Overview
Daniel Yi Xu is the David Rubenstein Distinguished Professor of Economics at Duke University, a Faculty Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, a Research Fellow at the Center for Economic Policy Research, and a Senior Fellow at the Asian Bureau of Finance and Economic Research.
His research focuses on the intersection of productivity, international trade, and industrial organization. Professor Xu’s current research agenda involves the use of large-scale microdata to model and estimate a broad range of dynamic individual firm decisions and to examine how these decisions impact resource allocation, industry performance, and economic growth, particularly in developing and emerging economies.
His most recent work has been published in leading economics journals, including the American Economic Review, Journal of Political Economy, Review of Economic Studies, RAND Journal of Economics, Review of Economic Dynamics, and Management Science. Professor Xu is currently a co-editor of the American Economic Journal: Microeconomics and an associate editor of the RAND Journal of Economics. He previously served as co-editor for the Review of Economics and Statistics and the Journal of Development Economics. Additionally, he has been an associate editor for the American Economic Journal: Applied, Economic Journal, Journal of Industrial Economics, Journal of International Economics, Quantitative Economics, and the Review of Economics and Statistics.
Current Appointments & Affiliations
Recent Publications
Do better managers bribe less? Cross-national and experimental evidence
Journal Article Business and Politics · March 25, 2026 AbstractWork on the relationship between regulation and bribery suggests that bribes are a joint function of the demands of bureaucrats and the supply of business managers willing to pay them. However, du ... Full text Open Access CiteRegulating Conglomerates: Evidence from an Energy Conservation Program in China
Journal Article American Economic Review · February 1, 2025 We study a prominent energy regulation affecting large Chinese manufacturers that are part of broader conglomerates. Using detailed firm-level data and difference-in-differences research designs, we show that regulated firms cut output and shifted some pro ... Full text Open Access CiteO-Ring Production Networks
Journal Article Journal of Political Economy · January 1, 2024 We document strong skill matching in Turkish firms’ production networks. Additionally, in the data, export demand shocks from rich countries increase firms’ skill intensity and their trade with skill-intensive domestic partners. We explain these patterns u ... Full text CiteRecent Grants
Excellence in Research: The impact of online comparison websites on the remittance industry
ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Spelman College · 2018 - 2021Fiscal Incentives and Firm Growth
ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Science Foundation · 2017 - 2018Collaborative Research: International Buyer-Seller Matches
ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Science Foundation · 2014 - 2017View All Grants