Recent theoretical work suggests that signs of asset returns are predictable given that their volatilities are. This is the first paper to investigate whether the demand for information, approximated by the daily internet search volume index (SVI) from Google, can enhance volatility forecasts...

We examine the forecasting power of the volatility of the slope of the US-Treasury yield curve on US stock-market volatility. Consistent with theoretical asset pricing models, we find that the volatility of the slope of the term structure of interest rates has significant forecasting power on...

In this paper we examine the pricing of volatility risk using SPX corridor implied volatility. We decompose model-free total implied volatility into various components using different segments of the cross section of out-of-the money put and call option prices. We find that only model-free...

The role of oil price shocks in economic activity and inflation is controversial but a key input to economic policy. To clarify these relations, we employ a refined measure of oil shocks based on decomposing realized volatility and estimated using intraday oil futures data. In reconciling prior...

Motivated by the growing literature on volatility options and their imminent introduction in major exchanges, this article addresses two issues. First, the question of whether volatility options are superior to standard options in terms of hedging volatility risk is examined. Second, the...

We investigate the controversial role of the informal sector in the economy of 64 countries between 2003 and 2007 by focusing for the first time on the impact it has on sovereign debt markets. In addition to a standard ordered Probit regression, we employ two nonparametric neural network...

The shadow economy (SE) is a pathological normalcy, not only in developing countries but also in developed ones, causing disagreeable distortions in the real economy. In this paper, we estimate the size of the informal sector in nineteen countries of the European Union (EU) by implementing three...

This paper studies the three main markets for emission allowances within the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS): Powernext, Nord Pool and European Climate Exchange (ECX). The analysis suggests that the prohibition of banking of emission allowances between distinct phases of the EU...