There are two broad fields of study that I am interested in: macroeconomics and finance. For the former, I want to research on the money theories and business cycles models under the open economy environment. As for the latter, I am into the asset pricing theories as well as empirical research. Particularly, the relationship between asset prices and business cycles, namely macro-finance, is one of the most attractive topic of study for me, and I seek to understand the role of economic forces in the financial markets.
My research interests come from my unique experience of studying and working. Undergraduate majoring in finance, I also attended some advanced economic courses and my curiosity was aroused when I found most classical financial models, such as CAPM, APT and Markowitz’s portfolio optimization, without any innovations from real economy, even though those theories did reflect a rough idea: the market’s ability to bear risk is greater in good times, and less in bad times. Upon the completion of undergraduate study, I got a solid training experience of the advanced economic theories and methods in LSE, where I chose the monetary economics as my optional course and speciality.
The modern monetary theories and dynamic general equilibrium models taught in that course gave me a new perspective to price- setting behaviours and the role of frictions in financial markets for business cycles, which made me even more attracted by the potential interactions between the two research areas.
Aiming to access a full understanding of how financial market and macro economy operate, I joined one of the largest investment banks in China after graduating, as an analyst assistant in the research department. Given my strong background in both economics and finance, I was responsible for conducting extensive analysis of international and domestic macroeconomic news, and explored the way to guide investment. I also finished some empirical research. For example, I have developed an empirical version of my master thesis, which talked about the impact of central bank’s monetary policies on the real estate market in China, where I found that the real estate market tended to be a cyclical industry and was highly correlated to the short-term economic fluctuations in China.
Another finding was that the Chinese central bank’s balance sheet might be one of significant predictions of the BBB-rated credit market in the U.S. The lessons from empirical experience and commercial research, which I have not been taught through the academic study at college, made me realize my limited understanding of how the ecosystem works. I was extremely shocked when I read the paper “Shadow Banking: The Money View” by Zoltan Pozsar, recommended by my employer, which showed me a totally different securities financing world from the classical theories I have learned, presenting the huge gap between the theories and practice of monetary economics.
Nowadays, I am severing as a research assistant in the Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business, focusing on the research projects of quantitative asset allocation models and empirical research of term structure in Chinese bond market. While more and more modern asset management models and investment strategies designs have taken macroeconomic fluctuations into account, like the Investment Clock by Merrill Lynch (2004) and macro-risk factors investing (Ang, 2017), I found it difficult to get a convincing explanations based on the knowledge and theories I know, which motivated me to ponder where the next stop of my career path should reside, and this was when I developed a true passion for conducting a lifetime research for which obtaining a relevant PhD degree would be essential.
My strong mastery over mathematical & statistical skills and proficiency in computer programming & data analysis also make me well prepared for the PhD level study. Driven by my strong interest in academic research, I wish to start off my career after graduation by securing a faculty position in a university, instructing economics-related courses. What sets me apart from my peers includes my strong ability of applying the knowledge to solve practical problems. I believe this unique quality makes me also well-suited for assuming a researcher role in financial institutions, as well as government agencies related to economic policies and regulations.
There are several professors at Georgetown whose works are especially appealing to me: Prof Matthew Canzoneri, Prof Dan Cao, Prof Robert Cumby, Prof Behzad Diba, Prof Martin Evans and etc. Reading some of these professors’ papers has given me a sense that the PhD program in your institution will perfectly fit my research interests and career goals.
