This paper brings forward the insurance aspect of holding reserves by using the conceptual equivalence between insurance and financial options, and explores when reserves are likely to become the primary means of precautionary arrangement, in particular in emerging markets. The sharp rise in the...

Because durable goods have the quality of an asset, risk-averse consumers want to pay a lower price for durable than for nondurable goods so that they are compensated for the risk of price changes; they require risk premium. Since the exchange rate is a strong source of uncertainty in import...

Revisiting the time-honored link between productivity growth and the real exchange rate, we find that higher labor productivity tends to appreciate the real exchange rate, consistent with the traditional view. Contrary to the traditional view, however, we find that the positive productivity...

This paper investigates the changing pattern and efficacy of sterilization within emerging market countries as they liberalize markets and integrate with the world economy. We estimate the marginal propensity to sterilize foreign asset accumulation associated with net balance of payments...

The paper studies financial integration in the presence of moral hazard, where banks may mitigate excessive risk by costly monitoring. The author shows that a drop in banks" cost of funds, less efficient intermediation technology, higher macroeconomic volatility, and a more generous deposit...

This paper investigates changes in cultural consumption patterns for a low-concentration industry: wine and beer. Using data on 38 countries from 1963-2000, there is clear convergence in the consumption of wine relative to beer between 1963 and 2000. Convergence occurs even more quickly within...