Financial markets have been experiencing episodes of financial crises since the great depression of 1929. The busting of speculative bubbles is one of the causes of most financial crises. Financial crises cause welfare loses. Therefore, Mungule and Malikane's Essays on Speculative Bubbles in Financial Markets presents a thoroughly up-to-date and pedagogically rich advanced knowledge that fits perfectly into the newest segments of both financial and monetary economics course areas. Beginning with Chapter 1 on formation of speculative bubbles, central banks are encouraged to understand speculative bubbles dynamics, measurement issues and the implications of either responding or no response to the bubbles on macroeconomic variables. This edition provides international application of speculative bubbles, helping make issues of monetary policy implications of responding to asset price bubbles easy for policy makers and postgraduate students to understand.

“An interesting take on some factors that facilitate the development and bursting of bubbles in technology industries. . . . Highly recommended.” —Choice Financial market bubbles are recurring, often painful, reminders of the costs and benefits of capitalism. While many books have studied financial manias and crises, most fail to compare times of turmoil with times of stability. In Bubbles and Crashes, Brent Goldfarb and David A. Kirsch give us new insights into the causes of speculative booms and busts. They identify a class of assets—major technological innovations—that can, but does not necessarily, produce bubbles. This methodological twist is essential: Only by comparing similar events that sometimes lead to booms and busts can we ascertain the root causes of bubbles. Using a sample of eighty-eight technologies spanning 150 years, Goldfarb and Kirsch find that four factors play a key role in these episodes: the degree of uncertainty surrounding a particular innovation; the attentive presence of novice investors; the opportunity to directly invest in companies that specialize in the technology; and whether or not a technology is a good protagonist in a narrative. Goldfarb and Kirsch consider the implications of their analysis for technology bubbles that may be in the works today, offer tools for investors to identify whether a bubble is happening, and propose policy measures that may mitigate the risks associated with future speculative episodes.

The realities of the recent financial crisis have intensified theoretical modeling, empirical methodologies, and debate on policy issues surrounding asset price bubbles. Choosing to take a novel approach, the editors of this book have selected five classic papers that represent accepted thinking about asset bubbles prior to the financial crisis. They also include original papers challenging orthodox thinking and presenting new insights. A summary essay by the editors highlights the lessons learned and experiences gained since the crisis.