Index number theory informs us that if data on matched prices and quantities are available, a superlative index number formula is best to aggregate heterogeneous items, and a unit value index to aggregate homogeneous ones. The formulas can give very different results. Neglected is the practical case of broadly comparable items. This paper provides a formal analysis as to why such formulas differ and proposes a solution to this index number problem.
Statistical offices try to match item models when measuring inflation between two periods. However, for product areas with a high turnover of differentiated models, the use of hedonic indexes is more appropriate since they include unmatched new and old models. There are two main competing approaches to hedonic indexes are hedonic imputation (HI) indexes and dummy time hedonic (HD) indexes. This study provides a formal analysis of exactly why the results from the two approaches may differ and discusses the issue of choice between these approaches. An illustrative study for desktop PCs is provided.
A key element in the build-up to the global recession and subsequently was the movement in house price indexes (HPIs). These indexes are particularly prone to methodological and coverage differences which can undermine both within-country and cross-country economic analysis. The paper outlines key measurement issues and reports on empirical work using an international panel data set that (i) considers whether differences in HPI measurement matter and, if so, in what way, and (ii) revisits the measurement of global house price inflation and the modeling of the determinants of house price inflation using HPIs corrected for differences in measurement practice.
Consumer price indexes (CPIs) are compiled at the higher (weighted) level using Laspeyres-type arithmetic averages. This paper questions the suitability of such formulas and considers two counterpart alternatives that use geometric averaging, the Geometric Young and the (price-updated) Geometric Lowe. The paper provides a formal decomposition and understanding of the differences between the two. Empirical results are provided using United States CPI data. The findings lead to an advocacy of variants of a hybrid formula suggested by Lent and Dorfman (2009) that substantially reduces bias from Laspeyres-type indexes.
Hedonic regressions are used for property price index measurement to control for changes in the quality-mix of properties transacted. The paper consolidates the hedonic time dummy approach, characteristics approach, and imputation approaches. A practical hedonic methodology is proposed that (i) is weighted at a basic level; (ii) has a new (quasi-) superlative form and thus mitigates substitution bias; (iii) is suitable for sparse data in thin markets; and (iv) only requires the periodic estimation of hedonic regressions for reference periods and is not subject to the vagrancies of misspecification and estimation issues.
The 2005 International Comparison Program's (ICP) estimates of economy-wide purchasing power parity (PPP) are based on parity estimates for 155 basic expenditure headings, mainly estimated using country product dummy (CPD) regressions. The estimates are potentially inefficient and open to omitted variable bias for two reasons. First, they use average prices across outlets as the left-hand-side variable. Second, quality-adjusted prices of non-comparable replacements, required when products in outlets do not match the required specifications, cannot be effectively included. This paper provides an analytical framework based on panel data and hedonic CPD regressions for ameliorating these sources of bias and inefficiency.
The IMF’s main uses of the International Comparison Program’s (ICP) estimates of purchasing power parity (PPP)-adjusted Gross Domestic Product (GDP) are as an element of the formula used to help guide decisions on its members’ quotas and in the World Economic Outlook (WEO). The paper outlines these uses and considers measurement issues particularly salient to IMF usage including: PPP imputations for member countries not participating in the ICP; PPP estimates for non-benchmark years; timeliness and periodicity of PPP estimates; economy groupings; and transparency. The paper was written as a chapter on ?IMF uses of PPPs? for the 2011 ICP Handbook.
This study examines the degree of exchange rate pass through (EPRT) into producer and consumer prices in Maldives. ERPT to consumer prices is first estimated using a nonparametric approach. A recursive vector autoregression is then used to model both consumer and producer price changes. The nonparametric estimation indicates that ERPT to consumer prices is very high, both in absolute terms and relative to other countries. The dynamics of ERPT as derived from the empirical estimation indicate that ERPT to consumer and producer prices is significant but not complete, and that the impact of exchange rate changes persists into the second year.
Transaction-price residential (house) and commercial property price indexes (RPPIs and CPPIs) have inherent problems of sparse data on heterogeneous properties, more so CPPIs. In an attempt to control for heterogeneity, (repeat-sales and hedonic) panel data regression frameworks are typically used for estimating overall price change. We address the problem of sparse data, demonstrate the need to include spatial price spillovers to remove bias, and propose an innovative approach to effectively weight regional CPPIs along with improvements to higher-level weighting systems. The study uses spatial panel regressions on granular CPPIs for the United States (US).
An exciting re-launch of this delightful series taking the single titles to eight in total. Oh dear! Here is a woman who is very sad. She has lost something very, very important and she must search everywhere to find it. She turns her house upside down. Does she find what she has lost?
Unflinching, forthright and full of wry humour as the man himself, and there's little praise greater than that' CLASSIC ROCK 'Wall's vision of Lemmy as a Rock'n'Roll stalwart who made no concessions is vivid to the last' GUARDIAN In 'The Ace of Spades', Motörhead's most famous song, Lemmy, the born-to-lose, live-to-win frontman of the band sang, 'I don't want to live forever'. Yet as he told his friend of 35 years, former PR and biographer Mick Wall, 'Actually, I want to go the day before forever. To avoid the rush...'. This is his strange but true story. Brutally frank, painfully funny, wincingly sad, and always beautifully told, LEMMY: THE DEFINITIVE BIOGRAPHY is the story of the only rock'n'roller never to sell his soul for silver and gold, while keeping the devil, as he put it, 'very close to my side'. From school days growing up in North Wales, to first finding fame in the mid-60s with the Rockin' Vicars; from being Jimi Hendrix's personal roadie ('I would score acid for him'), to leading Hawkwind to the top of the charts in 1972 with 'Silver Machine' ('I was fired for taking the wrong drugs'); from forming Motörhead ('I wanted to call the band Bastard but my manager wouldn't let me'), whose iconoclastic album NO SLEEP 'TIL HAMMERSMITH entered the UK charts at No. 1. Based on Mick's original interviews with Lemmy conducted over numerous years, along with the insights of those who knew him best - former band mates, friends, managers, fellow artists and record business insiders - this is an unputdownable story of one of Britain's greatest characters. As Lemmy once said of Wall, 'Mick Wall is one of the few rock writers in the world who can actually write and seems to know anything about rock music. I can and do talk to him for hours - poor bastard.' With the hard part of his journey now over, Lemmy is set to become a legend. LEMMY: THE DEFINITIVE BIOGRAPHY explains exactly how that came to be.
The greatest surfers on earth talk about their lives and careers in this book: from ironman Laird Hamilton, seven-time world champion Kelly Slater, musician Jack Johnson, Andy and Bruce Irons, Duke Kahanamoku, Lisa Andersen - one hundred of the greatest surfers from around the world talk candidly about their life, career, and what it means to live to surf. Fact-filled, and with dramatic photographs of these surfers in action this book is certain to appeal to any surfer, or water sport enthusiast, and is full of rare photos and first-person accounts that only legendary surfer Duke Boyd could collect.
In The Clock Repairer's Manual, Mick Watters explains how to approach all aspects of clock repair, maintenance and cleaning with confidence. For anyone who has ever considered clock repair as a hobby or a profession, as well as those under initial training and for the existing repairer, this comprehensively illustrated and detailed manual will be a useful reference.Topics covered include the typical clock movement; dismantling, cleaning and reassembling; striking and chiming clocks; repairing worn pivots and bushing and escapements, staff fitting and jewelling.
Ever wondered why we yawn and have eyebrows, what happens at absolute zero and why some tunes get stuck in our heads? If you've spent your days searching for the answers to these and life's other big questions then look no further. Yawns Freeze Your Brain from the bestselling author of Does Anything Eat Wasps and Farts Aren't Invisible is the gift of enlightenment that you never knew you needed! Shining a light on some of life's trickiest questions across science, history, life and the universe. Uncover the mysteries woven into the fabric of our very existence with answers to questions such as; How much fuel does the sun burn in a second? What are the most misheard song lyrics? Why does cheese smell? Why is the Eiffel Tower 15cm taller in summer than winter? Who on earth invented existentialism (and what is it)? Increase your IQ and win pub quizzes with this perfect blend of wit, wisdom and wonder. The perfect gift for brainiacs.
A lifelong fisherman, author Harry Mick Grigsby and his wife, Betty, had dreamed of running a fishing resort. That dream became a reality when they purchased the Flamingo Fishing Lodge in Key Largo, Florida, moving from Ohio in 1962. During the next forty-plus years, he guided fishing customers on the Atlantic Ocean and in the backwaters of the Everglades National Park before sections became off limits. In this memoir, Grigsby narrates an array of adventures as he helped customers from all over the world snag their elusive catches. Key Largo Adventures details his favorite fishing haunts, humorous anecdotes involving his friends and family, the ravages of the weather, and escapades at the local Caribbean Bar. With photos included, Key Largo Adventures provides a behind-the-scenes look at the life of a fishing charter operator who dedicated more than forty years of his life sharing his passion for angling with others.
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