We investigate the performance of a sample of German mutual equity funds overthe period from 1994 to 2003. Our general finding is that mutual funds, on average,hardly produce excess returns relative to their benchmark that are large enough tocover their expenses. This conclusion is drawn from a...

Im Jahr 2008 wurden in der Schweiz aktive klimapolitische Massnahmen eingeführt,die zur Senkung der CO2-Emissionen beitragen sollen, um die Klimaziele im Rahmendes Kyoto-Protokolls (Senkung der Treibhausgasemissionen um 8 % im Vergleichzum Basisjahr 1990) erreichen zu können. Diese Massnahmen...

A longstanding theoretical discussion on the merits of prices vs.quantities for regulating emissions under uncertainty exists in environmentalpolicy literature. However, empirical evidence w.r.t. instrumentchoice has not been put forward so far. In particular, verylittle is known about...

This paper addresses the personal linkages between the public administration and the legislaturethat emerge because public servants pursue a political mandate. There are concernsthat the strong representation of bureaucrats in many Western parliaments compromises theconstitutionally proposed...

Environmental policy often has to be devised under informational constraints,like uncertainty and asymmetric information. We consider an environmentalpolicy that aims at reducing the welfare losses caused by asymmetricinformation while being sufficiently simple for implementation. Inthis policy,...

Auch wenn die grundsätzliche Idee von Hedge Funds schon mehr als ein halbes Jahrhundertbesteht, so hat diese Anlageform doch erst in den letzten Jahren an Bedeutunggewonnen, und zwar sowohl in der Praxis als auch in der der akademischen Forschung.Dabei sind Hedge Funds in die größere Klasse...

This paper addresses the personal linkages between the public service and the legislaturethat emerge because public servants pursue a political mandate. There are concerns thatthe strong representation of public servants in many Western parliaments compromises theconstitutionally proposed...