Data obtained from monthly Gallup/UBS surveys from 1998-2007 and from a special supplement to the Michigan Surveys of Consumer Attitudes, run in 22 monthly surveys between 2000-2005, are used to analyze stock market beliefs and portfolio choices of household investors. We show that the key...

This paper develops the theory of multi-step ahead forecasting for vector time series that exhibit temporal nonstationarity and co-integration. We treat the case of a semi-infinite past, developing the forecast filters and the forecast error filters explicitly, and also provide formulas for...

We develop a model of the market for federal funds that explicitly accounts for its two distinctive features: banks have to search for a suitable counterparty, and once they have met, both parties negotiate the size of the loan and the repayment. The theory is used to answer a number of positive...

The paper makes a critical assessment of the Principal Components-GARCH (PC-GARCH) model and argues why, when dealing with hundreds or thousands of variables, this model comes up as the most appropriate to be used. The suitability originates from the perspective of quality/cost ratio of...

The world economy has been recently upside–downed by the Global Financial Crisis. However, the effects have been extremely different from one country to another and from one economic sector to another. Starting from the economic assumptions formulated in the field’s literature, the article...

We use a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model to address two questions about U.S. monetary policy: 1) Can monetary policy elevate output when it is below potential? and 2) Is the zero lower bound a trap? The model answer to the first question is yes it can, but the effect is only...

Progress on the question of whether policymakers should respond directly to financial variables requires a realistic economic model that captures the links between asset prices, credit expansion, and real economic activity. Standard DSGE models with fully-rational expectations have difficulty...

In this paper we provide analytical and Monte Carlo evidence that Chow and Predictive tests can be consistent against alternatives that allow structural change to occur at either end of the sample. Attention is restricted to linear regression models that may have a break in the intercept. The...

Inflation rate, unemployment rate and interest rate are some of the most important indicators used at macroeconomic level. These variables present an important interest for the central banks that establish the monetary policy (infl ation target), but also for the government interested in public...