Overborrowing and Systemic Externalities in the Business Cycle

S-Tier
Journal: American Economic Review
Year: 2011
Volume: 101
Issue: 7
Pages: 3400-3426

Score contribution per author:

8.043 = (α=2.01 / 1 authors) × 4.0x S-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

Credit constraints linking debt to market-determined prices embody a systemic credit externality that drives a wedge between competitive and constrained socially optimal equilibria, inducing private agents to overborrow. This externality arises because private agents fail to internalize the financial amplification effects of carrying a large amount of debt when credit constraints bind. We conduct a quantitative analysis of this externality in a two-sector dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (DSGE) model of a small open economy calibrated to emerging markets. Raising the cost of borrowing during tranquil times restores constrained efficiency and significantly reduces the incidence and severity of financial crises. (JEL: E13, E32, E44, F41, G01)

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:aea:aecrev:v:101:y:2011:i:7:p:3400-3426
Journal Field
General
Author Count
1
Added to Database
2026-01-24