Understanding ‘Home Bias’ in the Global Stock Market

September 8th, 2015 - Laura Bowen

Stock price data for a set of Chinese firms highlight the effects of information asymmetry created by differences in social trust between local and foreign investors. More »

The Economic Impact of Frugality: Evidence from Tobacco Farmers in Malawi

May 28th, 2015 - Laura Bowen

Tobacco farmers in Malawi were offered a direct-deposit savings account, which yielded significant positive impacts on their financial behavior and increases in their agricultural outputs. These results suggest a potential driver for economic growth and povert... More »

Testing Greenspan’s ‘Spare Tire’ Hypothesis: Benefits of Shareholder Protection Laws during Banking Crises

May 18th, 2015 - Laura Bowen

Firm-level data across 36 countries suggests that shareholder protection laws do mitigate the adverse consequences of banking crises by allowing stock markets to act as an alternative source of financing. More »

Aligning Incentives: The Effectiveness of Performance-Based Pay for Tax Officials

February 20th, 2015 - Laura Bowen

After being randomly assigned to a performance-based incentive structure, tax officials in Pakistan had significantly higher levels of revenue collection. This result suggests a potential solution to the widespread corruption and low collection rates of tax au... More »

Rethinking the Optimal Tariff Theory

January 15th, 2015 - Laura Bowen

Using forty years of price data from the raw cane sugar market in New York City, trade economist Douglas Irwin finds that market demand responds asymmetrically to tariff increases versus tariff reductions. More »

The “Brand Premium”: Measuring the Welfare Consequences of Advertising on Consumers

October 7th, 2014 - Laura Bowen

New research finds that misinformation plays a significant role in the brand choices of consumers for most healthcare items and pantry staples, concluding that marketing and advertising campaigns have a negative impact on consumer welfare. More »

Finance for Social Good: Are Microloans Truly Empowering the Impoverished?

August 12th, 2014 - Laura Bowen

An experiment in rural Morocco finds that economic gains from access to microfinance are highly variable, and there are no significant indirect impacts on the status of women and children. More »

Scaling Back Quantitative Easing: Domestic Recovery at a Foreign Cost

June 26th, 2014 - Laura Bowen

Federal Reserve announcements about “tapering,” or reducing the level of quantitative easing, had significant negative impacts on financial asset prices in otherwise robust emerging market economies. More »

No Gains From Good Governance?: Why Foreign Companies Opt Out of Strict Regulatory Practices

May 26th, 2014 - Laura Bowen

Foreign companies that cross-list on US stock exchanges can make substantial financial gains from adopting US corporate governance practices yet firms overwhelmingly choose to opt out, suggesting substantial private opportunity costs from stricter regulations. More »

Reevaluating Openness to Trade: Estimating the True Potential Gains from the Service Industry

April 29th, 2014 - Laura Bowen

New research finds that potential welfare gains from trade liberalization are likely highly underestimated because international trade statistics fail to capture the true economic impact of tradable services. More »

Discounts at the Pump: How Much is Cheap Gas Really Costing Us?

March 10th, 2014 - Laura Bowen

Gasoline and diesel subsidies have been criticized for encouraging excess consumption, but the total global economic cost is truly staggering, representing an annual welfare loss worth four percent of the total market for fuel. More »

International Tax Havens: Are Multinationals Gaming the System?

January 28th, 2014 - Laura Bowen

Despite enormous efforts to minimize financial burdens through innovative international tax planning, multinational corporations still face Effective Tax Rates largely determined by the nationality of their headquarters. More »