Sequential Monte Carlo (SMC) methods are widely used for filtering purposes of non-linear economic or financial models. Nevertheless the SMC scope encompasses wider applications such as estimating static model parameters so much that it is becoming a serious alternative to Markov- Chain...

This paper sets up a Gibbs sampler for a three state Markov switching model with non-constant transition probabilities. The step from two to three states is accomplished by the use of a multinomial probit model for the latent variable process. The algorithm is then applied to Swiss GDP data in...

Sequential Monte Carlo (SMC) methods are widely used for non-linear filtering purposes. Nevertheless the SMC scope encompasses wider applications such as estimating static model parameters so much that it is becoming a serious alternative to Markov-Chain Monte-Carlo (MCMC) methods. Not only SMC...

This paper develops tests of the null hypothesis of linearity in the context of autoregressive models with Markov-switching means and variances. These tests are robust to the identification failures that plague conventional likelihood-based inference methods. The approach exploits the moments of...

We evaluate the performance of several specification tests for Markov regime-switching time series models. We consider the Lagrange Multiplier and dynamic specification tests of Hamilton (1994) and Ljung-Box tests based on both the generalized residual and a standard-normal residual constructed...

This paper develops a systematic Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) framework based upon Efficient Importance Sampling (EIS) which can be used for the analysis of a wide range of econometric models involving integrals without an analytical solution. EIS is a simple, generic and yet accurate...

This paper is concerned with simulation based inference in generalized models of stochastic volatility defined by heavy-tailed student-t distributions (with unknown degrees of freedom) and covariate effects in the observation and volatility equations and a jump component in the observation...

GARCH volatility models with fixed parameters are too restrictive for long time series due to breaks in the volatility process. Flexible alternatives are Markov-switching GARCH and change-point GARCH models. They require estimation by MCMC methods due to the path dependence problem. An unsolved...

I estimate a forward-looking, dynamic, discrete-choice monetary policy reaction function for the US economy, that accounts for the fact that there are substantial restrictions in the period-to-period changes of the Fed's policy instrument. I find a substantial contrast between the periods before...

This paper investigates inference and volatility forecasting using a Markov switching heteroscedastic model with a fat-tailed error distribution to analyze asymmetric effects on both the conditional mean and conditional volatility of financial time series. The motivation for extending the Markov...