Doctor of Philosophy

Abstract

My dissertation contains four essays where I explore topics related to the question of how countries can become more competitive and sustain growth in a global economy. The four questions I tackle are: 1) how we can measure the productive capabilities of countries and cities; 2) whether there is evidence of a competitive boom and diversification of exports after large devaluations; 3) how does the globalization process shape local politics; and 4) whether multinationals firms contribute their fair share in terms of tax collection in the host country.