Program
Conference on Iran's Economy
December 11-13, 2008
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Illini Union, Urbana, IL
(For a PDF version of the Program please click here.)
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Participants' arrival
Lodging: Illini Union Hotel
Phone: 217-333-3030
Fax: 217-333-0804
Address: 1401 West Green Street, Urbana, IL 61801
Email: iu-hotel@uiuc.edu
Room 314 Illini Union
Friday, December 12, 2008
9:00- 9:30 Introductory Remarks
Hadi Salehi Esfahani (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
William Brustein (Associate Provost for International Affairs, UIUC)
Session 1: Modeling Iran's Macroeconomy
Chair: Vahid Nowshirvani (Columbia University)
9:30- 10:10 A New Keynesian Small Open Economy DSGE Model in Islamic Economic Framework: The Case of Iran
Mehdi Feizi (Goethe University, Frankfurt)
10:10-10:50 Iran's Macroeconomic Performance in the Global Context
Hadi Salehi Esfahani (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
Kamiar Mohaddes (Cambridge University)
Hashem Pesaran (Cambridge University & USC)
10:50-11:10 Coffee break
Session 2: Economic Growth and the Fortune of Cohorts
Chair: Daniel Egel (University of California, Berkeley)
11:10- 11:50 Sources of Economic Growth and Stagnation in Iran
Farshid Mojaver (University of California, Davis)
11:50-12:30 Reversal of Fortunes: A Cohort Analysis of Lifetime Earnings in Iran
Marenglen Marku (Economic and Valuation Services, KPMG LLP)
Djavad Salehi-Isfahani (Virginia Tech)
12:30-2:00 Lunch
Session 3: Subsidies and Populism
Chair: Hassan Hakimian (Cass Business School)
2:00- 2:40 The Welfare Cost of Price Subsidies in Iran
Firouz Gahvari (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
Farzad Taheripour (Purdue University)
2:40-3:20 Voting for Populism: An Analysis of Iran's 2005 Presidential Election
Hadi Salehi Esfahani (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
Djavad Salehi-Isfahani (Virginia Tech)
Ali Hashemi (Virginia Tech)
3:20-3:40 Coffee break
Session 4: Crime and Fertility
Chair: Guity Nashat (University of Illinois-Chicago)
3:40-4:20 The Socioeconomic and Demographic Determinants of Crime in Iran: A Regional Panel Data Analysis
Gholamreza Keshavarz Hadad (Sharif University of Technology)
Hamed Markazi Moghaddam (University of Carlos III)
4:20-5:00 Family Planning and Rural Fertility Decline in Iran: A Study in Program Evaluation
Djavad Salehi-Isfahani (Virginia Tech)
Mohammad Jalal Abbasi-Shavazi (University of Tehran)
Meimanat Hosseini-Chavoshi (Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Iran)
Session 5: Overview
Chair: Hadi Salehi Esfahani (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
5:00-5:30 Comments on Economics Research on Iran
Gary S. Becker (Nobel Laureate, University of Chicago)
Dinner and Keynote Speech at the Champaign Country Club
(By Invitation)
6:30-7:30 Reception
7:30-8:45 Dinner
8:45-9:30 Iran and the Global Economic Crisis
Hashem Pesaran (Cambridge University & USC)
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Session 6: Iran's Export Markets and Institutions
Chair: Hassan Arvin-Rad (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
9:30- 10:10 Iran’s Free Trade and Special Economic Zones: Challenges and Opportunities
Hassan Hakimian (Cass Business School)
10:10-10:50 How Much of the Price Variation in the Oil Market Can Be Attributed to Exercising Market Power by OPEC?
Mohammad Morovati (University of Texas, Austin)
10:50-11:10 Coffee break
Session 7: Industry and Finance
Chair: Hassan Mohammadi (Illinois State University)
11:10- 11:50 Demand Estimation for Iranian Auto Industry
Seyed Reza Yousefi (University of Texas, Austin)
Mohammad Hossein Rahmati (University of Texas, Austin)
11:50-12:30 Chasing Investment: Cash Flow Sensitivity Analysis of Investment for Iranian Public Companies
Mahdi Rastad (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
12:30-2:00 Lunch
Session 8: Poverty and Inequality
Chair: Farshid Mojaver (University of California, Davis)
2:00- 2:40 A Multiattribute Assessment of Poverty in Iran
Esfandiar Maasoumi (Emory University)
Djavad Salehi-Isfahani (Virginia Tech)
2:40-3:20 Earnings Inequality and Earning Levels in Iran: An Analysis of 1986-2004 Trends and Events
Hossein A. Abbasi (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
Ali Dadpay (Marketing Analytics, Evanston IL)
3:20-4:00 Understanding Mobility and Dynamics of Poverty in Iran
Mehdi Majbouri (University of Southern California)
Djavad Salehi-Isfahani (Virginia Tech)
4:00-4:20 Coffee break
Session 9: Reflections on Economic Conditions and the Future of Research on Iran
Chair: Hashem Pesaran (Cambridge University & USC)
4:20-4:50 What happened to Agriculture as “Axis of Development” Under the Islamic Republic?
Vahid Nowshirvani (Columbia University)
4:50-5:50 Panel Discussion: The Future of Research on Iran's Economy
Firouz Gahvari (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
Gholamreza Keshavarz Hadad (Sharif University of Technology)
Djavad Salehi-Isfahani (Virginia Tech)
5:50-6:00 Closing Remarks
Hadi Salehi Esfahani (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
Dinner at Colonial Room, Illini Union
(By Invitation)
7:00-7:30 Reception
7:30-8:45 Dinner
8:45-9:30 Classical Persian Music
Mahour Mellat-Parast (University of North Carolina at Pembroke)