Markov Chain Monte Carlo Methods in Financial Econometrics

Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods have become very popular in financial econometrics during the last years. MCMC methods are applicable where classical methods fail. In this paper, we give an introduction to MCMC and present recent empirical evidence. Finally, we apply MCMC methods to portfolio choice to account for parameter uncertainty and to incorporate different degrees of belief in an asset pricing model. Copyright Swiss Society for Financial Market Research 2005

Portfolio selection with higher moments

We propose a method for optimal portfolio selection using a Bayesian decision theoretic framework that addresses two major shortcomings of the traditional Markowitz approach: the ability to handle higher moments and parameter uncertainty. We employ the skew normal distribution which has many attractive features for modeling multivariate returns. Our results suggest that it is important to incorporate higher order moments in portfolio selection. Further, our comparison to other methods where parameter uncertainty is either ignored or accommodated in an ad hoc way, shows that our approach leads to higher expected utility than competing methods, such as the resampling methods that are common in the practice of finance.Bayesian decision problem, Multivariate skewness, Parameter uncertainty, Optimal portfolios, Utility function maximization,