Conference Agenda

We investigate the impact of high temperatures on productivity using microdata from the U.S. airline industry. By linking high-frequency on-time flight performance measures with mete- orological data, we show that higher temperatures significantly reduce airline productivity by increasing cancellation and delay rates and lengthening delay times. Complementary analy- ses using a sample of transportation workers from the American Time-Use Survey (ATUS) suggest that higher temperatures reduce labor supply (fewer hours worked and greater worker absenteeism) and adversely impact well-being measures such as sleep quality, which may affect on-the-job-productivity.

This paper presents novel estimates of the economic damages induced by weather shocks. Leveraging European firm-level data, this study unravels the heterogeneity of damages often overlooked in aggregate-level analyses. A primary contribution lies in the extension of the analysis to explore heterogeneous climate impacts across countries and various firm characteristics. The empirical findings reveal a moderate U-shaped relationship between temperature and economic outcomes within the pooled European sample. Heterogeneity analysis across firm characteristics consistently highlights negative impacts on the least productive firms and contributes to bridging the gap between climate economics and the literature on firm dynamics. Moreover, the investigation on damage heterogeneity across firm size categories highlights the vulnerability of smaller firms to climatic shifts, while larger firms exhibit better resilience. Industry-specific effects are explored, indicating the susceptibility of manufacturing and trade-related sectors to weather shocks. Overall, the results emphasise the impact of higher temperature on firms with specific characteristics, advocating for tailored climate policies.

In view of global warming, the intricate relationship between transitory weather occurrences and lasting shifts in climatic conditions carries significant economic implications. In addition to the macroeconomic effects, there are also distributive effects. This paper investigates the interplay between weather events and climate change using a heterogeneous-agent general equilibrium model to capture these effects. Within the economy, agents contend with both enduring climate and momentary weather shocks, unable to differentiate between the two due to limited information. We find that incomplete information does not only have a strong quantitative effect on aggregate saving, but also a qualitatively ambiguous effect that varies with the interest rate. At low interest rates, aggregate asset holdings are larger under complete information, whereas at higher interest rates, aggregate asset holdings are larger under incomplete information. In general equilibrium, we find that the aggregate capital stock is higher under incomplete information under plausible parametrizations.

This study investigates the impact of extreme weather information and experience on homeowners' insurance demand. As the frequency and severity of extreme weather events increase, understanding the factors influencing insurance demand becomes crucial. The research employs a novel two-by-two study design, combining exogenous treatments of information provision and a natural experiment triggered by the extreme weather event 'Hans' in August 2023. Findings aim to shed light on the causal effects of information and experience on insurance demand, addressing an important research gap. Collaborating with a Norwegian insurance company, the study explores new insurance products through a choice experiment survey. Our results indicate that witnessing others affected by extreme weather, being affected oneself, and receiving factual information on such events cause different reactions and affect demand and WTP differently. The combination of information treatment and being affected by extreme weather seems to change beliefs and preferences the most, perhaps by simultaneously reducing information barriers on probabilities and triggering an emotional response to the increasing probabilities of experiencing extreme weather.