Modelling Hidden Processes which Drive Economic and Financial Systems. The ability to forecast complex economic systems is crucial to benefit from peak performance, and to prepare for and safeguard against downturn. This project aims to make significant discoveries concerning hidden processes which drive such systems, using rigorous, cutting-edge, flexible econometric methods. Resulting outcomes will be improved understanding of - and ability to forecast - important economic phenomena such as vo ....Modelling Hidden Processes which Drive Economic and Financial Systems. The ability to forecast complex economic systems is crucial to benefit from peak performance, and to prepare for and safeguard against downturn. This project aims to make significant discoveries concerning hidden processes which drive such systems, using rigorous, cutting-edge, flexible econometric methods. Resulting outcomes will be improved understanding of - and ability to forecast - important economic phenomena such as volatility in price series, extremal (risky) behaviour of financial systems, and turning points of the business cycle. Discoveries will be disseminated through published papers and presentations at a major international conference. Ongoing e-research links with France will also be established.Read moreRead less
Novel econometric techniques for modelling and forecasting electricity prices and price volatility in Australia. Price volatility, particularly price spikes, are of special importance to electricity retailers who, because of retail price regulation, cannot pass them onto final customers and end up bearing the price risk. While state governments may enter into compensation deals with retailers, it is of great interest to both parties to understand why and when these price surges occur and, once t ....Novel econometric techniques for modelling and forecasting electricity prices and price volatility in Australia. Price volatility, particularly price spikes, are of special importance to electricity retailers who, because of retail price regulation, cannot pass them onto final customers and end up bearing the price risk. While state governments may enter into compensation deals with retailers, it is of great interest to both parties to understand why and when these price surges occur and, once they have occurred, how long they will last. A better understanding of the electricity price process will enable more sophisticated plans and strategies to be put in place to hedge against unfavourable, unexpected or extreme price events.Read moreRead less
Computing probabilities of theories where these probabilities vary over time with applications in macroeconomics. This project will present a method to produce empirically based policy advice that accounts for the changing economic environment and that allows for a range of assumptions about how the economy works. The research and training will place Australia at the forefront of empirical macroeconomic research and strengthen international research networks. Policy making will be improved as: i ....Computing probabilities of theories where these probabilities vary over time with applications in macroeconomics. This project will present a method to produce empirically based policy advice that accounts for the changing economic environment and that allows for a range of assumptions about how the economy works. The research and training will place Australia at the forefront of empirical macroeconomic research and strengthen international research networks. Policy making will be improved as: it will use information that is more robust to false assumptions; it will quickly incorporate new information; and we will understand better why certain policies did or did not work at different times in the past. The research will impact upon other sciences such as physics and engineering that use the same underlying tools far more than do economists.Read moreRead less
New Approaches to the Analysis of Count Time Series. The focus of this proposal is on the analysis of data that enumerate events over time. Occurrences of such count data abound in economics and business, examples being observations on insurance claims, loan defaults and individual product demand. This project develops a suite of innovative methods for modelling and predicting event counts. The methods explicitly accommodate both the discreteness of the data and possible complexities in its evo ....New Approaches to the Analysis of Count Time Series. The focus of this proposal is on the analysis of data that enumerate events over time. Occurrences of such count data abound in economics and business, examples being observations on insurance claims, loan defaults and individual product demand. This project develops a suite of innovative methods for modelling and predicting event counts. The methods explicitly accommodate both the discreteness of the data and possible complexities in its evolution over time. In so doing, they enable both accurate inferences regarding the dynamic structure of the data to be drawn and accurate forecasts of future event counts to be produced.Read moreRead less
International linkages between financial and real economy cycles. This project will develop empirical multivariate models of business cycles for different countries, and will study how they are linked via international financial markets. The significance of the project is that the models will integrate previous work done on financial-real economy links in single country settings, and it will explicitly study the effects of disequilibrium in international financial markets (such as overvaluation ....International linkages between financial and real economy cycles. This project will develop empirical multivariate models of business cycles for different countries, and will study how they are linked via international financial markets. The significance of the project is that the models will integrate previous work done on financial-real economy links in single country settings, and it will explicitly study the effects of disequilibrium in international financial markets (such as overvaluation of foreign currency) on individual economies. The project will determine the appropriate domestic monetary policy response to such shocks, and the potential for forecasting both the advent of such shocks and their impact on individual economies.Read moreRead less
Helping Central Banks Measure Unobserved Variables Using Real-time Forecasts. The project addresses structural measurement problems confronted routinely by central bankers. The techniques developed, and the estimates provided, will aid directly the Partner Organisations (the Reserve Bank of Australia, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand and Norges Bank) and other central banks in formulating monetary policy. The analysis will allow interest rates in Australia and elsewhere to be set with greater pre ....Helping Central Banks Measure Unobserved Variables Using Real-time Forecasts. The project addresses structural measurement problems confronted routinely by central bankers. The techniques developed, and the estimates provided, will aid directly the Partner Organisations (the Reserve Bank of Australia, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand and Norges Bank) and other central banks in formulating monetary policy. The analysis will allow interest rates in Australia and elsewhere to be set with greater precision. The techniques developed in this project will facilitate the understanding and communication of monetary policy within the central banks concerned, and enhance communication of monetary policy strategy to the public.Read moreRead less
Australian Real Time Data: Construction, Analysis and Implications for Real Time Policy Making. This first comprehensive macroeconomic real time database for Australia recording the actual data available to policy makers at the time of making decisions will serve as a standard reference for accurate ex post macroeconomic policy evaluation and for accurate forecasts and decision making which are robust to data revisions. The free database will be of interest to Australian researchers, economists, ....Australian Real Time Data: Construction, Analysis and Implications for Real Time Policy Making. This first comprehensive macroeconomic real time database for Australia recording the actual data available to policy makers at the time of making decisions will serve as a standard reference for accurate ex post macroeconomic policy evaluation and for accurate forecasts and decision making which are robust to data revisions. The free database will be of interest to Australian researchers, economists, forecasters and policy makers. Readily applicable and interpretable forecasts of the business cycle and the current state of the Australian (and US) economy (e.g. likelihood of recessions or inflation) will be of direct relevance to Australian policy-makers in Government, the Reserve Bank of Australia, and to the Australian decision-makers. Read moreRead less
MONETARY POLICY WITH LIQUIDITY CONSTRAINED GOVERNMENT DEBT MARKETS. Modern monetary policy seeks to influence domestic macroeconomic outcomes, using actions in official Government debt markets. The effectiveness of this route is being challenged by reductions in the level of Government debt outstanding. Monetary policy is faced with the possibility of operating in alternative financial markets. The project will:
* Examine alternative markets for monetary policy operation.
* Examine the effect ....MONETARY POLICY WITH LIQUIDITY CONSTRAINED GOVERNMENT DEBT MARKETS. Modern monetary policy seeks to influence domestic macroeconomic outcomes, using actions in official Government debt markets. The effectiveness of this route is being challenged by reductions in the level of Government debt outstanding. Monetary policy is faced with the possibility of operating in alternative financial markets. The project will:
* Examine alternative markets for monetary policy operation.
* Examine the effects of alternatives on real economy outcomes.
* Develop a model of the economy which controls for global financial conditions - which has not been done before.
* Combine modern econometric techniques.
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New estimation and testing issues in nonlinear time series econometrics. The outcomes of this project will not only complement but also enhance the existing strengths of Australian researchers in the field of econometrics. The outcomes are also expected to help stabilise the national financial market for more accurate forecasts. It is also expected that the outcomes will provide novel models to respond to climate change and variability and to provide accurate warming estimates for improving the ....New estimation and testing issues in nonlinear time series econometrics. The outcomes of this project will not only complement but also enhance the existing strengths of Australian researchers in the field of econometrics. The outcomes are also expected to help stabilise the national financial market for more accurate forecasts. It is also expected that the outcomes will provide novel models to respond to climate change and variability and to provide accurate warming estimates for improving the policy making process.Read moreRead less
Inference in partially non-stationary time series models. Economic theories typically specify the long-run relationship between economic variables. However, researchers usually examine the long-run features of the data by fitting a restrictive class of models using criteria that have only proven useful for short-term forecasting. In this project we consider alternative models and modelling strategies that are appropriate for the study of the long-run. We also develop computer intensive (bootstra ....Inference in partially non-stationary time series models. Economic theories typically specify the long-run relationship between economic variables. However, researchers usually examine the long-run features of the data by fitting a restrictive class of models using criteria that have only proven useful for short-term forecasting. In this project we consider alternative models and modelling strategies that are appropriate for the study of the long-run. We also develop computer intensive (bootstrap) methods, which will provide a much-needed improvement over the existing (asymptotic) methods for making inference about the long-run. Our research will lead to more reliable models for long-term planning in business, industry and government.Read moreRead less