L. Ngai - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by L. Ngai

This series presents research findings based either directly on data from the German SocioEconomi... more This series presents research findings based either directly on data from the German SocioEconomic Panel study (SOEP) or using SOEP data as part of an internationally comparable data set (e.g. CNEF, ECHP, LIS, LWS, CHER/PACO). SOEP is a truly multidisciplinary household panel study covering a wide range of social and behavioral sciences: economics, sociology, psychology, survey methodology, econometrics and applied statistics, educational science, political science, public health, behavioral genetics, demography, geography, and sport science. The decision to publish a submission in SOEPpapers is made by a board of editors chosen by the DIW Berlin to represent the wide range of disciplines covered by SOEP. There is no external referee process and papers are either accepted or rejected without revision. Papers appear in this series as works in progress and may also appear elsewhere. They often represent preliminary studies and are circulated to encourage discussion. Citation of such a...

Journal of Economic Growth, 2009

Two issues related to mapping a multi-sector model into a reduced-form value-added model are ofte... more Two issues related to mapping a multi-sector model into a reduced-form value-added model are often neglected: the composition of intermediate goods, and the distinction between value added productivity and gross output productivity. We demonstrate their quantitative significance for the case of the well known model of Greenwood, Hercowitz and Krusell (1997), who find that about 60% of economic growth can be attributed to investment-specific technical change (ISTC). When we recalibrate their model to allow for even a small equipment share of intermediates, we find that ISTC accounts for almost the entirety of postwar US growth.

Journal of the European Economic Association, 2020

Using data on house sales and inventories, this paper shows that housing transactions are driven ... more Using data on house sales and inventories, this paper shows that housing transactions are driven mainly by listings and less so by transaction speed, thus the decision to move house is key to understanding the housing market. The paper builds a model where moving house is essentially an investment in match quality, implying that moving depends on macroeconomic developments and housing-market conditions. The number of transactions has implications for welfare because each transaction reduces mismatch for homeowners. The quantitative importance of the decision to move house is shown in understanding the U.S. housing-market boom during 1995–2003. (JEL: D83, E22, R31)

Journal of Monetary Economics, 2004

We develop a multi-sector general equilibrium model in which productivity growth is driven by the... more We develop a multi-sector general equilibrium model in which productivity growth is driven by the production of sector-specific knowledge. In the model, we find that long run differences in total factor productivity growth across sectors are independent of the parameters of the ...

American Economic Review, 2014

Every year housing markets in the United Kingdom and the United States experience systematic abov... more Every year housing markets in the United Kingdom and the United States experience systematic above-trend increases in prices and transactions during the spring and summer (“hot season”) and below-trend falls during the autumn and winter (“cold season”). House price seasonality poses a challenge to existing housing models. We propose a search-and-matching model with thick-market effects. In thick markets, the quality of matches increases, rising buyers' willingness to pay and sellers' desire to transact. A small, deterministic driver of seasonality can be amplified and revealed as deterministic seasonality in transactions and prices, quantitatively mimicking seasonal fluctuations in UK and US markets. (JEL C78, R21, R31)

Review of Economic Dynamics, 2009

What factors underlie industry differences in research intensity and productivity growth? We deve... more What factors underlie industry differences in research intensity and productivity growth? We develop a multi-sector endogenous growth model allowing for industry-specific parameters in the production functions for output and knowledge, and in consumer preferences. We find that long run ...