In this paper, the two-period OLG model has been modified to distinguish the effects of individual ageing from changes in the birth rate. Optimal pension and retirement age policies have been characterized in a dynamic framework. We have considered a mixed pension scheme that is fully funded,...

The aim of this article is to analyze the question of career interruptions and to evaluate their impact on pension retirement for French private sector workers. Using the last French survey on households' wealth (2003-2004), we first study the career setbacks for individuals born between 1938...

This article investigates the latest developments in longevity risk modelling, and explores the key risk management challenges for both the financial and insurance industries. The article discusses key definitions that are crucial for the enhancement of the way longevity risk is understood;...

In 1982, the French socialist government lead by Pierre Mauroy reduced the legal age of retirement for both men and women. In 1993, the Balladur reform modified the pay-as-you-go basic private scheme. In March 1997, the Parliament enacted the Thomas Act that introduced retirement savings plan,...

The paper explores the evolution of export diversification patterns along the economic development path. Using a large database with 156 countries over 19 years at the HS6 level of disaggregation (4'991 product lines) we look for action at the “intensive” and “extensive” margins...

The “distance effect” measuring the elasticity of trade flows to distance has been to be rising since the early 1970s in a host of studies based on the gravity model, leading observers to call it the “distance puzzle”. We review the evidence and explanations. Using an extensive data set...

Alternative approaches to estimating the effects of non-tariff measures (NTMs) on trade flows are discussed and evaluated critically. Recent econometric studies point to three results: (i) NTM restrictiveness measures based on an aggregate of ‘core' NTMs are more restrictive than existing...

We present a spatial international trade model, GEO, which computes transportation costs bynot treating markets as dimensionless points and explicitly represents capacity shortages andinvestment decisions in new production capacities. We link it to CEMSIM, a partialequilibrium model of the world...

This paper explores the evolution of OECD imports over time and as a function of income levels, measuring the concentration of those imports across origin countries at the product level. We find evidence of diversification followed, in the very last years of the sample period (post-2000), by a...