The recent housing bust has reignited interest in psychological theories of speculative excess (Shiller, 2007). I investigate this issue by identifying a segment of the U.S. population-evangelical protestants-that may be less prone to speculative motives, and uncover a significant negative...

This paper examines housing finance and housing price dynamics in selected emerging Middle Eastern economies over the past two decades. It finds that (i) mortgage markets have experienced rapid development, which has led to lower private per capita consumer spending volatility this decade; (ii) a...

Intro -- Content -- I. INTRODUCTION -- II. OIL PRICE VOLATILITY -- III. THE DEMAND AND SUPPLY OF CRUDE OIL -- IV. ROLE OF MONETARY POLICY IN THE OIL MARKETS -- V. SOLUTION OF THE SEM -- VI. CONCLUSIONS -- APPENDIX -- REFERENCES.

Intro -- Contents -- I. INTRODUCTION -- II. THE GLOBAL AND HISTORICAL CONTEXT -- III. Balance of Payments Impact -- IV. FISCAL IMPACT -- V. LOOKING FORWARD-POSSIBLE VULNERABILITIES -- VI. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR DEMAND FOR IMF RESOURCES -- APPENDIX I-COMPARISON TO OIL SHOCKS OF THE...