Equilibrium Storage in a Markov Economy

We model an economy that alternates randomly between abundance and scarcity episodes. We develop an original method to characterize in detail the structure of the Markovian competitive equilibrium. Accumulation and drainage of stocks are the main focuses. Economically appealing comparative statics results are proved. We also characterize stationary distribution of states. We extend the model to discuss price stabilization policies, injection and release costs, and limited storage capacity. Overall, the analysis delineates the notion of “flexible economy.”Price stabilization; strategic stocks; supply risk

The signaling effect of tax policy.

The paper focuses on the signaling value of a tax when agents are less informed than the government on the effect of their consumption. The policy making process is analyzed as a game in which the government wants to influence consumers' behaviors through tax policy, consumers being rational and Bayesian. The marginal cost of public funds induces the government to provide biased information to pursue budgetary objectives. We analyze the tax distortion that is required for credibility.tax policy; marginal cost of public funds; information bias; signaling;

Risk Aversion and the Value of Risk to Life.

The standard literature on the value of life relies on Yaari’s (1965) model, which includes an implicit assumption of risk neutrality with respect to life duration. To overpass this limitation, we extend the theory to a simple variety of nonadditively separable preferences. The enlargement we propose is relevant for the evaluation of life-saving programs: current practice, we estimate, puts too little weight on mortality risk reduction of the young. Our correction exceeds in magnitude that introduced by the switch from the notion of number of lives saved to the notion of years of life saved.Lifecycle Behavior; Life Insurance; Value of Statistical Life; Cost-Benefit Analysis;

Risk Aversion and the Value of Risk to Life

The standard literature on the value of life relies on Yaari’s (1965) model, which includes an implicit assumption of risk neutrality with respect to life duration. To overpass this limitation, we extend the theory to a simple variety of preferences which are not necessarily additively separable. The enlargement we propose is relevant for the evaluation of life-saving programs: current practice, we estimate, puts too little weight on mortality risk reduction of the young. Our correction exceeds in magnitude that introduced by the switch from the notion of number of lives saved to the notion of years of life saved.Value of Statistical Life; Lifecycle Behavior; Cost-benefit Analysis

Risk Aversion and the Value of Risk to Life

The standard literature on the value of life relies on Yaari’s (1965) model, which includes an implicit assumption of risk neutrality with respect to life duration. To overpass this limitation, we extend the theory to a simple variety of nonadditively separable preferences. The enlargement we propose is relevant for the evaluation of life-saving programs: current practice, we estimate, puts too little weight on mortality risk reduction of the young. Our correction exceeds in magnitude that introduced by the switch from the notion of number of lives saved to the notion of years of life saved.Value of Statistical Life; Lifecycle Behavior; Cost-benefit Analysis

Risk Aversion and the Value of Risk to Life

This paper argues for an alternative methodology to estimate the value of risk to life. By relaxing the assumption of additive separability, we introduce risk aversion with respect to the length of life and show that the extended model better fits available data. This is crucial for the extrapolation stage that the evaluation of life-saving programs systematically requires. Current practice, we show, puts too little weight on the young. Our correction surpasses in magnitude that introduced by the switch from the notion of number of lives saved to the notion of years of life saved.value of statistical life; lifecycle behavior; cost-benefit analysis

Equilibrium Storage in a Markov Economy.

We model an economy that alternates randomly between abundance and scarcity episodes. We develop an original method to characterize in detail the structure of the Markovian competitive equilibrium. Accumulation and drainage of stocks are the main focuses. Economically appealing comparative statics results are proved. We also characterize stationary distribution of states. We extend the model to discuss price stabilization policies, injection and release costs, and limited storage capacity. Overall, the analysis delineates the notion of “flexible economy.”Supply Risk; Strategic Stocks; Price Stabilization;

A Case for Affirmative Action in Competition Policy

We analyze the trade-off faced by competition authorities envisaging a one-shot structural reform in a capitalistic industry. A structure is (1) a sharing of productive capital at some time and (2) a sharing of sites or any other non-reproducible assets. The latter represent opportunities. These two distinct dimensions of policy illustrate the importance of a dynamic theory in which firms may differ in several respects. Though equalization of endowments and rights is theoretically optimal, realistic constraints force competition authorities to adopt second-best solutions. Affirmative action here appears to explain why helping the disadvantaged contributes maximally to social surplus.Competition policy, capacity accumulation, Cournot competition, asymmetric duopoly, regulatory consistency, differential games

Some Economics of Seasonal Gas Storage

We propose a model of seasonal gas markets which is flexible enough to include supply and demand shocks while also considering exhaustibility. The relative performances of alternative policies based on price caps and associated measures or tariffs are discussed. We illustrate with structural estimates on US data how this theory can be used to give insights into the intertemporal incidence of policy instruments.Gas storage, energy policy, US