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Uninsurable Investment Risks

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  • Césaire Meh
  • Vincenzo Quadrini

Abstract

The authors study a general-equilibrium economy in which agents have the ability to invest in a risky technology. The investment risk cannot be fully insured with optimal contracts, because shocks are private information. The authors show that the presence of these risks may lead to an underaccumulation of capital relative to an economy where idiosyncratic shocks can be fully insured. They also show that, although the availability of state-contingent (optimal) contracts cannot provide full insurance, it brings the aggregate stock of capital close to the complete markets level. Institutional reforms that make the use of these contracts possible have important welfare consequences.

Suggested Citation

  • Césaire Meh & Vincenzo Quadrini, 2004. "Uninsurable Investment Risks," Staff Working Papers 04-29, Bank of Canada.
    • Handle: RePEc:bca:bocawp:04-29
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Cristian Pardo, 2013. "Entrepreneurial risk aversion, net worth effects and real fluctuations," Review of Financial Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 22(4), pages 158-168, November.
    2. Sagiri Kitao, 2005. "Income taxation with uninsurable endowment and entrepreneurial investment risks," 2005 Meeting Papers 514, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    3. George-Marios Angeletos, 2005. "Uninsured Idiosyncratic Investment Risk," NBER Working Papers 11180, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Economic models; Financial institutions; Financial markets;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth
    • G0 - Financial Economics - - General

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