Data and Code for: Measuring the Cost of Living in Mexico and the U.S.

Principal Investigator(s):  View help for Principal Investigator(s) David Argente, Pennsylvania State University; Chang-Tai Hsieh, University of Chicago. Booth School of Business; Munseob Lee, University of California-San Diego

Version:  View help for Version V1

Name File Type Size Last Modified
  Code 10/24/2021 10:39:PM
  Dta 10/24/2021 10:39:PM
  Output 10/24/2021 10:39:PM
  Raw 10/24/2021 10:39:PM
Master.do text/plain 2.8 KB 01/23/2023 01:11:PM
ReadMe.pdf application/pdf 148.9 KB 01/23/2023 01:07:PM

Project Citation: 

Argente, David, Hsieh, Chang-Tai, and Lee, Munseob. Data and Code for: Measuring the Cost of Living in Mexico and the U.S. Nashville, TN: American Economic Association [publisher], 2023. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2023-06-21. https://doi.org/10.3886/E153241V1

Project Description

Summary:  View help for Summary We use a dataset with prices and spending on consumer packaged goods matched at the barcode-level across the US and Mexico to measure the price index in Mexico relative to the US. Mexican prices relative to the US are 23% lower compared to the International Comparisons Project's (ICP) price index. We decompose the 23% gap into the biases from imputation, sampling, quality, and variety. Quality bias increases Mexican prices by 48%. Imputation, sampling, and variety bias lowers Mexican prices by 11%, 13%, and 33%, respectively.

Scope of Project

Subject Terms:  View help for Subject Terms Price Index; Purchasing Power Parity; International Price Comparison
JEL Classification:  View help for JEL Classification
      E01 Measurement and Data on National Income and Product Accounts and Wealth; Environmental Accounts
      E31 Price Level; Inflation; Deflation
      O47 Empirical Studies of Economic Growth; Aggregate Productivity; Cross-Country Output Convergence


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Published Versions

V1 [2023-06-21]

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DDI 2.5

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