We consider an optimal investment problem when a firm such as an electric power company has the operational flexibility to expand and contract capacity with fixed cost. This problem is formulated as an impulse control problem combined with optimal stopping. Consequently, we obtain optimal investment timing, optimal capacity expansion and contraction timing, and the investment value. We also sho...

Modifying the proof of a theorem of Wilkie, it is shown that if a one dimnsional set S is definable in an O minimal expansion of the ordered field of the reals, and if it is regularly exponentially near to many integral points, then there is an unbounded set, which is R definable without parameters, and which is exponentially near to S.

In this article we will describe some of the main developments in interest-rate modelling since Black & Scholes’ (1973) and Merton’s (1973) original articles on the pricing of equity derivatives. In particular, we will focus on continuoustime, arbitrage-free models for the full term structure of interest rates. Other models which model a limited number of key interest rates or which operate in ...

My original assignment was first to evaluate Larry Summers’ paper as a description of the current state of the art regarding investment behavior and second to determine the adequacy of the investment sector of Michael Evans’ econometric model (Evans, 1980) in light of Summers’ paper. The late arrival of Larry’s paper forced me to alter my strategy, and it is just as well. Summers’ investment fu...

t Wilkie's stochastic investment model and its variants have been increasingly applied by actuaries around the world to actuarial modeling and simulation. This paper performs time series outlier analysis on retail price inflation, which is the driving force of Wilkie's composite model. The data come from four developed countries: the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and Australia. The...

This paper reassesses the burden of the current U.S. international tax regime and reconsiders well-known welfare benchmarks used to guide international tax reform. Reinventing corporate tax policy requires that international considerations be placed front and center in the debate on how to tax corporate income. A simple framework for assessing current rules suggests a U.S. tax burden on foreign...