Interactions between business cycles, stock market cycles and interest rates: the stylised facts.

In this paper, we study the co-movements between stock market indices and real economic activity over the business cycle in France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States. Working on the premise that there is neither a single definition of the business cycle, nor a single method for studying it, we use two complementary approaches in our analysis. First, we identify the turning points in real economic indicators and stock market indices and determine the extent to which these series co-move, i.e. are regularly and significantly in the same phase of the cycle. Second, we decompose the series studied into a cyclical part and a structural part in order to calculate the correlations between the cyclical components of real economic indicators and excess returns, on the one hand, and the correlations between the structural components of these indicators, on the other. We then analyse the co-movements between three-month interest rates and the cyclical and structural components of real economic and stock market indices. Two main conclusions can be drawn from these different analyses: (i) there does not appear to be a strong dependence between stock prices and the level of real activity in the short term, except in the United States; (ii) in the longer term, real activity and stock prices seem to share the same determinants. However, it seems difficult to clearly identify an impact of asset price movements on the conduct of monetary policy, represented here by three-month money market interest rates. In general, we do not detect a significant relationship between the cyclical components of excess returns and those of money market rates; nor do we find a significant link between the structural components of these variables.

Technology Shocks and Monetary Policy in an Estimated Sticky Price Model of the Euro Area.

In this paper, we seek to characterize the dynamic effects of permanent technology shocks and the way in which European monetary authorities reacted to these shocks over the past two decades. To do so, we develop an augmented sticky price-sticky wage model of the business cycle, which is estimated by minimizing the distance between theoretical, dynamic responses of key variables to a permanent technology shock and their structural VAR counterparts. In a second step, we conduct a counterfactual experiment consisting to compare these responses with the outcome of the optimal monetary policy. A significant discrepancy emerges between these responses, suggesting the European monetary authorities might not have responded optimally to permanent technology shocks.Sticky prices and wages ; Taylor rule ; Optimal monetary policy.

Productivity and stock prices.

This study looks at the degree of correlation between stock prices and productivity at different levels, i.e. analysis of the correlations between certain components of the two variables and how correlations vary according to the different frequencies characterising these variables. It should be acknowledged that the approach used is only designed to isolate the stylised facts related to the cyclical components of the variables under review and not to explain them. In particular, the method chosen cannot be used to make forecasts or to provide a refi ned economic interpretation of these stylised facts. Nonetheless, this analysis, applied to the United States and the euro area over the period 1973(1)-1985(4), highlights the following points: • in the United States, an increase (or reduction) in the cyclical component of the rate of stock returns is positively correlated with current or future increases (or reductions) in that of the productivity growth rate; • in the euro area, this correlation is less strong. It appears, for example, that a sharp fall in stock prices precedes a marked decline in productivity (link between stock prices and future productivity) and, as a result, in profi ts. This fall could then be interpreted as a normal, even desirable, adjustment mechanism for asset prices. Correspondingly, a sharp rise in stock prices should not automatically be interpreted as the emergence of a future bubble given that such rises appear to foreshadow an increase in productivity and therefore in profi ts. Over the most recent period 1986(1)-2002(4), these correlations appear less pronounced, thus indicating a possible break. Our result is robust given that two complementary methods corroborate it and that it is similar to Estrella’s (2003) findings for the United States. This pattern appears to suggest that the cyclical component of stock prices is in phase with that of productivity.

Interactions between Business Cycles, stock Market Cycles and Interest Rates: the Stylised Facts.

In this paper, we study the co-movements between stock market indices and real economic activity over the business cycle in France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States, using two complementary approaches in our analysis. First, we identify the turning points in real economy indicators and stock market indices and determine the extent to which these series co-move. Second, we calculate the correlations between the cyclical components of real economy indicators and excess returns, on the one hand, and the correlations between the structural components and these indicators, on the other. We then analyse the co-movements between three-month interest rates and the cyclical and structural components of the real economy and stock market indices.Stock returns ; Comovements ; Turning points ; Spectral analysis.

Price Stickiness and Sectoral Inflation Persistence: Additional Evidence

In this paper, using US as well as French sectoral data and indicators of price rigidity, we re-examine the (lack of) relation between price stickiness and inflation persistence. This has recently been put forward by Bils and Klenow (2004) as evidence against time-dependent price setting models. We obtain that, when filtering out sector-specific shocks along the lines of Boivin et al. (2009), and allowing for an alternative assumption on the marginal cost process, the case against the time-dependent Calvo model is substantially weakened.Sticky prices, Heterogeneity, Inflation persistence.

Minimum Distance Estimation and Testing of DSGE Models from Structural VARs

The aim of this paper is to complement the MDE--SVAR approach when the weighting matrix is not optimal. In empirical studies, this choice is motivated by stochastic singularity or collinearity problems associated with the covariance matrix of Impulse Response Functions. Consequently, the asymptotic distribution cannot be used to test the economic model's fit. To circumvent this difficulty, we propose a simple simulation method to construct critical values for the test statistics. An empirical application with US data illustrates the proposed method.MDE, SVAR, DSGE models.

The Dynamic Effects of Disinflation Policies.

This paper investigates the effects of disinflation policies on key macroeconomic variables. Using postwar US data and episode techniques, we identify disinflation shocks as shocks that drive the inflation rate to a lower level in the long-run. We find that in the immediate aftermath of a disinflation policy, the economy enters in a persistent recession. The inflation rate increases above its long-run level and exhibits a positive hump-shaped response. A similar pattern is found for the nominal interest rate, which responds even more strongly in the short-run. We then show that the standard new Keynesian model fails to account for macroeconomic dynamics in disinflationary times. On the contrary a deep habit version of the model successfully accounts for the effects of disinflation policies.Disinflation policies ; Deep Habits ; New Keynesian Models.

Défiscalisation des heures supplémentaires: une perspective d'équilibre général.

This paper characterizes the short- and long-run effects of overtime de-taxation. A dynamic general equilibrium with overtime hours is first developed and calibrated to French data. A fiscal shock consisting of a complete de-taxation of overtime hours is then implemented in the model. Several fiscal scenarios are considered, depending on the pace of public debt and depending on whether consumption taxes or lump-sum taxes are adjusted. In each case, the welfare gains of the fiscal reform are computed. Overtime de-taxation is found to have very limited aggregate effects on output and the labor supply. It also generates a small welfare gain or even a welfare loss, depending on the on the fiscal scenario.Overtime de-taxation, general equilibrium

How Well Does a Small Structural Model with Sticky Prices and Wages Fit Postwar U.S. Data?

In this paper, we ask whether a small structural model with sticky prices and wages, embedding various modelling devices designed to increase the degree of strategic complementarity between price-setters, can fit postwar US data. To answer this question, we resort to a two-step empirical evaluation of our model. In a first step, we estimate the model by minimizing the distance between theoretical autocovariances of key macroeconomic variables and their VAR-based empirical counterparts. In a second step, we resort to Watson's (1993) procedure [Measures of fit for calibrated models. Journal of Political Economy 101 (6), 1011.1041] to quantify the model's goodness-of-fit. Our main result is that the combination of sticky prices and sticky wages is central in order to obtain a good empirical fit. Our analysis also reveals that a model with only sticky wages does not perform well according to Watson's criterion (1993).Sticky prices ; Sticky wages ; Strategic complementarities ; Watson's test.

Une évaluation structurelle du ratio de sacrifice dans la zone euro.

In this paper, we seek to estimate the sacrifice ratio of the euro area using a small DSGE model where prices and wages are sticky. We estimate model's parameters so as to minimize the distance between VAR-based and model-based covariances of a set of variables. The estimated value of the sacrifice ratio reaches 1.30%. In a second step, we proceed to a set of counterfactual exercises in order to highlight the link between the sacrifice ratio and the degree of prices and wages stickiness. We obtain that a decrease of prices stickiness does not necessary result in a decrease of the sacrifice ratio. In addition, the sacrifice ratio rises with the degree of wage stickiness.Sacrifice ratio ; Sticky prices and sticky wages ; DSGE model.