About Me

I’m currently a Ph.D. candidate at the Clark University in Department of Economics, advised by Prof. Junfu Zhang.

Working paper

• 1 Cross-City Mobility and Market Integration: Evidence from Vegetable Price Covariation in China

This paper utilizes high-frequency data on fresh vegetable prices across China to examine the determinants of intercity price dispersion. We developed Python programs to obtain daily vegetable price data and daily information on cross-city passenger mobility. Utilizing this data, we calculate the intercity price dispersion for each vegetable, defined as the monthly standard deviation of the daily relative prices between city pairs. Additionally, we synthesize this travel flow information into a monthly mobility intensity index for each city pair. Our analysis includes employing a gravity model regression and a difference-in-differences approach to determine the impact of various factors on intercity price dispersion. We conclude by discussing how reduced price dispersion increases social welfare, and perform some back-of-the-envelope calculations to gauge the overall economic significance of our estimates.

• 2 Quantitative Analysis of Local Export Multipliers in China

This paper studies how international trade affects the aggregate output of the local economies in China. Specifically, we focus on the local multiplier effects of exports on GDP across Chinese provinces. By quantifying the model to the data, this paper addresses two central questions: how do the local export multipliers differ across Chinese provides? and What shapes the patterns of the local export multipliers? We develop a two-sector, multi-region general equilibrium model to examine the mechanisms through which the local multiplier effects work. Upon formalizing the model, we derive a key theoretical proposition that identifies the determinants of the local export multiplier. The model is calibrated using the China Multi-Regional Input-Output (MRIO) Table to estimate critical parameters such as trade costs and sectoral productivity. To further explore the determinants of these multipliers, we conduct a counterfactual analysis by simulating the economy under alternative parameter configurations using additional MRIO data.