A key prediction of dynamic labor demand models is that firing restrictions attenuate firms’ employment responses to economic fluctuations. The authors provide the first direct test of this prediction...
Seasonal migration programs are widely used around the world, yet there is little evidence as to their development impacts. A multiyear prospective evaluation of New Zealand’s Recognised Seasonal Employer...
While innovation matters for competitiveness it may expose firms to survival risks. Using plant product data for Chile and discrete-time hazard models we show that innovating plants have a lower hazard...
Using Indonesian manufacturing census data (1991-2001), this paper rejects the hypothesis that the East Asian crisis unequivocally improved the reallocative process. The correlation between productivity...
This paper provides an economic rationale for the practice of consanguineous marriages observed in parts of the developing world. In a model of incomplete marriage markets, dowries are viewed as ex ante...
This paper quantifies trade policy changes and the associated trade impacts for about 100 countries between 2008 and 2009. Results show that there has been no widespread increase in protectionism. Only...
Using unique data on mutual fund portfolios with different investment scopes, the author study the extent of international diversification. Mutual funds invest in a surprisingly limited number of stocks...
We use data from a Brazilian social program to investigate the existence of gender bias in intrahousehold allocations of resources. The program makes cash transfers to mothers and pregnant women in poor...
Prevailing measures of relative poverty are unchanged when all incomes grow or contract by the same proportion. This property stems from seemingly implausible assumptions about the disutility of relative...
This paper conducts an event study of the impact of multilateral debt relief initiatives announcements on the stock prices of South African companies with subsidiaries in countries benefited by these initiatives...
Suppose that all people in the world are allocated only two characteristics over which they have (almost) no control: country of residence and income distribution within that country. Assume further that...
Health and income are strongly correlated both within and across countries, yet the extent to which improvements in income have a causal effect on health status remains controversial. The authors investigate...
This study explores to what extent migration has contributed to improved living standards of individuals in Tanzania. Using a thirteen year panel survey, we find that migration between 1991 and 2004 added...
The paper explores the evolution of export diversification patterns along the economic development path. Using a large database with 156 countries over 19 years at the HS6 level of disaggregation (4,991...
This paper estimates the economic effects of a recent reform that simplified business entry regulation in Mexico. The reform was introduced in different municipalities at different points in time. Using...
Levels of development vary widely within countries in the Americas. We argue that part of this variation has its roots in the colonial era, when colonizers engaged in different economic activities in different...
We use a migration lottery program to overcome the double selectivity problems posed by migration. We compare a wide range of outcomes for the remaining household members of Tongan emigrants with those...
This paper proposes a simple decomposition of the widely used DRC measure of international competitiveness into three distinct elements: (1) changes in international prices, (2) changes in production techniques...
Japanese input coefficients are used to investigate the pattern of comparative advantage in the exportation of manufactured products in a cross-country framework. Estimates are made for the imports of...
This paper proposes a simple decomposition of the widely used DRC measure of international competitiveness into three distinct elements: (1) changes in international prices, (2) changes in production techniques...