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On the welfare costs of business cycles: Beyond nondurable goods

Author

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  • Barros, Fernando
  • Couto, Gabriel T.
  • Gomes, Fábio A.R.

Abstract

This paper constitutes the first effort to measure the welfare costs of economic cycles considering that the consumer derives utility from the consumption of nondurable goods and services and the stock of durable goods. To accomplish such a task, we put forward a novel approach based on a nonseparable utility function. As a result, we take into account the complementarities among the consumption categories and the correlations of the shocks in those series. Our findings for the U.S. economy suggest that the single-good approach in the literature tends to underestimate the welfare costs of business cycles.

Suggested Citation

  • Barros, Fernando & Couto, Gabriel T. & Gomes, Fábio A.R., 2023. "On the welfare costs of business cycles: Beyond nondurable goods," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jmacro:v:78:y:2023:i:c:s0164070423000605
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jmacro.2023.103560
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Welfare costs of business cycles; Nondurable goods; Services; Durable goods;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C32 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Time-Series Models; Dynamic Quantile Regressions; Dynamic Treatment Effect Models; Diffusion Processes; State Space Models
    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth
    • E32 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Business Fluctuations; Cycles

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