The expectations theory of the term structure of interest rates states that the yields on financial assets of different maturities are related primarily by market expectations of future yields. The expectations theory has occupied a prominent place in both theoretical and policy debates at...

Employment in Australia over the past five years has recorded one of the strongest increases in the post-war period. This experience stands in marked contrast to that of the mid 1970s and early 1980s when demand for labour in Australia was very weak. Recent developments provide an opportunity to...

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The Australian dollar was floated in December 1983. Since that time the exchange rate has become more volatile and has depreciated significantly. The aim of this paper is to examine the behaviour of the foreign exchange market since the float. In particular, the paper considers whether the joint...

Recent theoretical developments have shown that cash flows and the structure of a firm’s balance sheet may have an important influence on investment. Establishing a link between cash flows, leverage and investment provides insights into the way that monetary policy and cyclical factors more...

The paper considers recent trends in the provision of finance and the factors that are likely to influence its future course. It emphasises how the interaction between the allocation of household wealth and the financing needs of firms shape the structure and evolution of financial systems. The...

This paper examines the behaviour of the balance of payments in the 1980s. In particular, it identifies the factors that underpinned the persistently high current account deficits experienced during the decade. In doing so, it attempts to reconcile two approaches to analysing the current...

Saving has attracted increasing attention in recent years. Research has focused on questions about its adequacy, determinants and measurement. This paper considers the latter issue. The main trends in world-wide and OECD-area saving over the last two to three decades are reviewed. Subsequently,...

This paper examines whether information asymmetries and agency costs vary across OECD countries depending on the nature of their financial system. It does this by examining whether the predictive power of the spread between yields on private and government securities (which, it has been argued,...