American Economic Review
ISSN 0002-8282 (Print) | ISSN 1944-7981 (Online)
Structural Interpretation of Vector Autoregressions with Incomplete Identification: Revisiting the Role of Oil Supply and Demand Shocks
American Economic Review
vol. 109,
no. 5, May 2019
(pp. 1873–1910)
Abstract
Traditional approaches to structural vector autoregressions (VARs) can be viewed as special cases of Bayesian inference arising from very strong prior beliefs. These methods can be generalized with a less restrictive formulation that incorporates uncertainty about the identifying assumptions themselves. We use this approach to revisit the importance of shocks to oil supply and demand. Supply disruptions turn out to be a bigger factor in historical oil price movements and inventory accumulation a smaller factor than implied by earlier estimates. Supply shocks lead to a reduction in global economic activity after a significant lag, whereas shocks to oil demand do not.Citation
Baumeister, Christiane, and James D. Hamilton. 2019. "Structural Interpretation of Vector Autoregressions with Incomplete Identification: Revisiting the Role of Oil Supply and Demand Shocks." American Economic Review 109 (5): 1873–1910. DOI: 10.1257/aer.20151569Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- C32 Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models: Time-Series Models; Dynamic Quantile Regressions; Dynamic Treatment Effect Models; Diffusion Processes; State Space Models
- L71 Mining, Extraction, and Refining: Hydrocarbon Fuels
- Q35 Hydrocarbon Resources
- Q43 Energy and the Macroeconomy