Due to uncertainties regarding quality in terms of both product and seller, information asymmetry is a significant problem for consumers in the online marketplace. Online sellers are keen to improve their sales by highlighting quality signals such as price, reputation, and e-WOM. In traditional...

Using a macro quantile factor model, we examine cross-state (i.e., cross-quantile) heterogeneity in consumption behaviors. We find that common macro factors generate a “big bang/crunch” effect on micro consumption. Generally speaking, when the aggregate effect of the common factors on the...