infonet-economy

An empirical investigation of the term structure (the relation of the long interest rate to the short interest rate) showed structural change as the deadline for the euro became closer. Our empirical analysis of the term structures (yield curves) in 12 OECD countries uncovers that econometrically estimated behavioural equations for most EMU countries were stable even in the light of…

This paper analyzes the equilibrium outcomes in a network industry under daccess pricing, investment, vertical foreclosureifferent vertical market structures. In this industry, an upstream monopolist operates a network used as an input to produce horizontally differentiated final products that are imperfect substitutes. Three potential drawbacks of market structure regulation are…

"Die Entlohnung von Topmanagern ist in den westlichen Industrieländern über die letzten Jahre markant angestiegen. Wir stellen verschiedene Ansätze dar, welche diese Entwicklung zu erklären versuchen, und prüfen sie auf ihren Erklärungsgehalt: (1) Die Entwicklung ist das Ergebnis eines gut funktionierenden Marktprozesses; sie beruht auf strukturellen Veränderungen auf der…

In this paper we pursue an approach based on economic theory to illustrate possible shortcomings of widely-used detrending methods. Wenanalyze a simple model of economic growth and business cycles in which investment and technical progress are stochastic. The Hodrick-Prescottnand the Baxter-King filter are shown to detect spurious business cycles which are not related to actual…

Stock option grants to top managers have largely contributed to the dramatic increase in US executive pay in recent years. In this paper it is argued that stock options, compared to other forms of compensation, have created strong incentives for managers to engage in lobbying activities for higher compensation. The empirical results presented for the S&P 500 firms and the years…

The burning of fossil fuels not only causes CO2 emissions but at the same time impairs local environmental quality such as ambient air quality. The present paper analyzes the possible distortion arising from international trade in CO2 emissions when local externalities persist. It is theoretically derived that the maximal possible distortion is determined by the difference in factor…

"We normally take it for granted: a government or state has its corresponding territory. This paper shows that government need not have a territorial monopoly. The paper advances a practical, constitutional proposal, based on the notion that there are meaningful government units, whose major characteristic is not the territorial extension but its function. The constitution…

Die Studie untersucht die Eigenschaften der Unternehmen, die als Erste in einen sich neu oeffnenden Markt investieren. Fuer den ersten Investor bestehen gewisse Vorteile (first-mover-advantages), die einen moeglichst fruehen Eintritt in den Markt nahe legen. Andererseits fuehrt die politische und wirtschaftliche Unsicherheit in Osteuropa zu einem Anreiz, die Investitionsentscheidung…

The present paper applies a theoretical two-sector three-factor model to analyze a variety of energy tax reforms with the common feature of at least partly exempting the energy-intensive export sector from the tax. As a result, all scenarios with exemptions reduce energy less than the non-discriminating textbook version of the energy tax. Moreover, in the two scenarios that exemplify…