House prices in big cities cannot be expected to come down any time soon
House prices have increased sharply in many advanced economies, often leading to populist revolt and social crises. This column argues that agglomeration externalities foster urbanisation
Gold edges down as investors turn cautious ahead of year-end US data
US Nov non-farm payrolls, unemployment rate data. Gold prices slipped on Tuesday, as investors turned cautious ahead of key U.S. jobs and inflation data, which
Tariff avoidance and import measurement: Lessons from the first US-China trade war
Until 2018, the US-China trade data gap was in line with the discrepancies found in the bilateral trade data of China and its other partners,
When loss strikes twice: Health shocks and household financial distress
While many advanced economies shield their citizens from the most severe direct medical costs of illness, less is known about how households cope with income
Swedish household debt is not too high: Look at solvency and liquidity, not debt to income
The Swedish authorities and international organisations often claim that household debt poses a threat to financial and macroeconomic stability, with reference to a high debt-to-income
Oil market glut: surging output and sluggish demand pressure prices
This blog post is part of a special series based on the October 2025 Commodity Markets Outlook, a flagship report published by the World Bank. This series
Gender wealth inequality in the European Union: a distributional perspective
Analysis of single women and men in Europe reveals persistent gender wealth gaps and differing patterns across countries. This paper investigates gender-related disparities in wealth
Insuring labour income shocks: The role of the dynasty
Beyond government and market-based insurance, the family remains a key institution for coping with economic risk. This column uses detailed Norwegian data to study how
China can decarbonise the world – but even that won’t fix its overcapacity problem
China is on track to meet global green-tech demand but needs to pivot from manufacturing to infrastructure. China is crucial role to the world’s green
Easy money, easy spending: A new take on the resource curse
When wealth or income suddenly increases (‘easy money’), this may be directed towards unproductive ‘easy spending’. This column explores the relationship between conspicuous consumption and
