Recent financial research has provided evidence on the predictability of asset returns. In this paper we consider the results contained in Pesaran-Timmerman (1995), hich provided evidence on predictability over the sample 1959-1992. We show that the extension of the sample to the ninetieth...

Two competing methods have been recently developed to estimate large-scale dynamic factor models based, respectively, on static and dynamic principal components. In this paper we use two large datasets of macroeconomic variables for the US and for the Euro area to evaluate in practice the...

This paper studies whether fiscal corrections cause large output losses. We find that it matters crucially how the fiscal correction occurs. Adjustments based upon spending cuts are much less costly in terms of output losses than tax-based ones. Spending-based adjustments have been associated...

This paper shows how the richer frequency and variety of fiscal policy shocks available in an international sample can be analyzed recognizing the heterogeneity that exists across different countries. The main conclusion of our empirical analysis is that the question "what is the fiscal policy...

In this paper, we provide new evidence on the determinants of sovereign yield spreads and contagion effects in the euro area in order to evaluate the rationale for a common Eurobond jointly guaranteed by euro-area Member States. We find that default risk is the main driver of yield spreads,...

This paper argues that the richer frequency and variety of fiscal policy shocks available in an international sample, which makes the use of this evidence attractive, should be analyzed recognizing the heterogeneity that exists across different countries. The main conclusion of the authors’...