Issues of recent interest and controversy regarding bid-ask spreads in commodity futures markets are investigated. First we apply competing spread estimators to open outcry transactions data and compare resulting estimates to observed spreads. This enables market microstructure researchers,...

Two behavioral concepts, loss aversion and mental accounting, have recently been combined to provide a theoretical explanation of the equity premium puzzle. Recent experimental evidence suggests that undergraduate students' behavior is consistent with this "myopic loss aversion" conjecture. Our...

This research investigates various unresolved issues regarding futures markets, using formal methods appropriate for inferring causal relationships from observational data when some relevant quantities are hidden. We find no evidence supporting the generalized version of Keynes's theory of...

Using Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAG's) and Error Correction Models we study the dynamics of the notoriously volatile international freight prices that comprise the Baltic Panamax Index, the index on which freight futures trading is based. The DAG's are used to make definitive statements about the...

This paper presents an effective way of combining two popular, yet distinct approaches used in the hedging literature dynamic programming (DP) and time-series (GARCH) econometrics. Theoretically consistent yet realistic and tractable models are developed for traders interested in hedging a...

This paper presents an effective way of combining two distinct approaches used in the hedging literature--dynamic programming (DP) and time-series (GARCH) econometrics. Theoretically consistent yet realistic and tractable models are developed for traders interested in hedging a portfolio....

Various bid-ask spread estimators are applied to transaction data from LIFFE cocoa and coffee futures markets, and the resulting estimates are compared to observed actual bid-ask spreads. Results suggest that actual bid-ask spreads, which are not reported by most open-outcry futures markets, can...

Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAG's) and Error Correction Models (ECM's) are employed to analyze questions of price discovery between spatially separated commodity markets and the transportation market linking them together. Results from our analysis suggest that these markets are highly...

In settings where there is imperfect information about an underlying state of nature, but where inferences are made sequentially and are publicly observable, information cascades can lead to rational herding. Cascade phenomena may be seen in a variety of areas including technology adoption,...