The substantial literature on the existence of an inverted U-shaped relationship between environmental degradation and economic growth-known as the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC)-has produced very mixed evidence. This largely depends on model and variable selection uncertainty. We address...

This study measures congestion in major container ports and investigates how port characteristics and regional factors influence congestion during the COVID-19 periods. We develop port congestion indicators, including vessel arrivals, vessels staying in a period, waiting time, and service time....

Asia and the Pacific has the most diverse regional pension landscape globally. Yet the region's pension systems are facing common challenges as they attempt to expand coverage, and ensure adequacy and fairness, while maintaining fiscal sustainability. We review the structures and performance of...

We delineate metropolitan areas (MAs) in the Philippines using cellphone user flow data to proxy for daily commutes. The exercise identifies a number of large MAs that are not officially recognized, and different spatial extents for the three officially designated MAs. The urban system aligns...

This paper analyzes the growth impact of public and private investment shocks based on a large sample of emerging and developing countries over the period 1980-2021 with a particular focus on the Asian region. We develop new measures of investment shocks based on cyclically adjusted investment...

We study the influence of social norms in determining the impact of early life exposure to the Great Chinese Famine of 1959-1961 on gender inequality. We model how social norms interact with adverse shocks to affect male and female survival chances and influence subsequent human capital...

This paper empirically examines the impact of public debt shocks on output and inflation in 34 emerging market economies (EMEs) using panel local projections over the period 2000 to 2022. The estimated results show that real gross domestic product (GDP) falls significantly after an unanticipated...

Amid a shifting global energy landscape driven by concerns about climate change and fossil fuel depletion, there is a heightened need to move toward sustainable energy sources. Although there has been a significant increase in investments in renewable energy (RE) globally, there is still a...

This study investigated environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance and its financial impacts across 38 economies from 2013 to 2022, with a special focus on firms in Asia. The main findings are as follows. First, notable disparities in ESG assessments were found across major rating...

This report investigates the impact of digitalization on firm-level performance using survey data from 681 digital entrepreneurs across six Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries. Results show that the reliance of the business on select digital applications and the...