Quantitative researcher analyzing international trade, non-tariff measures, maritime logistics, and spatial economic networks.
I am a Research Analyst at the Asia Competitiveness Institute (ACI),
Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore.
I hold an MSc in Statistics from NUS and a BSc (First-Class Honours) in Mathematics with Applied Mathematics
from the University of Nottingham.
My work combines rigorous econometric techniques, discrete choice modeling, and spatial analytics with large-scale bilateral trade and vessel movement data (UN Comtrade, Global Trade Alert, IMF PortWatch) to evaluate regional trade agreements (RCEP, USSFTA), supply chain restructuring, and industrial agglomeration.
Quantifying non-tariff measures (NTMs) under RCEP and regional FTAs using Global Trade Alert databases matched to high-frequency monthly UN Comtrade flows. Evaluating tariff margins, trade creation, and sectoral restrictiveness across ASEAN+5 economies.
RCEPGlobal Trade AlertUN ComtradeTariff Margins
02
Maritime Networks & Supply Chains
Mapping Indonesian archipelago shipping routes, port container dynamics, and regional hub connectivity through IMF PortWatch real-time vessel monitoring and provincial BPS trade data. Investigating ASEAN's position across clean-tech supply chains (EVs, batteries, solar).
IMF PortWatchIndonesia BPSClean-Tech Supply ChainsPort Logistics
03
Spatial Econometrics & Urban Clustering
Constructing Krugman Specialization Indices, Location Quotients, and functional specialization maps to assess industrial isomorphism vs. complementarity across the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) and regional economic corridors.
Formulating Multinomial Logit (MNL) and Poisson regression models to analyze post-pandemic telecommuting behavior, willingness-to-pay, and transit mode shift. Applying Optimal Orthogonal Design in Ngene and fuzzy mathematical optimization in logistics.
Ngene DesignJoint MNL & PoissonWillingness to PayStochastic Modelling
Publications & Working Papers
Book chapters, conference presentations, and empirical studies
Working Paper · August 2026Spatial Econometrics
Functional Differentiation or Industrial Isomorphism? Testing the Greater Bay Area Functional Map
Tingbin Bian, Zhe Lin Chew, Miranda Lu
Investigates the functional division of labor across 11 cities in the Greater Bay Area (GBA) utilizing highly disaggregated employment and sectoral data. Develops Krugman Specialization Indices and Location Quotients to measure whether regional policies promote complementary clustering or lead to redundant industrial isomorphism.
Key Metrics: Krugman Specialization Index, Location Quotient (LQ) at 2-digit & 4-digit industrial classification, 11 municipalities in Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao.
@techreport{bian2026functional,
title={Functional Differentiation or Industrial Isomorphism? Testing the Greater Bay Area functional map},
author={Bian, Tingbin and Chew, Zhe Lin and Lu, Miranda},
institution={Asia Competitiveness Institute, National University of Singapore},
year={2026}
}
RCEP Conference · February 2026Trade Policy
Non-Tariff Barriers of RCEP: A Comparative Analysis across FTAs in the Region
Miranda Lu, Hang Banh
Employs Global Trade Alert (GTA) data to track the dynamics of non-tariff measure (NTM) implementation and removal across RCEP member states. Matches NTM incidents with monthly UN Comtrade data to gauge sector-level trade coverage ratios and barrier persistence compared to CPTPP and ASEAN+1 FTAs.
Presented at: International Conference on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP 2026). Data: Global Trade Alert & UN Comtrade.
@inproceedings{lu2026ntm,
title={Non-Tariff Barriers of RCEP: A Comparative Analysis across FTAs in the Region},
author={Lu, Miranda and Banh, Hang},
booktitle={RCEP International Conference},
year={2026}
}
Three Years On: RCEP's Promise and Disparities in Regional Trade
Hang Banh, Miranda Lu, Jingting Liu
Assesses goods trade and tariff liberalization margins across signatory members three years after RCEP came into force. Quantifies tariff margins and trade creation vs. diversion across industries, drawing policy recommendations for smaller ASEAN economies.
@inproceedings{banh2025threeyears,
title={Three Years on: RCEP's Promise and Disparities in Regional Trade},
author={Banh, Hang and Lu, Miranda and Liu, Jingting},
booktitle={ACI Webinar & RCEP Conference Proceedings},
year={2025}
}
ACI Book Series & Webinar · 2024/2025Book Chapter
Indonesia's Shipping Networks: Connectivity, Supply Chains, and the Strategic Role of West Kalimantan
Miranda Lu, Xin Yi
Published in the ACI Book volume Shipping Networks of Indonesia. Combines provincial trade data from Statistics Indonesia (BPS) with high-resolution vessel tracking from IMF PortWatch. Maps port traffic, liner connectivity, and the strategic positioning of West Kalimantan relative to Tanjung Priok and regional feeder networks.
@incollection{lu2025indonesia,
title={Indonesia's Shipping Networks: Connectivity, Supply Chains, and the Strategic Role of West Kalimantan},
author={Lu, Miranda and Yi, Xin},
booktitle={Shipping Networks of Indonesia},
publisher={World Scientific / Asia Competitiveness Institute},
year={2025}
}
Vietnam Economics Annual Meeting · December 2024Labor & Trade
The Labor Market Impacts of Intra-Industry Trade: How the US-Singapore FTA Created Jobs in Advanced Manufacturing and Professional Services
Miranda Lu, Xin Yi
Examines bilateral trade and employment elasticity following the implementation of the USSFTA. Identifies significant intra-industry trade expansions in knowledge- and technology-intensive clusters, quantifying job creation and spatial employment shifts.
@inproceedings{lu2024ussfta,
title={The Labor Market Impacts of Intra-Industry Trade: How the US-Singapore FTA Created Jobs in Advanced Manufacturing and Professional Services},
author={Lu, Miranda and Yi, Xin},
booktitle={Eastern International University, Vietnam Economics Annual Meeting (VEAM)},
year={2024}
}
Singapore-ETH Centre Research Report · 2023/2024Discrete Choice
Work from Home Preference and Its Impacts on Travel Mode Choice for Commuting Trips
Miran Lu (Researcher, Singapore-ETH Centre / Land Transport Authority)
Designed an 8-block Optimal Orthogonal Stated Preference experiment in Ngene. Conducted Qualtrics survey of 400 commuters in Singapore across transit and ridesharing cohorts. Implemented a Joint Multinomial Logit (MNL) and Poisson regression model to estimate marginal utility, willingness-to-pay, and transit demand elasticity.
@techreport{lu2024wfh,
title={Work from Home Preference and Its Impacts on Travel Mode Choice for Commuting Trips},
author={Lu, Miran},
institution={Singapore-ETH Centre & Land Transport Authority Singapore},
year={2024}
}
icRS Urbanisation · December 2020Environmental
The Champion of Urban Water Resources Management in the Chinese City: The Case of Ningbo
Faith Ka Shun Chan, Fangfang Zhu, Lei Li, Miran Lu, Yu-Ting Tang, James Griffiths
Empirical investigation of sponge city green-blue infrastructure development in Ningbo, combining public perception survey data with content analysis in NVivo and CiteSpace.
@inproceedings{chan2020champion,
title={The Champion of Urban Water Resources Management in the Chinese City--the Case of Ningbo},
author={Chan, Faith Ka Shun and Zhu, Fangfang and Li, Lei and Lu, Miran and Tang, Yu-Ting and Griffiths, James},
booktitle={icRS Urbanisation Conference},
year={2020}
}
Featured Research Projects
Data pipelines, empirical econometric modeling, and policy simulations
2021 – 2026
Clean-Tech Global Supply Chains in ASEAN
2024
Mapped ASEAN's competitive trade position across electric vehicles (EVs), energy storage, and solar panels using 2022 bilateral UN Comtrade data. Integrated cost-breakdown benchmarks from IEA and IRENA to identify raw material dependencies and upstream bottlenecks.
Tools: Python, UN Comtrade API, Stata, Clean-Tech Sector Decomposition
How Far is ASEAN from the Next World Factory?
2024
Analyzed industrial disparities between China and ASEAN economies across demographic dividends, labor productivity, and maritime logistical capacity (port throughput, water depth, liner shipping connectivity index).
Formulated fuzzy set heuristic algorithms to minimize container rehandling in Ningbo Port under uncertain container weight measurements and varying vessel departure schedules.
Global Fishery Spatial Distribution (50-Year Simulation)
Team Lead · 2020
Led a 3-member team to model sea surface temperature shifts and cellular automata dynamics of Scottish fish stocks under ocean warming. Awarded Finalist (Top 1% out of 13,749 international teams) in the COMAP Mathematical Contest in Modeling.
Tools: MATLAB Cellular Automata, Partial Differential Equations, NOAA Data
Lead research on RCEP Non-Tariff Barriers, Indonesian port logistics (IMF PortWatch), US-Singapore FTA labor reallocation, and ASEAN clean-tech supply chain resilience.
Researcher
01/2023 – 12/2023
Singapore-ETH Centre & Land Transport Authority (LTA)
Investigated post-COVID telecommuting impacts on public transit mode choice using Ngene orthogonal experimental design and joint MNL/Poisson econometric estimation.
Research Assistant
05/2022 – 12/2022
Department of Mathematics, NUS
Regression analysis and demographic factor modeling for student academic trajectories and pedagogical evaluations.
AI Research Intern
01/2021 – 05/2021
ArkAI Technology Co., Ltd. (Ningbo)
Deep learning feasibility benchmarking and single-cell gene sequencing preprocessing.
Intern, The Board Office
08/2019 – 09/2019
Orient Securities Co., Ltd. (Shanghai)
Benchmarking financial performance metrics and analyzing stock registration system reform implications.
Education
National University of Singapore
2021 – 2023
Master of Science in Statistics
Core coursework: Statistical Foundation of Data Science, Nonparametric Regression, Spatial Statistics, Multivariate Regression, Data Mining, Experimental Design.
University of Nottingham
2017 – 2021
BSc (Hons) in Mathematics with Applied Mathematics
First-Class Honours
Core coursework: Mathematical Finance, Optimization, Stochastic Processes, Differential Equations, Fourier Analysis, C & C++ Programming.
Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier III
Summer 2019
Intensive Language School (France)
Advanced French immersion program. Attained DELF B2 proficiency certification.
Honors & Academic Awards
Competitions, government scholarships, and departmental honors
Finalist (Top 1%)
COMAP International MCM
Mathematical Contest in Modeling (out of 13,749 international teams, 2020)
Top 1% Award
Zhejiang Provincial Government Scholarship
Awarded for outstanding academic and research performance (2020)
