Search

Measuring the service flow and the stock value of condominium apartments in Canada and decomposing these values into constant quality price and quantity components is important for many purposes. In addition, the System of National Accounts requires that these service flows and stock values for condos be decomposed into constant quality land and structure components. In Canada and most other countries, such a land and structure decomposition of condominium apartment sale prices does not currently exist. In this article, we provide such a decomposition of condominium apartment sales in Ottawa for the period 1996–2009. Specific attention is paid to the roles of communal land and structure space on condominium apartment unit selling prices. Key findings include methods to allocate land and building space to a single condominium unit, identifying the characteristics that best explain condominium prices, and developing an average depreciation rate for condos for the 14-year time period.

Inflation is the sustained rise in the prices of commodities. Central Banks have the critical responsibility of ensuring price stability; however, every attempt should be made to ensure that price stability should not hit economic growth. Thus, it becomes imperative for Central Banks to determine the key fiscal and monetary factors that have the greatest impact on domestic price levels. Based on these factors, it can tackle the problem of inflation effectively and efficiently. Further, there are several global price indices and factors that need to be factored in while tackling the problem of inflation. The objective of the current study is to empirically determine the macroeconomic factors that play a significant role in influencing inflation in India. The study considers international food and oil price indices amongst other macroeconomic variables such as the fiscal deficit, index of industrial production, exchange rate, MIBOR, and money supply in order to explain inflation. Monthly data for each of the above variables were collected for the research period 2000-10. The study is based on Vector Auto-Regressive modeling. The Augmented Dickey-Fuller Unit Root Test was performed to test for stationarity of all of the time-series data. The results of the Granger causality tests indicate that fiscal indicators such as fiscal deficit and international factors such as international food and oil price indices play a significant role in influencing inflation. The research outcomes conform to the results of several earlier studies. Key Words:Inflation, fiscal and monetary factors, macroeconomic factors, vector autoregressive modeling, Granger causality test

High food inflation rate in Iran in recent years places many low-income households at risk of malnutrition. Since food security and nutrition are essential dimensions of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), this paper aims to create a reliable measure of food security in Iran among different income decile groups and urban and rural areas. The paper also attempts for the first time, to extract health-related indicators from the consumer price index (CPI) and the Household Income and Expenditure (HIES) surveys historically conducted by the Statistical Center of Iran (SCI). This study reaggregates CPI price data to calculate the nutritious food price index (NPI) for urban and rural households in Iran. Moreover, the “Cost of a Recommended Diet (CoRD)” method is used to measure the trends and spatial variations in the costs of nutrition. The paper presents the results of using the CoRD method for regional levels and decile income groups. Results show that the cost of a healthy diet increased in recent years. Likewise, the healthy food price index is higher than the overall food price index. Finally, the results indicate that the NPIs in urban areas are higher than in rural areas.

The purpose of this paper is to improve student learning outcomes. This study is a Research and Development (R&D) using the 4D model Thiagarajan which includes stages Define, Design, Develop, and Disseminate but the Disseminate stage is not carried out. The findings showed that the feasibility of the material, language, evaluation, and graphics of 87%, 85%, 85%, 87% with a very decent category. The average N-gain score got a score of 0.6 categorized as moderate and classical completeness of student learning outcomes is 90%. While the results of the responses of students get an average percentage of 90,4% categorized as very feasible. Improved learning outcomes can be obtained using MMPII worksheets which include metacognitive features namely planning, monitoring, and evaluating. This study uses limited trials that were conducted on 20 students of XI IPS class Kanjeng Sepuh Senior High School.

PurposeBased on the hypothesis of the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC), the purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between environmental pollutants (as measured by CO2 emissions) and GDP for India, over the period 1980–2012. The presence of an inverted “U” shape relationship is examined while controlling for factors such as the degree of trade openness, foreign direct investment, oil prices, the legal system and industrialization.Design/methodology/approachTo verify whether the EKC follows a linear, quadratic or polynomial form, autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds testing approach for cointegration with structural breaks is adopted. The annual time series data for carbon emissions (CO2), economic growth (GDP), industrial development (industrialization), foreign direct investment and trade openness have been obtained from World Development Indicators online database. Crude oil price (international price index) for the period is collected from the International Monetary Fund. Data for total petroleum consumption are collected from the US Energy Information Agency. Data for economic freedom variables are from the Fraser Institute's Economic Freedom Index's online database.FindingsThe findings support the existence of inverted U-shaped EKC in the short-run, but not in the long-run. A linear monotonic relationship has also been estimated in select model specifications. Additionally, trade openness has been estimated to reduce emissions in models, which incorporate FDI. Else, where significant, its impact on carbon emissions is adverse. A rise in fuel price leads to reduction in carbon emissions across model specifications. Further, the lower size of government degrades the environment both in the long-run and short-run.Practical implicationsGiven the existence of the pollution haven hypothesis, wherein more trade and foreign direct investments cause environmental degradation, the paper proposes formulation of appropriate regulatory mechanisms that are environmentally friendly. Additionally, India's new economic policies, favoring liberalization, privatization and globalization, reinforces the need to strengthen environmental regulations.Originality/valueIncorporation of economic freedom as measured by the “Size of Government” in the EKC model is unique. “Size of Government” deserves a special mention. The rationale for including this explanatory variable is to understand whether countries with lower government size are more polluting. After all, theory does suggest that goods and services, which have higher social cost vis-à-vis private cost, shall be overproduced in economies that adopt more market-friendly policies, necessitating government intervention. In the study, size of government is measured as per the definition and methodology adopted by Fraser Institute's Economic Freedom of the World Index.

Using online data for prices and real-time debit card transaction data on changes in expenditures for Switzerland allows us to track inflation on a daily basis. While the daily price index fluctuates around the official price index in normal times, it drops immediately after the lockdown related to the COVID19 pandemic. Official statistics reflect this drop only with a lag, specifically because data collection takes time and is impeded by lockdown conditions. Such daily real-time information can be useful to gauge the relative importance of demand and supply shocks and thus inform policymakers who need to determine appropriate policy measures., Swiss Journal of Economics and Statistics, 156 (1), ISSN:0303-9692, ISSN:2235-6282

The article reflects the author’s position on the adjustment of the so-called substitution bias, which affects the value of the consumer price index, currently calculated using the Laspeyres formula. The author proposes a solution to the problem of the adequacy of statistical measurements of the dynamics of consumer prices in the case when, as a result of changing cost of the consumer basket, a buyer replaces a relatively expensive product with a relatively cheaper one. This solution is based on the existing index construction methodology (axiomatic, economic and stochastic approaches). The article substantiates the use of the Törnqvist formula, which has better properties in comparison with other formulae used in the construction of superlative indices. The authors calculated the Törnqvist price index for Russia based on Rosstat methodology and data using country-level quarterly group price indices and shares of consumer spending. To evaluate the results of empirical testing Laspeyres price index was compiled using the same quarterly data as the Törnqvist index. The values of the Törnqvist price index in most cases are less than the price dynamics obtained according to the Laspeyres formula. This conclusion is proved both theoretically and empirically, and it is confirmed for Russia as well. However, due to the non-observance of the conditions of smooth trends in consumer prices, the difference between the values of the Törnqvist and Laspeyres indices is significantly larger in certain quarters than that presented in empirical studies in other countries. Consumer price index, calculated using the Törnqvist formula, in the system of indicators of price statistics in Russia can be defined as an indicator that specifies the main consumer price index. Calculation of its value is necessary for a more realistic description of the processes taking place in the consumer market.

The detection of price bubbles, which are expressed as increases in asset prices due to speculative movements, can provide information regarding potential financial imbalances that may arise in the future. Upon considering that the Mortgage crisis, which is the last international financial crisis and affected the whole world, was caused by the price bubbles in the housing prices, it is of economic importance to determine whether or not such bubbles occur in the housing prices on the national scale. This study aims to determine whether or not price bubbles occur in housing prices in Turkey. In this context, it is tried to be examined whether or not price bubbles occurred in Turkey via the Sup-Augmented Dickey-Fuller and the Generalized Sup-Augmented Dickey-Fuller tests utilizing the monthly data of the real hedonic housing price index obtained from the cities of Ankara, Istanbul, and Izmir over the period from January 2010 to December 2018. According to the study results in both test results, the existence of housing price bubbles in the cities of Istanbul and Izmir is detected. The Sup-Augmented Dickey-Fuller test results indicate that housing price bubbles occur in Ankara, whereas no housing price bubbles are detected in the city according to results obtained from the Generalized Sup-Augmented Dickey-Fuller test.

China became the world’s second largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) importer in 2018 but has faced extremely high import costs due to a lack of bargaining power. Assessments of the Shanghai LNG Price Index, first released in 2015, are vital for improving the understanding of these cost dynamics. This paper, using the LNG price index data from the Shanghai Petroleum and Gas Exchange (SHPGX) coupled with domestic and international LNG prices from July 1, 2015 to December 31, 2018, estimates several econometric models to evaluate the long-term and short-term equilibriums of the Shanghai LNG Price Index, the responses to market information shocks and the leading or lagging relationships with LNG and alternative energy prices from other agencies. The results show that the LNG price index of the SHPGX has already exhibited a long-term equilibrium and short-term adjustment mechanisms to reflect the average price level and market movements, but the market information transparency and price discovery efficiency of the index are still inadequate. China’s LNG market is still relatively independent of other natural gas markets, and marketization reforms are under way in China. The influence of the SHPGX LNG price index on the trading decisions of market participants is expected to improve with further development of China’s LNG reforms, the formation of a natural gas entry-exit system, and the increasing liquidity of the hub.

This study determines the causes of consumption, compensated, and uncompensated demand for rice using the Linear Approximate Almost Ideal Demand System (LA-AIDS) model in Bangladesh. The model was used along with the corrected Stone Price Index. The study’s findings showed that the income elasticity of demand for rice was only 0.76, indicating that rice is a normal and necessary food item. The own-price elasticity (compensated and uncompensated) showed that all food items were price inelastic. The rice’s own-price elasticity demonstrated that if the price falls by 10%, rice demand will rise by 8.21%. This cross-price elasticity showed the weak substitution effects of a price change. Therefore, price interference may not lead to a substantial effect on food demand.

In view of the sector-wide effect of the nCOVID-19 pandemic in the USA and the probable effect on certain over-the-counter (OTC) pharmaceutical products, the current study examined potential inflation in the pharmaceutical industry arising from the pandemic-related uncertainty. In this case, the USA's producer price indexes vis-à-vis inflation of the immune-related pharmaceutical items: multivitamin, vitamins nutrients and hematinic (V-N-H), other vitamins (other-V), antidepressant, and antidiabetic were examined alongside the uncertainties arising from the world pandemic and economic policy. Thus, the (Diebold and Yilmaz in Int J Forecast 28(1): 57-66, 2012) result implied that the world pandemic uncertainty contributed a significantly huge shock to the examined pharmaceutical compounds, thus affirming the vulnerability of certain pharmaceuticals to pandemic-related uncertainty. The total spillover increased from 34.2% (with economic policy uncertainty) to 47.6% (when pandemic uncertainty is incorporated). In specific, there are negative net spillovers from the multivitamins, other vitamins, antidiabetic, and antidepressant especially due to high pandemic and economic policy uncertainties. However, the statistical evidence implied that higher uncertainty arising from the pandemic is responsible for the severity of shock received by the indicated pharmaceutical products as against economic policy uncertainty. Thus, a relevant policy inference is posited from the result of the study.

We analyze household hedging costs and market liquidity of exchange traded options on a set of well-developed U.S. home price indexes allowing homeowners to hedge the downside risk of housing price...

This article provides detailed results of an in-depth analysis of the price situation in the pharmaceutical market of Saint Petersburg, based on data from the audit of retail sales and hospital purchases, as well as the audit of preferential drug supply in 2012-2019, provided by the research company DSM Group. Using such statistical indicators as weighted average prices, weighted average prices index, Laspeyres price index and structural shifts index, the analysis of the level and dynamics of prices in the drug market of Saint Petersburg as a whole, as well as in its individual segments-retail, hospital and preferential drug provision segment. The results of a comparative analysis of price changes for medicines included in the List of essential and essential medicines and not included in it, for domestic and imported drugs, as well as for medicines belonging to different pharmacotherapeutic groups of Anatomic-therapeutic-chemical classification and located in different price ranges are presented.

Food consumption indicators include one of the most important features of the population's quality of life are included in the system of generalizing indicators of socio-economic development of the country and are an integral basis of human life. The quality and structure of food products consumed affect the health of the country's population, determining its economic and food security. The article analyzes the food market of the Republic of Kazakhstan, examines the main trends in its development. A comparison of changes in the price level and real wages is made, and as a result, it is concluded that the price growth indicators exceed the increase in average incomes of the population. Dependence on imports of a large list of food products, the depreciation of tenge against the US dollar, while prices increased, led to a decrease in the purchasing power of the population over the period 2015-2019. In conclusion, the importance of public policies for achieving an optimal level of food balance is emphasized. It is important to implement a policy of stimulating the production of domestic analogues of foreign goods, opening processing enterprises, and developing innovative technologies. To increase the economic availability of food, it is important to take measures aimed at increasing the production of food raw materials and food products within the country. The growth of market offers will lead to stabilization and reduction of prices for them, therefore, to an increase in the purchasing power of the population.

In 2015, China proposed to gradually reduce the cross-subsidy of electricity price. In order to reduce cross-subsidies and make electricity price reflect its actual cost, it is necessary to estimate the scale of cross-subsidies. Existing research has not yet seen the estimation of the scale of cross subsidy of electricity price for electricity grid, provinces, and residential and industrial users. Based on Ramsey's pricing theory and panel data of 30 provinces in China from 2006 to 2017, this paper constructs an empirical model of power demand and price for industrial and residential users. The price elasticity of power demand for residential and industrial users is determined, and the Ramsey price index of residential and industrial users are calculated. The scale of cross-subsidies for electricity prices of residential and industrial users at the national level and in different power grids and provinces are estimated. The conclusions are as follows: (1) The elasticity of electricity demand of residential users is greater than that of industrial users. (2) The sales price of residential and industrial users deviates from Ramsey's theoretical price. (3) The cross-subsidy provided by industrial users is far greater than that accepted by residential users. (4) The residential users of Central China power grid receive the most cross-subsidies, and the industrial users of North China power grid provide the most subsidies. (5) The unit power consumption of residential users in Northwest power grid receives the most subsidies, while the industrial users in Central China power grid provide the most subsidies. (6) The scale of cross-subsidy of electric power in developed areas is larger than that in underdeveloped areas. (7) Since 2015, the power system reform has little impact on the total power consumption of residential and industrial users.

The Turkish residential market supported by macro-economic developments is of great importance for the country's economy and the construction industry. The main purpose of this study is to analyze the Turkish residential construction market dynamics, especially in terms of price-cost and supply-demand regimes and conduct future projections. For this purpose, analysis of construction cost and residential price indexes, total and mortgaged residential sales, and construction and occupancy permits were evaluated utilizing institutional data. In addition, positive and negative effects of the changes in the residential prices in the macro scale were examined. After, conducting the residential price and cost change analysis for between 2010-2023, future stock volume and residential market projections were carried out. As a result of the analysis, we can divide the residential market into 3 periods: positive development period between 2010 and 2015, the recession period from 2015 to 2019, and the period after 2020. In the projection, depending on the supply contraction and the results of demand changes, price and cost increases, the current residential stock volume will reach its lowest level by 2023. Following this, the last period is expected to reach a more balanced residential market shaped by need-based purchases rather than individual investments.

This study examines the importance of using appropriate inflation measures in the estimation of a life care plan value. Using data from 1989 through 2018, we compare medical inflation rates measured by the Consumer Price Index Medical (CPI Medical) and the Personal Consumption Expenditures Health (PCE Health) price index while discussing the reasons why the indices differ. We also explain why certain policymakers favor the Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) over the Consumer Price Index (CPI). In demonstrating how the value of life care plans can differ based upon the use of either of these indices we applied 10-year historical arithmetic averages of both indices to a large hypothetical life care plan. Our calculations indicate that using the CPI versus the PCE results in a difference that is 7.5 times the initial value of the plan, after accumulation of nominal annual values that are undiscounted to present value. We also show how the difference between using the CPI Medical versus the PCE Health increases over time, implying that using one price index or the other will have a greater impact on life care plan values the longer the projection period. Our analysis shows that experts should consider the use of PCE indices when valuing life care plans.

Cheap fossil energy leads to overconsumption of energy and hazardous levels of air pollution. In this study, we provide a framework to connect fossil energy price policy to private consumption of energy and outdoor air pollution. We used a consumer demand system and reassessed it for the recent status of the Iranian economy. We extracted household consumption information from Iran’s 2011 and 2014−2016 annual household surveys (n=154683), prices from the Central Bank of Iran’s detailed monthly price indices from 2008 to 2016, and air pollution information from Iran’s Energy Balance Sheets. We estimated that an average Iranian household would reduce its energy consumption by 2%, 16%, 29%, 38%, and 45% if energy prices were hiked by 10%, 50%, 100%, 150%, and 200%, respectively. The corresponding reductions in total outdoor air pollution in the post-hike period would be 2.6, 26.3, 47.6, 62.9, and 74.5 million tons, respectively. Besides highlighting the importance of fossil energy price policy as a short-term strategy to reduce air pollution, this study calls attention to shifting the existing subsidies on fossil fuels to sustainable sources of energy such as waste-oriented biofuels as a -long-term solution.

Nowadays, many construction engineering and technology enterprises are evolving to find that prosperity is driven and inspired by an open economy with dynamic markets and fierce multifaceted competition. Besides brand and product uniqueness, the ability to quickly provide customers with quotes are matters of concern. Such a requirement for prompt cost estimation of construction investment projects with the use of a construction price index poses a significant challenge to contractors. This is because the nature of the construction industry is shaped by changes in domestic and foreign economic factors, socio-financial issues, and is under the influence of various micro and macro factors. This paper presents a fuzzy decision-making approach for calculating critical factors that affect the construction price index. A qualitative approach was implemented based on in-depth interviews of experts in the construction industry in Vietnam. A synthetic comparison matrix was calculated using Buckley approach. The CoA approach was applied to defuzzified the fuzzy weights of factors that affect the construction price index. The research results show that the top five critical factors affecting the construction price index in Vietnam are (1) consumer price index, (2) gross domestic product, (3) basic interest rate, (4) foreign exchange rate, and (5) total export and import.

The objective of the research is to generate a new formula to determine the variation in prices in a public works contract that allows the financial balance of the counterparts. The methodology for calculating and adjusting the price variation in public works contracts is given as a function of the K factor, which is a number that comes from the calculation of polynomial formulas whose theoretical basis lies in the price indices, which are established in a legal framework of mandatory use of the polynomial formula to determine the K factor, with eight monomials in the budget and the quantity of supplies that exceeds one hundred. It is considered a subjective margin since its elaboration depends on the discretion of the one who elaborates on the polynomial formula. The investigation questions the procedure established by the state regulations for the calculation of the polynomial formula and shows the margin of error that exists between the value obtained by the method set for regulations and that obtained using the entries of the work budget. The result shows the positive variation in inputs, and the prices have increased, with adjustments paid in the contracts with the benefit of contractors.

While the residential and commercial property markets in Hong Kong are extensively discussed, little attention is paid to the carpark market. This work contributes to fill the research gap in three ways. First, it provides a simple empirical model to explain carpark ratios in residential buildings. Second, it hand-collects transaction-level data and constructs a price index for the carpark market in Hong Kong. Third, it shows that changes in stamp duties increase the volatility in the carpark market. This research may shed light to the current debate on the effectiveness of the stamp duty in stabilizing the real estate market.

Our study examines the asymmetric responses of food prices to oil prices in Indonesia as a net oil and food-importing country. We apply Non-linear Autoregressive Distributed Lag (NARDL) to investigate the responses of food prices to oil prices. Due to the different impacts of oil price on sub-component of the food price index, this study decomposes the general food prices index into 11 sub-components food price indices. The oil prices asymmetrically affect food prices but incomplete pass-through except the preserved fish prices. The highest impact of oil price is on beans and nuts prices, followed by cereals, roots, and their product prices. More interestingly, the response of food price to an increase in oil price is higher than the response of food price to a decrease in oil price known as rockets and feathers phenomenon for general food prices, cereals, roots, and their product prices, meat and its product prices, eggs, milk, and their product prices, bean and nuts prices, fruits prices, and fats and oil prices.Keywords: Food Prices, Oil price, Non-Linear Autoregressive Distributed Lag, Net oil-importing country, IndonesiaJEL Classifications: C22; E31; Q11DOI: https://doi.org/10.32479/ijeep.9557

Цель работы. В данной работе проверяется гипотеза о том, что относительные цены, несмотря на их изменчивость, являются стационарными и имеют тенденцию возвращаться к среднему значению. Методология. Для проверки этой гипотезы в работе исследованы относительные цены для двух стран: Армении, которая является маленькой развивающиеся экономикой, и США, которая, наоборот, является развитой. Для Армении рассматриваются квартальные данные на горизонте 15 лет (с 2004 г. по 2019 г.), а для Америки рассматриваемый горизонт составляет около 30 лет (с 1988 г. по 2019 г.). Выбор горизонта исследования, обусловлен, в т. ч., наличием доступных данных. Для каждой из стран строится три модели VECM, одна из них строится на основе результата теста Йохансана на коинтеграцию, а в двух других на временные ряды наложены ограничения, исходя из результатов тестов Дикки-Фуллера и теста KPSS. Результаты. Результаты модели показали, что ряды относительных цен являются интегрированными первого порядка. Область применения результатов. Результаты данной статьи могут использоваться в дальнейшем при построении DSGE-моделей. Выводы. Тем не менее использование данной гипотезы может улучшить получаемые прогнозы на некоторых временных промежутках и при некоторых спецификациях построенных моделей.

This study researches the effect of exchange rate movements on Turkey’s domestic prices from 2003 through 2019. For the Turkish economy, the structural problems behind the inflation phenomenon are the dependency on imported intermediate goods for production and inflation expectations. Therefore, changes in exchange rates have a significant impact on domestic inflation. To analyze this process, the consumer price index (CPI), producer price index (PPI) and import price index (IPI) are examined by using VAR analysis. Estimations for two distinct periods- stable and upward courses in the exchange rate movement- yield different results. For the first stable period, import price and producer price shocks were more reflective than exchange rate shocks. Exchange rate shocks are found to be stronger than the import price shocks in the second period. The results show that structural problems of the Turkish economy related to production based on the import of intermediate goods, dollarization, and pricing behavior support exchange rate and imported price pass-through to consumer prices.

Energy price is a key factor in reducing carbon emissions. This paper assesses the relationship between energy prices and carbon emissions from the industrial sector in China. Using panel data covering 31 industrial sectors for the period 2003 to 2015, we calculate the industrial energy price index and then estimate the effects of sector-level energy prices on carbon emissions based on a panel smooth transition regression model. The results show that the nexus between industrial energy prices and carbon emissions is nonlinear overall, and energy prices have a significantly negative effect on carbon emissions, while this negative effect gradually weakens with an increase in energy prices. Moreover, the negative effect of energy prices on carbon emissions is more significant in energy-intensive sectors when energy prices exceed the threshold value. The findings emphasize the importance of energy prices for energy conservation and emission reduction and imply that energy prices can be used as a regulation tool for government industrial energy saving and emission reduction.

Hurricanes cause extensive damage and disruption to ports and coastal infrastructure. However, the overall economic consequences of these storms are not necessarily limited to coastal regions. This paper analyzes the indirect effect of hurricanes on trade by considering the connections between affected and unaffected regions through the reliance on coastal ports. The analysis takes advantage of the exogenous variation in hurricane wind speeds at US customs ports to estimate how hurricane activity influences exports shipments originating in unaffected US states. The findings demonstrate that hurricanes have a severe negative impact on bilateral trade flows. For example, a Category 1 storm hitting a port has a similar effect on exports from unaffected US states as a 4% ad valorem tariff. These port-level disruptions aggregate up to broader trade frictions between US states and importing countries through price indices. The empirical estimates and the structure of the theoretical model are used to evaluate counterfactual hurricane scenarios. For example, foreign importers would have been willing to pay over $4 billion to have avoided the additional trade frictions caused by the 2005 hurricane season. Overall, the results shed light on the role of transportation networks in propagating the potential impacts of stronger hurricanes due to climate change.

In Poland, as in many other countries, to measure inflation, expressed both by the CPI and HICP, the Laspeyres price index with weights from the base period is used. Thus calculated index does not take into account changes in the consumption structure which are caused by changes in prices in the analysed time interval (i.e.: a year). Therefore, in countries where the CPI is determined based on the Laspeyres index, there is a high probability of its bias due to substitution of goods, but not only. The value of the CPI or HICP should approximate the real inflation as accurately as possible, among others, because these indicators are used to index nominal values in the economy, which in turn is important in price decisions made by enterprises. Searching for an answer to the question about the possibility of effective reduction of the measurement bias in measuring inflation, the authors conducted an empirical study whose main aim was to assess diversity of the level of inflation in the Visegrad countries at different levels of aggregation, with particular emphasis on the scale of the bias in measuring inflation resulting from substitution of goods. The study concentrated on determining the size of differences arising from the change in the index formula used when estimating the level of inflation. The article consists of six parts in which sources and types of bias in inflation measurement are discussed, index formulas divided into weighted and unweighted ones are reviewed, statistics on inflation in the Visegrad countries are presented in a dynamic approach, and the results of empirical research are presented and discussed. For the purpose of the research part and the need to perform a comparative analysis, data on the HICP value from the Eurostat database from the years 2011–2018 were used. Therefore, it seems that both the choice of the calculation formula and the level of data aggregation in the analysis of inflation is significant in its estimates.

The distortion of statistical data during determination of the price index of Russia can comprehensively affect the development of the entire economy through fiscal and monetary policy, since this indicator is the basic one. Using digital electronics as an example, the article considers the deviation of the dynamics in the consumer price index from the data of retailers. The paper draws attention to the transfer of value to the prices of imported products (exchange rate pass-through), which, given the current supply structure, justifies price increase in the real sector of the economy. They revealed the reason of the statistical sample deviation for the index calculation, which contributed to the formation of deflation in the state statistics within the digital electronics segment. During calculations, the statistical agency operates preliminary unpopular goods that make the sample unrepresentative, which leads to the indicator distortion. They analyzed the aspects of the possible impact of cheap goods on the market, qualitative changes in digital electronics products, and FSSS approaches to international recommendations. The characteristics of smartphones defined by FSSS and consumers' preferences are compared. They considered inflation dynamics in the digital electronics segment. They considered the structure of consumer spending on non-food products, regarded by FSSS to calculate the consumer price index. To solve the problem, they proposed to conduct more frequent sampling adjustments based on market research, as well as update and expand the specifications used.

Relying on a cost-push input-output model for China, we estimate the exchange rate pass-through to both domestic prices and export prices at the industry level. Our empirical results indicate that the decline of the RMB price in the processing exports sector in response to an RMB appreciation is larger than that in the non-processing exports sector, which, in turn, is larger than the decline of the consumer price indexes. Our cross-sector analysis also suggests that exchange rate changes have the lowest impact on prices in capital- and technology-insensitive industries.

Improvements in medical treatment have contributed to rising health spending. Yet there is relatively little evidence on whether the spending increase is “worth it” in the sense of producing better health outcomes of commensurate value—a critical question for understanding productivity in the health sector and, as that sector grows, for deriving an accurate quality-adjusted price index for an entire economy. We analyze individual-level panel data on medical spending and health outcomes for 123,548 patients with type 2 diabetes in four health systems: Japan, The Netherlands, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Using a “cost-of-living” method that measures value based on improved survival, we find a positive net value of diabetes care: the value of improved survival outweighs the added costs of care in each of the four health systems. This finding is robust to accounting for selective survival, end-of-life spending, and a range of values for a life-year or fraction of benefits attributable to medical care. Since the estimates do not include the value from improved quality of life, they are conservative. We, therefore, conclude that the increase in medical spending for management of diabetes is offset by an increase in quality.

Purpose: The article applies the hedonic pricing model to estimate house price in the housing market of Vietnam, which is a country with a fledgeling housing market, so the study is expected to bring interesting findings. Design/Methodology/Approach: By applying the hedonic pricing model, most of the previous studies have reported that house price is significantly influenced by the characteristics of the house itself, its location and surrounding facilities. Based on this, the article adopts the Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression in combination with robustness statistics in the model estimation, so the estimated results on house price are reliable and able to be widely applied. Data are collected through the survey into housing projects in Ho Chi Minh and Ha Noi city, which are the two largest cities in Vietnam. Findings: The findings reveal that the hedonic pricing model can be applied to estimate house price in Vietnam’s housing market. This can be said to be a big success in giving first empirical evidence in Vietnam on this matter. Specifically, house price is negatively affected by its proximity to the city center. Also, factors including house size, house type, house structure, number of bedrooms, amenities around the house exert a positive influence on the price. Practical Implications: The estimated results are typical and reliable, which can be applied universally. Originality/Value: The study confirms the hedonic pricing model can be well-applied to accurately estimate the price of houses in Vietnam. More than that, the findings are also essential for other countries, especially those with a nascent housing market like Vietnam., peer-reviewed