We find that US counties with more financial linkages to the region saw larger growth in cash-based front companies and higher shares of misvalued real-estate transactions, plus other signs of money laundering.

Caribbean economies recently adopted stronger anti-money-laundering laws, forcing criminals into other channels.

In the April 2026 issue: ‘Unintended Consequences of Anti-Money-Laundering Regulations’ by Fabrizio Colella, Keith E Maskus, Alessandro Peri doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf086 @aleperi83.bsky.social @fabricolella.bsky.social @usiidep.bsky.social @resmedia.bsky.social @academic.oup.com
#EconSky

Encomienda, The Colonial State and Long-Run Development in Colombia Abstract. The Spanish encomienda, a colonial forced-labour institution that lasted three centuries, killed many indigenous people and caused others to flee

Our encomienda paper is now out at the @theeconjournal.bsky.social! Ten years of hard work. Alternatively, 10 years spent trying to break down results that withstood everything we & others threw at them.
Thank you Fabio, Camilo, Diego & Laura!
academic.oup.com/ej/advance-a...

Job retention schemes such as short-time work are a standard policy tool to fight unemployment in recessions. We show employment gains outweigh costs of preserving unproductive firms. Yet the practice of expanding the policy in recessions is costly compared to its benefits.

The April 2026 Editor’s Choice article: ‘Short-Time Work and Precautionary Savings’ by Thomas Dengler, Britta Gehrke, Leopold Zessner-Spitzenberg doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf083
@gehrkeb.bsky.social @resmedia.bsky.social @academic.oup.com
#EconSky

Hot off the press! The April 2026 issue of The Economic Journal @resmedia.bsky.social @academic.oup.com
#EconSky
👉 bit.ly/4twtCGk

Examining administrative devolution in India, we find devolving health responsibility to local governments does not improve child mortality. Partial devolution without authority over personnel or taxation leads to slower declines in infant mortality compared to no devolution.

Forthcoming in EJ: ‘The Importance of Being Local? Administrative Decentralisation and Human Development’ by Latika Chaudhary, Lakshmi Iyer doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf100
@ndecon.bsky.social @biglabnd.bsky.social @resmedia.bsky.social @academic.oup.com
#EconSky

Can restricting private tutoring boost fertility intention? Recent study on China's 2021 tutoring ban finds a 7% rise in expected total fertility, driven by perceived lower educational competition & improved parental health. Post-ban actual birth rates show consistent patterns.

Forthcoming in EJ: ‘Education Competition and Fertility Intention: Evidence from China’s Private Tutoring Ban’ by Juanjuan Meng, Hui Wang, Yu (Alan) Yang, Mingshan Zhang doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf096 @resmedia.bsky.social
@academic.oup.com
#EconSky

This paper shows that the very local demographic incidence of local labor demand shocks may poorly approximate these shocks’ regional or national demographic incidence, with implications for the appropriate level of government at which to fund local economic initiatives.

Forthcoming in EJ: ‘Contrasting the Local and National Demographic Incidence of Local Labour Demand Shocks’ by Richard K Mansfield doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf092 #EconSky @resmedia.bsky.social
@academic.oup.com

Delighted to see "Swiftness & delay of punishment" (joint w/ @libordusekeu.bsky.social) published online @theeconjournal.bsky.social

academic.oup.com/ej/advance-a...

Open access 👉
www.hertie-school.org/fileadmin/5_...

Longer thread with summary👇

🏅Congratulations to Arthur van Benthem @upenn.edu, Robert Ritz (Cambridge) & Grischa Perino (Hamburg), winners of the 2025 RES Prize for ‘Overlapping Climate Policies.’

Read the Prizewinning research👉 bit.ly/4bdlraw
#EconSky
@resmedia.bsky.social
@academic.oup.com

Does relaxing strict school discipline improve student achievement, or lead to disorder? We study a NYC reform that eliminated suspensions for minor infractions. Test scores in more-affected schools rose relative to others, with gains associated with improving school culture.

Forthcoming in EJ: ‘Discipline Reform, School Culture and Student Achievement’ by Ashley C Craig, David C Martin doi.org/10.1093/ej/u... @resmedia.bsky.social
@academic.oup.com @ashcraig.bsky.social
#EconSky

Income Tax and the Residential Mobility of Top Income Earners: Evidence from US and UK Households in Switzerland Abstract. We provide quasi-experimental evidence on the income tax-induced residential mobility of foreign high-income households living in Switzerland by

Forthcoming in EJ: ‘Income Tax and the Residential Mobility of Top Income Earners: Evidence from US and UK Households in Switzerland’ by Marko Koethenbuerger, Costanza Naguib, Christian Stettler, Michael Stimmelmayr doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf090 @resmedia.bsky.social
@academic.oup.com
#EconSky

Tickets open next month for the RES 2026 Annual Conference, taking place at the University of Newcastle, 6–8 July. This year, the @theeconjournal.bsky.social Lecture will be given by Prof Ekaterina Zhuravskaya on how the internet & social media have reshaped political equilibria worldwide.

#EconSky

🏅Congratulations to Benjamin Milner, winner of the 2025 Austin Robinson Memorial Prize for ‘The Impact of State-Provided Education: Evidence from the 1870 Education Act.’
Read more👉 bit.ly/4aPOPDo
#EconSky @ualberta.bsky.social @uaeuofa.bsky.social @resmedia.bsky.social @academic.oup.com

The Economic Journal Editorial Board and Royal Economic Society are delighted to welcome Jin Li who joins the Journal as Editor this month.
👉 bit.ly/3OvtoA4
@resmedia.bsky.social
#EconSky

The Economic Journal Editorial Board and Royal Economic Society thank Heski as he completes his term next month. Heski has been an excellent editor and colleague and provided an outstanding service to the Journal for the past six years.
@profeski.bsky.social @resmedia.bsky.social
#EconSky

Labour Market Power and the Effects of Fiscal Policy* Abstract. We propose a new fiscal transmission channel based on countercyclical monopsony power in the labour market. We develop a New Keynesian model inco

1/ 🎉 Happy to share: our paper “Labour Market Power and the Effects of Fiscal Policy” (Christian Bredemeier, @uni-wuppertal.bsky.social & @iza.org; Babette Jansen, @uantwerpen.be ; and @rwinkler.bsky.social, @uni-jena.de ) has been accepted at @theeconjournal.bsky.social

#Economics #EconSky

Employers reward completed master’s degrees as it signals strong cognitive & non-cognitive traits, not just expertise. Master’s dropouts are rated below bachelor’s, mainly due to negative signals about non-cognitive skills. See figure below on employer beliefs by education level.

In this month’s EJ: ‘The Impact of Higher Education on Employer Perceptions’ by Renske Stans, Laura Ehrmantraut, Malin Siemers, Pia Pinger doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf061
@resmedia.bsky.social @academic.oup.com #Economics #EconSky

NEW: The Psychoactive Substances Act successfully reduced access to synthetic drugs in UK prisons, but also triggered a short-lived yet significant rise in interpersonal violence and self-harm.

📗 Rocco d'Este and Magdalena Domínguez's comment summarises new @theeconjournal.bsky.social research:

Hot off the press! The February 2026 issue featuring Editor’s Choice ‘Beliefs about Maternal Labour Supply’ by Teodora Boneva, Marta Golin, Katja Kaufmann, Christopher Rauh @resmedia.bsky.social @academic.oup.com @teodoraboneva.bsky.social @martagolin.bsky.social #Economics #EconSky👉bit.ly/4cjWUCC

Brazil’s randomized audits don’t just reduce corruption — they also undermine clientelism. Campaign handouts are only half as prevalent in audited municipalities, where citizens request far fewer private benefits from candidates.

Forthcoming in EJ: ‘Does Combating Corruption Reduce Clientelism?’ by Gustavo J Bobonis, Paul J Gertler, Marco Gonzalez-Navarro, Simeon Nichter doi.org/10.1093/ej/u... @resmedia.bsky.social @marcogn.bsky.social

Congratulations to our @EJ_RES 2025 Referee Prize winners! 🎉

These prizes recognise the outstanding contribution of referees and the vital role they play in supporting authors and the Journal.

Read more: bit.ly/3NQoMnY