Interim Interest

This landmark theoretical book is about the mechanisms by which special interest groups affect policy in modern democracies. Defining a special interest group as any organization that takes action on behalf of an identifiable group of voters, Gene Grossman and Elhanan Helpman ask: How do special interest groups derive their power and influence? What determines the extent to which they are able to affect policy outcomes? What happens when groups with differing objectives compete for influence?The authors develop important theoretical tools for studying the interactions among voters, interest groups, and politicians. They assume that individuals, groups, and parties act in their own self-interest and that political outcomes can be identified with the game-theoretic concept of an equilibrium. Throughout, they progress from the simple to the more complex. When analyzing campaign giving, for example, they begin with a model of a single interest group and a single, incumbent policy maker. They proceed to add additional interest groups, a legislature with several independent politicians, and electoral competition between rival political parties. The book is organized in three parts. Part I focuses on voting and elections. Part II examines the use of information as a tool for political influence. Part III deals with campaign contributions, which interest groups may use either to influence policy makers' positions and actions or to help preferred candidates to win election.

As interest rate markets continue to innovate and expand it is becoming increasingly important to remain up-to-date with the latest practical and theoretical developments. This book covers the latest developments in full, with descriptions and implementation techniques for all the major classes of interest rate models both those actively used in practice as well as theoretical models still waiting in the wings. Interest rate models, implementation methods and estimation issues are discussed at length by the authors as are important new developments such as kernel estimation techniques, economic based models, implied pricing methods and models on manifolds. Providing balanced coverage of both the practical use of models and the theory that underlies them, Interest Rate Modelling adopts an implementation orientation throughout, making it an ideal resource for both practitioners and researchers. "Interest Rate Modelling is an encyclopedic treatment of interest rates and their related financial derivatives. It combines advanced theory with extensive and down-to-earth data analysis in a way which is truly unique. For practitioners, students and scholars in the field, this impressive work will be the standard reference for years to come." Professor Tomas Bjrk, Stockholm School of Economics" an excellent book. I am particularly pleased by its breadth and range of topics the reader is provided with an informative and readable exposition." Dr Farshid Jamshidian, NetAnalytic "I particularly like the strong emphasis on the practicalities and calibration of interest rate models. This book will be invaluable as a comprehensive reference to students, researchers, and practitioners." ProfessorFrancis Longstaff, The Anderson School at UCLA "This is a carefully written, scholarly but fascinating presentation of the field of Interest Rate Modelling. It combines the best of two worlds: the rigour expected from finance in academia with the relevance expected from finance in practice.