My main area of research focuses on macroeconomic productivity and the reallocation of resources across firms. I combine macroeconomic models with firm-level and industry-level data to shed light on the determinants of aggregate productivity. My work also examines the effects of frictions - such as search frictions or firing costs in the labor market, borrowing constraints, and imperfect competition - on aggregate productivity and employment. For a summary of my research agenda: research statement
Research papers
The long-run effects of transportation productivity improvement on the US economy, with Kerem Cosar and Latchezar Popov (last version: December 2024) [Online Appendix]
We quantify the aggregate, regional and sectoral impacts of transportation productivity growth on the US economy over the period 1947-2017.
Misallocation and intersectoral linkages, with Latchezar Popov (last version: December 2022, first version: February 2020) [Online Appendix]
accepted at the Review of Economic Dynamics
Non-technical summary: Minneapolis Fed research summary
We show that abstracting from input complementarity leads to overestimating the effects of distortions on aggregate productivity, the strength of the amplification from production linkages, and the role of intermediate input suppliers.
Barriers to reallocation and economic growth: the effects of firing costs, with Toshihiko Mukoyama (last version: November 2018, first version: February 2016)
American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, October 2019
Non-technical summary: GCER (Georgetown Center for Economic Research) Research Profile
We find that firing taxes can have opposite effects on the innovation rate of entrants and incumbents.
Aggregate productivity and the allocation of resources over the business cycle (last version: October 2018, first version: August 2011)
Review of Economic Dynamics, April 2019
This paper proposes a novel decomposition of aggregate productivity that measures the contribution of changes in allocative efficiency.
Credit frictions and the cleansing effect of recessions, with Francesco Pappadà
The Economic Journal, June 2017
Non-technical summary: Royal Economic Society media briefing, LSE Business Review blog post
We build and calibrate a model of firm dynamics to investigate how credit frictions affect the selection of exiting and entering firms and the cleansing effect of recessions.
Matching frictions, unemployment dynamics and the cost of business cycles, with Jean-Olivier Hairault and François Langot
Review of Economic Dynamics, Oct 2010
We study the welfare cost of business cycles implied by matching frictions. The model shows that stabilizing aggregate fluctuations can reduce average unemployment.
Discussions
Comments on Julieta Caunedo and Elisa Keller’s “Technical Change and the Demand for Talent"
Journal of Monetary Economics, July 2022
Book chapter
Technology and Globalization in the Post-COVID Economy in J. L. Denis, C. Régis and D. M. Weinstock, editors, Pandemic Societies, McGill-Queen's University Press, 2021. (with Etienne Lalé)
Other work (unpublished)
Sectoral Impact of covid-19: Cascading Risks, with Latchezar Popov (May 2020)
This short paper describes the methodology behind our recent policy brief. We show that a substantial portion of the exposure to the health and economic risks caused covid-19 is indirect, cascading from directly impacted sectors through supply chains and demand linkages. Data visualization of the results for the 43 countries is available on my github page.
Fluctuations in hours of work and employment across ages and gender, with Guy Laroque, January 2015
We document the volatility of the average number of hours per worker and of the number of individuals at work by age group and gender in the United States over 1976-2014.