firms

New research on China shows that entrepreneurs who start multiple firms are more productive on average – but this conceals a troubling pattern: some succeed not because of skill, but because of preferential access to finance.

Many formal firms in sub-Saharan Africa only register after operating informally for a few years in order to grow and overcome financial constraints. Evidence from Nigeria suggests that taxes and enforcement – rather than registration costs alone – a...

Indonesia’s non-tariff import measures – particularly inspections, import approvals, and port restrictions – significantly weakened exporters’ ability to adjust to China’s yuan depreciation by constraining their access to cheaper intermediate inputs...

In Mexico, better management improves firm efficiency, but a range of factors limit well-managed firms from expanding and gaining market share – reducing firms’ incentives to upgrade their practices.

Aggregate data can mask micro-level adjustments in the wake of terrorist activities. Administrative data from Pakistan reveals how a major terrorist attack distorted export patterns across firms, products, and regions.

Workers at exporting firms experience more rapid skill and productivity growth, especially when firms export to high-income destinations, thereby amplifying the overall gains from trade.

How does monetary policy transmit through developing economies? New evidence shows that firms do react to both monetary policy contraction and expansion, but not symmetrically.

High institutional and regulatory barriers make it unusually costly for manufacturing firms to exit in India – discouraging entry, keeping inefficient firms afloat, and lowering productivity.