Using Online Prices for Measuring Real Consumption Across Countries

Alberto Cavallo, Walter Diewert, Robert Feenstra, Robert Inklaar and Marcel Timmer

No 24292, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: We show that online prices can be used to construct quarterly purchasing power parities (PPPs) with a closely-matched set of goods and identical methodologies in a variety of developed and developing countries. Our results are close to those reported by the International Comparisons Program (ICP) in 2011 and the OECD in 2014, and can be used to obtain more up-to-date estimates of real consumption across countries without the need for consumer price index extrapolations. We discuss advantages and limitations associated with the use of online prices for PPs, including issues of representativeness and limited coverage of product categories and countries.

JEL-codes: E3 E31 F0 F41 O47 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018-02
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ict, nep-mac, nep-mkt and nep-opm
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (10)

Published as Alberto Cavallo & W. Erwin Diewert & Robert C. Feenstra & Robert Inklaar & Marcel P. Timmer, 2018. "Using Online Prices for Measuring Real Consumption across Countries," AEA Papers and Proceedings, vol 108, pages 483-87.

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Journal Article: Using Online Prices for Measuring Real Consumption across Countries (2018)
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