Most recent papers:

• Is Informal Employment a Result of Market Segmentation? Evidence from China.
  Jiro Nemoto, Hong Zuo.
  Australian Economic Review. August 31, 2017
  Many studies on informal employment have identified significant differences in wages and other aspects between workers engaged in formal and informal employment in China. However, whether informal employment is the result of a segmented labour market or a competitive labour market remains unclear. In this study, we empirically examined this issue and found that the informal labour market in China is both a segmented and a competitive labour market, with nearly half of workers in informal employment entering involuntarily in 2006. However, entry barriers are not observed for 2010.

  August 31, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12228   open full text
• Measuring Economic Change in the Illawarra, New South Wales: An Integrated Framework.
  Ashkan Masouman, Charles Harvie.
  Australian Economic Review. August 31, 2017
  Merging input–output (IO) and econometric (EC) models has gained increased attention in regional science literature because it combines the dynamic characteristics of time series with the detailed intersectoral disaggregation of IO to model the time path of the economy. It provides more accuracy in representing economic structure and structural shifts within an economy. This article applies IO analysis and integrated IO–EC modelling to analyse the Illawarra economy. The integrated framework is found to be superior based on its forecasting abilities and impact analysis accuracy. It is applied to forecast the effects of BlueScope Steel shutdown in the Illawarra.

  August 31, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12227   open full text
• Weighing the Significance of World War I for the Australian Economy.
  William Coleman.
  Australian Economic Review. August 31, 2017
  The article argues there is little evidence that World War I quickened the currents of structural change in the Australian economy. It suggests instead that the War was reinforcing of the Deakinite model of economic management that already been established by the outbreak of War. It did so by enlarging the tenet of ‘protection plus imperial preference’ that had been inscribed in the pre‐War policy consensus; by strengthening the revenue and power of the central state basic to the Deakinite framework of economic governance; and by assimilating rural interests into the terms of that framework.

  August 31, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12224   open full text
• Wages, Promises and Effort in an Intercultural Labour Market: Experimental Evidence from Australia.
  Tony Beatton, Uwe Dulleck, Jonas Fooken, Markus Schaffner.
  Australian Economic Review. August 31, 2017
  In this article, we use economic experiments to explore the role of culture in labour market interactions between Australian employers and either Australian or Asian workers. We use two variants of the gift exchange game. In one, employers make binding, in the other non‐binding, wage offers. Results show that attitudes and behaviour are similar across cultural groups, but intercultural interaction changes between the games. Non‐binding wage offers are completely disregarded in final wage decisions by employers when made to Asians. However, Asians are rewarded more for additional effort.

  August 31, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12222   open full text
• Assessment and Prediction in Homelessness Services and Elsewhere.
  Brendan O'Flaherty.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2017
  This article cautions against the naïve use of predictive techniques by homelessness service providers. Prediction is hard and may be impossible. Prediction does not automatically lead to socially optimal assignments. On the other hand, mechanism design, which does not rely on top‐down predictions, can be used to good effect. Moreover, fairness counts as well as optimality—and may be easier to achieve. I use examples from fire service, central banking, police patrol, tax auditing, art, finance, soup kitchens and cadaveric organ allocation.

  May 31, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12221   open full text
• Housing First: Lessons from the United States and Challenges for Australia.
  Stefan G. Kertesz, Guy Johnson.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2017
  Efforts to end long‐term homelessness have embraced a Housing First approach. Housing First emphasises rapid placement of clients into independent, permanent accommodation and eschews traditionally favoured requirements that clients demonstrate sobriety or success in treatment programs prior to being offered housing. Although housing retention rates are superior to those obtained from traditional programs, some claims made on behalf of the Housing First approach remain controversial. The present article reviews results from Housing First research to date, as well as challenges and concerns that remain in regard to clinical outcomes, fidelity of implementation and application in the Australian context.

  May 31, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12217   open full text
• Early Research Findings from Journeys Home: Longitudinal Study of Factors Affecting Housing Stability.
  David C. Ribar.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2017
  Journeys Home: Longitudinal Study of Factors Affecting Housing Stability is a national, six‐wave survey of 1,682 disadvantaged Australians who were either homeless or at risk of homelessness. This article summarises findings from more than a dozen initial studies that have conducted multivariate analyses of the survey to investigate the causes and consequences of homelessness and other outcomes. Although homelessness is strongly correlated with many social problems, the multivariate studies that adjust for conditions that co‐occur with homelessness have found far fewer associations. The studies indicate that the experiences and circumstances of homelessness are complex, with different surrounding conditions, durations and paths into and out of homelessness.

  May 31, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12215   open full text
• Using Administrative Data for Research on Homelessness: Applying a US Framework to Australia.
  Stephen Metraux, Yi‐Ping Tseng.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2017
  The past decade has seen increased use in Australia in the use of administrative data in homelessness research. We review this research, using a framework from the US literature, and highlight innovative and policy‐relevant Australian initiatives in five areas. While the use of administrative data in Australian research on homelessness has lagged behind what has been done in the United States, the emerging body of Australian research in this area should continue to take an increased role in understanding and informing responses to homelessness. We conclude by assessing the opportunities and challenges facing continued research using this type of data.

  May 31, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12216   open full text
• The Australian Housing System: A Quiet Revolution?
  Gavin A. Wood, Rachel Ong.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2017
  The Australian housing system is quietly undergoing a major transformation. Many young and middle‐aged home owners are paying down large mortgages that leave them precariously positioned on the margins of ownership. As house prices have remained stubbornly high relative to incomes, renters are finding it increasingly difficult to achieve home ownership status. For some low income households, precarious housing circumstances will result in worrying levels of homelessness, which is symptomatic of a housing system that is failing the most vulnerable in society. This article describes long‐run trends derived from nationally representative datasets that offer some insights into how the Australian housing system has reached this position.

  May 31, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12220   open full text
• Introduction to the Policy Forum on Australian Homelessness.
  David C. Ribar, Yi‐Ping Tseng.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2017
  There is no abstract available for this paper.

  May 31, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12223   open full text
• Where Will Your Next Holden Come From? The 2004 EU Enlargement and Trade with Australia.
  Richard Pomfret, Patricia Sourdin.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2017
  The impact on Australia of the 2004 EU enlargement highlighted a major change in the global economy. Previous EU enlargements, notably British accession in 1973, diverted trade from third countries such as Australia. After 2004, trade between Australia and new Eastern European EU members boomed. Deep integration allowed EU firms to create regional value chains. Cars produced in regional value chains, often with final assembly in Eastern Europe, are globally competitive. Reduced trade costs contributed to competitiveness, even in distant Australia, where Volkswagen, Audi, Peugeot and Holden cars are imported from Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland.

  May 31, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12211   open full text
• The Optimal Threshold for GST on Imported Goods.
  John Creedy.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2017
  This article examines the determination of the optimal threshold value for goods and services tax (GST) for imported units arising from Internet orders. The concept of an optimal threshold is wider than simply the maximisation of revenue net of administrative costs. At the optimal threshold, the marginal cost of funds from GST is equated to the ratio of the marginal value of public funds to their marginal social value, reflecting the value judgements of a decision‐maker. The marginal cost of funds allows both for compliance costs and the marginal excess burden arising from a small increase in the threshold. Illustrative numerical values are reported, showing the sensitivity to administrative costs, the demand elasticity and, importantly, value judgements.

  May 31, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12204   open full text
• Investor–State Dispute Settlement Systems in Emerging Mega‐Integration Blocs.
  Miroslav N. Jovanović.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2017
  Emerging mega‐integration blocs, such as the Trans‐Pacific Partnership and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, are evolving outside of the World Trade Organization's influence. Their most contested features are their investor–state dispute settlement (ISDS) systems. This article considers basic features of the ISDS system, the expansion in the number of ISDS cases and the privileged place of corporations vis‐à‐vis citizens in the law‐making process. The arcane private corporation‐friendly ISDS system is beyond reparation and it needs to be scrapped. The existing court systems in the self‐assured democracies of Europe, North America and Australia are sufficient.

  May 31, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12197   open full text
• ‘We Will End Up Being a Third Rate Economy … A Banana Republic’: How Behavioural Economics Can Improve Macroeconomic Outcomes.
  Ian M. McDonald.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2017
  To address the economic problems facing Australia in 1986 required wage restraint, which required in turn overcoming loss aversion by workers with respect to their wages. The Prices and Incomes Accord was able to do this. Attempts to address Australia's current economic problems are stymied by tax resistance. Addressing tax resistance requires overcoming loss aversion by voters with respect to their post‐tax incomes. The success of the Accord suggests that Accord‐type policies could reduce tax resistance by broadening people's perspective beyond their post‐tax incomes to the broader spread of benefits for them and others.

  May 31, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12199   open full text
• An Examination of Broadacre Farm Size and Performance in Western Australia.
  Tim Lefroy, James Key, Ross Kingwell.
  Australian Economic Review. February 28, 2017
  We analyse a balanced panel of 250 farms in Western Australia using convergence analysis, examining changes in the relative size, output composition and financial performance of small, medium and large farms over the decade 2002–2011. Fitted exponential growth rates in key variables allow us to determine whether differences between small, medium and large farms are narrowing or widening. Although farms in each size category grew on average, there was no significant change in the relative size of farms. Contrasting with earlier studies, smaller farms displayed a relative improvement in their performance, catching up to medium and larger farms.

  February 28, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12186   open full text
• Inequality and Growth: Reviewing the Economic and Social Impacts.
  Tony Ward.
  Australian Economic Review. February 28, 2017
  Does rising inequality provide incentives for individuals to work harder and invest? Or does it hamper economic growth? This article reviews the now‐extensive literature on the subject. It starts by outlining some of the social impacts of recent increases in inequality, concentrating on those affecting economic growth. It then notes the diverse results from econometric studies. From these results, the article focuses on the mechanisms suggested in the literature linking inequality and economic growth. It summarises results in five broad areas. While specifics vary with circumstances, in most, increases in inequality have negative impacts on economic growth.

  February 28, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12196   open full text
• Improved Forecasts of Tax Revenue via the Permanent Income Hypothesis.
  Lance A. Fisher, Geoffrey Kingston.
  Australian Economic Review. February 28, 2017
  During the Costello era, Australian Budgets under‐estimated tax receipts for the upcoming fiscal year on 11 out of 12 occasions. The Swan–Hockey era saw over‐estimates of tax receipts for eight fiscal years in a row. In this way, the last two decades have seen substantial serial correlation in the errors of Budget revenue forecasts, revealing an inefficient forecasting process. We improve the efficiency and accuracy of Budget forecasts of tax revenue by incorporating National Accounts data on household saving behaviour. In particular, the adjusted R2‐statistic is substantially higher. Household saving behaviour also helps to predict nominal gross domestic product growth.

  February 28, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12198   open full text
• The Australian Economy in 2016–17: Looking Beyond the Apartment Construction Boom.
  Tim Robinson, Viet H. Nguyen, Jiao Wang.
  Australian Economic Review. February 28, 2017
  There is no abstract available for this paper.

  February 28, 2017   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12212   open full text
• Birds of a Feather Flock Together: Correlation in BMI Categories in Long‐Term Relationships.
  Heather Brown.
  Australian Economic Review. November 30, 2016
  This is the first article to explore partner correlations across Body Mass Index (BMI) categories for couples in long‐term, stable relationships using data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey 2006–2011. The moderating effects of three hypotheses on this correlation are tested: (i) selection; (ii) relationship stability; and (iii) social obligation or environment. The results show gender‐asymmetric effects in the correlation in BMI categories. Selection explains the majority of the correlation for men and all of the correlation in BMI categories for women. Some evidence of variables related to stability and social obligation are significantly associated with weight outcomes for men.

  November 30, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12181   open full text
• Do Pro‐Poor Schools Reach Out to the Poor? Location Choice of BRAC and ROSC Schools in Bangladesh.
  M. Niaz Asadullah.
  Australian Economic Review. November 30, 2016
  Location choice of ‘one teacher, one classroom’ non‐formal primary schools pioneered by Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC) is studied vis‐à‐vis its replication under government‐managed Reaching‐Out‐of‐School (ROSC) project using school Census data. Both types of schools have a statistically significant presence in poor sub‐districts within a district. However, BRAC schools avoid pockets that lack public infrastructure and suffer from female illiteracy, while ROSC schools have greater presence in regions that have poor access to cities and roads. Moreover, ROSC schools better target regions that are under‐served by government schools; the opposite is true for BRAC schools and state‐recognised madrasas.

  November 30, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12180   open full text
• Exploring Evergreening: Insights from Two Medicines.
  Hazel V. J. Moir.
  Australian Economic Review. November 30, 2016
  Litigated pharmaceutical patents are a valuable source of data on how much inventiveness is required for a patent grant and what are the costs of patents. Although innovation is central to economic growth and the competitiveness of firms, there are few data about either the cost of granted patents or the quantum of inventiveness required for a patent. Two cases of litigated pharmaceutical patents allow investigation of two types of secondary ‘evergreening’ patents—new formulations and closely related chemical variants. Both lead to higher Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme outlays, and in some cases, these can be substantial. There are clear policy implications.

  November 30, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12171   open full text
• Markets, Monopolies and Moguls: The Relationship between Inequality and Competition.
  Andrew Leigh, Adam Triggs.
  Australian Economic Review. November 30, 2016
  Analysing private market research data, we estimate the degree of market concentration across 481 industries in the Australian economy. On average, the largest four firms control 36 per cent of the market. Some industries are considerably more concentrated. In department stores, newspapers, banking, health insurance, supermarkets, domestic airlines, Internet service providers, baby food and beer, the biggest four firms control more than 80 per cent of the market. We suggest ways in which high market concentration may increase inequality and discuss some policy ideas to address the problem.

  November 30, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12185   open full text
• The Attrition Rate, Lifetime and Hoarding of Australian Decimal Coins.
  Eric J. Frazer, John van der Touw.
  Australian Economic Review. September 01, 2016
  Samples of Australian decimal coinage were taken in 2008 and 2012 from a major currency processing centre in Melbourne. A generic model was developed to analyse the pooled data and give separate estimates of loss, hoarding and return rates, as well as the numbers of coins in circulation, hoarded and permanently lost. For standard design coins, no particular trend in attrition rate with denomination was observed and average lifetimes were generally more than 30 years. Higher attrition rates were observed for the commemorative 20 cent and 50 cent coins versus the standard design. Hoarding was quantified for the 5 cent and 50 cent coins.

  September 01, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12170   open full text
• Heterogeneous Treatment Effects? An Examination of Australian Non‐Government Primary Schools.
  Joan Rodgers, Frank Neri, Ian Moran.
  Australian Economic Review. September 01, 2016
  On average, students in Australian non‐government schools consistently outperform their counterparts in government schools on standardised tests of literacy and numeracy. However, when differences across school sectors in student characteristics are taken into account, this performance differential largely disappears. Nevertheless, non‐government schools may have heterogeneous effects; that is, they may benefit particular groups of students. This study investigates the extent of non‐government‐school advantage for specific primary‐school student groups using data from National Assessment Program–Literacy and Numeracy and the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children. We find no evidence that non‐government primary schools have a positive effect on academic outcomes of children, categorised by sex or socioeconomic status.

  September 01, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12161   open full text
• Educational Achievement and the Allocation of School Resources.
  Deborah A. Cobb‐Clark, Nikhil Jha.
  Australian Economic Review. September 01, 2016
  The debate on school resources and educational outcomes has focused almost exclusively on spending levels. We extend this by analysing the relationship between student achievement and schools' budget allocations using panel data. Per‐pupil expenditure has no apparent link to improvement in students' standardised test scores. However, the allocation of the budget matters for student achievement in some grades. Ancillary teaching staff are linked to faster growth in numeracy and literacy in primary‐ and middle‐schools. Spending on experienced teachers is also important for writing achievement in the primary‐school years. On the whole, we find very little evidence of inefficient spending patterns.

  September 01, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12159   open full text
• Ireland—A Remarkable Economic Recovery?
  Frances Ruane.
  Australian Economic Review. September 01, 2016
  The collapse of the Irish economy during the Global Financial Crisis brought a substantial decline in gross domestic product, a trebling of the unemployment rate and a sharp increase in public debt. Key to the scale of Ireland's crisis was the scale of a domestic property bubble. In the Corden Lecture, I explored how Ireland's notable turnaround since 2013 contrasts with the experiences of Spain, Portugal and Greece. This was primarily due to Ireland's large, foreign‐owned, modern, export‐oriented, multinational sector and its early and sustained action to deal with the fiscal deficit that emerged in 2008.

  September 01, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12177   open full text
• A New Institutional Approach to Innovation Policy.
  Sinclair Davidson, Jason Potts.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2016
  Modern research and innovation policy is largely based on neoclassical welfare economics, in which the diagnosis of market failure in the production of new information is translated into a case for innovation policy. Both New Institutional and Public Choice economics criticise this approach because it tends to assume that policy interventions are largely costless and produce only benefits. An alternative policy model is proposed that focuses on minimising the social costs of innovation policy through efficient choice of institutions. We review the recently released National Innovation and Science Agenda through this lens.

  May 31, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12153   open full text
• Promotion of Innovation and Job Growth in Small‐ and Medium‐Sized Enterprises in Australia: Evidence and Policy Issues.
  Harry Bloch, Mita Bhattacharya.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2016
  Small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises play a substantial role in Australian growth and job creation. We discuss approaches to understanding the drivers of innovation and review evidence on the determinants of innovation by Australian small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises. We also examine the role of these firms in job creation. Against this evidence and the conceptual underpinnings, we then discuss some issues that arise with the government's current innovation agenda.

  May 31, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12164   open full text
• Funding Research in Universities: The Watt Report 2015.
  Paul Jensen, Elizabeth Webster.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2016
  The Watt Review takes a first‐principles approach to how the research and engagement inventive system should be designed for universities in a contemporary setting. Despite raising many important policy issues, the Review misses an opportunity to engage in a discussion about: changing the anachronistic teaching base‐funding formula that also funds research; introducing research brokerage and triage services; and changing the engagement culture among academics. Opportunities, currently unquantifiable, are currently being lost through a mechanistic application of intellectual property policies to translation.

  May 31, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12166   open full text
• Evaluating the Contribution of Higher Education to Australia's Research Performance.
  Ross Williams.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2016
  The Australian Government has signalled what it sees as the need for all sectors of the economy to be more innovative. Reviews have been commissioned that indicate how this agenda might be accomplished, including the development of greater links between higher education and industry. In this article, Australia's research expenditure by sector is compared with nine other advanced economies. The funding arrangements and performance of the higher education sector are then considered in some detail. A number of policy changes are recommended for higher education, including a need for greater funding of information technology, engineering and technology and full funding of project research.

  May 31, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12165   open full text
• Alexander Sutherland: A Forgotten Pioneer of Health Economics in Australia?
  Philip Clarke, Guido Erreygers.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2016
  Here we highlight a neglected contribution of Alexander Sutherland (1852–1902) to Australian health economics. Sutherland read a paper on health insurance at the Melbourne Social Science Congress that was organised in the context of the International Exhibition of 1880–1881. He proposed combining life and health insurance into a single product and to require those who are insured to obtain regular medical check‐ups. The aim was to provide the insurer with information on the behaviours of the insured and to promote healthy lifestyles. These proposals were not well received at the time and have been largely forgotten, but may be relevant today.

  May 31, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12157   open full text
• Australia's National Electricity Market: Optimising Policy to Facilitate Demand‐Side Response.
  Tim Nelson, Fiona Orton.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2016
  In this article, we outline the recent reductions in electricity sector capital productivity and higher end use prices. Unsurprisingly, policy‐makers are now examining ways to encourage greater levels of consumer participation to improve capacity utilisation and outcomes for consumers. We find that consumers are likely to be better off by responding to retail, rather than wholesale generation, pricing. Retail prices reflect potential savings across all supply chain costs including the primary driver of recent price increases, capital‐intensive networks. Conversely, the wholesale electricity generation market is currently heavily oversupplied and savings for consumers are likely to be scarce.

  May 31, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12151   open full text
• Can Theory Explain the Evidence on Fertility Decline Reversal?
  Creina Day.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2016
  This article presents a model of household fertility and child‐rearing choice in which rising female relative wages is the mechanism whereby economic growth may reverse fertility decline. I find that an increase in the logarithm, rather than the level, of wages affects fertility at advanced stages of development. Economic growth may reverse fertility decline beyond a threshold logarithm per capita output, which depends on child‐care prices, maternity pay, preference for children and growth in female wages relative to male wages. These results inform the recent empirical debate and identify cross‐country differences as important considerations for future empirical research.

  May 31, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12148   open full text
• Minority Religious Groups and Life Satisfaction in India.
  Matteo Migheli.
  Australian Economic Review. May 31, 2016
  The link between individual religiosity and life satisfaction has been studied from different perspectives but the general conclusion is that religiosity makes people happier. Extant studies, however, have never considered minority religious groups in areas of conflict. This article therefore analyses India, a multi‐religious country largely characterised by religious conflicts. Membership of a minority religion which is in conflict with the dominant group is likely to decrease life satisfaction; this effect can be reversed if the group is concentrated in a particular region (in which it constitutes the majority).

  May 31, 2016   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12143   open full text
• Aboriginal Disadvantage in Major Cities of New South Wales: Evidence for Holistic Policy Approaches.
  Rebecca Reeve, Wylie Bradford.
  Australian Economic Review. May 27, 2014
  Aboriginal Australians experience disadvantage relative to other Australians across multiple socioeconomic indicators. Whilst Aboriginal disadvantage occurs across the nation, its characteristics may differ between locations. This article presents the first econometric analysis of Aboriginal disadvantage in major cities of New South Wales. The analysis is based on a multiple indicator framework devised by the Productivity Commission, populated with data from the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey of 2002. The results demonstrate the key drivers and interdependence of various indicators of Aboriginal disadvantage. This supports holistic approaches to improving Aboriginal welfare, rather than focusing on individual policy areas in isolation.

  May 27, 2014   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12061   open full text
• Cross‐Market Linkages: The Case of Commodities, Bonds, Inflation and Industrial Production.
  Julien Chevallier, Florian Ielpo.
  Australian Economic Review. May 27, 2014
  This article provides a case‐study of the cross‐market linkages at stake between commodities, bonds, industrial production and inflation. We show that one cointegration relationship exists between these variables during 1993–2011 and by taking into account structural breaks.

  May 27, 2014   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12050   open full text
• Labour Market Dynamics in Australia.
  Dennis Wesselbaum.
  Australian Economic Review. May 27, 2014
  This article estimates a stylised search‐and‐matching model on data for Australia, covering the period 1978–2008. Using Bayesian methods, I find that the model does a fairly good job in replicating the data. Surprisingly, I find a large value for the worker's bargaining power and low vacancy‐posting costs. The model generates a strong Beveridge curve and matches the standard deviations of all variables but vacancies. I identify technology and separation shocks to be the main drivers of fluctuations.

  May 27, 2014   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12042   open full text
• The Saving Behaviour of Immigrants and Home‐Country Characteristics: Evidence from Australia.
  Liliya Gatina.
  Australian Economic Review. May 27, 2014
  This article investigates the determinants of saving rates of Australian residents, determines whether the saving behaviour of immigrants is different from that of native‐born Australians and if it is affected by their country‐of‐origin characteristics. Comparison of estimated saving rates for 2006 using Australian longitudinal data reveals that immigrants save less than their native‐born counterparts. Amid the determinants, a home country's gross domestic product per capita and old‐age dependency ratio are found to be positively correlated, while national household saving rate is negatively correlated, with immigrants' saving rates. The latter finding may be driven by unaccounted remittances or changes in saving habits after immigration.

  May 27, 2014   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12041   open full text
• Asset Allocation Policy, Returns and Expenses of Superannuation Funds: Recent Evidence Based on Default Options.
  Anup Basu, Stephanie Andrews.
  Australian Economic Review. February 26, 2014
  We examine the asset allocation, returns and expenses of superannuation funds whose assets are mainly invested in default investment options. A majority of these funds fail to earn returns commensurate with their asset allocation policy. It appears that much of the variation in returns between these funds is a result of engaging in significant active management of assets. Our results indicate that the returns from active management of retail funds are negatively related to expenses, whereas the relationship is positive for industry funds. We also find strong evidence of economies of scale existing in superannuation funds across different size categories.

  February 26, 2014   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12040   open full text
• Occupational Differences and the Australian Gender Wage Gap.
  Michael B. Coelli.
  Australian Economic Review. February 26, 2014
  There are conflicting findings in the literature about whether occupational differences contribute to the Australian gender wage gap. Most papers conclude that they do not, while two papers conclude that they can explain a sizeable amount of the gap. These papers use different estimation methods and levels of occupational aggregation. I show that constructing decompositions using much more disaggregated occupational categories than those used in previous Australian research yield large positive contributions of occupational differences to the gap. Differences in estimation method (particularly regarding the inclusion or otherwise of industry indicators) also affect estimates.

  February 26, 2014   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12039   open full text
• The Consequences of Retail Electricity Price Rises: Rethinking Customer Hardship.
  Paul Simshauser, Tim Nelson.
  Australian Economic Review. February 26, 2014
  The Australian energy sector is nearing the end of an investment megacycle, which has driven above‐trend electricity tariff increases. In this article, we combine energy market and demographic data and find that the dominant thought on customer hardship, aged pensioners, pales into insignificance by comparison to those in the Family Formation cohort, those known as Australia's ‘working poor’. Our modelling results are clear in their implications: hardship policy for energy customers requires re‐engineering. The structure of electricity tariffs requires an overhaul—shifting to interval meters, time‐of‐use pricing and monthly billing to redress the investment megacycle and the incidence of hardship.

  February 26, 2014   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12043   open full text
• Review of the Australian Economy 2013–14: The Age of Austerity?
  Guay C. Lim, Viet H. Nguyen, Chew Lian Chua.
  Australian Economic Review. February 26, 2014
  There is no abstract available for this paper.

  February 26, 2014   doi: 10.1111/1467-8462.12060   open full text
• Profitability of Interest‐Free versus Interest‐Based Banks in Turkey.
  Ali Soylu, Nazif Durmaz.
  Australian Economic Review. May 30, 2013
  The present article compares Islamic banks with interest‐based banks to measure their profitability. It also investigates what Islamic funding and investments are used by Islamic banks. Our results from this Turkish sample showed that interest‐free banks did have positive and reasonably strong rates of profitability, though their level of profitability was somewhat less than that of traditional banks, contrary to our initial prediction. Nevertheless, our results provide support for the view that interest‐free banks, based on Islamic principles, are a viable option, compared with traditional capitalist banks that derive a large portion of their profits from interest charges.

  May 30, 2013   doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8462.2013.12002.x   open full text
• Household Preference and Financial Commitment to Flood Insurance in South‐East Queensland.
  Alex Y. Lo.
  Australian Economic Review. May 30, 2013
  Many Queenslanders who were affected by the severe flood events in 2011 failed to recover their losses. Arrangements for flood insurance are under federal reviews in response to mounting public pressure. Against this backdrop, a household survey was conducted to solicit residents' preferences. The majority of interviewed residents favoured optional purchase of flood insurance. Non‐insurance was associated with expectations of liberal assistance, indicating the possibility of ‘moral hazard’. Willingness to pay for flood insurance was related to social influence. The non‐insured households would spend more if they expected positive responses from people around. Attempts to reduce non‐insurance should address aspects of social influence.

  May 30, 2013   doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8462.2013.12009.x   open full text
• An Assessment Methodology for Domestic Systemically Important Banks in Australia.
  Patrick Brämer, Horst Gischer.
  Australian Economic Review. May 30, 2013
  This article serves as a response to the assessment methodology of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision to identify systemically important banks. The official technique requires an extensive collection of bank data, which can hardly be accessed in full by the general public. By contrast, our article develops a practicable modification that utilises only readily available indicators and thus provides a helpful tool for banks' stakeholders and the public. For the period 2002–2011, we determine the domestic systemic importance of every licensed bank in Australia. Our quantitative results do not only uncover high levels of systemic impact of the four major banks, but their rising dominance during the Global Financial Crisis.

  May 30, 2013   doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8462.2013.12008.x   open full text