Revisiting the residential electricity demand in the United States: A dynamic partial adjustment modelling approach

In recent years, price policies and price changes derived from environmental regulations have played a more important role to promote residential energy conservation. Using recent annual state-level panel data for 48 states, we estimate a dynamic partial adjustment model for electricity demand elasticities on price and income in the residential sector. Our analysis reveals that in the short run, one unit price increase will lead to 0.142 unit of reduction in electricity use after controlling for the endogeneity of electricity price. Thus, raising energy price in the short run will not give consumers much incentive to adjust their appliances to reduce electricity use. However, in the long run, one unit price increase will lead to almost one unit consumption reduction, ceteris paribus. In addition, we find new evidence that for states of higher per capita GDP, raising the electricity price may be more effective to ensure a cut in consumption.     

Pricing cloud services—the impact of broadband quality

In the last few years, adoption of cloud computing has shown a marked increase across the world. Moreover, the smaller markets, viz., Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle-East, etc., are expected to grow at more than the average rate for the next few years. While this is good news for cloud service providers, significant obstacles to cloud adoption still remain a major cause of concern, for example, the quality of broadband services. As the quality of broadband services is not uniform across the different geographies, pricing of cloud services must take this non-uniformity into account. This paper provides managerial guidelines for cloud service providers on pricing their offerings. We develop optimal pricing strategies for a typical cloud service provider by modeling the utility of a customer of cloud services as a function of two vectors. The first vector is a set of parameters which contribute positively to the utility of a customer, and the second vector is a set of parameters which have a negative effect on the utility. We explore two pricing plans: usage based and fixed fee plan; determine the conditions under which customers would select one plan over another, and discuss the significance of these conditions for cloud service providers.     

Foodgrain price stabilization: Implications of private storage and subsidized food distribution

Through simulation exercises, this paper explores the implications of private storage and subsidized distribution of foodgrain for price stabilization policies in India. A multi-market equilibrium approach is used to incorporate the simultaneity in the determination of supply and demand for the three major cereals, namely, rice, wheat, and coarse cereals. The policy implications of the results obtained are relevant to the current debate on agricultural policy reforms in India.     

A possibilistic hierarchical model for behaviour under uncertainty

Hierarchical models are commonly used for modelling uncertainty. They arise whenever there is a `correct' or `ideal' uncertainty model but the modeller is uncertain about what it is. Hierarchical models which involve probability distributions are widely used in Bayesian inference. Alternative models which involve possibility distributions have been proposed by several authors, but these models do not have a clear operational meaning. This paper describes a new hierarchical model which is mathematically equivalent to some of the earlier, possibilistic models and also has a simple behavioural interpretation, in terms of betting rates concerning whether or not a decision maker will agree to buy or sell a risky investment for a specified price. We give a representation theorem which shows that any consistent model of this kind can be interpreted as a model for uncertainty about the behaviour of a Bayesian decision maker. We describe how the model can be used to generate buying and selling prices and to make decisions.     

当前应对我国通货膨胀的思考

当前国内外环境仍然极为复杂,物价上涨比较快、通胀预期增强。造成这轮通货膨胀的主要原因,在于应对金融危机而采取强力的救市政策、流动性过剩、CPI体系、大宗商品价格等方面。抗通胀不能一味地紧缩货币,搞不好会打压经济增长,很可能出现＂通胀没有管住,经济却出现下滑＂的滞胀危险。治理当前通货膨胀的思路,应结合当前国家宏观政策,从控制信贷、人民币升值、融资、税收、改善收入分配等方面着手。     

粮食储备和价格控制能否稳定粮食市场?——世界粮食危机的若干启示

通常认为粮食储备可以在年度生产和市场发生波动时平衡当年供应,控制粮价也可以在一定程度上实现同样目标。尽管储备可以吸收生产和市场的短期波动并保持供应和价格稳定;但是,它也可能延缓市场价格的信号作用,把本来不严重的短缺倾向积累成巨大的波动。例如,1999/2000年度到2005/2006年度世界粮食储备持续下降,虽然维持了5年—6年粮价稳定,但却可能触发了2007/2008年度更激烈的粮价上涨。因此,如果把供应不足的趋势当作生产的短期波动,并且用储备加以平衡,粮食储备的作用就可能走向原定目标的反面。同理,控制粮价也可能是今后粮价更大幅度上升的原因。     

Some suggestions concerning an axiom system for statistical price and quantity indices

Starting from the axiom system for price indices given by Eichhorn, this paper intends t o suggest some new axioms. They seem useful from a theoretical of practical point of view. The reversal tests, introduced by Fisher i n 1922, are investigated systematically. This procedure leads to new reversal properties and to a group theoretical representation of these properties.     

中国电信业资费变动的博弈分析

一种行业从不成熟发展到日臻完善,其中厂商的策略对抗发挥着重要作用。本文试图透过市场主体之间的博弈行为,从价格波动的角度分析一般行业的变迁,得出行业发展的规律,并以此为依据分析当前中国移动通信产业的竞争以及应采取的对策选择,即避免恶性价格竞争,先做大产业,后瓜分利益。     

宏观主要经济变量对物价影响的动态分析

针对当前我国经济运行中物价水平变动的影响因素及其存在的问题,通过引入脉冲响应函数和方差分解方法,向量自回归模型可以从客观上分析宏观主要经济变量对物价的动态冲击和影响。实证结果表明,经济变量对物价的影响各异且存在着一定的时滞效应。因而,有关部门在不同时期宜采取相应不同的调控措施,以维持物价的稳定和经济的持续发展。     

人的全面发展是对异化的扬弃

从总的趋势看,人的发展与社会发展是一致的,但在人与社会的相互作用过程中,会出现社会发展了,人的发展却走向片面化和孤立化,产生异化现象。这些异化现象的存在,严重地阻碍了人的发展。但这也是不可避免的,这是人类社会为实现最终理想必须经历的过程和必须付出的代价。人的全面发展是一个现实的历史过程,这个过程就是人的发展与社会发展逐步达到统一的过程,就是不断扬弃异化的过程。