The Size Distribution across all "Cities": A Unifying Approach

In this paper we show that the double Pareto lognormal (DPLN) parameterization provides an excellent fit to the overall US city size distribution, regardless of whether “cities” are administratively defined Census places or economically defined area clusters. We then consider an economic model that combines scale-independent urban growth (Gibrat’s law) with endogenous city creation. City sizes converge to a DPLN distribution in this model, which is much better in line with the data than previous urban growth frameworks that predict a lognormal or a Pareto city size distribution (Zipf’s law).Zipf’s law, Gibrat’s law, city size distributions, double Pareto-Lognormal

The Size Distribution Across All "Cities": A Unifying Approach

In this paper we show that the double Pareto lognormal (DPLN) parameterization provides an excellent fit to the overall US city size distribution, regardless of whether "cities" are administratively defined Census places or economically defined area clusters. We then consider an economic model that combines scale-independent urban growth (Gibrat's law) with endogenous city creation. City sizes converge to a DPLN distribution in this model, which is much better in line with the data than previous urban growth frameworks that predict a lognormal or a Pareto city size distribution (Zipf's law).Zipf's law, Gibrat's law, city size distributions, double Pareto-Lognormal

Trade, Wages, FDI and Productivity

We extend the Behrens et al. (2009) general equilibrium heterogeneous firms framework by horizontal foreign direct investment. The model features endogenously determined firm entrants, wages, productivity cutoff s, flexible price markups and allows for wage differentials across countries in equilibrium. The framework is especially suitable to analyze the welfare consequences of attracting FDI since it allows to study through which channels FDI might raise welfare - including the not yet explored impact on the wage differential and the price markups. From a policy perspective we compare a strategic and a cooperative FDI policy scenario and find that supranational coordination leads to welfare gains.Multinational firms, FDI, firm heterogeneity

Zipf's Law for Cities and the Double-Pareto-Lognormal Distribution

This dissertation concentrates on the size distribution of cities. From an empirical perspective, it is shown that Zipf's law for cities holds for the upper tail of the distribution and that the overall distribution is the Double-Pareto-Lognormal distribution. From a theoretical perspective, the dissertation builds a dynamic general equilibrium model of random urban growth with endogenous city formation, which explains the empirical finding of a Double-Pareto-Lognormal city size distribution

The size distribution across all cities - Double Pareto lognormal strikes

Using un-truncated settlement size data from eight countries, we show that the "double Pareto lognormal" (DPLN) distribution provides a better fit to actual city sizes than the simple lognormal (LN) distribution. The DPLN has a lognormal body and features a power law in both the lower and the upper tail. It emerges in the steady-state of a stochastic urban growth process with random city formation. Our findings reconcile a recent debate on the Zipfian rank-size rule for city sizes.Zipf's law Urban growth Gibrat's law City size distributions