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The nature of bubbles

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Attila Gati
Attila Gati

The document summarizes the Tulip Mania that occurred in the Dutch Golden Age in the 1630s. Speculative demand caused the prices of tulip bulbs to rise dramatically, with some single bulbs selling for more than 10 times the annual income of a skilled craftsman. However, in February 1637 the prices suddenly collapsed, causing the market for tulip bulbs to halt. The event threw into question people's understanding of value and is seen as one of the first recorded speculative bubbles.

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The nature of bubbles
The nature of bubbles
? the first recorded speculative (economic) bubble ? a period in the Dutch Golden Age during which contract prices for bulbs of the recently introduced tulip reached extraordinarily high levels and then suddenly collapsed ? At the peak of tulip mania, in February 1637, some single tulip bulbs sold for more than 10 times the annual income of a skilled craftsman
? The tulip was introduced to Europe in the mid-16th century from the Ottoman Empire to became very popular in the United Provinces ? rapidly became a luxury item and a status symbol ? Growers named their new varieties with exalted titles ? Tulips grow from bulbs, and can be propagated through both seeds and buds. Seeds from a tulip will form a flowering bulb after 7¨C12 years. When a bulb grows into the flower, the original bulb will disappear, but a clone bulb forms in its place, as do several buds. Properly cultivated, these buds will become bulbs of their own ? Tulips bloom in April and May for only about a week, and the secondary buds appear shortly thereafter. Bulbs can be uprooted and moved about from June to September, and thus actual purchases (in the spot market) occurred during these months
? During the rest of the year, traders signed contracts before a notary to purchase tulips at the end of the season (effectively futures contracts) ? Thus created a market for durable tulip bulbs. Short selling was banned by an edict of 1610, which was reiterated or strengthened in 1621 and 1630, and again in 1636. Short sellers were not prosecuted under these edicts, but their contracts were deemed unenforceable. ? As the flowers grew in popularity, professional growers paid higher and higher prices for bulbs ? By 1634, in part as a result of demand from the French, speculators began to enter the market. In 1636, the Dutch created a type of formal futures markets
? Traders met in "colleges" at taverns and buyers were required to pay a 2.5% "wine money" fee, up to a maximum of three florins, per trade ? The contract price of rare bulbs continued to rise throughout 1636. That November, the contract price of common bulbs without the valuable mosaic virus also began to rise in value. ? no bulbs were actually changing hands, however in February 1637, tulip bulb contract prices collapsed abruptly and the trade of tulips ground to a halt. ? Neither party paid an initial margin nor a mark-to-market margin, and all contracts were with the individual counter-parties rather than with the exchange. No deliveries were ever made to fulfill these contracts because of the market collapse. This trade was centered in Haarlem during the height of a bubonic plague epidemic, which may have contributed to a culture of fatalistic risk-taking
? Goods allegedly exchanged for a single bulb of the Viceroy ? Two lasts of wheat 448? ? Four lasts of rye 558? ? Four fat oxen 480? ? Eight fat swine 240? ? Twelve fat sheep 120? ? Two hogsheads of wine 70? ? Four tuns of beer 32? ? Two tons of butter 192? ? 1,000 lb. of cheese 120? ? A complete bed 100? ? A suit of clothes 80? ? A silver drinking cup 60? ? Total 2500?
? the growing popularity of tulips in the early 17th century caught the attention of the entire nation ? By 1636, tulips were traded on the exchanges of numerous Dutch towns and cities. This encouraged trading in tulips by all members of society ? Many individuals grew suddenly rich. A golden bait hung temptingly out before the people, and, one after the other, they rushed to the tulip marts ? People were purchasing bulbs at higher and higher prices, intending to re-sell them for a profit ? In February 1637, tulip traders could no longer find new buyers willing to pay increasingly inflated prices for their bulbs ? the demand for tulips collapsed, and prices plummeted
? the panicked tulip speculators sought help from the government of the Netherlands, which responded by declaring that anyone who had bought contracts to purchase bulbs in the future could void their contract by payment of a 10 percent fee ? The mania finally ended with individuals stuck with the bulbs they held at the end of the crash¡ªno court would enforce payment of a contract, since judges regarded the debts as contracted through gambling, and thus not enforceable by law
? Does it question of the efficient market hypothesis? ? even at its peak the trade in tulips was conducted almost exclusively by merchants and skilled craftsmen who were wealthy, but not members of the nobility ? dozens who experienced financial troubles in the time period, and even of these cases it is not clear that tulips were to blame ? money had not exchanged hands between buyers and sellers. Thus profits were never realized for sellers; unless sellers had made other purchases on credit in expectation of the profits, the collapse in prices did not cause anyone to lose money ? The increases of the 1630s corresponded with a lull in the Thirty Years' War
? On February 24, 1637, the self-regulating guild of Dutch florists, in a decision that was later ratified by the Dutch Parliament, announced that all futures contracts written after November 30, 1636 and before the re-opening of the cash market in the early Spring, were to be interpreted as option contracts ? This decree allowed someone who purchased a contract to void the contract with a payment of only 3.5 percent of the contract price ? Thus, investors bought increasingly expensive contracts. A speculator could sign a contract to purchase a tulip for 100 guilders. If the price rose above 100 guilders, the speculator would pocket the difference as profit. If the price remained low, the speculator could void the contract for only 3? guilders. Thus, a contract nominally for 100 guilders, would actually cost an investor no more than 3? guilders. In early February, as contract prices reached a peak, Dutch authorities stepped in and halted the trading of these contracts
? that actual sales of tulip bulbs remained at ordinary levels throughout the period ? the "mania" was a rational response to changes in contractual obligations ? Some economists also point to other factors associated with speculative bubbles, such as a growth in the supply of money, demonstrated by an increase in deposits at the Bank of Amsterdam during that period ? Even though the financial crisis affected very few, the shock of tulipmania was considerable. A whole network of values was thrown into doubt ? The idea that the prices of flowers that grow only in the summer could fluctuate so wildly in the winter, threw into chaos the very understanding of "value
The nature of bubbles
The nature of bubbles
The nature of bubbles
The nature of bubbles
The nature of bubbles
The nature of bubbles
The nature of bubbles
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 2000q1 2000q2 2000q3 2000q4 2001q1 2001q2 2001q3 2001q4 2002q1 2002q2 2002q3 2002q4 2003q1 2003q2 2003q3 2003q4 2004q1 2004q2 2004q3 2004q4 2005q1 2005q2 (2000 = 100) 2005q3 2005q4 2006q1 2006q2 Home price index (Romania vs. Hungary) 2006q3 2006q4 2007q1 2007q2 2007q3 2007q4 2008q1 2008q2 2008q3 2008q4 2009q1 2009q2 2009q3 2009q4 2010q1 2010q2

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The nature of bubbles

  • 3. ? the first recorded speculative (economic) bubble ? a period in the Dutch Golden Age during which contract prices for bulbs of the recently introduced tulip reached extraordinarily high levels and then suddenly collapsed ? At the peak of tulip mania, in February 1637, some single tulip bulbs sold for more than 10 times the annual income of a skilled craftsman
  • 4. ? The tulip was introduced to Europe in the mid-16th century from the Ottoman Empire to became very popular in the United Provinces ? rapidly became a luxury item and a status symbol ? Growers named their new varieties with exalted titles ? Tulips grow from bulbs, and can be propagated through both seeds and buds. Seeds from a tulip will form a flowering bulb after 7¨C12 years. When a bulb grows into the flower, the original bulb will disappear, but a clone bulb forms in its place, as do several buds. Properly cultivated, these buds will become bulbs of their own ? Tulips bloom in April and May for only about a week, and the secondary buds appear shortly thereafter. Bulbs can be uprooted and moved about from June to September, and thus actual purchases (in the spot market) occurred during these months
  • 5. ? During the rest of the year, traders signed contracts before a notary to purchase tulips at the end of the season (effectively futures contracts) ? Thus created a market for durable tulip bulbs. Short selling was banned by an edict of 1610, which was reiterated or strengthened in 1621 and 1630, and again in 1636. Short sellers were not prosecuted under these edicts, but their contracts were deemed unenforceable. ? As the flowers grew in popularity, professional growers paid higher and higher prices for bulbs ? By 1634, in part as a result of demand from the French, speculators began to enter the market. In 1636, the Dutch created a type of formal futures markets
  • 6. ? Traders met in "colleges" at taverns and buyers were required to pay a 2.5% "wine money" fee, up to a maximum of three florins, per trade ? The contract price of rare bulbs continued to rise throughout 1636. That November, the contract price of common bulbs without the valuable mosaic virus also began to rise in value. ? no bulbs were actually changing hands, however in February 1637, tulip bulb contract prices collapsed abruptly and the trade of tulips ground to a halt. ? Neither party paid an initial margin nor a mark-to-market margin, and all contracts were with the individual counter-parties rather than with the exchange. No deliveries were ever made to fulfill these contracts because of the market collapse. This trade was centered in Haarlem during the height of a bubonic plague epidemic, which may have contributed to a culture of fatalistic risk-taking
  • 7. ? Goods allegedly exchanged for a single bulb of the Viceroy ? Two lasts of wheat 448? ? Four lasts of rye 558? ? Four fat oxen 480? ? Eight fat swine 240? ? Twelve fat sheep 120? ? Two hogsheads of wine 70? ? Four tuns of beer 32? ? Two tons of butter 192? ? 1,000 lb. of cheese 120? ? A complete bed 100? ? A suit of clothes 80? ? A silver drinking cup 60? ? Total 2500?
  • 8. ? the growing popularity of tulips in the early 17th century caught the attention of the entire nation ? By 1636, tulips were traded on the exchanges of numerous Dutch towns and cities. This encouraged trading in tulips by all members of society ? Many individuals grew suddenly rich. A golden bait hung temptingly out before the people, and, one after the other, they rushed to the tulip marts ? People were purchasing bulbs at higher and higher prices, intending to re-sell them for a profit ? In February 1637, tulip traders could no longer find new buyers willing to pay increasingly inflated prices for their bulbs ? the demand for tulips collapsed, and prices plummeted
  • 9. ? the panicked tulip speculators sought help from the government of the Netherlands, which responded by declaring that anyone who had bought contracts to purchase bulbs in the future could void their contract by payment of a 10 percent fee ? The mania finally ended with individuals stuck with the bulbs they held at the end of the crash¡ªno court would enforce payment of a contract, since judges regarded the debts as contracted through gambling, and thus not enforceable by law
  • 10. ? Does it question of the efficient market hypothesis? ? even at its peak the trade in tulips was conducted almost exclusively by merchants and skilled craftsmen who were wealthy, but not members of the nobility ? dozens who experienced financial troubles in the time period, and even of these cases it is not clear that tulips were to blame ? money had not exchanged hands between buyers and sellers. Thus profits were never realized for sellers; unless sellers had made other purchases on credit in expectation of the profits, the collapse in prices did not cause anyone to lose money ? The increases of the 1630s corresponded with a lull in the Thirty Years' War
  • 11. ? On February 24, 1637, the self-regulating guild of Dutch florists, in a decision that was later ratified by the Dutch Parliament, announced that all futures contracts written after November 30, 1636 and before the re-opening of the cash market in the early Spring, were to be interpreted as option contracts ? This decree allowed someone who purchased a contract to void the contract with a payment of only 3.5 percent of the contract price ? Thus, investors bought increasingly expensive contracts. A speculator could sign a contract to purchase a tulip for 100 guilders. If the price rose above 100 guilders, the speculator would pocket the difference as profit. If the price remained low, the speculator could void the contract for only 3? guilders. Thus, a contract nominally for 100 guilders, would actually cost an investor no more than 3? guilders. In early February, as contract prices reached a peak, Dutch authorities stepped in and halted the trading of these contracts
  • 12. ? that actual sales of tulip bulbs remained at ordinary levels throughout the period ? the "mania" was a rational response to changes in contractual obligations ? Some economists also point to other factors associated with speculative bubbles, such as a growth in the supply of money, demonstrated by an increase in deposits at the Bank of Amsterdam during that period ? Even though the financial crisis affected very few, the shock of tulipmania was considerable. A whole network of values was thrown into doubt ? The idea that the prices of flowers that grow only in the summer could fluctuate so wildly in the winter, threw into chaos the very understanding of "value
  • 20. 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 2000q1 2000q2 2000q3 2000q4 2001q1 2001q2 2001q3 2001q4 2002q1 2002q2 2002q3 2002q4 2003q1 2003q2 2003q3 2003q4 2004q1 2004q2 2004q3 2004q4 2005q1 2005q2 (2000 = 100) 2005q3 2005q4 2006q1 2006q2 Home price index (Romania vs. Hungary) 2006q3 2006q4 2007q1 2007q2 2007q3 2007q4 2008q1 2008q2 2008q3 2008q4 2009q1 2009q2 2009q3 2009q4 2010q1 2010q2