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Probability-free solutions to the non-stationary newsvendor problem

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  • Yong Zhang
  • Vladimir Vovk
  • Weiguo Zhang

Abstract

This paper concerns the multi-period newsvendor problem. In this problem, the decision maker has to decide the order quantity of an item in the subsequent period in which the demand is usually unknown. No statistical assumptions are made about the unknown demand. We adopt an online learning method from the field of prediction with expert advice to study the non-stationary newsvendor problem. We propose newsvendor strategies for both real-valued and integer order quantities. Taking the non-stationary strategies that can switch between different order quantities as benchmark, we prove that our proposed strategies can guarantee that the newsvendor’s cumulative gains are almost as large as those of the best switching strategies with not too many switches. Simple computational experiments are further performed to illustrate the effectiveness of our strategies. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014

Suggested Citation

  • Yong Zhang & Vladimir Vovk & Weiguo Zhang, 2014. "Probability-free solutions to the non-stationary newsvendor problem," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 223(1), pages 433-449, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:annopr:v:223:y:2014:i:1:p:433-449:10.1007/s10479-014-1620-8
    DOI: 10.1007/s10479-014-1620-8
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    Cited by:

    1. Janssen, Larissa & Claus, Thorsten & Sauer, Jürgen, 2016. "Literature review of deteriorating inventory models by key topics from 2012 to 2015," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 182(C), pages 86-112.
    2. Senlin Zhao & Qinghua Zhu, 2017. "Remanufacturing supply chain coordination under the stochastic remanufacturability rate and the random demand," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 257(1), pages 661-695, October.
    3. Yong Zhang & Xingyu Yang & Weiguo Zhang & Weiwei Chen, 2020. "Online ordering rules for the multi-period newsvendor problem with quantity discounts," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 288(1), pages 495-524, May.
    4. Rui Wang & Xiao Yan & Chuanjin Zhu, 2023. "Solving a Distribution-Free Multi-Period Newsvendor Problem With Advance Purchase Discount via an Online Ordering Solution," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(2), pages 21582440231, June.
    5. Zhang, Guoqing & Shi, Jianmai & Chaudhry, Sohail S. & Li, Xindan, 2019. "Multi-period multi-product acquisition planning with uncertain demands and supplier quantity discounts," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 117-140.
    6. Tal Avinadav, 2015. "Continuous accounting of inventory costs with Brownian-motion and Poisson demand processes," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 229(1), pages 85-102, June.

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