It is well known that the Internet has significantly reduced consumers'search costs online. But relatively little is known about how searchcosts affect consumer demand structure in online markets. In this paper,we identify the impact of search costs on firm competition and marketstructure by...

This dissertation investigates the impact of online product information on consumers, firms and markets. The first chapter of this dissertation proves that better access to product information increases consumer demand and their willingness-to-pay, leading to a new era where firms can charge...

Every year, the federal government regulates how many pounds of summer flounder (while these fish are called summer flounder, they are caught throughout the year) can be caught along the eastern seaboard. Annually, the federal government sets the total allowable landings (TAL) based on...

Interaction effects have been consistently found important in explaining the variation in outcomes in many scientific research fields. Yet, in practice, variable selection including interactions is complicated due to the limited sample size, conflicting philosophies regarding model...

This thesis empirically evaluates three key financial and macroeconomic issues: Essay 1 examines the effectiveness of China fuel oil futures in hedging a domestic spot fuel oil position as well as hedging a spot position in the Singapore fuel oil market. To the best of our knowledge, this is...