This thesis consists of six chapters, and the main research contributions are contained in chapters two through five inclusive. The topics addressed in each chapter are distinct, but related, and the specific contributions to knowledge made by the different chapters are related to: (i)...

Using Australian capital city data from 1984Q3-2008Q2, this paper utilizes a dynamic present value model within a VAR framework to construct time series of house prices depicting what aggregate house prices should be given expectations of future real disposable income – the ‘fundamental...

This paper overviews the evolution of economics at the University of Western Australia (UWA) in the thirty years to 1992, with attention given to the leadership of professorial staff, fragmentation in the vision for the economics program and the role of research and research training in that...

China’s growth has been spectacularly high and persistent over the last few decades. However, there have been regular expressions of concern about the uneven distribution of the benefits across regions and, at times, it has been asserted that the regional distribution of available investment...

This thesis investigates economic aspects of the measurement of fiscal decentralisation to establish how a nation’s fiscal arrangements can be consistently measured, so they can be compared internationally. A new index of fiscal decentralisation is developed that reflects two key elements of...

During his honours research on an index of industrial production at the University of Western Australia, Salter gained an understanding of the composite commodity theorem. The applied work on the index of industrial production provided him with the analytic foundations for his two famous...

This paper contains a critique of solvency regulation such as imposed on banks by Basel I and II. It argues that banks seeking to maximize rate of return on risk-adjusted capital (RORAC) aim at an optimal level of solvency because on the one hand, solvency S lowers the cost of refinancing; on...

The relationship between financial-system reform and growth is of continuing interest and the subject of ongoing research; yet many aspects of it remain unclear. This paper contributes to the literature by an analysis of this relationship using Chinese time-series data. China is a particularly...

China has enjoyed high economic growth for three decades since the initiative of economic reform in 1978. This growth has however been driven mainly by labour-intensive, export-oriented manufacturing activities. Has innovation played a role in China’s economic growth? What are the determinants...