This thesis deals with the portfolio optimization problem of an investor who aims to maximize the expected utility of her terminal wealth. The considered multidimensional asset price model incorporates several risk factors modeled both by diffusion processes and by a Markov chain. Based on the...

While the market for credit instruments grew continuously in the decade before 2008, its liquidity has dried up significantly in the current crisis, and investors have become aware of the possible consequences of being exposed to credit risk. In this thesis we address these issues by pricing...

This study was prepared by Beate Schirwitz while she was working at the Ifo Institute’s Dresden Branch. It was completed in February 2012 and accepted as a doctoral thesis by the Faculty of Law, Management, and Economics at the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz in July 2012. It focuses on a...

This volume was prepared by Inga Heiland while she was working at the Ifo Institute. It was completed in July 2016 and accepted as a doctoral thesis by the Department of Economics at the University of Munich. It comprises five chapters addressing one or more aspects of international trade and...