Working Paper
Will bequests attenuate the predicted meltdown in stock prices when baby boomers retire?
Abel, Andrew B. (2001)
Jim Poterba finds that consumers do not spend all of their assets during retirement, and he projects that the demand for assets will remain high when the baby boomers retire. Based on his forecast of continued high demand for capital, Poterba rejects the asset market meltdown hypothesis, which predicts a fall in stock prices when the baby boomers retire. ; The author develops a rational expectations general equilibrium model with a bequest motive and an aggregate supply curve for capital. In this model, a baby boom generates an increase in stock prices, and stock prices are rationally ...
Working Papers , Paper 01-2

Working Paper
The effects of a baby boom on stock prices and capital accumulation in the presence of Social Security
Abel, Andrew B. (2002)
Is the stock market boom a result of the baby boom? This paper develops an overlapping generations model in which a baby boom is modeled as a high realization of a random birth rate, and the price of capital is determined endogenously by a convex cost of adjustment. A baby boom increases national saving and investment and thus causes an increase in the price of capital. The price of capital is meanreverting so the initial increase in the price of capital is followed by a decrease. Social Security can potentially affect national saving and investment, though in the long run, it does not affect ...
Working Papers , Paper 03-2

Journal Article
The equity premium puzzle
Abel, Andrew B. (1991-09)
Business Review , Issue Sep , Pages 3-14

Journal Article
Can the government roll over its debt forever?
Abel, Andrew B. (1992-11)
Business Review , Issue Nov , Pages 3-18

Working Paper
An exploration of the effects of pessimism and doubt on asset returns.
Abel, Andrew B. (2001)
The subjective distribution of growth rates of aggregate consumption is characterized by pessimism if it is first-order stochastically dominated by the objective distribution. Uniform pessimism is a leftward translation of the objective distribution of the logarithm of the growth rate. The subjective distribution is characterized by doubt if it is mean-preserving spread of the objective distribution. Pessimism and doubt both reduce the riskfree rate and thus can help resolve the riskfree rate puzzle. Uniform pessimism and doubt both increase the average equity premium and thus can help ...
Working Papers , Paper 01-1