A test of collusive behavior based on incentives

This paper proposes a novel collusion test based on the analysis of incentives faced by each firm in a colluding coalition. In fact, once collusion is in effect, each colluding firm faces the incentive to secretly deviate from the agreement, since it thereby increases its profits, although the colluding firms’ joint profit decreases. Thus, in a colluding coalition each firm has marginal revenues, calculated with Nash conjectures, which are larger than its marginal costs. The collusion test is based on the rejection of the null hypothesis that the firm marginal revenues with Nash conjectures are equal to or less than its marginal costs.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

On the Resilience of Superstition

The concept of “belief” has always been taken seriously by anthropologists and philosophers; nevertheless, it has led to a long series of perplexities. To the contrary, the concept of “superstition” has simply been discarded as ethnocentric. The first has been pushed aside for its logical uncertainty; the second for its ethical uncertainty. Yet, the two concepts seem to be surprisingly resilient in face of the continued exercise of anthropological questioning. Furthermore, their capacity for survival appears to be connected precisely to that which connects them: superstition is unfounded belief but the issue of the foundation of belief is at the centre of the anthropological and philosophical perplexities that have haunted the concept of belief. In this paper I examine two examples – one of them a short story by Joseph Conrad – in order to show that today we can look differently at what superstition may be

Lusotopy as Ecumene

In order to avoid the sociocentric proclivity to identify language with culture and nation, thus echoing the language of empire, this paper follows the suggestions of Kroeber, Hannerz, and Mintz in taking recourse to the concept of ecumene. It aims to show that the concept can be applied profitably to the spaces and moments that integrate the vastly differentiated worldwide network of relations resulting from the historical expansion of the Portuguese. To that extent, Lusotopy is a space of human cohabitation structured by amity

Evaluating Programs: Can We Measure the Value of Health Grantmaking?

An analysis of economic quantification as an outcomes-based evaluation tool for health grantmakers. Economic quantification, which calculates economic impact and return on investment through the vernacular of the business community, is said to be useful for grantmakers who seek partnerships with policymakers and businesses

Evaluating debt repurchases: what are the alternative to investment?

In this paper a general model of debt repurchases is built which reconciles most of the points raised in the literature on debt buybacks. It is shown that results previously found in the literature can be obtained from this general model and are strongly dependant on assumptions made on its parameters. The condition that determines whether or not buybacks are an attractive solution from the point of the debtor nations is derived. Additionally it is shown that if there are other assets safer than investment, a debt buyback will always lead to an increase in investment and a reduction in the holdings of such other assets. This result holds independently of the source of the resources used for the buyback, unlike previous suggestions. With a buyback out of current resources, optimal reserves levels fall by more than what is used for the buyback, releasing extra resources for investment purposes, while current consumption does not fall. (JEL F34

Xará: Namesakes in Southern Mozambique and Bahia (Brazil)

In Maputo (Southern Mozambique) and Bahia (Brazil), the most commonly used word to refer to namesakes is xara´ – a word of Amerindian origin. Although the institutions in question diverge considerably in each of these contexts, the two usages come together in that the sharing of a personal name establishes an alliance not only between the two persons involved but also among their relations. In this way, it is argued that the namesake institution is both supervening upon filiation and is a way of closing the local universe of relatedness upon itself. By superimposing a set of crossing ties, the namesake institution consolidates the entities at play and their relations. Nevertheless, much like filiation, upon which it is dependent, the namesake relation is one of co-responsibility and fusion between the partners, not of reciprocal responsibility. The latter is the product of the triangulation that such relations of alliance produce

Does Inflation Targeting Matter for EMEs?

This paper presents an empirical assessment of the performance of EMEs that have adopted inflation targets to conduct monetary policy. In contrast to the evidence previously found for industrial economies, we observe that IT has really mattered for EMEs' price stability. Cross-section and panel estimations consistently suggest that IT has significantly contributed to EMEs' disinflation.Inflation, Prices, EME, EMEs