More from the Author

• Case | HBS Case Collection | February 2020 (Revised June 2020)

  Getting Brexit Done

  Alberto Cavallo

  Citation:

  Cavallo, Alberto. "Getting Brexit Done." Harvard Business School Case 720-023, February 2020. (Revised June 2020.)  View Details

  CiteView DetailsEducatorsPurchase

  Related

• Case | HBS Case Collection | May 2020 (Revised June 2020)

  The Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic and the Global Economy (A)

  Alberto Cavallo and Christian Godwin

  In early 2020, a coronavirus pandemic swept the globe, ushering in unprecedented disruptions to the global economy. Both supply and demand were decimated by lockdowns and border closings, as well as reduced spending by fearful consumers. In response, governments around the world made equally unprecedented policy moves, spending trillions of dollars on fiscal stimulus measures to bridge the gap during the self-imposed shutdown. As the pandemic progressed, governments had to weigh the costs between loss of life due to opening up their economies and the economic devastation caused by delaying a reopening.

  Keywords: Demand and Consumers; Supply and Industry; Finance; Central Banking; Financial Markets; International Finance; Globalization; Government and Politics; Health Pandemics; Decision Making; Macroeconomics; Employment; Crisis Management; Supply Chain; Risk and Uncertainty; Air Transportation Industry; Banking Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Employment Industry; Financial Services Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Health Industry; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry; Public Administration Industry; Retail Industry; Service Industry; Shipping Industry; Tourism Industry; Travel Industry; Asia; China; Europe; Latin America; Africa; United States;

  Citation:

  Cavallo, Alberto, and Christian Godwin. "The Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic and the Global Economy (A)." Harvard Business School Case 720-031, May 2020. (Revised June 2020.)  View Details

  CiteView DetailsEducatorsPurchase

  Related

• Working Paper | HBS Working Paper Series | 2020

  Inflation with Covid Consumption Baskets

  Alberto Cavallo

  The Covid-19 Pandemic has led to changes in consumer expenditure patterns that can introduce significant bias in the measurement of inflation. I use data collected from credit and debit transactions in the US to update the official basket weights and estimate the impact on the Consumer Price Index (CPI). I find that the Covid inflation rate is higher than the official CPI in the US, for both headline and core indices. I also find similar results with Covid baskets in 12 out of 17 additional countries. The difference is significant and growing over time, as social-distancing rules and behaviors are making consumers spend relatively more on food and other categories with rising inflation, and relatively less on transportation and other categories experiencing significant deflation.

  Keywords: COVID; consumer expenditures; CPI; inflation;

  Citation:

  Cavallo, Alberto. "Inflation with Covid Consumption Baskets." NBER Working Paper Series, No. 27352, June 2020. (Revised June 2020. Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 20-124, May 2020)  View Details

  CiteView Details Read Now

  Related