Over the last 2 decades the distribution of private household expenditures has become more unequal in the Lao People's Democratic Republic, with the Gini coefficient rising from 0.311 to 0.364, even though absolute poverty incidence has halved. The increase in inequality was statistically...

In this paper, we examine the evolution of intra-East Asian financial integration from 2001 to 2013. Most existing studies on this topic look primarily at asset holdings; we examine liability holdings as well. Using the International Monetary Fund's Coordinated Portfolio Investment Survey data...

Although it is well-known that a global trade regime best ensures economic welfare, there has nevertheless been a proliferation of free trade agreements (FTAs) between individual countries. This poses the challenge known as the "noodle bowl effect" - stemming from different rules of origins and...

This paper uses directed bilateral flow data on multiple dimensions of economic integration to construct a composite index of regional integration outcomes covering 19 regions in various parts of the world. As a first step, the multidimensional indicator is used to rank regions according to...

Inclusive growth should ensure "broad-based" economic growth which characterizes the pattern of growth. Beyond simple association identification implied by the Kuznets curve and cross-country panel regression analyses, this study attempts to shed light on the dynamic causality relationship and...

Since 2010, Myanmar has been in the midst of a multifaceted transition, involving economic reforms, the resolution of multiple long-standing civil conflicts, and a nascent transition to democratic rule. These transitions are coinciding with a resource-led economic boom. The paper assesses the...

This paper examines the impact of foreign participation in Korean Treasury Bond (KTB) futures and its role in price discovery for KTBs, using daily transactions data from the over-the-counter market for KTBs and from the Korea Exchange for the futures. Our analysis suggests that foreign trading...

Improvement in human capital is essential for rapid, sustainable, and inclusive economic growth in Myanmar. Investments in health and education - including technical and vocational education and training - are essential to engineer a productive labor force that can contribute to and benefit from...

Myanmar's agriculture sector offers substantial unexploited potential to underpin the country's inclusive economic development. With extensive land, water, and labor resources, as well as proximity to fast-growing markets, the country's agriculture has key competitive advantages. At the same...

Intense climate-related disasters - floods, storms, droughts, and heat waves - have been on the rise worldwide. At the same time and coupled with an increasing concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, temperatures, on average, have been rising, and are becoming more variable and more...