Production and Financial Policies under Asymmetric Information

We propose an extension of the standard general equilibrium model with production and incomplete markets to situationsin which (i) private investors have limited information on the returns of specific assets, (ii) managers of firms have limited information on the preferences of individual shareholders. The extension is obtained by the assumption that firms are not traded directly but grouped into ‘sectorial’ funds. In our model the financial policy of the firm is not irrelevant. We establish the existence of equilibria and discuss the nature of the inefficiencies introduced by the presence of asymmetric information. We also illustrate the properties of the model in three simple examples.

Kinky perceived demand curves and Keynes-Negishi equilibria

The label "Keynes-Negishi equilibria" is attached here to equilibria in a monetary economy with imperfectly competitive product and labor markets where business firms and labor unions hold demand perceptions with kinks - as posited in Negishi's 1979 book Microeconomic Foundations of Keynesian Macroeconomics. Such equilibria are defined in a general equilibrium model, and shown to exist. Methodological implications are briefly discussed in a concluding section

The Financial Sustainability of the Portuguese Social Security System

This paper analyses the account of the benefits sub-system as well as its impact on the portfolio of Social Security Trust Fund (“FEFSS”). Section 2 describes state social security and the account projections of the benefits sub-system. Section 3 analyses the actuarial and financial equilibrium of the system in the short and long term and the fund's assets. Section 4 concludes. The Geneva Papers on Risk and Insurance (2004) 29, 417–439. doi:10.1111/j.1468-0440.2004.00295.x

Choice in Interactive Environments

In the early 21st century, firms are thinking seriously and practically about an interactive marketing paradigm—one that integrates mass scale with individual responsiveness. The focus of this paper is on how this interactive environment is changing the customer decision-making process. With the increased amount of information available, the existence of sophisticated decision aids such as intelligent agents, and more latitude in how to interact beyond the basic desktop and laptop computers (e.g., personal digital assistants, cellular phones, tablet computers), customers have more choices than ever about how, when, and how much to interact with companies and each other. In this paper, we attempt to cover a few of the major areas of research on how customers make decisions in these environments