This paper is concerned with a generalization of classical inventory models (with fixed ordering costs) that exhibit (s, S) policies. In our model, the distribution of demands in successive periods is dependent on a Markov chain. The model includes the case of cyclic or seasonal demand. The...

In this paper, we use a Markov decision process (MDP) to model the joint inventory-promotion decision problem. The state variable of the MDP represents the demand state brought about by changing environmental factors as well as promotion decisions. The demand state in a period determines the...

"The Belt and Road Initiative promotes connectivity among countries and regions along the route and is a powerful tool for the Chinese government to respond to the rise of trade protectionism and the restructuring and shift of global industrial chains in the post-epidemic era. This study...

We solve an agent's optimization problem of meeting demands for cash over time with cash deposited in bank or invested in stock. The stock pays dividends and uncertain capital gains, and a commission is incurred in buying and selling of stock. We use a stochastic maximum principle to obtain...

Supply chains today routinely use third parties for many strategic activities, such as manufacturing, R&D, or software development. These activities often include relationship-specific investment on the part of the vendor, while final outcomes can be uncertain. Therefore, writing complete...

We solve an agent's optimization problem of meeting demands for cash over time with cash deposited in bank or invested in stock. The stock pays dividends and uncertain capital gains, and a commission is incurred in buying and selling of stock. We use a stochastic maximum principle to obtain...

Production scheduling problem of style good manufacturer involves seasonal stochastic demands for their goods and limited production capacities. As a result, some production must take place before the selling season starts. The problem can be cast as a stochastic optimal control problem over...

We present a sufficient condition for a feedback Stackelberg equilibrium of a stochastic differential game on an infinite horizon. This condition gives rise to a system of elliptic partial differential equations involving a static Stackelberg game at the level of Lagrangian. As an example, we...

Bandit products have captured significant market shares in China and have started to expand throughout the world. A striking feature of supply chains for bandit products is decentralization, where the upstream firm determines the product quality and the downstream firms compete on prices. We...

We consider a decentralized two-period supply chain in which a manufacturer produces a product and sells it through a retailer facing a price-dependent demand. We assume that the second period production cost declines linearly in the first-period production, but with a random learning rate. As...