US federal transfers to individuals are large, countercyclical, vary geographically, and are often credited for helping stabilize regional economies. This paper estimates the short-run effects of these transfers using plausibly exogenous regional variation in temporary stimulus packages and...

Spurred by strong U.S. growth and rising vaccination rates, the economy is rebounding. The government has successfully maintained external, financial, and fiscal stability despite the deepest recession in decades. Nonetheless, Mexico is bearing a very heavy humanitarian, social, and economic...

The Icelandic economy has been severely affected by the pandemic. Sharp tourism contraction and containment measures caused real GDP to plummet by 6.6 percent in 2020. A modest recovery will take hold in 2021. Recovery prospects in the tourism sector depend on control of the epidemic and...

Sweden entered the pandemic with substantial buffers and suffered a relatively shallow recession in 2020. The decline in output was moderated by substantial income and liquidity support as well as structural features of the economy. Sweden's initial less stringent containment strategy seems to...