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Article
Further Remarks On Walras' Law And Nonoptimal Equilibria
ISU Economic Report Series
  • Mark Pingle, Iowa State University
  • Leigh Tesfatsion, Iowa State University
Document Type
Report
Publication Date
5-1-1993
Number
33
Abstract
In a recent paper, Aiyagari (1992) demonstrates a connection between the failure of Walras' Law and nonoptimal equihbria in overlapping generations economies. The significant implication of Walras' Law in finite economies, given all prices are positive and all consumers are locally nonsatiated, is that an excess supply (in value terms) cannot exist for some subset of goods without an excess demand (in value terms) existing for some other subset of goods. Aiyagari defines the failure of Walras' Law as a situation in which this implication of Walras' Law does not hold. His basic (and interesting) result is to show that "a competitive equilibrium is nonoptimal if and only if the above implication of Walras' Law fails in its neighborhood."
Citation Information
Mark Pingle and Leigh Tesfatsion. "Further Remarks On Walras' Law And Nonoptimal Equilibria" (1993)
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/leigh-tesfatsion/24/