The Unassuming Economist

My paper with Sangyup Choi, Davide Furceri, and Yi Huang on the effects of effect of aggregate uncertainty shocks on sectoral productivity is now forthcoming in the Journal of International Money and Finance and is available (link) at the JIMF website. First, we find that an increase in aggregate uncertainty reduces productivity growth more in industries that depend heavily on external finance. Second, the mechanism at play is that during periods of high uncertainty, firms that are credit constrained switch the composition of investment by reducing productivity-enhancing investment that is more subject to liquidity risks. Third, the mechanism is stronger during recessions, when credit constraints bind more. For those without access to JIMF, an earlier working paper (link) version is available.