Competition authorities increasingly rely on economic screening tools to identify markets where firms deviate from competitive norms. Traditional screening methods assume that collusion occurs through secret agreements. However, recent research highlights that firms can use public announcements to coordinate decisions, reducing competition while avoiding detection. We propose a novel approach to screening ...
To ensure security of supply in the power sector, many countries are already using or discussing the introduction of capacity mechanisms. Two main types of such mechanisms include capacity markets and capacity reserves. Simultaneously, the expansion of variable renewable energy sources increases the need for power sector flexibility, for which there are promising yet often under-utilized options on ...
We propose a novel method to detect and disentangle moderate and severe health shocks in a general population survey based on a data-driven classification of sickness absences and hospitalizations. Both types of shocks are widespread with an annual incidence of about 1.7%, which rises steeply with age. We estimate the effects of both shocks on labor market outcomes and find that severe shocks have ...
In conventional proxy VAR analysis, the shocks of interest are identified by external instruments. This is typically accomplished by considering the covariance of the instruments and the reduced-form residuals. Alternatively, the instruments may be internalized by augmenting the VAR process by the instruments or proxies. These alternative identification methods are compared and it is shown that the ...
Felix Schmidt, Research Associate in the Energy, Transportation, Environment Department, successfully defended his dissertation entitled “Modeling variable renewable energy systems. The role of weather uncertainty, heating and long-duration storage” with summa cum laude on July 18, 2025. He was supervised by Christian von Hirschhausen. Congratulations!
This study examines the impact of Statutory Retirement Age (SRA) reforms on individual behavior and welfare in the presence of policy uncertainty and misinformation. We develop a structural life-cycle model in which individuals are uncertain about the future evolution of the SRA and misinformed about its importance. We derive individuals’ expectations and information on the SRA from self-elicited...
