The shape of the likelihood of several recently developed econometric models is often non-elliptical. Learning this shape using Gibbs sampling is discussed in this paper. A systematic analysis using graphical and computational methods is presented. Examples of the models considered in this paper...

This paper studies the econometric problems associated with estimation of a stochastic process that is endogenously sampled. Our interest is to infer the law of motion of a discrete-time stochastic process p_t that is observed only at a subset of times t_1, ...,t_n that depend on the outcome of...

This paper describes and analyses the use of the Filtered Historical Simulation algorithm in pricing spread options. Spread options are contracts whose payoff depends on the price difference (spread) between two or more underlying assets at a future date. Such kind of options are written in the...

Computing power now allows empirical researchers to use intensive computing estimation techniques with nonlinear panel-data models. Maximum Likelihood estimation is often cumbersome, if not analytically intractable, when dealing with such models. Even the simple calculation of the likelihood...

A simulation smoother in state space time series analysis is a procedure for drawing samples from the conditional distribution of state or disturbance vectors given the observations. We present a new technique for this which is both simple and computationally efficient.

While stochastic volatility models improve on the option pricing error when compared to the Black-Scholes-Merton model, mispricings remain. This paper uses mixed normal heteroskedasticity models to price options. Our model allows for significant negative skewness and time varying higher order...

We present a general class of nonlinear time series Markov regime-switching models for seasonal data which may exhibit periodic features in the hidden Markov process as well as in the laws of motion in each of the regimes. This class of models allows for nontrivial dependencies between seasonal,...

Advances in computing power allow the empirical researcher to use intensive computional techniques to solve and estimate nonlinear panel-data models, specifically those arising from nonlinear panel data such as Probit and Tobit models. In these cases, maximum-likelihood estimation can be...