States' fiscal capacity plays a pivotal role in developing economies, but it is less clear what its determinants are or what explains cross-country differences. We focus on the impact of natural resources. Standard arguments suggest that natural resources rents may reduce incentives to invest in...

We examine the impact of foreign corruption regulation on economic development in highcorruption-risk areas. We find that, after a mid-2000s increase in enforcement of the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), economic activity (measured by nighttime luminosity) in African communities within...

1. Introduction -- 2. Developing country growth and the commodity terms of trade -- 3. The statistical properites of commodity prices -- 4. Country case studies : primary commodities and economic development -- 5. Conclusion : commodity dependence in developing countries: economic destiny or...

Alfred Maizels' work on commodity trade and prices documented trends in a major area of international economic relations. This title elaborates the ideas in the tradition of Maizels' contributions, and discusses and extends these theories in relation to current problems