Béla Alexander Balassa (6 April 1928 – 10 May 1991) was a Hungarian economist who served as a professor at Johns Hopkins University, and was a consultant to the World Bank.
Balassa is best known for his work on the relationship between purchasing power parity and cross-country productivity differences (the Balassa–Samuelson effect).
[2] Balassa received a law degree from the University of Budapest.
[5][6] Balassa also did extensive consulting work for the World Bank, serving as an advisor on development and trade policy.
"[7] Beyond economics, Balassa was a noted gourmet who compiled and periodically updated an unofficial guide to eating well in Paris while remaining within an international agency expense allowance, which circulated among his friends and colleagues.