Many agricultural economists (e.g., D. Gale Johnson) think that risk has an important and adverse influence on farmers' production decisions. Others (e.g., Robinson) believe that the possible adverse effects of risk have been exaggerated. Until recently little attention has beenpaid to quantifying the effect of risk beyond the individual farm level. In an econometric framework the inclusion of risk variables in supply response analysis may be desirable in order to predict more accurately, to improve the estimates of parameters in the model, and as an aid to quantifying the impact of government programs that affect uncertainty as well as prices.

Using Applied Econometrics with SAS: Modeling Demand, Supply, and Risk, you will quickly master SAS applications for implementing and estimating standard models in the field of econometrics. This guide introduces you to the major theories underpinning applied demand and production economics. For each of its three main topics--demand, supply, and risk--a concise theoretical orientation leads directly into consideration of specific economic models and econometric techniques, collectively covering the following: Double-log demand systems Linear expenditure systems Almost ideal demand systems Rotterdam models Random parameters logit demand models Frequency-severity models Compound distribution models Cobb-Douglas production functions Translogarithmic cost functions Generalized Leontief cost functions Density estimation techniques Copula models SAS procedures that facilitate estimation of demand, supply, and risk models include the following, among others: PROC MODEL PROC COPULA PROC SEVERITY PROC KDE PROC LOGISTIC PROC HPCDM PROC IML PROC REG PROC COUNTREG PROC QLIM An empirical example, SAS programming code, and a complete data set accompany each econometric model, empowering you to practice these techniques while reading. Examples are drawn from both major scholarly studies and business applications so that professors, graduate students, government economic researchers, agricultural analysts, actuaries, and underwriters, among others, will immediately benefit.

Use of information is basic to economic theory in two ways. As a basis for optimization, it is central to all normative hypotheses used in eco nomics, but in decision-making situations it has stochastic and evolution ary aspects that are more dynamic and hence more fundamental. This book provides an illustrative survey of the use of information in econom ics and other decision sciences. Since this area is one of the most active fields of research in modern times, it is not possible to be definitive on all aspects of the issues involved. However questions that appear to be most important in this author's view are emphasized in many cases, without drawing any definite conclusions. It is hoped that these questions would provoke new interest for those beginning researchers in the field who are currently most active. Various classifications of information structures and their relevance for optimal decision-making in a stochastic environment are analyzed in some detail. Specifically the following areas are illustrated in its analytic aspects: 1. Stochastic optimization in linear economic models, 2. Stochastic models in dynamic economics with problems of time-inc- sistency, causality and estimation, 3. Optimal output-inventory decisions in stochastic markets, 4. Minimax policies in portfolio theory, 5. Methods of stochastic control and differential games, and 6. Adaptive information structures in decision models in economics and the theory of economic policy.

This book provides fresh insights into concepts, methods and new research findings on the causes of excessive food price volatility. It also discusses the implications for food security and policy responses to mitigate excessive volatility. The approaches applied by the contributors range from on-the-ground surveys, to panel econometrics and innovative high-frequency time series analysis as well as computational economics methods. It offers policy analysts and decision-makers guidance on dealing with extreme volatility.