Despite its small size, Lebanon’s chronic crises send financial shockwaves across the Middle East and North Africa. This column uses a Twitter-based index of economic policy uncertainty to track Lebanon’s instability and shows that it transmits financial shocks to seven MENA economies, with spillovers are strongest for Egypt, Jordan, and smaller Gulf states. Real-time policy […]
Investors and policymakers increasingly rely on verbal guidance rather than policy moves. This column examines whether the emotional sentiment of the chair of the Federal Reserve’s voice in press conferences affects the probability of a sudden, significant drop in bank stock prices. A more positive vocal tone by the Fed chair reduces the risk of […]
As global debt continues to climb, evaluating debt risks is critical. This column introduces a novel ‘debt-at-risk’ framework that uses information on current macro-financial and political conditions to construct the full distribution of potential future debt outcomes. The framework shows that debt risks are high, rising, and tilted to the upside. Debt levels are projected […]
In the quest to promote women’s rights and opportunities and reduce intimate-partner violence (IPV), well-intentioned programs can sometimes yield results opposed to their goal. A recent paper sheds light on the surprising and concerning outcome of an IPV prevention program in Rwanda. The program, designed to improve communication and promote gender equality among couples, unexpectedly led to a […]
As social media platforms become ever more ubiquitous, policymakers are grappling with how to counter their effects on political attitudes and electoral outcomes, addiction and mental health, misinformation and toxic content. This column suggests practical ways that academic researchers can help guide the design of government regulations aiming to address these issues. The authors explain […]
Electric vehicles (EVs) have grown from a niche technology to a mainstream industry in the space of a little over a decade. EV deployment is crucial to meet climate targets and is transforming the automotive industry – a cornerstone of manufacturing in both the United States and Europe. Unlike China, the EU and US are […]
There has been renewed interest in industrial policy as a tool to reshape the structure of economic activity, but little evidence exists on the successful design and implementation of these policies. This column examines the transformation of East Germany’s state-controlled economy after the collapse of socialism and draws valuable lessons from the experience for contemporary […]
Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles can use either fossil fuels or electricity and offer potential emission reductions, depending on the driver’s usage. This column examines how access to charging at home influences the share of driving that employees with company cars in Germany do using electricity. Access to home charging reduces the users’ fossil fuel consumption […]
Global hunger and malnutrition are rising again after decades of progress. In 2024, 343 million people across 74 countries faced acute food insecurity—driven by the lasting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, conflicts, and economic shocks. In addition, food supply disruptions at local and global levels have become more frequent and severe. Since the 2007–08 global […]
With the prospect of far-reaching decoupling of goods trade between China and the US, fears of deflection of Chinese exports to third markets have returned. This column examines the factual record on the frequency of, and foreign government response to, Chinese trade deflection during the first US-China trade war. The authors find that trade deflection […]
