Econometrics — Open Access Journal

We consider cointegration tests in the situation where the cointegration rank is deficient. This situation is of interest in finite sample analysis and in relation to recent work on identification robust cointegration inference. We derive asymptotic theory for tests for cointegration rank and for hypotheses on the cointegrating vectors. The limiting distributions are tabulated. An application to US treasury yields series is given. Full article

Crises in the banking and sovereign debt sectors give rise to heightened financial fragility. Of particular concern is the development of self-fulfilling feedback loops where crisis conditions in one sector are transmitted to the other sector and back again. We use time-varying tests of Granger causality to demonstrate how empirical evidence of connectivity between the banking and sovereign sectors can be detected, and provide an application to the Greek, Irish, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish (GIIPS) countries and Germany over the period 2007 to 2016. While the results provide evidence of domestic feedback loops, the most important finding is that financial fragility is an international problem and cannot be dealt with purely on a country-by-country basis. Full article

We propose an Aitken estimator for Gini regression. The suggested $\mathcal{A}$-Gini estimator is proven to be a U-statistics. Monte Carlo simulations are provided to deal with heteroskedasticity and to make some comparisons between the generalized least squares and the Gini regression. A Gini-White test is proposed and shows that a better power is obtained compared with the usual White test when outlying observations contaminate the data. Full article

A multivariate CVAR(1) model for some observed variables and some unobserved variables is analysed using its infinite order CVAR representation of the observations. Cointegration and adjustment coefficients in the infinite order CVAR are found as functions of the parameters in the CVAR(1) model. Conditions for weak exogeneity for the cointegrating vectors in the approximating finite order CVAR are derived. The results are illustrated by two simple examples of relevance for modelling causal graphs. Full article

This paper compares two approaches to analyzing longitudinal discrete-time binary outcomes. Dynamic binary response models focus on state occupancy and typically specify low-order Markovian state dependence. Multi-spell duration models focus on transitions between states and typically allow for state-specific duration dependence. We show that the former implicitly impose strong and testable restrictions on the transition probabilities. In a case study of poverty transitions, we show that these restrictions are severely rejected against the more flexible multi-spell duration models. Full article

We develop novel multivariate state-space models wherein the latent states evolve on the Stiefel manifold and follow a conditional matrix Langevin distribution. The latent states correspond to time-varying reduced rank parameter matrices, like the loadings in dynamic factor models and the parameters of cointegrating relations in vector error-correction models. The corresponding nonlinear filtering algorithms are developed and evaluated by means of simulation experiments. Full article

Value-at-Risk (VaR) has become the most important benchmark for measuring risk in portfolios of different types of financial instruments. However, as reported by many authors, estimating VaR is subject to a high level of uncertainty. One of the sources of uncertainty stems from the dependence of the VaR estimation on the choice of the computation method. As we show in our experiment, the lower the number of samples, the higher this dependence. In this paper, we propose a new nonparametric approach called maxitive kernel estimation of the VaR. This estimation is based on a coherent extension of the kernel-based estimation of the cumulative distribution function to convex sets of kernel. We thus obtain a convex set of VaR estimates gathering all the conventional estimates based on a kernel belonging to the above considered convex set. We illustrate this method in an empirical application to daily stock returns. We compare the approach we propose to other parametric and nonparametric approaches. In our experiment, we show that the interval-valued estimate of the VaR we obtain is likely to lead to more careful decision, i.e., decisions that cannot be biased by an arbitrary choice of the computation method. In fact, the imprecision of the obtained interval-valued estimate is likely to be representative of the uncertainty in VaR estimate. Full article

In this paper, we borrow some of the key concepts of nonequilibrium statistical systems, to develop a framework for analyzing a self-organizing-optimizing system of independent interacting agents, with nonlinear dynamics at the macro level that is based on stochastic individual behavior at the micro level. We demonstrate the use of entropy-divergence methods and micro income data to evaluate and understand the hidden aspects of stochastic dynamics that drives macroeconomic behavior systems and discuss how to empirically represent and evaluate their nonequilibrium nature. Empirical applications of the information theoretic family of power divergence measures-entropic functions, interpreted in a probability context with Markov dynamics, are presented. Full article

In this paper, we investigate several variable selection procedures to give an overview of the existing literature for practitioners. “Let the data speak for themselves” has become the motto of many applied researchers since the number of data has significantly grown. Automatic model selection has been promoted to search for data-driven theories for quite a long time now. However, while great extensions have been made on the theoretical side, basic procedures are still used in most empirical work, e.g., stepwise regression. Here, we provide a review of main methods and state-of-the art extensions as well as a topology of them over a wide range of model structures (linear, grouped, additive, partially linear and non-parametric) and available software resources for implemented methods so that practitioners can easily access them. We provide explanations for which methods to use for different model purposes and their key differences. We also review two methods for improving variable selection in the general sense. Full article

A standard test for weak instruments compares the first-stage F-statistic to a table of critical values obtained by Stock and Yogo (2005) using simulations. We derive a closed-form solution for the expectation from which these critical values are derived, as well as present some second-order asymptotic approximations that may be of value in the presence of multiple endogenous regressors. Inspection of this new result provides insights not available from simulation, and will allow software implementations to be generalised and improved. Finally, we explore the calculation of p-values for the first-stage F-statistic weak instruments test. Full article

This paper provides a new statistical model for repeated voluntary contribution mechanism games. In a repeated public goods experiment, contributions in the first round are cross-sectionally independent simply because subjects are randomly selected. Meanwhile, contributions to a public account over rounds are serially and cross-sectionally correlated. Furthermore, the cross-sectional average of the contributions across subjects usually decreases over rounds. By considering this non-stationary initial condition—the initial contribution has a different distribution from the rest of the contributions—we model statistically the time varying patterns of the average contribution in repeated public goods experiments and then propose a simple but efficient method to test for treatment effects. The suggested method has good finite sample performance and works well in practice. Full article

This paper draws upon influence function regression methods to determine where foreign workers stand in the distribution of private sector wages in Luxembourg, and assess whether and how much their wages contribute to wage inequality. This is quantified by measuring the effect that a marginal increase in the proportion of foreign workers—foreign residents or cross-border workers—would have on selected quantiles and measures of inequality. Analysis of the 2006 Structure of Earnings Survey reveals that foreign workers have generally lower wages than natives and therefore tend to haul the overall wage distribution downwards. Yet, their influence on wage inequality reveals small and negative. All impacts are further muted when accounting for human capital and, especially, job characteristics. Not observing any large positive inequality contribution on the Luxembourg labour market is a striking result given the sheer size of the foreign workforce and its polarization at both ends of the skill distribution. Full article

In forecasting a variable (forecast target) using many predictors, a factor model with principal components (PC) is often used. When the predictors are the yield curve (a set of many yields), the Nelson–Siegel (NS) factor model is used in place of the PC factors. These PC or NS factors are combining information (CI) in the predictors (yields). However, these CI factors are not “supervised” for a specific forecast target in that they are constructed by using only the predictors but not using a particular forecast target. In order to “supervise” factors for a forecast target, we follow Chan et al. (1999) and Stock and Watson (2004) to compute PC or NS factors of many forecasts (not of the predictors), with each of the many forecasts being computed using one predictor at a time. These PC or NS factors of forecasts are combining forecasts (CF). The CF factors are supervised for a specific forecast target. We demonstrate the advantage of the supervised CF factor models over the unsupervised CI factor models via simple numerical examples and Monte Carlo simulation. In out-of-sample forecasting of monthly US output growth and inflation, it is found that the CF factor models outperform the CI factor models especially at longer forecast horizons. Full article

We propose and study the stochastic stationary root model. The model resembles the cointegrated VAR model but is novel in that: (i) the stationary relations follow a random coefficient autoregressive process, i.e., exhibhits heavy-tailed dynamics, and (ii) the system is observed with measurement error. Unlike the cointegrated VAR model, estimation and inference for the SSR model is complicated by a lack of closed-form expressions for the likelihood function and its derivatives. To overcome this, we introduce particle filter-based approximations of the log-likelihood function, sample score, and observed Information matrix. These enable us to approximate the ML estimator via stochastic approximation and to conduct inference via the approximated observed Information matrix. We conjecture the asymptotic properties of the ML estimator and conduct a simulation study to investigate the validity of the conjecture. Model diagnostics to assess model fit are considered. Finally, we present an empirical application to the 10-year government bond rates in Germany and Greece during the period from January 1999 to February 2018. Full article

This paper proposes an approach to measure the extent of nonlinearity of the exposure of a financial asset to a given risk factor. The proposed measure exploits the decomposition of a conditional expectation into its linear and nonlinear components. We illustrate the method with the measurement of the degree of nonlinearity of a European style option with respect to the underlying asset. Next, we use the method to identify the empirical patterns of the return-risk trade-off on the SP500. The results are strongly supportive of a nonlinear relationship between expected return and expected volatility. The data seem to be driven by two regimes: one regime with a positive return-risk trade-off and one with a negative trade-off. Full article

We use a cointegrated structural vector autoregressive model to investigate the relation between monetary policy in the euro area and the stock market. Since there may be an instantaneous causal relation, we consider long-run identifying restrictions for the structural shocks and also used (conditional) heteroscedasticity in the residuals for identification purposes. Heteroscedasticity is modelled by a Markov-switching mechanism. We find a plausible identification scheme for stock market and monetary policy shocks which is consistent with the second-order moment structure of the variables. The model indicates that contractionary monetary policy shocks lead to a long-lasting downturn of real stock prices. Full article