India is at the cusp of a major urban transition. In less than twenty years, India's urban population is expected to nearly double from 377 million today to over 600 million. Indian cities already contribute an estimated two-thirds of India's GDP, and this number is expected to rise to 75% by...

The Algarve faces unprecedented challenges resulting from increase of urban sprawl and population density along its coastal perimeters. A growing loss of ecosystems and natural landscapes have led to major asymmetries between the interior of the Algarve and the littoral areas. The depletion of...

Beijing has undergone rapid urbanisation from 1950-2010. The main built-up area expanded concentrically from 100 to 1210 km2. Its urban fringe became popular for new developments, some placed haphazardly. The government concentrated efforts in "stopping concentric fringe expansion". E.g. on...

Urban structures and urban growth rates are highly persistent. This has far-reaching implications for the optimal size and timing of new construction. We prove that rational developers postpone construction not because prospects are gloomy, but because they are bright. The slow mean reversion in...

We examine the effect of a large-scale administrative reorganization in China, where counties are annexed into cities to accommodate urban growth. We present a simple model to illustrate how this annexation may affect firm entry decisions and in turn land market outcomes. Using nationwide data...

This paper extends the urban growth model of Duranton and Puga (2022) to explore the impact of cities on local firms and households and the aggregate economy of Germany. We adopt alternative micro-foundations for agglomeration economies and a non-linear specification of human capital...