We consider the problem of testing whether the observations X1, · · ·, Xn of a time series are independent with unspecified (possibly nonidentical) distributions symmetric about a common known median. Various bounds on the distributions of serial correlation coefficients are proposed:...

The article aims at identifying socioeconomic factors which explain the Chinese famine of 1959-1961. The main hypothesis of this paper is that the radicalism of Great Leap Forward policies generated both a decline of agricultural output (availability problems) and the implementation of an...

We estimate the technology of air pollution abatement, defined as a relation between conventional production, emissions and the inputs specifically allocated to the environmental protection. We use original firm-level data on both air emissions and investments in abatement equipment. We deal...

The problem of the relationship between the financial system, and its effects, and economic growth remains a controversial issue. It is about a debate between the various economic trends. The objective of this thesis is to shed light on the nature of that relationship. To achieve this goal, we...