地降低民企的投资扩张的临界点,形成经济增长的新源泉。因此,不仅仅依靠利息率市场化的调整,而更需要通过金融机构之间的积极竞争,从而填补金融市场的供求缺口。     

货币超发是中国通货膨胀的根源吗?——基于DSGE模型不确定均衡解的分析

本文构建了一个充分反映中国宏观经济结构和体制特征的DSGE模型,并用贝叶斯估计方法对模型进行了估计和分析。我们发现,中国宏观经济存在非确定均衡解,自我实现的通胀预期对中国通货膨胀和产出波动有显著的影响,逆向供给冲击是近年来中国通货膨胀的主要原因。通过反事实模拟方法,我们发现近年来我国央行实施的实际货币政策基本符合最优货币政策,我们还估算中国货币增长长期目标的适度水平为18%左右,过高或过低的货币增长率都会加大消费和通货膨胀的波动,并降低社会的长期福利水平。     

Your Call: eBay and Demand for the iPhone 4☆

The iPhone 4 was introduced into the UK market on 24^th June 2010 to significant consumer interest. Demand revealed itself exceeding supply through conventional channels, since there was very extensive activity in terms of bidding on eBay auctions for the product. We monitored all UK eBay transactions on the iPhone 4 for six weeks from introduction, with total transactions amounting to around £1.5m. We analyse determinants of winning bids in terms of characteristics of the phone, the seller, and the buyer. Our most notable and novel finding relative to previous studies is a very significant premium over list price being paid in almost all cases, with positive uplift factors including whether the phone was unlocked and whether it could be sold overseas. Demand fell over time, as evidenced by lower achieved prices, but the fall in price was relatively modest. A significant premium of 32GB over 16GB versions is revealed.     

中国外汇储备适度规模与需求结构研究——基于修正的Agarwal模型

本文对Agarwal模型进行修正,并运用修正后的模型对中国1994—2010年的外汇储备适度规模进行了实证研究。研究结果表明,中国外汇储备的实际规模自2004年起超过适度规模;中国外汇储备的需求结构发生了很大变化,其中预防性需求已经占据绝对的主导地位,同时预防性需求中,用于维护外汇市场稳定的干预性储备已经成为其中的主导需求。     

Coordinated capacity migration and expansion planning for semiconductor manufacturing under demand uncertainties

Semiconductor industry is very capital intensive in which capacity utilization significantly affect the capital effectiveness and profitability of semiconductor manufacturing companies. Due to constant technology advance driven by Moore's Law in semiconductor industry, multiple production technologies generally co-exist in a wafer fabrication facility with utilization of a pool of common tools for multiple technologies and critical tools dedicated for a specific technology. Because part of the equipment is common for products of different technologies, production managers have limited flexibility to dynamically allocate the capacity among the technologies via capacity migration. The possibility of capacity migration and interrelationship among different technologies make capacity planning difficult under demand and product-mix uncertainties.This paper aims to develop a dynamic optimization method that captures the unique characteristics of rolling demand forecast mechanism to solve capacity expansion and migration planning problems in semiconductor industry. In semiconductor industry, demand forecasts are rolling and updated when the latest market and demand information is available. This demand forecast mechanism makes forecast errors in different time periods correlated. We estimate the validity and robustness of the proposed dynamic optimization method in an empirical study in a semiconductor manufacturing company in Taiwan. The results showed practical viability of this approach and the findings can provide useful guidelines for capacity planning process under rolling forecast mechanism.     

货币需求的投机性动机还是预防性储蓄：来自房地产行业的证据

从公司货币需求的视角考察货币政策对房地产市场的影响,为货币政策的有效性提供了微观的研究视角。基于凯恩斯的流动性偏好理论和现金持有的权衡理论分析发现,公司的货币需求与货币供给的关系,随不同的动机而不同。实证的结果发现,房地产公司货币需求更多的体现了投机性动机。因此,针对货币政策对房地产公司影响的复杂性,必须与其它调控措施更加紧密的协调以形成合力,才能对房地产市场实施有效管理。     

Toll-free numbers: Demand,property rights,and public policy

The demand for Toll Free Numbers (TFNs) languished from 2000 to 2008; however recent growth in demand caused the FCC to open a new toll-free code (855) with the possibility of new code openings in the next three years. The analysis here indicates the demand for TFNs is highly inelastic (the coefficient for own price elasticity for TFNs is approximately −0.04). This has implications for concerns regarding future exhaust of toll-free codes and the price structure for recovery of SMS/800's costs. This article considers the effects of the limited property rights for TFN, and welfare implications of gray markets for vanity TFNs. The FCC's allocation mechanism for new 855 codes is considered and whether other allocation mechanisms, such as auctions, could be welfare superior.     

Poverty effects of food price escalation: The importance of substitution effects in Mexican households

Recent food price increases reportedly caused significant numbers of households to fall into poverty, particularly in the developing world. Most research into the welfare effects of these food price changes assumes constant demand or approximates second order substitution effects. Poverty forecasts with these assumptions may overestimate or underestimate the effect of food price increases in a nation where most households consume diverse food baskets. We account for full substitution by calculating a theoretically consistent food demand system, accounting for household responses to food price changes by decreasing some food purchases and increasing other food purchases. We use Mexican data to confirm the mitigation of adverse welfare effects from food price increases after accounting for country-specific dietary preferences in modeling demand. In comparison to previous literature, our welfare measures predict theoretically consistent numbers of Mexican households entering poverty due to recent food price changes.     

中国经济扭曲的表现及形成机制:一个奥地利学派的角度

中国经济发展过程中存在某种形式的扭曲已是不争的事实,既往发展模式的不可持续性也已逐渐显现,但对造成该扭曲的深层次原因在理论上仍然存在分歧.从奥地利学派的角度吸取合理的部分可以更深刻地认识中国经济发展历程.中国经济扭曲最突出的表现是在城市化过程中,政府主导式发展制约了全体公民共同参与,而在发展思路上则过于强调需求管理的短期政策,忽视了供给在长期经济发展中的核心作用,经济的健康发展应是一个分工和专业化不断深化的过程.