Browsing by Author "Boberg, Jens"

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    Finance Imperialism in British India - Profits from Indian equity on the London Stock Exchange 1900-1930
    (2017-07-28) Boberg, Jens
    The theory of finance imperialism, according to common interpretations of Hobson and Lenin, posits that investments in formal empires should yield higher returns than investments in the imperial metropolis and foreign countries. The aim of this study is to test this theory on British India in the era of modern imperialism, by comparing British Indian profits to estimates of returns in the U.K. and other parts of the world. A total returns index is constructed, based on data from Global Financial Data and the Investor's Monthly Manual. A guide for interpreting and using these resources is outlined. Findings indicate that a strict interpretation of finance imperialism does not explain British presence in India well, unless bias against industrial investments on behalf of British finance is taken into account.
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    Gäller konsumentprisindex för alla? Experimentella prisindex för olika kategorier av hushåll
    (2017-07-28) Boberg, Jens
    The Swedish Consumer Price Index (CPI) is supposed to measure both inflation and changes in costs of living. Using a single measure is problematic since costs of living may not change at an equal pace for all members of society. Because of their varying patterns of consumption, individuals and households can have higher or lower costs of living than a general CPI indicates. The purpose of this study is to examine how large these discrepancies are and who is affected by them. This is done by constructing experimental price indices where goods and services are given different weights for different categories of households. These weights are based on household budget surveys, where households are categorised along three dimensions: income, socio-economic group and composition of the household. A supplemental study is performed based on Danish data for comparison, because of limitations in the Swedish material. Indices are constructed for the period 2003–2013 for Sweden and 2000–2013 for Denmark. The results indicate that small households, households with low incomes and households with higher ages in both Sweden and Denmark have costs of living that are underestimated by official CPI:s. This is primarily due to rents and other housing costs making up a larger share of the budgets for these households, and that these types of costs have risen faster than the average inflation. Furthermore, the experimental price indices are steadily diverging, at least since 2008.