Research

How to estimate the effects of a tax increase on economic activity? What is the relationship between Euro-area inflation and unemployment? How are the effects of financial shocks transmitted globally? What type of a path do returns on a stock-market index follow? How to efficiently utilize limited data to estimate economic models to provide predictions and answers to causal questions? How to deal with massive amounts of data to that end?

Helsinki GSE perustaa talouden tilannehuoneen – tavoitteena tukea nopeaa päätöksentekoa koronaviruskriisissä Tilannehuoneen tavoitteena on tarjota lähes reaaliaikaista tietoa kehityksestä yrityssektorilla, työmarkkinoilla ja koko yhteiskunnassa. Tätä tietoa on löydettävissä kuvaajien ja muun aineiston muodossa säännöllisesti päivitettynä aineistopankissamme: →  Covid-19 Data & Graph Vault Tilannehuoneen toimintaan osallistuu johtavia suomalaisia taloustieteilijöitä Helsinki GSE:stä, Valtion taloudellisesta tutkimuskeskuksesta VATT:sta sekä... Read more »

Development economists study questions of particular relevance to low-and middle-income countries and contexts. At the core of development economics is a strong emphasis to improve policy making. As a result, the field maintains a strong empirical focus based on a wide range of methodological approaches. Some development economists collaborate with development agencies and government institutions... Read more »

How to estimate the effects of a tax increase on economic activity? What is the relationship between Euro-area inflation and unemployment? How are the effects of financial shocks transmitted globally? What type of a path do returns on a stock-market index follow? How to efficiently utilize limited data to estimate economic models to provide predictions and answers to causal questions? How to deal with massive amounts of data to that end?

Environmental Economics Research Group Overcoming the problem of externalities is a fundamental challenge for both private and public organizations. Environmental economics is primarily concerned with identifying and measuring environmental externalities, proposing conceptual solutions, suggesting implementable policies, and finally evaluating the performance of the policies in place. The lessons vary across institutional settings and depend on... Read more »

What does market power mean, how is it created, and how is it sustained? What does strategic interaction between firms mean and how does it affect market outcomes? Why do firms merge and when should a competition authority allow a given proposed merger? How should a firm price its products after the entry of a new competitor? How many cartels are there, and how harmful are they? Who benefited and who lost when the Finnish taxi-cab market was liberalized? Should the government subsidize the research and development activities of firms and if so, how and by how much?

How does an increase in unemployment benefits affect the length of unemployment? How does child care support affect the decision of mothers take a job? Are minorities discriminated in the labor market? Does more education reduce crime? How to best integrate immigrants? What are the social as opposed to private benefits of educating more engineers? What are the social and economic consequences of job loss? Does job protection increase or decrease unemployment?

What makes the business cycles to fluctuate? What makes economic growth go up and down? What determines the rate of inflation? What drives economy into crisis? What is productivity growth and what are its determinants? Why some countries are poor and others rich? How to deal with ageing population? How does financial sector interact with the real economy?

How do rational people behave? How do various markets function? What are their welfare properties? How to regulate a market when it fails? Should health markets be liberalized? How to allocate radio spectrum rights to operators? Do voting mechanisms matter? How to optimize internet search engines or trading mechanisms? Should public building projects be initiated and, if so, how should they be financed? How to match human organ donors with patients in a need of a transplant?

What is the right level of tax progression? What are the consequences of basic income? How should universities be financed? What is the right way to support poor people? How should the pension system be financed? How limiting are the external constraints on public finance? What is the degree of inequality in Finland? Should local communities be supported by the government and if yes, how? How should usage of common goods such as natural resources be regulated?