The standard one-sector real business cycle model is unable to generate expectations-driven business cycles. The current paper shows that this conundrum can be solved by adding countercyclical markups and modest capital adjustment costs.

This paper presents a one-sector optimal growth model with variable capacity services and production externalities. It uses a new formulation of the endogenous capital utilization rate in which utilization costs appear in the form of variable maintenance expenses. I find that indeterminacy...

The paper finds empirical evidence on the ripple effect of sunspots on the interwar German economy. It identifies a sequence of negative shocks to expectations for the 1927 to 1932 period. The artificial economy predicts the 1928-1932 depression and a long boom from 1933 onwards. Overall, a...

This paper examines the effect of the elasticity of technological substitution on the existence of equilibrium indeterminacy in two-sector economies. Recent empirical evidence, the elasticity of substitution between capital and labor is below unity. We ?nd that this requires a higher degree of...

In this paper, we address the causes of the Roaring Twenties in the United States. In particular, we use a version of the real business cycle model to test the hypothesis that an extraordinary pace of productivity growth was the driving factor. Our motivation comes from the abundance of evidence...

High degrees of relative risk aversion induce indeterminacy in cash-in-advance economies. This paper finds that Taylor-style policies can pre-empt such sunspot equilibria. Specific policy recommendations depend on the fundamentals of the economy, i.e. the empirically true value of coecient of...

The aim of the present paper is to analyze the link between price rigidity and indeterminacy. This is done within a cash-in-advance economy from which we know that it exhibits indeterminacy at high degrees of relative risk aversion. I find that price stickiness reduces the scope of these sunspot...

This paper lays out an algorithm that computes accurate second order solutions for dynamic stochastic general equilibrium models that are subject to indeterminacy of rational expectations.

Countercyclical markups are a key transmission mechanism in many endogenous business cycle models. Yet, recent findings suggest that aggregate markups in the US are procyclical. The current model adresses this issue. It extends Gali's (1994) composition of aggregate demand model by endogenous...

Recent empirical evidence suggests that product creation is pro-cyclical and it occurs largely within existing firms. Motivated by these findings, the current paper investigates the role of intra-firm product scope choice in a general equilibrium economy with oligopolistic producers. We show...