Unrestricted VAR Model Research Articles

The Effect of Exchange Rate on Bilateral Trade Balance: New Evidence from Malaysia and Thailand

This paper attempts to identify the major economic factors that influence the bilateral trade balances of Malaysia and Thailand with the US and Japan. To this end, an unrestricted VAR model was estimated using quarterly frequency data from 1980: I to 1996: IV. The Johansen results indicate a stable long‐run relation between trade and three macro variables: exchange rate, domestic income and foreign income. The main findings of this paper are: (i) the real effective exchange rate is an important variable in the trade balance equation and devaluation improves the trade balances of both economies in the long‐run; (ii) the other important variables that determine trade balance include domestic and foreign incomes; (iii) the results indicate no J‐curve effect and causal run from exchange rate to trade balance, (iv) the real effects of devaluation are distributed over a period of eight to nine quarters.

Forecasting industrial employment figures in Southern California: A Bayesian vector autoregressive model

In this paper, we construct a Bayesian vector autoregressive model to forecast the industrial employment figures of the Southern California economy. The model includes both national and state variables. The root mean squared error (RMSE) and the Theil's U statistics are used in selecting the Bayesian prior. The out-of-sample forecasts derived from each model and prediction of the turning points show that the Bayesian VAR model outperforms the ARIMA and the unrestricted VAR models. At longer horizons the BVAR model appears to do relatively better than alternative models. A prior that becomes increasingly looser produces more accurate forecasts than a tighter prior in the BVAR estimations.

Post-stabilization inflation dynamics in Slovenia

This paper investigates the inflation process in Slovenia through an examination of some commonly used determinants of inflation in transition economies. Granger causality tests and an analysis of unrestricted VAR models suggest a strong linkage between both growth in broader monetary aggregates and changes in the tolar-deutsche mark exchange rate on retail price inflation. While the growth in wages affects inflation, it appears that both changes in the exchange rate and growth in monetary aggregates provide the initial impulse. A discussion of the present money-exchange rate policy framework and its influence on inflation is also provided.

Dynamics of Private and Public Real Estate Markets

Using five assets (T-bills, bonds, stocks, and both public and private real estate), this study investigates how cointegration of capital markets affects the dynamics of public and private real estate markets. The results show that the price indices of the five assets are nonstationary and cointegrated. Some implications for the long-term equilibrium relationship for portfolio diversification, price discovery and prediction are discussed. In a Granger causality framework, error-correction augmented VAR models (VECM) and unrestricted VAR models are compared with respect to the conclusion regarding the interaction between public and private real estate returns. VECM is also shown to improve the prediction of private real estate returns relative to an unrestricted VAR model. These results raise questions about previous research studies regarding the dynamics between public and private real estate returns. It is shown that the long-term equilibrium relationship establishes a feedback between the two real estate markets, but the private market seems to informationally lead the public one. Possible explanations are also explored.

Cointegration in return series and its effect on short‐term prediction

Refers to previous research on the relationship between returns for different asset classes and on cointegration; and applies Johansen’s (1988) methodology to develop a prediction model. Uses 1978‐1995 data on five US asset classes (treasury bills, long‐term bonds, large capitalization common stocks, unsecuritized real estate and securitized real estate equity) to investigate cointegration between them. Shows that the index of unsecuritized real estate is positively related to treasury bills and negatively related to long‐term bonds and securitized real estate; and that returns for it can be forecast more accurately by using VECM models rather than unrestricted VAR models. Considers the implications for portfolio allocation, compares the results with other research fundings and calls for further research.

Post Stabilization Inflation Dynamics in Slovenia

This paper investigates the inflation process in Slovenia through an examination of some commonly used determinants of inflation in transition economies. Granger causality tests and an analysis of unrestricted VAR models suggest a strong linkage between both growth in broader monetary aggregates and changes in the tolar–deutsche mark exchange rate on retail price inflation. While the growth in wages affects inflation, it appears that both changes in the exchange rate and growth in monetary aggregates provide the initial impulse. A discussion of the present money–exchange rate policy framework and its influence on inflation is also provided.

Post Stabilization Inflation Dynamics in Slovenia

This paper investigates the inflation process in Slovenia through an examination of some commonly used determinants of inflation in transition economies. Granger causality tests and an analysis of unrestricted VAR models suggest a strong linkage between both growth in broader monetary aggregates and changes in the tolar-deutsche mark exchange rate on retail price inflation. While the growth in wages affects inflation, it appears that both changes in the exchange rate and growth in monetary aggregates provide the initial impulse. A discussion of the present money-exchange rate policy framework and its influence on inflation is also provided.

Stock Market Returns, Expected Returns, and Economic Fundamentals in an Emerging Market: The Case of Korea

This paper investigates the feedback relationship between stock market returns and economic fundamentals in an emerging market. Starting from an intertemporal consumption-based CAPM (CCAPM), we obtain a restricted VAR model for stock returns and macroeconomic variables. We then apply this model to Korea and find statistically significant departures from the restrictions implied by CCAPM. Consequently, an unrestricted VAR model is used to analyze the variations of expected and unexpected returns in the Korean stock market. It is shown that the expected market returns vary with a set of macroeconomic variables, and that the predictable component is substantial. Reflecting richer dynamics in the data, relative to the usual single equation modeling in the literature, the estimated VAR model shows considerable predictive ability for both real economic activity and real returns. Using the model for a variance decomposition of unexpected returns, we find that, although we cannot directly observe the market's revision of expected future dividend growth, we can estimate a large part of the revision with the news in the expected industry output growth from our VAR model. Finally, we also find that economic fundamentals can explain only a small portion of the variation in unexpected returns in the Korean stock market.

A BVAR model for the connecticut economy

AbstractA Bayesian vector autoregressive (BVAR) model is developed for the Connecticut economy to forecast the unemployment rate, nonagricultural employment, real personal income, and housing permits authorized. The model includes both national and state variables. The Bayesian prior is selected on the basis of the accuracy of the out‐of‐sample forecasts. We find that a loose prior generally produces more accurate forecasts. The out‐of‐sample accuracy of the BVAR forecasts is also compared with that of forecasts from an unrestricted VAR model and of benchmark forecasts generated from univariate ARIMA models. The BVAR model generally produces the most accurate short‐ and long‐term out‐of‐sample forecasts for 1988 through 1992. It also correctly predicts the direction of change.

Forecasting accuracy of alternative techniques: A comparison of US macroeconomic forecasts, with comment: Stephen K. McNees, with comment, Journal of Business and Economic Statistics 4 (1986) 5–23

This article examines the causal relationship between the energy consumption, electricity consumption and GDP in Russia by using time series data from 1990-2011 implying the Toda and Yamamoto approach, which is revised form of the Granger (1969) causality test (Econ. 66 (1995) 225). The maximum order of integration was determined by using PP and ADF unit root tests. The Toda and Yamamoto test is applied regardless of whether the series are I(0), I(1), or I(2), mutually cointegrated or non-cointegrated. The variables were estimated at level in the unrestricted lag-augmented VAR. The AIC, SC and LR lag criteria were used to determine the optimal lag length. The diagnostics tests were performed at the optimum lag selected by estimating the variables at level and confirmed the stability of the unrestricted VAR model. The empirical evidence showed that there exists a the bi-directional causality from electricity consumption to GDP that implies the validity of feedback hypothesis but no causality was found for GDP and energy consumption supporting the neutrality hypothesis. The estimated results confirmed that both the economic growth and electricity consumption empirically support each other and have a mutual and complementary relationship. But on another hand the energy sector of Russia has no impact on the economic growth for a period 1990-2011. Furthermore, if the Government of Russia devises policies to promote the access of energy and higher level of consumption, economic growth will not be affected.