Why don't we observe improvements in consumption smoothing as countries get more financially integrated: Bridging theory and empirics

This study provides suggestive theoretical and empirical evidence that the productivity shock correlation between a country and the rest of the world may help explain why we do not observe more consumption smoothing as countries have become more financially liberalized.     

Remittances over the business cycle: Theory and evidence

We examine the behaviour of remittances over the business cycle and their potential to act as a ‘stabilizer’ during periods of high business cycle volatility. Two main findings are reported. First, remittances are less volatile than other foreign currency flows and do not appear to systemically comove with business cycle fluctuations. Second, remittances are relatively stable even during episodes of sharp business cycle volatility, such as those associated with sudden stops and financial crises. We also provide an overview of the theoretical literature on the implications of different motives to remit for the cyclical behaviour of remittances.