Istituto Lombardo - Accademia di Scienze e Lettere - Incontri di Studio, 2017
Equity is a fundamental concept for the efficient functioning of the market mechanism. The minimu... more Equity is a fundamental concept for the efficient functioning of the market mechanism. The minimum and maximum limits of distributive equity are analysed on a theoretical level to demonstrate how the functioning of the market requires a minimum threshold of dignified subsistence, while the maximum limit is more difficult to locate in terms of theory. There is no incompatibility between equity and efficiency in most cases. Higher wages increase efficiency if the initial level is very low, while wage increases along a career path boost worker motivation and group efficiency. The market mechanism can satisfy the arguments relating to the merit but does not respond to the arguments concerning the need, except instrumentally in terms of merit. However, the need without merit is the central characteristic of those whose lives depend on others, as in the case of children in relation to their parents or the elderly who are not self-sufficient. The modern Welfare state is a social institutio...
The United Nationsl Confeence on Environment and Development (UNCED) held in Rio de Janeiro in Ju... more The United Nationsl Confeence on Environment and Development (UNCED) held in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992, forms a cornerstone in the development of a new international regime for the protection of the environment. It stressed, inter alia, the close links which exist between the economic problem of Third World development and the protection of the environment. The use of natural resources must be sustainable, in order to pass on an acceptable environment to future generations. For this purpose States have common but differentiated responsibilities. This book analyzes the most relevant results of the Rio discussions and looks at prospects for the future from a political, legal and economic point of view. The authors of the essays are eminent specialists in international law and economics from various parts of the world. The essays are updated versions of the papers submitted to a Conference organized by the Istituto per l'Ambiente (a non-profit organization based in Milan, Italy) held in Courmayeur, Italy on 11-13 February, 1993.
DISCE - Quaderni del Dipartimento di Politica Economica, 2017
Better nutrition and comfortable housing are complements in the capability space: however, for th... more Better nutrition and comfortable housing are complements in the capability space: however, for the poor and low-income families food and housing can be substitutes in the commodity space. We take Engel law to implement a simple food-based measure of absolute-poverty in a developed country, asking the question of who is paying the burden of the austerity policies in Italy. Food-based poverty measures are countercyclical, as well as the Sen index: boom and bust of housing and land bubble are a further burden on the poor. A major cause of absolute-poverty comes in the form of a negative market externality of the housing market: poor families pay “too much” for housing costs, forcing a constraint on food consumption for the worst-off. The share of fixed costs, food and housing, in 2013, was 49% for all the three main subsets, shifting upward since 1997. OLS and 2SLS estimates for 10 family types, North and South, lend support to the substitution effect between food and housing, and confirm a high degree of heterogeneity, even within the same family type and geographical area. Children and their families in absolute-poverty are the most hit group by the economic crisis: young families lost grounds. Absolute-poverty rates are higher for the families living in rented houses and with a lower level of education. Negative housing externalities on poverty could be balanced empowering women and children for their positive externalities.
The aim of this paper is to estimate the changeover's inflationary impact in Italy and Milan ... more The aim of this paper is to estimate the changeover's inflationary impact in Italy and Milan and make an assessment of the official methodology used by the National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT). The changeover's inflationary impact has been estimated in 0.6-0.7 percentage points in Italy, with a lag distributed over a period longer than initially expected. We show diat the tirning and methodology of the survey carried out by the ISTAT has an impact on the lag distnbution and the accuracy of the short mn inflation measurement. We estimate that the prices collected monthly at the local leve1 weight only for about half of the basket value. In modern economies firms offer an increasing wider variety of goods and services which call for a wider coverage of prices collected. We draw the attention on the weight for housing expemes: 9.3 percent in Italy and 8.5 in Milan.
Better nutrition and comfortable housing are complements in the capability space: however, for th... more Better nutrition and comfortable housing are complements in the capability space: however, for the poor and low-income families food and housing can be substitutes in the commodity space. We take Engel law to implement a simple food-based measure of absolute-poverty in a developed country, asking the question of who is paying the burden of the austerity policies in Italy. Food-based poverty measures are countercyclical, as well as the Sen index: boom and bust of housing and land bubble are a further burden on the poor. A major cause of absolute-poverty comes in the form of a negative market externality of the housing market: poor families pay “too much” for housing costs, forcing a constraint on food consumption for the worst-off. The share of fixed costs, food and housing, in 2013, was 49% for all the three main subsets, shifting upward since 1997. OLS and 2SLS estimates for 10 family types, North and South, lend support to the substitution effect between food and housing, and conf...
Istituto Lombardo - Accademia di Scienze e Lettere - Incontri di Studio, 2017
Equity is a fundamental concept for the efficient functioning of the market mechanism. The minimu... more Equity is a fundamental concept for the efficient functioning of the market mechanism. The minimum and maximum limits of distributive equity are analysed on a theoretical level to demonstrate how the functioning of the market requires a minimum threshold of dignified subsistence, while the maximum limit is more difficult to locate in terms of theory. There is no incompatibility between equity and efficiency in most cases. Higher wages increase efficiency if the initial level is very low, while wage increases along a career path boost worker motivation and group efficiency. The market mechanism can satisfy the arguments relating to the merit but does not respond to the arguments concerning the need, except instrumentally in terms of merit. However, the need without merit is the central characteristic of those whose lives depend on others, as in the case of children in relation to their parents or the elderly who are not self-sufficient. The modern Welfare state is a social institutio...
The United Nationsl Confeence on Environment and Development (UNCED) held in Rio de Janeiro in Ju... more The United Nationsl Confeence on Environment and Development (UNCED) held in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992, forms a cornerstone in the development of a new international regime for the protection of the environment. It stressed, inter alia, the close links which exist between the economic problem of Third World development and the protection of the environment. The use of natural resources must be sustainable, in order to pass on an acceptable environment to future generations. For this purpose States have common but differentiated responsibilities. This book analyzes the most relevant results of the Rio discussions and looks at prospects for the future from a political, legal and economic point of view. The authors of the essays are eminent specialists in international law and economics from various parts of the world. The essays are updated versions of the papers submitted to a Conference organized by the Istituto per l'Ambiente (a non-profit organization based in Milan, Italy) held in Courmayeur, Italy on 11-13 February, 1993.
DISCE - Quaderni del Dipartimento di Politica Economica, 2017
Better nutrition and comfortable housing are complements in the capability space: however, for th... more Better nutrition and comfortable housing are complements in the capability space: however, for the poor and low-income families food and housing can be substitutes in the commodity space. We take Engel law to implement a simple food-based measure of absolute-poverty in a developed country, asking the question of who is paying the burden of the austerity policies in Italy. Food-based poverty measures are countercyclical, as well as the Sen index: boom and bust of housing and land bubble are a further burden on the poor. A major cause of absolute-poverty comes in the form of a negative market externality of the housing market: poor families pay “too much” for housing costs, forcing a constraint on food consumption for the worst-off. The share of fixed costs, food and housing, in 2013, was 49% for all the three main subsets, shifting upward since 1997. OLS and 2SLS estimates for 10 family types, North and South, lend support to the substitution effect between food and housing, and confirm a high degree of heterogeneity, even within the same family type and geographical area. Children and their families in absolute-poverty are the most hit group by the economic crisis: young families lost grounds. Absolute-poverty rates are higher for the families living in rented houses and with a lower level of education. Negative housing externalities on poverty could be balanced empowering women and children for their positive externalities.
The aim of this paper is to estimate the changeover's inflationary impact in Italy and Milan ... more The aim of this paper is to estimate the changeover's inflationary impact in Italy and Milan and make an assessment of the official methodology used by the National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT). The changeover's inflationary impact has been estimated in 0.6-0.7 percentage points in Italy, with a lag distributed over a period longer than initially expected. We show diat the tirning and methodology of the survey carried out by the ISTAT has an impact on the lag distnbution and the accuracy of the short mn inflation measurement. We estimate that the prices collected monthly at the local leve1 weight only for about half of the basket value. In modern economies firms offer an increasing wider variety of goods and services which call for a wider coverage of prices collected. We draw the attention on the weight for housing expemes: 9.3 percent in Italy and 8.5 in Milan.
Better nutrition and comfortable housing are complements in the capability space: however, for th... more Better nutrition and comfortable housing are complements in the capability space: however, for the poor and low-income families food and housing can be substitutes in the commodity space. We take Engel law to implement a simple food-based measure of absolute-poverty in a developed country, asking the question of who is paying the burden of the austerity policies in Italy. Food-based poverty measures are countercyclical, as well as the Sen index: boom and bust of housing and land bubble are a further burden on the poor. A major cause of absolute-poverty comes in the form of a negative market externality of the housing market: poor families pay “too much” for housing costs, forcing a constraint on food consumption for the worst-off. The share of fixed costs, food and housing, in 2013, was 49% for all the three main subsets, shifting upward since 1997. OLS and 2SLS estimates for 10 family types, North and South, lend support to the substitution effect between food and housing, and conf...
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