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We develop a nonlinear state-space model that captures the joint dynamics of consumption, dividend growth, and asset returns. Our model consists of an economy containing a common predictable component for consumption and dividend growth and multiple stochastic volatility processes. The estimation is based on annual consumption data from 1929 to 1959, monthly consumption data after 1959, and monthly asset return data throughout. We maximize the span of the sample to recover the predictable component and use high-frequency data, whenever available, to efficiently identify the volatility processes. Our Bayesian estimation provides strong evidence for a small predictable component in consumption growth (even if asset return data are omitted from the estimation). Three independent volatility processes capture different frequency dynamics; our measurement error specification implies that consumption is measured much more precisely at an annual than monthly frequency; and the estimated model is able to capture key asset-pricing facts of the data.

Zonder onderwerpscode: economie

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We use traded equity dividend strips from U.S., Europe, and Japan from 2004-2017 to study the slope of the term structure of equity dividend risk premia. In the data, a robust finding is that the term structure of dividend risk premia (growth rates) is positively (negatively) sloped in expansions and negatively (positively) sloped in recessions. We develop a consumption-based regime switching model which matches these robust data-features and the historical probabilities of recession and expansion regimes. The unconditional population term structure of dividend-risk premia in the regime-switching model, as in standard asset pricing models (habits and long-run risks), is increasing with maturity. The regime-switching model also features a declining average term structure of dividend risk-premia if recessions are over-represented in a short sample, as is the case in the data sample from Europe and Japan. In sum, our analysis shows that the empirical evidence in dividend strips is entirely consistent with a positively sloped term structure of dividend risk-premia as implied by standard asset pricing models.

Zonder onderwerpscode: economie

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We resuscitated the mixed-frequency vector autoregression (MF-VAR) developed in Schorfheide and Song (2015, JBES) to generate macroeconomic forecasts for the U.S. during the COVID-19 pandemic in real time. The model combines eleven time series observed at two frequencies: quarterly and monthly. We deliberately did not modify the model specification in view of the COVID-19 outbreak, except for the exclusion of crisis observations from the estimation sample. We compare the MF-VAR forecasts to the median forecast from the Survey of Professional Forecasters (SPF). While the MF-VAR performed poorly during 2020:Q2, subsequent forecasts were at par with the SPF forecasts. We show that excluding a few months of extreme observations is a promising way of handling VAR estimation going forward, as an alternative of a sophisticated modeling of outliers.

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We show theoretically that persistent deviations from covered interest parity (CIP) across multiple horizons imply simultaneous arbitrage opportunities only if uncollateralized interbank lending rates are riskless. In the absence of observable riskless discount rates, we extract them empirically from interest rate swaps using a simple no-arbitrage framework. They deliver novel quantitative benchmarks that reconcile a zero cross-currency basis with non-zero cross-currency basis swap rates. We quantify that the no-arbitrage benchmark, which is consistent with intermediary-based asset pricing paradigms, accounts for about two thirds of the alleged CIP deviations. The residual pricing errors are associated with the limits-to-arbitrage framework.

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Since the Global Financial Crisis, rates on interest rate swaps have fallen below maturity matched U.S. Treasury rates across different maturities. Swap rates represent future uncollateralized borrowing between banks. Treasuries should be expensive and produce yields that are lower than those of maturity matched swap rates, as they are deemed to have superior liquidity and to be safe, so this is a surprising development. We show, by no-arbitrage, that the U.S. sovereign default risk explains the negative swap spreads over Treasuries. This view is supported by a quantitative equilibrium model that jointly accounts for macroeconomic fundamentals and the term structures of interest and U.S. credit default swap rates. We account for interbank credit risk, liquidity effects, and cost of collateralization in the model. Thus, the sovereign risk explanation complements others based on frictions such as balance sheet constraints, convenience yield, and hedging demand.