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What Can Stockouts Tell Us About Inflation? Evidence from Online Micro Data

Alberto Cavallo and Oleksiy Kryvtsov

Staff Working Papers from Bank of Canada

Abstract: We use a detailed micro dataset on product availability to construct a direct high frequency measure of consumer product shortages during the 2020–21 pandemic. We document a widespread multi-fold rise in shortages in nearly all sectors early in the pandemic. Over time, the composition of shortages evolved from many temporary stockouts to mostly discontinued products, concentrated in fewer sectors. We show that product shortages have significant but transitory inflationary effects and that these effects can be associated with elevated costs of replenishing inventories.

Keywords: Inflation and prices; Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D22 E31 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 41 pages
Date: 2021-10
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cwa, nep-mac and nep-mon
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (16)

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Related works:
Journal Article: What can stockouts tell us about inflation? Evidence from online micro data (2023) Downloads
Chapter: What Can Stockouts Tell Us About Inflation? Evidence from Online Micro Data (2022)
Working Paper: What Can Stockouts Tell Us About Inflation? Evidence from Online Micro Data (2021) Downloads
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