It is well documented in the literature that the sample skewness and excess kurtosis can be severely biased in finite samples. In this paper, we derive analytical results for their finite-sample biases up to the second order. In general, the bias results depend on the cumulants (up to the sixth...

Respondents of contingent valuation surveys may place a null value on the public good, for reasons that differ from a genuine indifference to the good, but that can be interpreted as a "protest": either against the interview, or the public management, or both. A good survey design can...

Under the advanced internal ratings-based (AIRB) approach, the banks are allowed to use their internally developed models for probability of default (PD), exposure at default (EAD) and loss given default (LGD) parameters. According to the Basel II Accord (2004), the potential over-optimism of...