The Global Macro Database (R Package)

Link to paper

This repository complements the paper, Müller, Xu, Lehbib, and Chen (2025), which introduces a panel dataset of 79 macroeconomic variables across 243 countries from historical records beginning in the year 1086 until 2025, including projections through the year 2030.

Features

• Unparalleled Coverage: Combines data from more than 121 contemporary and historical sources (e.g., IMF, World Bank, OECD).
• Extensive Variables: GDP, inflation, government finance, trade, employment, interest rates, and more.
• Harmonized Data: Resolves inconsistencies and splices all available data together.
• Scheduled Updates: Regular releases ensure data reliability.
• Full Transparency: All code is open source and available in this repository.
• Accessible Formats: Provided in .dta, .csv and as Stata /Python/R package.

Data access

Download via website

R package:

# Install from GitHub
install.packages("remotes")
remotes::install_github("KMueller-Lab/Global-Macro-Database-R")

How to use (examples)

library(globalmacrodata)

# Get data from latest available version
df <- gmd()

# Get data from a specific version
df <- gmd(version = "2025_01")

# List all available versions
gmd(version = "list")

# Get data for a specific country
df <- gmd(country = "USA")

# Get data for multiple countries
df <- gmd(country = c("USA", "CHN", "DEU"))

# Get specific variables
df <- gmd(variables = c("rGDP", "infl", "unemp"))

# Get raw data for a single variable
df <- gmd(variables = "rGDP", raw = TRUE)

# Load available variables as a dataframe
df <- gmd(vars = TRUE)

# Print available variables (without saving)
gmd(vars = TRUE)

# Load available countries as a dataframe
df <- gmd(iso = TRUE)

# Print available countries (without saving)
gmd(iso = TRUE)

# Access data from a specific source (e.g., IMF World Economic Outlook)
df <- gmd(sources = "IMF_WEO")

# Access specific variables from a source
df <- gmd(sources = "IMF_WEO", variables = "nGDP")

# List all available sources
gmd(sources = "list")

# Load the full source list as a dataframe
df <- gmd(sources = "load")

# Get BibTeX citation for a specific source
gmd(cite = "GMD")

# Load the full citation list as a dataframe
df <- gmd(cite = "load")

# Combine parameters
df <- gmd(
  version = "2026_03",
  country = c("USA", "CHN"),
  variables = c("rGDP", "unemp", "CPI")
)

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Description
variables	character or vector	Variable code(s) to include (e.g., "rGDP" or c("rGDP", "unemp"))
country	character or vector	ISO3 country code(s) (e.g., "SGP" or c("MRT", "SGP"))
version	character	Dataset version in format "YYYY_MM" (e.g., "2025_01"). Use "current" for the latest version, "list" to see all available versions
raw	logical	If TRUE, download raw data for a single variable
iso	logical	If TRUE, return available countries. Use df <- gmd(iso = TRUE) to load as dataframe, or gmd(iso = TRUE) to print
vars	logical	If TRUE, return available variables with definitions and units. Use df <- gmd(vars = TRUE) to load as dataframe, or gmd(vars = TRUE) to print
sources	character	"load" to load source list, "list" to print sources, or a source name (e.g., "IMF_IFS") to load that source's data. You can combine with variables to load only specific variables from that source
cite	character	"load" to load citation list, or a source key (e.g., "GMD") to display its BibTeX

Release schedule

Release Date	Details
2025-01-30	Initial release: 2025_01
2025-04-01	2025_03
2025-07-01	2025_06
2025-10-01	2025_09
2026-01-01	2025_12
2026-01-25	2026_01
2026-03-31	2026_03 (Current)
2026-03-31	2026_06
2026-03-31	2026_09

Citation

When using the Global Macro Database, please cite the following NBER Working Paper:

Müller, K., Xu, C., Lehbib, M., & Chen, Z. (2025). The Global Macro Database: A New International Macroeconomic Dataset (NBER Working Paper No. 33714).

@techreport{mueller2025global,
    title = {{The Global Macro Database: A New International Macroeconomic Dataset}},
    author = {Müller, Karsten and Xu, Chenzi and Lehbib, Mohamed and Chen, Ziliang},
    institution = {National Bureau of Economic Research},
    type = "Working Paper",
    series = "Working Paper Series",
    number = "33714",
    year = "2025",
    month = "April",
    doi = {10.3386/w33714},
    URL = "http://www.nber.org/papers/w33714",
}

Documentation

You can find the Technical Appendix on the official website.

Please visit this repository to access the project source code.

Authors

• Mohamed Lehbib (National University of Singapore) - lehbib@u.nus.edu

License & Terms of Use

This repository and the bundled metadata shipped with the package are available for non-commercial use only. By using this package, you agree to the terms in LICENSE and the terms of use outlined on the GMD website.

For license enquiries, please email kmueller@globalmacrodata.com.

Acknowledgments

The development of the Global Macro Database would not have been possible without the generous funding provided by the Singapore Ministry of Education (MOE) through the PYP grants (WBS A-0003319-01-00 and A-0003319-02-00), a Tier 1 grant (A-8001749- 00-00), and the NUS Risk Management Institute (A-8002360-00-00). This financial support laid the foundation for the successful completion of this extensive project.