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Information acquisition, price informativeness, and welfare

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  • Rahi, Rohit
  • Zigrand, Jean-Pierre

Abstract

We consider the market for a risky asset with heterogeneous valuations. Private information that agents have about their own valuation is reflected in the equilibrium price. We study the learning externalities that arise in this setting, and in particular their implications for price informativeness and welfare. When private signals are noisy, so that agents rely more on the information conveyed by prices, discouraging information gathering may be Pareto improving. Complementarities in information acquisition can lead to multiple equilibria.

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  • Rahi, Rohit & Zigrand, Jean-Pierre, 2018. "Information acquisition, price informativeness, and welfare," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 177(C), pages 558-593.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jetheo:v:177:y:2018:i:c:p:558-593
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jet.2018.07.007
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    Cited by:

    1. Arnold, Lutz G. & Zelzner, Sebastian, 2022. "Financial trading versus entrepreneurship: Competition for talent and negative feedback effects," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 186-199.
    2. Lou, Youcheng & Wang, Shouyang, 2020. "A new approach to the existence and regularity of linear equilibrium in a noisy rational expectations economy," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 119-126.
    3. Rahi, Rohit, 2019. "Information acquisition with heterogeneous valuations," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 118929, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    4. Lou, Youcheng & Rahi, Rohit, 2021. "Information, market power and welfare," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 118843, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    5. Rahi, Rohit, 2021. "Information acquisition with heterogeneous valuations," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 191(C).
    6. Ji, Yucheng & Xu, Weijun & Zhao, Qi & Jia, Zecheng, 2023. "ESG disclosure and investor welfare under asymmetric information and imperfect competition," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    7. Youcheng Lou, 2023. "On the functional equivalence of two perfectly competitive economies with negative exponential utility and linear utility with a quadratic holding cost," Mathematics and Financial Economics, Springer, volume 17, number 4, December.
    8. Huang, Shiyang & Qiu, Zhigang & Yang, Liyan, 2020. "Institutionalization, delegation, and asset prices," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 186(C).
    9. Russ, David, 2022. "Multidimensional noise and non-fundamental information diversity," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 59(C).
    10. Lou, Youcheng & Parsa, Sahar & Ray, Debraj & Li, Duan & Wang, Shouyang, 2019. "Information aggregation in a financial market with general signal structure," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 183(C), pages 594-624.
    11. Heumann, Tibor, 2021. "Efficiency in trading markets with multi-dimensional signals," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 191(C).
    12. Lou, Youcheng & Wang, Shouyang, 2021. "The equivalence of two rational expectations equilibrium economies with different approaches to processing neighbors’ information," Mathematical Social Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 93-105.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Heterogeneous valuations; Information acquisition; Learning externalities; Welfare;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D82 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Asymmetric and Private Information; Mechanism Design
    • G14 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Information and Market Efficiency; Event Studies; Insider Trading

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