if this message does not display correctly, click here | Table of Contents Bassam Fattouh, University of Oxford - Oxford Institute for Energy Studies
Beniamino Pisicoli, University of Rome Tor Vergata - Department of Economics and Finance
Pasquale Scaramozzino, University of Rome II - Faculty of Economics, University of London - School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London - Centre for Financial and Management Studies (CeFIMS) Federico Giorgi, University of Rome Tor Vergata - Department of Economics and Finance
Stefano Herzel, University of Rome Tor Vergata - Faculty of Economics
Paolo Pigato, University of Rome Tor Vergata - Department of Economics and Finance Rama Dasi Mariani, University of Rome Tor Vergata
Furio C. Rosati, University of Rome Tor Vergata - Faculty of Economics
Pasquale Scaramozzino, University of Rome II - Faculty of Economics, University of London - School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London - Centre for Financial and Management Studies (CeFIMS)
Marco d’Errico, United Nations - Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) | |
CEIS: CENTRE FOR ECONOMIC & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
Furio Camillo Rosati - Director "Debt and Financial Fragility: Italian Non-Financial Companies after the Pandemic" 
CEIS Working Paper No. 551 BASSAM FATTOUH, University of Oxford - Oxford Institute for Energy Studies
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BENIAMINO PISICOLI, University of Rome Tor Vergata - Department of Economics and Finance
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PASQUALE SCARAMOZZINO, University of Rome II - Faculty of Economics, University of London - School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London - Centre for Financial and Management Studies (CeFIMS)
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This paper analyses the evolution of debt of Italian firms from 2010 to 2020 with special focus on the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic. By means of quantile regressions, our approach investigates several heterogeneities to assess the vulnerabilities of the most fragile firms. We find that, on average, Italian non-financial companies (NFCs) reduced their indebtedness over the sample period, a trend which did not get interrupted during the first year of the pandemic. By exploiting the high heterogeneity in the data, however, we find that the turmoil affected the most indebted firms and the trend of declining indebtedness for these firms was reversed. Moreover, sectors that were suspended ex lege during the first lockdown: i) already had the highest levels of the debt-to-assets ratios over our sample period, and ii) experienced the steepest increase in debt in 2020 relative to the previous year. Finally, our results show that highly indebted firms exhibit a qualitative different behaviour compared to the rest of the sample and that excessively piling up debt severely increases the likelihood of exiting the market. "A Reinforcement Learning Algorithm for Trading Commodities"
CEIS Working Paper No. 552 FEDERICO GIORGI, University of Rome Tor Vergata - Department of Economics and Finance
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STEFANO HERZEL, University of Rome Tor Vergata - Faculty of Economics
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PAOLO PIGATO, University of Rome Tor Vergata - Department of Economics and Finance We propose a Reinforcement Learning (RL) algorithm for generating a trading strategy in a realistic setting, that includes transaction costs and factors driving the asset dynamics. We benchmark our algorithm against the analytical optimal solution, available when factors are linear and transaction costs are quadratic, showing that RL is able to mimic the optimal strategy. Then we consider a more realistic setting, including non-linear dynamics, that better describes the WTI spot prices time series. For these more general dynamics, an optimal strategy is not known and RL becomes a viable alternative. We show that on synthetic data generated from WTI spot prices, the RL agent outperforms a trader that linearizes the model to apply the theoretical optimal strategy. "Gains from Variety: Refugee-Host Interactions in Uganda"
CEIS Working Paper No. 553 RAMA DASI MARIANI, University of Rome Tor Vergata
FURIO C. ROSATI, University of Rome Tor Vergata - Faculty of Economics
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PASQUALE SCARAMOZZINO, University of Rome II - Faculty of Economics, University of London - School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London - Centre for Financial and Management Studies (CeFIMS)
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MARCO D’ERRICO, United Nations - Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
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Refugees are mainly hosted in low-income countries, where they often remain for a long time. Therefore, it is important to assess how they integrate with the local economy and to what extent their presence can contribute to the transition to a more dynamic economic environment. Proximity between refugees and hosts might improve the welfare of both groups by increasing opportunities for mutually beneficial economic exchanges. In particular, welfare gains might be generated through the availability of a greater variety of commodities.
In this paper we propose a theoretical model that uses the love for variety to frame the possible benefits arising from the interaction between hosts and refugees facilitated by geographical proximity. We complement the conceptual framework with an empirical analysis that makes use of a unique dataset covering around 80% of the refugee population living in Ugandan settlements and the adjoining host households.
The empirical results show that proximity between groups increases the food expenditure and the variety of food consumption of both groups. We also found that exposition to inter-group interactions rises the non-food expenditure, and the probability to run a farm and a non-farm enterprise by refugee households, while hosts are not crowding out from production. | | ^top
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