Dynamic relational contracts under complete information

This paper considers a long-term relationship between two agents who both undertake a costly action or investment that together produces a joint benefit. Agents have an opportunity to expropriate some of the joint benefit for their own use. Two cases are considered: (i) where agents are risk neutral and are subject to limited liability constraints and (ii) where agents are risk averse, have quasi-linear preferences in consumption and actions but where limited liability constraints do not bind. The question asked is how to structure the investments and division of the surplus over time so as to avoid expropriation. In the risk-neutral case, there may be an initial phase in which one agent overinvests and the other underinvests. However, both actions and surplus converge monotonically to a stationary state in which there is no overinvestment and surplus is at its maximum subject to the constraints. In the risk-averse case, there is no overinvestment. For this case, we establish that dynamics may or may not be monotonic depending on whether or not it is possible to sustain a first-best allocation. If the first-best allocation is not sustainable, then there is a trade-off between risk sharing and surplus maximization. In general, surplus will not be at its constrained maximum even in the long run

Foreign direct investment and the risk of expropriation

Foreign direct investment accounts for a considerable proportion of international capital flows. In 1986 the flow of foreign direct investment from developed market economies to developing countries was $12.5 billion or roughly one-half of all private capital flows from the developed to the developing nations (and roughly one-quarter of the flow of all foreign direct investments). Its significance for developing countries may even grow in the future as debt is swapped for equity (see Pollio and Riemschneider, 1988). The most important sector in volume term is the manufacturing sector, the concern of this paper. In 1978 total stocks of manufacturing foreign direct investment accounted for roughly two-thirds of the total in less developed countries, with just one-eighth devoted to the extractive industries (see Stopford and Dunning, 1983, p.22).

Limited Commitment Models of the Labour Market

We present an overview of models of long-term self-enforcing labor contracts in which risk sharing is the dominant motive for contractual solutions. A base model is developed which is sufficiently general to encompass the two-agent problem central to most of the literature, including variable hours. We consider two-sided limited commitment and look at its implications for aggregate labor market variables. We consider the implications for empirical testing and the available empirical evidence. We also consider the one-sided limited commitment problem for which there exists a considerable amount of empirical support.labor contracts, self-enforcing contracts, unemployment, business cycle

Unemployment Insurance under Moral Hazard and Limited Commitment: Public vs Private Provision

This paper analyses a model of private unemployment insurance under limited commitment and a model of public unemployment insurance subject to moral hazard in an economy with a continuum of agents and an infinite time horizon. The dynamic and steady-state properties of the private unemployment insurance scheme are established. The interaction between the public and private unemployment insurance schemes is examined. Examples are constructed to show that for some parameter values increased public insurance can reduce welfare by crowding out private insurance more than one-to-one and that for other parameter values a mix of both public and private insurance can be welfare maximising.Social Insurance, Moral Hazard, Limited Commitment, Unemployment Insurance, Crowding Out

Gift-giving, Quasi-Credit and Reciprocity

The fluctuations in incomes inherent in rural communities can be attenuated by reciprocal assistance. A model of reciprocal assistance based upon rational action and voluntary participation is presented. Individuals provide assistance only if the costs of so doing are outweighed by the benefits from expected future reciprocation. A distinction is made between general reciprocity where the counter obligation is expected but not certain and balanced reciprocity where there is a firm counter obligation. This firm counter obligation is reflected by including a loan or quasi-credit element in any assistance. It is shown how this can increase the assistance given and it may explain the widespread use of quasi-credit in rural comunitities. Moreover it is shown that for a range of parameter values consistent with evidence from three villages in southern India, a simple scheme of gift-giving and quasi-credit can do almost as well as theoretically better but more complicated schemes.implicit contract, gift giving, reciprocity, quasi-credit

Currency areas and international assistance

This paper considers a simple stochastic model of international trade with three countries. Two of the tree countries are in an economic union. Comparisons are made between equilibrium welfare for these two countries under fixed and flexible exchange rate regimes. Within the model it is shown that flexible exchange rate regimes generate greater welfare. However, we then consider comparisons of welfare when the two countries also engage in some international assistance in order to share risk. Such risk-sharing is limited by enforcement constraints of cross border assistance. It is shown that taking into account limited commitment risk-sharing fixed exchange rates or currency areas can dominate flexible exchange rate regimes reversing the previous result.monetary union, currency areas, fiscal federalism, limited commitment, mutual insurance

Self-enforcing wage contracts redux

This paper provides a personal perspective on self-enforcing wage contracts. We present a simple version of the model of Thomas and Worrall (1988) and explain its motivation, contribution and methodology. We discuss some of its limitations, the development of literature and its connection to the literature on relational contracting with an observable effort cost. We suggest some open questions for the future development of the literature

Foreign direct investment and the risk of expropriation

Foreign direct investment accounts for a considerable proportion of international capital flows. In 1986 the flow of foreign direct investment from developed market economies to developing countries was $12.5 billion or roughly one-half of all private capital flows from the developed to the developing nations (and roughly one-quarter of the flow of all foreign direct investments). Its significance for developing countries may even grow in the future as debt is swapped for equity (see Pollio and Riemschneider, 1988). The most important sector in volume term is the manufacturing sector, the concern of this paper. In 1978 total stocks of manufacturing foreign direct investment accounted for roughly two-thirds of the total in less developed countries, with just one-eighth devoted to the extractive industries (see Stopford and Dunning, 1983, p.22)