The debate on trade and growth increasingly focuses on the composition of exports. Exports of more "sophisticated" products appear to be positively correlated with growth, and upgrading the quality of exports is high on the policy agenda of many countries. This study presents evidence suggesting...

This paper examines two major risks to foreign investors: default on sovereign debt and expropriation of foreign direct investment, which we refer to collectively as "sovereign theft." Using a series of formal models, we analyze how the incentives to engage in sovereign theft vary with the state...

Illicit financial flows (IFFs) not only deprive developing countries of domestic resources for development, but also pose a continuing challenge for sustained growth, governance, and effective social justice. This paper provides theoretical and empirical evidence on this growing concern for the...

While the traditional approach to the adjustment of international imbalances assumes industrialized countries at a similar level of development and with similar production structures, such imbalances have historically been the result of a process of catching up by lateindustrializing developing...

It is a widely held belief that foreign direct investment (FDI) has a positive effect on economic growth. We test this hypothesis by performing convergence regressions derived from a model of endogenous technological change. We estimate the rate of growth in per-capita income, relative to the...

Sovereign Development Funds’ (SDFs) dual mandate of pursuing financial or commercial objectives alongside long-term strategic and developments goals presents several challenges. First, SDFs must identify why private capital are not allocated at sufficient scale to target sectors – which...

Fiscal policy and net capital inflows in developing countries are procyclical. A large amount of literature has examined this phenomenon and explored its consequences for aggregate fluctuations. Multilateral development banks (MDBs) are an important source of external finance for governments and...