This paper studies the link between crime and fertility and the way by which they jointly impact on economic growth. In a three-period overlapping generations model, where health status in adulthood depends on health in childhood, adult agents allocate their time to work, leisure, child rearing...

We study the importance of the local elite as a determinant of the effectiveness of foreign aid in developing countries. An "extractive" elite will misuse aid ?ows, an issue that is probably as old as foreign aid itself. We proxy for the existence of an "extractive" elite by using an...

This paper examines the determinants of financial dollarization in transition economies from a short-run perspective. Using monthly data of deposit and loan dollarization we study the drivers of short-term fluctuations in dollarization and test their importance at different levels of...

We examine business cycle synchronizations between the euro area and the recently acceded EU and currently negotiating countries. Strong evidence is uncovered of time-variation in the degree of comovement between the cyclical components of monthly industrial production indicators for each of...

This paper studies optimal direct and indirect taxation in an endogenous growth framework with a productive public good and costly tax collection. Optimal (growth-maximizing) tax rules are derived under exogenous collection costs. The optimal direct-indirect tax ratio is shown to be negatively...

We examine whether loan dollarization is contagious across countries and, if so, what factors contribute to such spillover effects. We analyze a unique monthly data set of loan dollarization for 23 transition economies. Using a flexible regime-switching model, we simultaneously test for shift...

This paper investigates the impact of institutions on the dollarization of the domestic banking system by using a unique policy experiment: the accession process of countries to the European Union (EU). Using a dynamic factor model, we decompose fluctuations in financial dollarization for 24...

We provide evidence that institutional improvements lead to lower levels of financial dollarization through previously unidentified channels. These indirect channels operate in addition to the direct impact identified in the literature and further illustrate the importance of institutions for...

This paper empirically examines the determinants of organized crime and of common crime in a panel of Italian regions over the period 1983-2003. In line with the literature, these factors include economic, socio-demographic, and crime-deterrence indicators. The analysis shows that both organized...

Using a GARCH model we provide evidence that higher inflation uncertainty leads to higher inflation in the new European Union (EU) member states and candidate countries only prior to EU accession. During EU accession and entry inflation uncertainty has no effect on mean inflation. This result...