AN ANALYSIS OF HOUSEHOLD FOOD EXPENDITURE SYSTEMS IN TANZANIA

This paper analyzes urban and rural food consumption in Tanzania using the Generalized Translog (GTL) expenditure system. We reject a pooled model in favor of two separate urban and rural models. Results indicate that subsistence consumption has significant effect on food demand in rural areas, but it is less important in urban areas. Hence, ignoring differences between urban and rural regions can lead to incorrect inferences and policy recommendations.Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

INVERSE DEMAND RELATIONSHIPS FOR WHEAT FOOD USE BY CLASS

A normalized quadratic input distance system is applied to estimate inverse demand relationships for wheat by class. Semi-nonparametric and Bayesian estimators are used to impose curvature on inputs and outputs. Price flexibilities are estimated for hard red winter, hard red spring, soft red wheat, soft white winter, and durum wheat. Durum wheat is found to be the most price flexible. Economically and statistically important differences in price formation across classes of wheat are found and are supportive of government programs differentiating wheat by class.Demand and Price Analysis,

IMPOSING CURVATURE RESTRICTIONS ON A TRANSLOG COST FUNCTION USING A MARKOV CHAIN MONTE CARLO SIMULATION APPROACH

Using Kansas Farm data from 1973 to 1998, curvature restrictions are imposed on a translog cost function. Using uninformative priors with indicator functions representing distribution and inequality constraints, a Markov Chain Monte Carlo Simulation method is used to estimate parameters and check curvature at each point. Comparison is made to the Cholesky factorization method commonly used with the normalized quadratic functional form.Research Methods/ Statistical Methods,

Import demand of Bananas in the European Union

The EU banana market has been of enormous interest for researchers for a long time, especially after the import policy unification brought by the Common Market Organization for Bananas (CMOB) in 1993. Empirical evidence suggests that the CMOB and its subsequent modifications have been highly distorting. However, the quantifications made of those distortions by different authors vary a lot, not only in magnitude but also in direction. The reason is that for each evaluation, a different system of demand equations has been estimated. However, besides the different models used, there is one common denominator to all models. They do not incorporate the general restrictions (homogeneity, symmetry and adding up) necessary to make the demand estimations consistent with economic theory. In this paper we estimate the almost ideal demand system (AIDS) to calculate more reliable elasticities to facilitate future welfare analysis of the EU banana market. The inverse almost ideal demand system (IAIDS) was also estimated under the alternative assumption that import prices adjust to quantities instead to quantities adjusting to price variations as it has usually assumed. However, the results are not reported because due to the upcoming import policy and its subsequent quota elimination, quantities will not longer be predetermined. Preliminary results show that demand elasticities are different depending on the region of origin of the imported bananas. Latin American bananas are substitutes of bananas from preferred suppliers and complements of others while imports from the ACP are substitutes of all regions. EU bananas behave similar to Latin American in the sense that they are substitutes of all by other suppliers. Preliminary welfare analysis of the proposed policy shows that both Latin American producers and EU consumers of Latin American bananas will lost from the quota elimination and increase in the tariff level.International Relations/Trade,

Input inefficiency in commercial banks: a normalized quadratic input distance approach

A normalized quadratic input distance function is proposed with which to estimate technical efficiency on commercial banks regulated by the Federal Reserve System. The study period covers 1990 to 2000 using individual bank information from the Call and Banking Holding Company Database. A stochastic frontier model is specified to estimate the input normalized distance function and obtain measures of technical efficiency.Banks and banking

PREDICTING HOUSEHOLD WATER CONSUMPTION UNDER A BLOCK PRICE STRUCTURE

This study focuses on estimating the variations in per-capita water consumption and predicting the shares of consumption by pricing blocks in eight Kansas regions. Previous studies have considered household or micro-level consumption, but few have focused on aggregate level consumption across different regions. A probit model was used to estimate the consumption shares in individual blocks for each region. Per-capita water consumption varies significantly across the regions and as we move from Western to Eastern Kansas, shares of lower consumption block decrease and higher consumption block likely to increase.Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Multivariate AIM Consumer Demand Model Applied to Dried Fruit, Raisins, and Dried Plums

Abstract: We estimate a semi-nonparametric demand system based on a multivariate version of the Muntz-Szatz series expansion which is called the Asymptotically Ideal Model (AIM). The model is applied to consumer demand for dried fruits, raisins, and dried plums. Results from the first and second order AIM expansions suggest that the second order expansion leads to a more economically consistent model, but the likelihood ratio test indicates the AIM(2) model was not a statistical improvement over the AIM(1) model.demand, consumers, AIM, Demand and Price Analysis,

Empirical properties of duality theory

This research examines selected empirical properties of duality relationships. Monte Carlo experiments indicate that Hessian matrices estimated from the normalised unrestricted profit, restricted profit and production functions yield conflicting results in the presence of measurement error and low relative price variability. In particular, small amounts of measurement error in quantity variables can translate into large errors in uncompensated estimates calculated via restricted and unrestricted profit and production functions. These results emphasise the need for high quality data when estimating empirical models in order to accurately determine dual relationships implied by economic theory.Research Methods/ Statistical Methods,

Crystal structure of the yellow 1:2 molecular complex lumiflavin–bisnaphthalene-2,3-diol

In the first molecular complex of the physiologically active neutral form of isoalloxazine studied, lumiflavin–bisnaphthalene-2,3-diol, each flavin is sandwiched between two naphthalenediol molecules with extensive overlap but a moderately large (3·44 Å) spacing, indicating at most weak charge-transfer interaction and in agreement with the yellow colour of the complex, nearly the same as that of the parent lumiflavin