DSGE models are currently estimated with a two step approach: data is first filtered and then DSGE structural parameters are estimated. Two step procedures have problems, ranging from trend misspecification to wrong assumption about the correlation between trend and cycles. In this paper, I...

This paper examines how primitive skills associated with occupations are formed and rewarded in the labor market over the careers of men. The objective task complexity measurement from the Dictionary of Occupational Titles enables a more direct look into the primitive skills of workers. I show...

Sunk costs for R&D are an important determinant of the level of innovation in the economy. In this paper I recover them using a Markov equilibrium framework. The contribution is twofold. First, a model of industry dynamics which accounts for selection into R&D, capital accumulation and...

We propose a method to estimate time invariant cyclical DSGE models using the information provided by a variety of filters. We treat data filtered with alternative procedures as contaminated proxies of the relevant model-based quantities and estimate structural and non-structural parameters...

Brazilian data on auto-insurance present an intriguing fact: the coexistence of policies being sold with zero and positive brokerage fees. We extend the Bertrand model of price competition to a dynamic environment in which agents face a .xed cost to switch to a new (unmatched) broker. This...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the phenomena of convergence and stability of leverage reported by Lemmon et al. (2008). Design/methodology/approach – A dynamic trade-off model of the firm was used to simulate investment, leverage, and payout decisions for different...