Marius Faber

Uncertainty, Robots and Supply Chains

In this project, Marius Faber and his collaborators study empirically how developed countries adjust their intermediate input mix in response to uncertainty shocks in the developing world. Preliminary results suggest that higher uncertainty in connected developing countries significantly reduces reliance on inputs from the developing world. However, this effect is present only in highly robotized industries, suggesting that firms use reshoring (the reverse of offshoring) as a coping mechanism to deal with adverse shocks to global value chains, but only if automation has made this economically feasible.

Mr. Faber focuses on International Economics, Labor Economics, Technological Change and Innovation. In another current project, Mr. Faber et al. empirically estimate the impact of artificial intelligence on labor markets, using matched employer-employee data from Germany. In particular, the researchers aim to better understand whether AI is already having a discernible impact on employment and wages and if so, whether the technology tends to complement or substitute for human labor.

Marius Faber is an Economist at the Swiss National Bank and a Research Fellow at the University of Basel. He holds a PhD in Applied Economics from the University of Basel as well as an MA and BA in Economics from the University of Zurich.