We examine the relationship between the relative price of nontradables and real exchange rate movements for fixed exchange rate regimes. Using BLS CPI data, we show that purchasing power parity holds strongly for tradables across U.S. regions. As a result, nontradables play a central role in...

We compare price level and income convergence since 1870 for eleven developed economies using implicit price deflators derived from the GDP data of Maddison (1995, 2001, 2003). We find that "sigma" and "beta" convergence for prices occurs later and to a lesser extent than income. Price levels...