Imported digital goods are critical for productivity growth in low-income countries. Using detailed data on international trade flows and tariffs, this paper finds that African nations tend to import relatively low quality, low price digital goods. It also finds that digital goods in Africa are...

This paper uncovers new stylized facts on the emergence and diffusion of green technologies across countries, sectors, and firms. It draws on the textual analysis of patents and corporate earnings calls matched with multi-country, firm-level panel data for 2012-2021. The paper documents the...

How much do schools differ in their effectiveness? Recent studies that seek to answer this question account for student sorting using random assignment generated by central allocation mechanisms or oversubscribed schools. However, the resulting estimates, while causal, may also reflect peer...

This study analyzes mobility patterns during the COVID-19 pandemic for eight large Latin American cities. Indicators of mobility by socioeconomic status (SES) are generated by combining georeferenced mobile phone information with granular census data. Before the pandemic, a strong positive...

For many in Latin America, the increasing participation of China and India in international markets is seen as a looming shadow of two "mighty giants" on the region's manufacturing sector. Are they really mighty giants when it comes to their impact on manufacturing employment? The authors...

The Belt and Road Initiative seeks to deepen China's international integration by improving infrastructure and strengthening trade and investment linkages with countries along the old Silk Road, thereby linking it to Europe. This paper uses detailed bilateral trade data for 1995-2015 to assess...

This paper develops measures of the diffusion of a comprehensive range of low-carbon technologies in 35 countries from 2019 to 2022 using text analysis of job postings and earnings calls transcripts. It documents a rapid acceleration in the diffusion of low-carbon technologies in 2022, driven by...

This study analyzes mobility patterns during the COVID-19 pandemic for 8 large Latin American cities. Indicators of mobility by socioeconomic status (SES) are generated by combining geo-referenced mobile phone information with granular census data. Before the pandemic, a strong positive...

This study examines the impact on human mobility of the national social distancing policies implemented in 18 Latin American and Caribbean countries in March 2020. To do so, it uses georeferenced data from cellular phones and variation between countries with regard to whether these measures were...

This study examines the impact on human mobility of the national social distancing policies implemented in 18 Latin American and Caribbean countries in March 2020. To do so, it uses georeferenced data from cellular phones and variation between countries with regard to whether these measures were...