One of the more remarkable properties of commodity markets is the capability of their nominal prices to be negative numbers. This flexibility to violate the zero bound can appear in outright flat prices, spreads, and net unit costs. The principal driver is typically overwhelming supply relative...

We analyze the impact of the length of incomplete contracts on investment and surplus sharing. In the bilateral relationship explored, the seller controls the input and the buyer invests. With two-part tariffs, the length of the contract is irrelevant: the surplus is maximal and goes to the...

If bidders are uncertain whether the auctioneer sticks to the announced reserve, some bidders respond by not bidding, speculating that the auctioneer may revoke the reserve. However, the reserve inadvertently signals the auctioneer's type, which drives a unique separating and a multitude of...