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Optimal and robust combination of forecasts via constrained optimization and shrinkage

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  • Roccazzella, Francesco
  • Gambetti, Paolo
  • Vrins, Frédéric

Abstract

We introduce various methods that combine forecasts using constrained optimization with penalty. A non-negativity constraint is imposed on the weights, and several penalties are considered, taking the form of a divergence from a reference combination scheme. In contrast with most of the existing approaches, our framework performs forecast selection and combination in one step, allowing for potentially sparse combining schemes. Moreover, by exploiting the analogy between forecasts combination and portfolio optimization, we provide the analytical expression of the optimal penalty strength when penalizing with the L2-divergence from the equally-weighted scheme. An extensive simulation study and two empirical applications allow us to investigate the impact of the divergence function, the reference scheme, and the non-negativity constraint on the predictive performance. Our results suggest that the proposed models outperform those considered in previous studies.
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Suggested Citation

  • Roccazzella, Francesco & Gambetti, Paolo & Vrins, Frédéric, 2020. "Optimal and robust combination of forecasts via constrained optimization and shrinkage," LIDAM Discussion Papers LFIN 2020006, Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain Finance (LFIN).
  • Handle: RePEc:ajf:louvlf:2020006
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    Cited by:

    1. Feng, Yun & Hou, Weijie & Song, Yuping, 2023. "Tail risk in the Chinese stock market: An AEV model on the maximal drawdowns," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 58(PA).
    2. Nikita Dmitrievich Senchilo & Denis Anatolievich Ustinov, 2021. "Method for Determining the Optimal Capacity of Energy Storage Systems with a Long-Term Forecast of Power Consumption," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-25, October.
    3. Paolo Gambetti & Francesco Roccazzella & Frédéric Vrins, 2022. "Meta-Learning Approaches for Recovery Rate Prediction," Risks, MDPI, vol. 10(6), pages 1-29, June.
    4. Roccazzella, Francesco & Candelon, Bertrand, 2022. "Should we care about ECB inflation expectations?," LIDAM Discussion Papers LFIN 2022004, Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain Finance (LFIN).
    5. Thompson, Ryan & Qian, Yilin & Vasnev, Andrey L., 2024. "Flexible global forecast combinations," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    6. Radchenko, Peter & Vasnev, Andrey L. & Wang, Wendun, 2023. "Too similar to combine? On negative weights in forecast combination," International Journal of Forecasting, Elsevier, vol. 39(1), pages 18-38.
    7. Distaso, Walter & Roccazzella, Francesco & Vrins, Frédéric, 2023. "Business cycle and realized losses in the consumer credit industry," LIDAM Discussion Papers LFIN 2023007, Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain Finance (LFIN).
    8. Zhentao Shi & Liangjun Su & Tian Xie, 2020. "L2-Relaxation: With Applications to Forecast Combination and Portfolio Analysis," Papers 2010.09477, arXiv.org, revised Aug 2022.
    9. Roccazzella, Francesco & Gambetti, Paolo & Vrins, Frédéric, 2022. "Correction to: Optimal and robust combination of forecasts via constrained optimization and shrinkage," International Journal of Forecasting, Elsevier, vol. 38(3), pages 1050-1050.
    10. Qian, Yilin & Thompson, Ryan & Vasnev, Andrey L, 2022. "Global combinations of expert forecasts," Working Papers BAWP-2022-02, University of Sydney Business School, Discipline of Business Analytics.

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    Keywords

    forecasts combination ; robust methods ; optimal combination ; machine learning;
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