Econometric modelling in finance and risk management: An overview

This paper gives an overview about the sixteen papers included in this special issue. The papers in this special issue cover a wide range of topics. Such topics include discussing a class of tests for correlation, estimation of realized volatility, modeling time series and continuous-time models with long-range dependence, estimation and specification testing of time series models, estimation in a factor model with high-dimensional problems, finite-sample examination of quasi-maximum likelihood estimation in an autoregressive conditional duration model, and estimation in a dynamic additive quantile model.Continuous-time model; correlation test; dynamic additive model; estimation of realized volatility; factor model; long-range dependence

Risk Modelling in Finance

Examines the measurement of risk in finance and the shortcomings of the various approaches to this measurement

The demise of the Parliament’s Political and Constitutional Reform Comittee: executive power is again predominant

Just how strong is the Conservatives mandate? With only 24.7% of eligible voters opting to support them, perhaps not as strong as their majority might suggest. One of their first moves has been to abolish the House of Commons Political and Constitutional Reform Committee, a key organ of democracy in the struggle to improve British democracy. Here, the most recent Chair of the Committee Graham Allen MP, Martin Smith, and Dave Richards argue that the whole affair illustrates an indulgence of executive power over the legislature

Environmental Kuznets curves: Mess or meaning?

There may be relationship between output and environmental degradation. The shape of this relationship is proposed to be an inverted 'U' shape for a number of pollutants. The purpose of this paper is to review empirical literature on the environmental Kuznets curve and to draw any lessons that might be useful to policy makers. Evidence is tabulated for a wide range of pollutants. In aggregate, there appears to be a relationship between specific environmental pollutants and income per capita, however the shape of the relationship is not uniform across pollutants, and turning points, when they exist, differ across pollutants. This leads to the conclusion that there is no single relationship between income, environmental quality and the rate of environmental degradation. It is possible to grow out of some types of environmental degradation, but whether this is the case will depend on the type of pollution that is examined. Hence, policy makers should recognise the deficiencies of the theory behind the environmental Kuznets curve. Even if environmental Kuznets curves do exist, several decades may pass before turning points are reached, and extensive environmental degradation may occur in the meantime. The turning point on the environmental Kuznets curve is probably associated with the dynamics of individual environmental elements that change with income. Progress still needs to be made in order to learn which variables do have turning points in their relationship with output so that we can decide which policies to follow. If a massive increase in pollution is to be avoided, a proactive and explicit approach to environmental quality is needed across countries, which probably does not use the knowledge gained from an environmental Kuznets curve. © 2010 Taylor & Francis