Transport Frictions and the Pass-Through of Global Price Shocks in a Spatial Model of Low-Income Countries

We develop a spatial dynamic general equilibrium model of a small open agricultural economy to study the impact of global food, fuel and fertilizer price shocks on consumption patterns of heterogeneous households located in different regions, under alternative fiscal responses, including direct price subsidies and household transfers. We show strong spatial heterogeneity in response to shocks, with associated implications for welfare. In particular, while urban households’ consumption baskets are more exposed to the direct effects of global food price shocks, remote rural households’ production and consumption are more exposed to supply-side dislocations associated with shocks to fuel and fertilizer prices.