Sticky wages and rule of thumb consumers.

I introduce sticky wages in the model with credit constrained or “rule of thumb” consumers advanced by Galì, Valles and Lopez Salido (2005). I show that wage stickiness i) restores, in contrast with the results in Bilbiie (2005), the Taylor Principle as a necessary condition for equilibrium determinacy; ii) implies that a a rise in consumption in response to an unexpected rise in government spending is not a robust feature of the model. In particular, consumption increses just when the elasticity of marginal disutility of labor supply is low. Results are robust to most of Taylor-type monetary rules used in the literature, including one which responds to wage inflation.Sticky Prices, Sticky Wages, Rule of Thumb Consumers

Distortionary Taxation, Rule of Thumb Consumers and the Effect of Fiscal Reforms

We consider a standard growth model augmented with a share of rule of thumb con- sumers. A Government ?nances a preset level of public expenditure through ?at tax rates on labor and capital income and also makes lump sum transfers to non ricardian consumers. It has been shown in representative agents models with perfect competition that balanced budget rules with endogenous tax rates are likely to generate indetermi- nacy of the perfect foresight equilibrium. We show that the presence of rule of thumb consumers reduces this possibility. Further, we show that a ?scal reform which features a reduction in the capital income tax rate and leads to the steady state where the welfare of non ricardian agents is maximized could be Pareto improving. This is obtained via a direct redistribution of resources to rule of thumb consumers along the transition path.Non Ricardian Agents, Fiscal Policy, Capital Income Tax Rate

Endogenous market structures and labour market dynamics

We propose a flexible prices model where endogenous market structures and search and matching frictions in the labour market interact endogenously. The interplay between firms’ endogenous entry, strategic interactions among producers and labour market frictions represents a strong amplification channel for technology shocks on labour market variables and helps in addressing the unemployment- volatility puzzle. Consistently with US evidence, new firms create a large fraction of new jobs and grow faster than more mature firms, net entry of firms is procyclical and the price mark-up is countercyclical.endogenous market structures; firms’ entry; search and matching; friction

Endogenous Market Structure and the Business Cycle

We introduce endogenous strategic interactions under competition in quantities and in prices together with endogenous entry in a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model with flexible prices. The endogenous mark ups depend on the form of competition and on the degree of substitutability between goods, and they vary countercylically while profits are procyclical. Positive temporary shocks to productivity and government spending attract entry. Entry strengthens competition between firms, which temporary reduces mark ups and prices: this creates an intertemporal substitution effect which provides an extra boost to consumption. The model outperforms the standard RBC framework in matching impulse response functions and second moments for US data.Endogenous Market Structure, Firms?Entry, Business Cycle

Endogenous Market Structures and Labor Market Dynamics

We propose a flexible prices model where endogenous market structures and search and matching frictions in the labor market interact endogenously. The interplay between firms endogenous entry, strategic interactions among producers and labor market frictions represents a strong amplification channel of technology shocks on labor market variables, and helps addressing the unemployment-volatility puzzle. Consistently with U.S. evidence, new firms create a large fraction of new jobs and grow faster than more mature firms, net firms' entry is procyclical and the price mark up is countercyclical.Endogenous Market Structures; Firms' Entry; Search and Matching Frictions

Real Business Cycles with Cournot Competition and Endogenous Entry

We introduce Cournot competition and endogenous entry in an oth- erwise neoclassical macroeconomic framework. First, we develop a model with exogenous savings à la Solow describing the dynamic path of busi- ness creation. Then, we develop a model à la Ramsey describing the dynamic interaction of consumption and business creation. Our models are able to explain why markups vary countercylically and pro?ts are procyclical. The analysis of permanent and temporary technology and preference shocks and of the second moments suggests that our model can outperform the Real Business Cycle framework in many dimensions.

Endogenous Market Structures and Labor Market Dynamics (New version)

We propose a model characterized by strategic interactions among an endogenous number of producers and search and matching frictions in the labor market. In line with U.S. data: (i) new firms account for a relatively small share of overall employment, but they create a relevant fraction of new jobs; (ii) firms’ entry is procyclical; (iii) price mark ups are countercyclical, while aggregate profits are procyclical. In response to a technology shock the labor share decreases on impact and overshoots its long run level. Also the propagation on labor market variables is stronger than in the standard search model. We argue that the countercyclicality of the price mark up is the key mechanism for our results.Endogenous Market Structures, Job Creation, Firms’ Entry, Search and Matching Frictions.

Endogenous Market Structures and Labor Market Dynamics

We propose a flexible prices model where endogenous market structures and search and matching frictions in the labor market interact endogenously. The interplay between firms endogenous entry, strategic interactions among producers and labor market frictions represents a strong amplification channel of technology shocks on labor market variables, and helps addressing the unemployment-volatility puzzle. Consistently with U.S. evidence, new firms create a large fraction of new jobs and grow faster than more mature firms, net firms’ entry is procyclical and the price mark up is countercyclical.Endogenous Market Structures, Firms’ Entry, Search and Matching Frictions

Limited asset market participation: does it really matter for monetary policy?

We study the design of monetary policy in an economy characterized by staggered wage and price contracts together with limited asset market participation (LAMP). Contrary to previous results, we find that once nominal wage stickiness, an incontrovertible empirical fact, is considered: i) the Taylor Principle is restored as a necessary condition for equilibrium determinacy for any empirically plausible degree of LAMP; ii) the implications of LAMP for the design of optimal monetary policy are minor; iii) optimal interest rate rules become active no matter the degree of asset market participation. For these reasons we argue that LAMP is not particularly important for monetary policy.optimal monetary policy; sticky wages; non-Ricardian household; determinacy; optimal simple rules