This paper takes a first look at the trade effects of China's Belt and Road Initiative, also referred to as the New Silk Road, on the 71 countries potentially involved. The initiative consists of several infrastructure investment projects to improve the land and maritime transportation in the...

Do regional trade agreements negatively impact non-members? This paper revisits this long-standing trade policy question using firm-level data and detailed information on the content of trade agreements. Differently from the conventional view on trade diversion, the analysis identifies a...

How does geographic distance affect the impact of trade agreements on bilateral exports, and through what channels? This paper examines this questions in a gravity model context for different types of goods for 185 countries over the period 1965-2010. Three stylized facts emerge. First, although...

This paper examines changes in bank capital and capital regulations since the global financial crisis, in the Europe and Central Asia region. It shows that banks in Europe and Central Asia are better capitalized, as measured by regulatory capital ratios, than they were prior to the crisis....

Domestic Violence (DV) is a universal phenomenon that affects millions of women of all social strata worldwide. It is the most pervasive, common, under-recognized, underestimated and under-reported type of violence against women. It reflects discriminatory social norms, stereotypes, impunity and...