This paper presents an empirical analysis of a life cycle model. We incorporate labor supply and family structure into the standard precautionary savings model and estimate structural parameters based on the moment conditions for the life cycle profiles of consumption, working hours, and wealth...

The Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011 not only caused severe damage to the northeastern region, but also affected millions of households beyond the disaster-stricken area. Most notably, the disaster temporarily created large excess demand for many essential goods, resulting in widespread...

This study analyzes the importance of new products for price measurements. Using large-scale retail scanner data in Japan, we construct a unit value price index and decompose its fluctuation into (1) standard price change effects, (2) substitution effects within continuing goods, and (3)...

Using high-frequency point-of-sales data, we investigate the impact of the Great East Japan Earthquake on prices. In contrast to the official Consumer Price Index that shows little impact, our price index based on scanner data reveals a modest yet notable increase in within-store commodity...