Markets are heterogeneous. Each individual market has different features that generate different equilibrium patterns and therefore, different policy implications. Spotting which feature is more important for a particular market can be an indispensable tool to generate economic models that are...

In the first chapter, I investigate whether investors overreacted to the World Trade Center terrorist attack or not, using insurers' stock returns. Short-term abnormal return reversals are observed after the 9/11 attack. The reversals may reflect the substantially increased uncertainty...

Both options and better information about prices have been proposed to increase the attractiveness of livestock hedging strategies. This study examines the value of incorporating both into hedging strategies for live hogs. A two-period simulation model in which a hog producer chooses a hedging...

Food firms can improve their profits by focusing on one or a few specialized activities because of efficiency gains and/or market power benefits. This study documents that profits increase with increasing concentration for firms in food industries whose top-4-concentration ratio is greater than 38%.

The White information matrix (IM) test is applied to the linear regression model with autoregressive conditional heteroskedastic (ARCH) errors. ARCH models are used widely in analyzing economic and financial time series data. However, in practice, the models are not often thoroughly tested. We...

The dissertation consists of three essays. The first one is an econometric essay on inflation stabilization in Brazil during a period of successive unsuccessful stabilization attempts. The impact on relative prices and the desirability of income policies to fight inflation are addressed. A...

This dissertation bridges the gap of knowledge between communication and financial research in the area of corporate information dissemination. Mainstream financial research views corporate disclosure of earnings as an event. Earnings estimates are important to the valuation of a firm. It would...

On January 12, 1994, Cameroon and 12 other members of the Communaute Financiere Africaine (CFA) zone collectively devalued the CFA franc by 50%. In addition, Cameroon reduced civil service wages, and initiated a set of liberalizing trade reforms. This research has analyzed the impact of the 50%...

This thesis focuses on developing an appropriate target for the funding level of public pension plans. Initially, a two-period model is developed that incorporates the relevant factors in a simple model, examines the comparative statics, and compares the results with actual funding levels. The...