We propose a generalized look-ahead estimator for computing densities and expectations in economic models. We provide conditions under which the estimator converges globally with probability one, and exhibit the asymptotic distribution of the error. Our estimator is more efficient than other...

We propose a generalized conditional Monte Carlo technique for computing densities in economic models. Global consistency and functional asymptotic normality are established under ergodicity assumptions on the simulated process. The asymptotic normality result allows us to characterize the...

We propose a generalized conditional Monte Carlo technique for computing densities in economic models. Global consistency and functional asymptotic normality are established under ergodicity assumptions on the simulated process. The asymptotic normality result allows us to characterize the...

This paper studies the income fluctuation problem without imposing bounds on utility, assets, income or consumption. We prove that the Coleman operator is a contraction mapping over the natural class of candidate consumption policies when endowed with a metric that evaluates consumption...

The look-ahead estimator is used to compute densities associated with Markov processes via simulation. We study a framework that extends the look-ahead estimator to a much broader range of applications. We provide a general asymptotic theory for the estimator, where both L1 consistency and L2...

A potential benefit of a large market (GDP) is a large number of locally-produced varieties. We attempt to quantify the number of varieties produced in a market by counting the number of firms and plants. Looking at manufacturing industries across countries and over time, we find that variety...