The Data Nerlove assembled a cross-section data set for 1955. The set contains 145 …rms in 44 states. The variables are: total costs, factor prices (the wage rate, the price of fuel, the rental rate of capital) and output. Rental rate of capital: Although …rms own capital (e.g. power plants), standard investment theory (Jorgenson 1963) tells us that (as long as there are no costs in changing th...

A significant relationship exists between stock returns and real estate prices. This type of relationship, which is in contrast to findings in most of the existing studies, can be attributed to the added power resulting from the large cross section of the study. Also, it can be attributed to the use of lags in time-series regressions and to the longer holding periods utilized in the cross-secti...

In this article, we investigate why merchants accept credit cards for payment despite the relatively high cost of processing these types of transactions. A two-period model is constructed to determine under what conditions a credit card equilibrium would exist. The results of the model indicate that when the cost of funds is not too high and when the merchant’s profit margin is sufficiently hig...

We study an oligopoly model of banking that allows us to evaluate the two leading explanations for banks’ ability to earn rents. In the model, banks can either invest in information acquisition, or in market power (through product differentiation). The two versions generate different predictions that are tested using panel data on Finnish local banks. We find that banks’ investments in branch n...

The focus of this study is rent in the diamond industry. Based on extensive datasets and a discussion all relevant costs, we present resource statistics from industry key producer countries emerging economies such as Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic Congo, Lesotho, Namibia, Sierra Leone, South Africa, well Russian Federation. Resource rents give an indication available space for taxation. ...