Better communications, enhanced transport links, integration agreements between governments, and other factors have all helped increase global economic interconnectedness over the past few decades. This column compares a state-of-the-art gravity model for trade versus migration to reveal that there are in fact important differences in the evolution of globalisation over time on flows of goods versus people. For trade, the boost from free trade agreements declines the farther apart signatories are, but for migration the boost increases with distance between signatories. Further, while both border and distance frictions have declined for trade over time, this is not the case ...

Why banks differ in the pace of adoption of new technology

June 02, 2021

India only introduced credit scoring technology in 2007. This column studies its adoption by the two main types of banks in the country: new private banks and state-owned public sector banks. While both types of banks check nearly all scores for new borrowers, public sector banks are very slow to adopt scoring for their prior relationship borrowers even though scores are reliable predictors of delinquency. Government ownership does not explain this slow adoption, as older privatebanks also exhibit similar adoption patterns. The findings suggest that practices from the past, when adapted to different regulatory and economic environments, are slow to change ...

Macroprudential policy issues arising from the low interest rate environment

June 02, 2021

At the end of 2019 the European Systemic Risk Board General Board mandated a Task Force on Low Interest Rates to revisit the ESRB’s 2016 report on “Macroprudential policy issues arising from low interest rates and structural changes in the EU financial system”, assess subsequent developments, compare these to the risks identified in the report, and assess whether new sources of systemic risk have emerged. Furthermore, the Task Force was mandated to review progress in relation to the policy proposals in the earlier report, as well as propose possible new policy actions aimed at mitigating potential systemic risks. As ...

On this day: June 2

June 02, 2021

On this day: June 2

June 02, 2021

June 2 Wikipedia featured article

June 02, 2021

Warner Bros. Movie World's Grand Entrance

Warner Bros. Movie World is a theme park on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia. It is owned and operated by Village Roadshow's Theme Parks division. After a star-studded opening ceremony on 2 June 1991, the park opened the following day. Many park attractions are based on Warner Bros. and related DC Comics properties, including thrill rides such as Batwing Spaceshot and Superman Escape, family attractions such as Justice League: Alien Invasion 3D and Wild West Falls Adventure Ride, entertainment at the Roxy Theatre and the Hollywood Stunt Driverlive show. ...

Wikipedia picture of the day for June 2

June 02, 2021

Célestine Galli-Marié (1837–1905) was a French mezzo-soprano who is most famous for creating the title role in the opera Carmen by Georges Bizet. It was said that, during the opera's 33rd performance on 2 June 1875, Galli-Marié had a premonition of Bizet's death while singing in the third act, and fainted when she left the stage; the composer in fact died that night and the next performance was cancelled due to her indisposition. This photograph by Nadar depicts Galli-Marié as the titular character in Carmen.

Photograph credit: Nadar; restored by Adam Cuerden

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