Feeling the heartbeat of regions: local news and economic sentiments
基于2019年以来300多家德语媒体的地理编码新闻标题，构建了高频区域经济新闻情绪指数（REGENS），该指数能提前最多4个月预测地区失业率，为区域经济监测提供了新的时空精细指标。
Abstract Timely and spatially detailed indicators of regional economic activity are limited. This article introduces the Regional Economic News Sentiments (REGENS) index, a high-frequency measure based on geocoded news headlines from 300+ German-language outlets since 2019. REGENS captures local economic sentiment, aligns with national indicators, and significantly leads regional unemployment by up to 4 months. While its link to GDP growth is weaker, it consistently reflects regional economic patterns. The study highlights how media signals contribute to understanding economic development and illustrates the potential of text-based indicators to sharpen the spatial and temporal resolution of regional monitoring.