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作者：Huck, Steffen; Konrad, Kai A.; Mueller, Wieland; Normann, Hans-Theo
作者单位：University of London; University College London; Free University of Berlin; Free University of Berlin; Tilburg University; University of London; Royal Holloway University London
摘要：We study the merger paradox, a relative of Harsanyi's bargaining paradox, in an experiment. We examine bilateral mergers in experimental Cournot markets with initially three or four firms. Standard Cournot-Nash equilibrium predicts total outputs well. However, merged firms produce significantly more output than their competitors. As a result, mergers are not unprofitable. By analysing control treatments, we provide an explanation for these results based on the notion of aspiration levels, and ...
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作者：Cunat, Alejandro; Maffezzoli, Marco
作者单位：University of Essex; Centre for Economic Policy Research - UK; Bocconi University
摘要：We present a dynamic comparative advantage model in which moderate reductions in import tariffs can generate sizable increases in trade volumes over time. A fall in tariffs has two effects. First, for given factor endowments, it raises the degree of specialisation, leading to a larger volume of trade in the short run. Second, it raises the factor price of each country's abundant factor, leading to diverging paths of relative factor endowments and a rising degree of specialisation. A simulation...
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作者：Aktas, Nihat; de Bodt, Eric; Roll, Richard
作者单位：Universite Catholique Louvain; Universite Catholique Louvain; University of California System; University of California Los Angeles
摘要：Why do regulatory authorities scrutinise mergers and acquisitions? The authorities themselves claim to be combating monopoly power and protecting consumers. But the last two decades of empirical research has found little supporting evidence for such motives. An alternative is that M&A regulation is actually designed to protect privileged firms. We provide a test of protectionism by studying whether European regulatory intervention is more likely when European firms are harmed by increased comp...
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作者：Schultz, Christian
作者单位：University of Copenhagen
摘要：The article investigates strategic, informative campaigning by two parties when politics concern redistribution. Voters are uncertain about whether parties favour special groups. Parties will target campaigns on groups where most votes are gained by informing about policies. In equilibrium, campaigning will be most intensive in groups where the uncertainty is largest and where voters are most mobile, most likely to vote, most receptive to campaigns and relatively uninformed initially. These gr...
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作者：Cook, Philip J.; Ludwig, Jens; Venkatesh, Sudhir; Braga, Anthony A.
作者单位：Duke University; University of Chicago; Columbia University; Harvard University
摘要：This article provides an economic analysis of underground gun markets, drawing on interviews with gang members, gun dealers, professional thieves, prostitutes, police, public school security guards and teenagers in the city of Chicago, complemented by results from government surveys of recent arrestees in 22 cities, plus administrative data for suicides, homicides, robberies, arrests and confiscated crime guns. We find evidence that transactions costs are considerable in the underground gun ma...
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作者：Couprie, Helene
作者单位：Universite de Toulouse; Universite Toulouse 1 Capitole
摘要：A collective model of leisure demand, generalised to the production of a household public good, is estimated on the British Household Panel Survey. The sharing rule is identified by using an original parametric framework based on the change of family status: from single-living to couple or from couple to single-living. Womens' ratios of private household expenditures are 40% on average. The level of intra-household inequality appears highly dependent on the intra-household wage gap. Omitting h...
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作者：Collard, Fabrice; Dellas, Harris
作者单位：Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS); University of Bern
摘要：Recent empirical work has suggested that in response to a positive technology shock employment shows a persistent decline. We show that the standard, open economy, flexible price model can generate a negative response of employment to a positive technology shock and can also match the negative conditional correlation between productivity and employment quite well if trade elasticities are low. While the model also has good overall properties, it fails to generate sufficient procyclicality in e...
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作者：Goette, Lorenz; Sunde, Uwe; Bauer, Thomas
作者单位：Federal Reserve System - USA; Federal Reserve Bank - Boston; IZA Institute Labor Economics; University of Bonn; IZA Institute Labor Economics; Ruhr University Bochum
摘要：Wage rigidity - the observation that wages cannot be adjusted downwards - has important implications for labour markets and macroeconomic performance. Empirical evidence on the extent, causes and consequences of wage rigidity on the individual level is relatively scant, however. This Feature presents articles that apply a new methodology to estimate the incidence and extent of nominal and real wage rigidity among the employed in three major European countries (Germany, Italy and Great Britain)...
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作者：Sheshinski, Eytan
作者单位：Hebrew University of Jerusalem
摘要：When information on longevity (survival functions) is unknown early in life, individuals have an interest in insuring themselves against moving into different 'risk-classes' as their life expectancy is revealed. The First-Best allocation involves transfers across states of nature. With symmetric information, competitive equilibrium separates different risk classes and cannot provide such transfers because insurance firms are unable to precommit. When utility is invariant to risk-class realisat...
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作者：Machin, Stephen; McNally, Sandra; Silva, Olmo
作者单位：University of London; University College London; University of London; London School Economics & Political Science; European University Institute
摘要：Despite its high relevance to current policy debates, estimating the causal effect of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) investment on educational standards remains fraught with difficulties. We exploit a change in the rules governing ICT funding across different school districts of England to devise an Instrumental Variable strategy to identify the causal impact of ICT expenditure on pupil outcomes. The approach identifies the effect of being a 'winner' or a 'loser' in the new sys...
