Risk sharing and the household collective model

When the joint assumption of optimal risk sharing and coincidence of beliefs is added to the collective model of Browning and Chiappori (1998) income pooling and symmetry of the pseudo-Hicksian matrix are shown to be restored. Because these are also the features of the unitary model usually rejected in empirical studies one may argue that these assumptions are at odds with evidence. We argue that this needs not be the case. The use of cross-section data to generate price and income variation is based Oil a definition of income pooling or symmetry suitable for testing the unitary model, but not the collective model with risk sharing. AIso, by relaxing assumptions on beliefs, we show that symmetry and income pooling is lost. However, with usual assumptions on existence of assignable goods, we show that beliefs are identifiable. More importantly, if di:fferences in beliefs are not too extreme, the risk sharing hypothesis is still testable.

Impactos de restrições sobre empresas listadas na BM&F Bovespa : um survey a partir da crise de 2008/09

Por meio de um survey, ouvimos 56 gestores financeiros e de relações com investidores de empresas listadas na BM&F Bovespa sobre o grau das restrições financeiras observadas durante a crise de 2008/09, contrapondo diferenças entre firmas que declararam ter sofrido restrições àquelas que disseram não terem sido afetadas. Nossa evidência aponta que as restritas rebaixaram os preços praticados e demitiram colaboradores em dose maior do que as irrestritas. As restritas também acusaram salto pronunciado no endividamento, enquanto as irrestritas conservaram suas fontes de financiamento, buscando preservar reputação no mercado. Cerca de 65% das firmas restritas indicam que as restrições financeiras afetaram a capacidade de aceitar projetos atrativos, e 25% dessas firmas se viram forçadas a postergar/cancelar investimentos vantajosos. Comparando a medida direta de nosso survey frente a proxies usualmente adotadas, cremos que este trabalho agrega ao espectro de ferramentas empregadas para avaliar o impacto de restrições financeiras sobre as decisões corporativas.

A note on financial regulation and the brazilian response to the 2008‐09 financial crisis

Brazil was frequently criticized for its interventionist and heavy financial regulation up until the 2008‐09 world financial crisis.  According to the neo‐liberal or pro‐market view that predominated in academic and financial circles during the early 2000s, economic development came together with financial deepening, which in its turn could only be achieved through financial liberalization and deregulation. The currency crises of the 1990s notwithstanding, by the mid‐2000s Brazil’s segmented financial market and its restrictive reserve and capital requirements were seen as a symbol of inefficiency and backwardness by most financial specialists.  To the luck of the Brazilian population, most of the advices of such specialists were ignored by the Brazilian authorities, so that, when the 2008 financial crisis hit the world economy, Brazil still had powerful and efficient instruments to deal with the problem.  The objective of this note is to present the mains aspects of the Brazilian financial regulation and how they helped the economy to deal with the consequences of 2008‐09 financial meltdown.