The XXIII Annual LACEA LAMES 2018 MEETING is taking place in ESPOL Polytechnic University, with about 700 participants from more than 40 countries around the world.

During the second day, Nicolás Figueroa, the LAMES (Latin American Meeting of the Econometrics Society) representative and professor of the Pontificia Universidad Santiago de Chile, pointed out that this meeting aims to generate an exchange of ideas about successful public policies.

 “(….) We expect that these conferences generate mutual understanding.  In addition, the decision-takers will have access to the latest research results, and as far it is possible (…) this can have a real impact on the society.”

Some of the topics presented on Friday focused on the new trends on Finance Research; monetary politics in a globalized world, regional economic perspectives for Latin America and the Caribbean; etc.

In addition, Christopher Pissarides, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics, in Memory of Alfred Nobel, in 2010, shared his knowledge with students and Economics professors from ESPOL.  Labor markets, unemployment and the significance of being awarded a Nobel Prize were the main topics of his presentation. Andrea Herrería, took part of the event, said that the lecture had encouraged her to investigate in the future.  According to Fabiola Saavedra, a Bolivian PhD in Economics candidate of the Catholic University of Lovaina (Belgium), LACEA LAMES is a space for sharing the knowledge and latest research in the Economics and Econometrics field of Latin America and the Caribbean.

Saavedra highlighted the words of Yeon-Koo Che’s (Columbia University), one of the keynote speakers of the first day of the conference:  “He is an expert in “market match”. Professor Yeon-Koo Che explained how we can address quite technical issues when trying to find market matches.  My work, as a teacher, makes those topics more relevant since I am interested in getting to know how the students who finish university studies enter the labor market”.

María Alejandra Ruano, professor of the College of Social Sciences and Humanities in ESPOL, FCSH (acronym in Spanish), accompanies Martin S. Eichenbaum (Northwestern University), another keynote speaker of the conference.  Ruano summarized Eichenbaum lecture State Dependency in Monetary Policy: The Refinancing Channel.  “The aim is to find the relationship between consumption and mortgage rates.  One of the most relevant findings is that the lower the cost of the transaction, the stronger the monetary policy, and less dependent on the state”

FCSH College Dean, Leonardo Sánchez highlighted “The conference is a success not only in terms of the high level of the speakers, but also in the quality of the topics addressed in the sessions”.Furthermore, María Elena Romero, Sub Dean of the College of Social Sciences and Humanities in ESPOL, was pleased with the development of the event and the high participation of researchers during the sessions, plenaries, and other activities.

During the second day, the renowned Economist Guillermo Calvo spoke about the topics Fighting Chronic Inflation with Interest Rates. Cutting a Hydra’s Heads with a Swiss Army Knife? and Global Financial Crises: Liquidity Mischief.

On Saturday November 10, the XXIII Annual LACEA LAMES 2018 MEETING will finalize with the participation of the Nobel Winner, Christopher Sims, with the topic How to worry about government debt?