Synchronisation in multi-product firms. Evidence from german grocery prices.
Using a unique panel data set for German grocery prices we find significant price synchronization within food retail chains as well as within individual food stores (between products). Price synchronization between chains appears to be less pronounced. Common shocks can only explain some synchronization, indicating that strategic motives as well as menu costs are of significant importance. (author's abstract)
Synchronization due to common shocks? Evidence from German grocery prices
Abstract Using unique panel data for German grocery prices, we find significant price synchronization within retail chains and between products. Common shocks can only explain some synchronization, indicating that strategic motives as well as menu costs are of significant importance.
Migration, Labor Mobility, and Relocation Assistance: The Case of the American Indian
This article, an example of "indirect" program evaluation, utilizes a 1/100 public use sample of American households from the 1970 U.S. census to examine family welfare levels among three categories of Indian families: (1) nonmigrant families living in traditional areas of Indian population concentration; (2) families in areas not receiving relocation assistance through the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA); and (3) migrant families moving to urban areas with BIA relocation assistance. The article concludes that the population of migrants receiving relocation assistance has a substantially higher level of economic welfare in both absolute and relative terms and that earnings are the principal source of increased welfare. It is suggested that such assistance might be utilized on a wider basis to assist other migrating populations.