Stochastic dominance efficient sets and stochastic spanning

We derive sufficient conditions for non-emptiness of the efficient sets for stochastic dominance relations, usually employed in economics and finance. We do so via the concept of stochastic spanning and its characterization by a saddle-type property. Under the appropriate framework, sufficiency takes the form of semicontinuity of a related functional. In some cases, this boils down to weak continuity of the parameterization of the underlying set of probability distributions.