Exploring the Economic Effects of COVID-19 in the United States through the Seismograph*

Luca Tiozzo Pezzoli and Elisa Tosetti

A chapter in The Economics of COVID-19, 2022, vol. 296, pp 85-93 from Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Abstract: Seismometers continuously record a wide range of ground movements not caused by earthquake activity, but rather generated by human activities such as traffic, industrial machinery functioning and industrial processes. In this Chapter we exploit seismic data to predict variations in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for a set of States in the USA over the period from 2016 to 2021. We measure the noise generated at specific frequencies that are linked to human activity and use it as an indicator of economic activity. We show a remarkable reduction in seismic noise due to a slowdown in traffic and economic activities during the Corona economic crisis. Our results point at seismic data as a valuable source of information that can be used for monitoring regional and national economies.

Keywords: Seismology; noise; forecasting; GDP; employment; seismic noise; C55; D14; R11 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eme:ceazzz:s0573-855520220000296007

DOI: 10.1108/S0573-855520220000296007

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