Product Variety, the Cost of Living, and Welfare across Countries

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Cavallo, Alberto; Feenstra, Robert C.; Inklaar, Robert
• 署名单位: Harvard University; University of California System; University of California Davis; University of Groningen
• 刊物名称: AMERICAN ECONOMIC JOURNAL-MACROECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1945-7707
• DOI: 10.1257/mac.20210137
• 发表日期: 2023
• 页码: 40-66
• 关键词: online prices; TRADE; TECHNOLOGY

摘要

We use the structure of the Melitz (2003) model to compute the cost of living and welfare across 47 countries, and compare these to conventional measures of prices and real consumption from the International Comparisons Project (ICP). The cost of living is inferred without directly using ICP prices of traded goods and instead relying on output prices, openness, domestic trade costs, and product variety measured by the counts of barcodes or firms. We find that welfare relative to the United States is lower than indicated by real consumption for most countries, but similar in China and Japan and similar or higher in some European countries. (JEL E21, E23, E31, O11)