Inference in Games Without Nash Equilibrium: An Application to Restaurants’ Competition in Opening Hours Staff working paper 2018-60 Erhao Xie This paper relaxes the Bayesian Nash equilibrium (BNE) assumption commonly imposed in empirical discrete choice games with incomplete information. Instead of assuming that players have unbiased/correct expectations, my model treats a player’s belief about the behavior of other players as an unrestricted unknown function. I study the joint identification of belief and payoff functions. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): C, C5, C57, L, L1, L13, L8, L85 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Market structure, Models and tools, Econometric, statistical and computational methods
Competition for Exclusivity and Customer Lock-in: Evidence from Copyright Enforcement in China Staff working paper 2023-43 Youming Liu This paper studies the music streaming industry and argues that having exclusive rights granted by copyright law drives firms to offer exclusive content to lock in customers. I employ theoretical and descriptive empirical analysis, along with a dynamic structural model, to support the argument and explore policies for improving competition. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): L, L1, L13, L4, L42, L5, L51 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Market structure, Models and tools, Econometric, statistical and computational methods, Structural challenges, Digitalization and productivity
Labor Market Policies During an Epidemic Staff working paper 2020-54 Serdar Birinci, Fatih Karahan, Yusuf Mercan, Kurt See We study the labour market and welfare effects of expanding unemployment insurance benefits and introducing payroll subsidies during the COVID-19 pandemic. We find that both policies are complementary and are beneficial to different types of workers. Payroll subsidies preserve the employment of workers in highly productive jobs, while unemployment insurance replaces lost income for workers who experience inevitable job loss. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): E, E2, E24, E6, E62, J, J6, J64 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Economic models, Monetary policy, Real economy and forecasting, Structural challenges, Demographics and labour supply
Financial Intermediaries and the Macroeconomy: Evidence from a High-Frequency Identification Staff working paper 2022-24 Pablo Ottonello, Wenting Song We provide empirical evidence of effects to the aggregate economy from surprises about financial intermediaries’ net worth based on a high-frequency identification strategy. We estimate that news of a 1% decline in intermediaries’ net worth leads to a 0.2%–0.4% decrease in the market value of nonfinancial firms. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): E, E3, E32, E4, E44, E5, E51, G, G0, G01, G1, G12, G2, G21, G23, G24, G3, G32 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Market functioning, Financial system, Financial institutions and intermediation, Household and business credit, Monetary policy, Real economy and forecasting
Consumer Search, Productivity Heterogeneity, Prices, Markups, and Pass-through: Theory and Estimation Staff working paper 2024-50 Alex Chernoff, Allen Head, Beverly Lapham We develop and estimate a search model in which identical consumers trade with price-setting firms that differ in productivity. We use the estimated model to characterize the qualitative and quantitative differences in prices and markups across firms. We explore how individual firms respond to changes in cost and demand and how they pass these through to their prices and markup. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): E, E3, E31, L, L1, L16 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Market functioning, Models and tools, Economic models, Monetary policy, Inflation dynamics and pressures
Are Bank Bailouts Welfare Improving? Staff working paper 2021-56 Malik Shukayev, Alexander Ueberfeldt Financial sector bailouts, while potentially beneficial during a crisis, might lead to excessive risk taking if anticipated. Taking expectations and aggregate risk implications into account, we show that bailouts can be welfare improving, but only if capital adequacy constraints are sufficiently tight. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): D, D6, D62, E, E3, E32, E4, E44, G, G0, G01 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial institutions and intermediation, Financial stability and systemic risk, Financial system regulation and oversight, Models and tools, Economic models
Aggregate Fluctuations and the Role of Trade Credit Staff working paper 2017-37 Lin Shao In an economy where production takes place in multiple stages and is subject to financial frictions, how firms finance intermediate inputs matters for aggregate outcomes. This paper focuses on trade credit—the lending and borrowing of input goods between firms—and quantifies its aggregate impacts during the Great Recession. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): E, E3, E32, E4, E44, E5, E51 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial institutions and intermediation, Household and business credit, Monetary policy, Real economy and forecasting
Job Applications and Labour Market Flows Staff working paper 2021-49 Serdar Birinci, Kurt See, Shu Lin Wee Although the number of job applications has risen, job-finding rates remain relatively unchanged while job-separation rates have significantly declined. Rather than raising the probability of finding a job, we find that a rise in applications raises the probability of finding a good match, as evidenced by the decline in separation rates. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): E, E2, E24, J, J6, J63, J64 Research Theme(s): Monetary policy, Real economy and forecasting, Structural challenges, Demographics and labour supply
Fiscal Stimulus and Skill Accumulation over the Life Cycle Staff working paper 2023-9 Laure Simon Using micro data from the U.S. Consumer Expenditure Survey and Current Population Survey, I document that government spending shocks affect individuals differently over the life cycle. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): D, D1, D12, D15, E, E2, E21, E6, E62, J, J1, J11, J2, J24 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Economic models, Monetary policy, Real economy and forecasting, Structural challenges, Demographics and labour supply
Foreign Exchange Fixings and Returns Around the Clock Staff working paper 2021-48 Ingomar Krohn, Philippe Mueller, Paul Whelan We document a new empirical finding in the foreign exchange market: currency returns show systematic reversals around the benchmark fixings. Specifically, the US dollar, on average, appreciates in the hours before fixes and depreciates after fixes. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): F, F3, F31, G, G1, G15 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, International markets and currencies, Market functioning