This paper shows that the bootstrap algorithm for average technical efficiency by Atkinson and Wilson (1995) should be applied with great care for the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) estimator if the production frontier is stochastic. A stochastic frontier implies that the DEA estimator is...

In this paper we introduce the Smooth Permanent Surge [SPS] model. The model is an integrated non lineal moving average process with possibly unit roots in the moving average coefficients. The process nests the Stochastic Permanent Break [STOPBREAK] process by Engle and Smith (1999) and in a...

In this paper we introduce the Smooth Permanent Surge [SPS] model. The model is an integrated non lineal moving average process with possibly unit roots in the moving average coefficients. The process nests the Stochastic Permanent Break [STOPBREAK] process by Engle and Smith (1999) and in a...

In this paper we use Monte Carlo testing techniques for testing linearity against the smooth transition models. The Monte Carlo approach allows us to introduce a new test that differs from the tests existing in the literature in two respects. First, the test is exact in the sense that the...

Asymptotic tests for fractional integration are usually badly sized in small samples, even for normally distributed processes. Furthermore, tests that are well-sized under normality may be severely distorted by non-normalities and ARCH errors. This paper demonstrates how the bootstrap can be...

Asymptotic tests for fractional integration, such as the Geweke-Porter-Hudak test, the modified rescaled range test and Lagrange multiplier type tests, exhibit size-distortions in small-samples. This paper investigates a parametric bootstrap testing procedure, for size-correction, by means of a...

In this paper we propose an alternative method for investigating the sources behind the behavior of real wages and unemployment. The statistical model we study is a certain structural error correction model, a so called common trends model, which has become popular in the empirical...

The main instrument of monetary policy in industrialized countries is currently a short-term interest rate. It typically remains unchanged during long spans of time. This paper tries to answer three questions. Why do Central Banks change targeted interest rates so seldom? How should we estimate...

In this paper we apply a bivariate probit model to investigate the implications of bank lending policy. In the first equation we model the bank´s decision to grant a loan, in the second the probability of default. We confirm that banks provide loans in a way that is not consistent with default...

The discrete choice or ”referendum” contingent valuation technique has become a popular tool for assessing the value of non-market goods. Surveys used in these studies frequently suffer from large non-response which can lead to significant bias in parameter estimates and in the estimate of...