Driven largely by refugees from Ukraine, the EU saw immigration of non-EU citizens surge in 2022. This column discusses the macroeconomic implications of this immigration surge and suggests a positive effect on potential output in the range of 0.2-0.7% by 2030 for recipient countries. On the flipside, the large inflow had initial fiscal costs and […]
The Covid-19 pandemic and ongoing geopolitical tensions have revealed the fragility of global supply chains. This column studies the link between supply chain disruptions and the increase in firm market power. It shows that following a supply chain shortage, larger firms gained a competitive advantage due to their diversified supplier networks and greater bargaining power. […]
The mental health of PhD students has become a growing concern, with reports highlighting high rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation. However, much of this research relies on small surveys. This column uses large-scale administrative data from Sweden to provide a more comprehensive analysis of the mental health risks of doctoral education, and finds […]
Globally, government debt has increased substantially since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic and geopolitical tensions. This columns asks who the investors that hold government debt are, and whether the ownership composition matters. Overall, as debt increases, non-bank investors, in particular investment funds, take up more of this debt than other investor groups. Emerging market […]
While digital connectivity can greatly enhance healthcare delivery, especially in regions lacking traditional medical facilities, the overall impact of this increased access to information remains a topic of ongoing evaluation and debate. This column examines the effect of internet access on COVID-19 spread in Indonesia, a developing country characterised by considerable variations in both mobile […]
The banking turmoil in March 2023 was the most significant system-wide banking stress event since the global crisis. This second column in a two-part series discusses policy options to adjust bank regulatory and supervisory frameworks, considering pros and cons. Some options (such as narrow banking or full deposit insurance) appear impractical or too costly, while […]
Trade in services has been relatively neglected in trade policy debates. This column argues that this is partly due to the fact that ‘mode 3’ services, the biggest mode of supply for services trade whereby companies establish a physical presence abroad to deliver services to foreign customers, are systematically missing from official trade statistics. A […]
The rise in the use of non-tariff measures, especially in the form of antidumping duties and countervailing duties, has dramatically changed the landscape of trade policy. This column leverages the ongoing Sino-EU disputes over electric vehicles to examine why countries mix tariff and non-tariff measures and whether such mixing depends on the characteristics of the […]
The bank failures in March 2023 revived old debates about the role of deposit funding for banks, the best way to address the fragility inherent in deposit funding, and more general policy reflections on the need to adjust banks’ regulatory and supervisory frameworks. This first in a two-column series discusses the role of deposit funding […]
Firms can react to geopolitical and supply chain shocks by altering their input sourcing and sales destination choices. This column presents new evidence of the effect of war on the trade flows of third countries. The authors show that in response to the excess demand shock caused by sactions on Russia following its invasion of […]
