This dissertation consists of three essays that analyze different aspects of the contemporary Mexican economy, contributing to our understanding of the Mexican financial market and of the economic behavior of emerging countries. First, taking market prices of two financial instruments in the Mexican market (The Cete and the ajustabono) that directly depend on either the real interest rate or inflation expectations, I was able to measure the inflation risk premium. I find a significant inflation risk premium of 486 basis points on an annualized basis during July 1992 to March 1999. In addition, I analyze the time variation in inflation risk premium across the entire sample, finding that, in general the size of the inflation risk premium for each year confirms the existence of a positive inflation risk premium because of the inflation uncertainty prevalent in Mexico Second, this dissertation analyzes the inflation process in Mexico, recognizing that the variance of Mexico's inflation changes over time (specifically in 1982, 1988 and 1994) and can be modeled following the ARCH (Autoregressive Conditional Heteroskedastic) model. I find that the inflation in Mexico follows an ARCH process from 1978 to 1999 and an ARCH(M) process from 1989 to 1999. I find that the process that better models the conditional variance from 1978 to 1988 is an ARCH (2), and from 1989 to 1999 an ARCH (1). In both periods, the exchange rate parity is significant in the conditional variance and in the mean of the inflation. The significant variables to explain the inflation during 1978 to 1988 are two inflation lags, the exchange rate parity and the money supply (M1). These same variables, along with wages, are significant in explaining the inflation during 1989 to 1999 Finally, this dissertation studies the relationships among financial activity, real economic activity and monetary factors. Using Granger type causality, I investigate lead lag relationships among the IPC (Indice de Precios y Cotizaciones) returns of the Bolsa Mexicana de Valores (BMV), Industrial Production and the money supply (M1). I find 2 evidence indicating that the stock returns of the BMV are a leading indicator of future Mexican real economic activity measured by the Industrial Production; and money supply (M1) plays a significant role in leading the stock returns of the BMV and the real variables measured by Industrial Production. I find an asymmetric response in the Industrial Production when there was a negative percent change in the BMV returns, and significant asymmetric responses in the Industrial Production and Cete interest rate when a negative percent change in money supply occurs / acase@tulane.edu

This dissertation contains three essays on the non-cooperative acid rain control games between China and Japan, featured with uni-directional transboundary pollution, voluntary international assistance, and a narrowed-down Japanese-Chinese income gap. The first essay studies a Cournot-Nash acid rain control game between these two countries, as well as the inefficiency of its outcome. We use comparative statics to explore the possible effects of the narrowed-down income gap between these two countries on the policymaking, environment quality, and social welfare, and our results suggest that it actually plays a positive role in almost every aspect. Both countries benefit from expanded consumption, improved environmental quality, and increased welfare levels. In the second essay, we assume that Japan's voluntary financial assistance on China's environmental projects could be out of both selfish and altruistic motivations. We then present a more general model, derive equilibrium conditions, and explore the comparative static properties of the conventional non-altruistic model and our altruistic model. We make comparison between these two sets of results and highlight the different effects brought by the existence of this positive altruism parameter. We also study the effects of an exogenous change in the altruism parameter. In the third essay, we study Japan's voluntary technological assistance to selected Chinese energy firms for upgrading their abatement production technology. Chinese government holds private information on their own damage intensity coefficient, and their announcement regarding the type does not have to be truthful revelation. China should commit to their announcement however, in the sense that in case they decide to lie about their true type at the first stage, they ought to make sure to keep Japan uninformed in that neither their quantity choice nor the permit price reveals the truth at the third stage. We explore conditions to support truth-telling by Chinese government in both separate domestic permit markets case and regional permit market case, and compare the differences between the two situations. Our results suggest that the introduction of regional permit market does not necessarily help on this purpose / acase@tulane.edu

This dissertation examines the impact of India signing the TRIPs agreement on the Indian pharmaceutical industry. Estimates of the potential economic effects of strengthened product patent protection are calculated for the antibiotic sector. To examine this industry from the context of trade-related issues an in-depth characterization of the institutional structure that regulates this industry is discussed in the first chapter. This is followed with a historical background of the Indian pharmaceutical industry, which provides the base for modeling the antibiotic sector The market structures for the seven antibiotics markets selected are modeled either as a monopoly with a competitive fringe, or as a duopoly with a competitive fringe. Constant elasticity demand and supply functions are assumed for the computational model. Data from the ORG report on the antibiotic segment is used in constructing the computational model. Chapter 4 reports the findings of the simulation exercise. The effects on price, output, producer and consumer surpluses, and welfare are detailed. One observes that enhanced patent protection does not necessarily result in higher market prices. The impact on prices depends on the market structure and the shift of the residual demand curve facing the oligopolist(s). With regard to welfare, across all the antibiotic subgroups, there is a decline under the new patent regime for all assumed market demand elasticities For India, the economic impact of the adoption of this strengthened product patent regime will be felt only after the transition period is over. The combination of national interest, political relevance and the spotlight on issues of providing stronger IPRs in the WTO-TRIPs agreement lends itself to study. This study contributes to the growing body of literature on this issue / acase@tulane.edu

Leviathan governments have a single goal in mind: to maximize tax revenues. This dissertation looks at some of the possible constraints that Leviathan governments face in their quest for growth. In particular, we are interested in the effects of intergovernmental competition as a constraint on Leviathan government size. / The standard theory of intergovernmental competition concludes that if migration costs are low, and districts are good substitutes, then competing governments (even revenue-maximizing governments) will not be able to exploit their citizens through excessive taxation. To do so would encourage their taxpayers to flee to other less intrusive governments. / Federalism is a way for a single government to artificially introduce some aspects of intergovernmental competition. By decentralizing the authority to raise and spend tax revenues, the federal system creates a competitive insurance policy against exploitative government. With the wide range of degrees of federalism across nations and states, the Leviathan view holds that centralized governments should be larger than decentralized ones, all things being equal. In centralized governments the internal competitive constraint is weaker, thus leaving room for Leviathan to increase taxation. / We used three data sets: international, state and local, and state educational, to determine if centralization of government tends to increase government size as predicted by Leviathan. Our results from all three samples are mildly supportive of this view. / In addition, we feel the results are strong enough to reject the notion that government centralization encourages cost savings that tend to reduce government size. This result, in itself, is a valuable piece of evidence against the trend towards increasing consolidation of government on economies of scale grounds. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 53-07, Section: A, page: 2469. / Major Professor: James D. Gwartney. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1992.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2006. / Printout. Vita. Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 67-07, Section: A, page: 2668. Adviser: George Deltas. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 93-96) Available on microfilm from Pro Quest Information and Learning.

<p>This dissertation comprises of three essays in law and economics. The first chapter, a joint work with my advisor - Marjorie McElroy, examines the longly debated effect of the liberalized divorce laws in the United States on the divorce rates during 1956-1989. The first and the second chapter are a theoretical and an empirical paper on a cooperative game of bribery.</p> / Dissertation

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of Economics, 2007. / Title from dissertation home page (viewed Sept. 25, 2008). Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-02, Section: A, page: 0690. Adviser: Eric Rasmusen.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Brown University, 2008. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-06, Section: A, page: 2373.

This dissertation investigates the implication of combining economic and ecological models in an effort to expand our knowledge of the complex problems associated with resource management. The motivation for this research arises from the perceived need to develop a better understanding of how the flow dynamics within a resource affect the efficient management of that resource. Following the introduction, the second chapter experimentally tests the theoretical models of agent behavior in patchy resource environments under both sole-ownership and competitive extraction regimes. In each setting experimental results indicate that subjects over-allocate vessels to regions that possess the greatest rates of emigration within the bioeconomic system relative to the theoretical predictions. This introduces a "spatial externality" because over-harvesting in one region reduces the harvest in the surrounding regions. The third chapter proposes a potential solution to the problems associated with a spatial externality by analyzing the use of marine reserves in the presence of a heterogeneously distributed resource. This is conducted by introducing the presence of biological "hot spots" (areas within a fishery that possess a larger growth potential than the surrounding areas) with spatial rates of migration into the current economic theory. Simulation results indicate that the presence of biological hot spots within a fishery creates an environment within which it is optimal to establish a marine reserve that increases the value of the fishery. The fourth chapter makes use of my earlier experimental and simulation research, which indicate that locational choice and the spatial distribution of effort should affect the management of the fishery. Within this chapter a spatial Heckit model is developed to empirically investigate for the presence of herding behavior among yellowfin sole and Pacific cod fishermen in the Eastern Bering Sea. Econometric results provide support for herding behavior among fishermen within the yellowfin sole fishery. Moreover, fishermen respond to the lagged biomass and spatially weighted biomass signals as significant determinants of locational choice. This results in Lotka-Volterra oscillations in the Pacific cod fishery. In the final chapter of this dissertation, the general findings are concluded and some future avenues of research are discussed.

This dissertation examines the Chinese economy, using the literatures on East Asian development, political economy, and feminist theory to assess the impact that the post-1978 economic reforms have had on women in Beijing. I argue that the socialist ideal of equality for women in the labor market is not yet realized, but neither are the deteriorating conditions for women believed to exist as a capitalist form of development has evolved. Instead I present a model that highlights the importance of the relationship between the state and the household in formulating policy that has changed the status of women in ways that were previously unanticipated. To illustrate these claims I draw on survey research conducted in Beijing from September 2001 to July 2002, with data collected from 292 women aged 20-60. Using a cohort analysis, I conclude that government agencies have been ultimately instrumental in enhancing the social and economic status for some urban women. Policy measures such as the One Child Policy, SOE restructuring, and development of the IOE sector never aimed to improve the fate of women, obviously, yet the timing of the policies has allowed some women to prosper and to avoid the unemployment problems now facing many urban men. The economic and institutional changes that have occurred under marketization are also paving the way for political reform, as women are increasing their awareness of gendered policies and are empowering themselves. These findings refute the popular claims that women have experienced increased gender discrimination and have fared worse under Deng Xiaoping and Jiang Zemin's economic reforms than under Mao. In fact it raises challenging questions about our understanding of communist regimes' adaptation to capitalism and marketization.