The question of whether trade agreements are 'stepping stones' or 'stumbling blocks' to multilateral trade liberalization is not a new one; however, the empirical methods and the quality of the data used to address this question are continually improving. This paper explores this familiar...

This short paper introduces a new database combining data on international trade, Foreign Direct Investment, and regional trade agreements. The bilateral data covers 1980-2010 and includes gravity model variables and is appropriate for empirical analysis in a wide variety of contexts.

Community currency systems are now turning to digital methods to increase the social outreach of member households in remote areas, mitigate detrimental effects in times of crises, and promote community social cohesion. The resilience of digital community currency systems depends on a set of...

This short paper introduces a new database combining data on international trade, Foreign Direct Investment, and regional trade agreements. The bilateral data covers 1980-2010 and includes gravity model variables and is appropriate for empirical analysis in a wide variety of contexts.

Studies routinely document that the nature of immigrant employment is largely specific: it often concentrates in non-traded goods sectors and many immigrants often have low inter-sectoral mobility. We consider these observed characteristics of immigrant employment for the question of how...

This paper studies the actions of the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank (FRB) during the financial crisis from 2007-2012 rating the performance of the Federal Reserve during the crisis. The chosen scoring model approach shows that the average performance of five specific measures taken by the FRB only...

This paper examines whether economic integration favors countries' convergence into a common cone of diversification. We analyze the manufacturing specialization patterns for a sample of 19 current and potential European Union countries over the period 1963-1998, and assess the impact of...

This paper explores the impact of the South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) agreement on food security by using a gravity model to examine the regional changes in trade in agricultural products. This is followed by a discussion of how this might affect the four dimensions of food security,...

This paper first explores the role of digital financial services, e.g. mobile money systems and cryptocurrency-based systems, and their impact on the choice of migrants to send remittances. Secondly we discuss whether alternative remittances sending channels increase access to financial services...

This paper examines the potential of digital financial services (Fintech) to increase the development impact of remittances. We discuss both household and macroeconomic perspectives of the nexus of digital financial services, remittances, and financial inclusion. Using our findings, we identify...