Petia Topalova is an economist at the International Monetary Fund where she currently works on India and Bhutan. Her research is in the areas of development and international trade with a focus on India. She has studied the social and productivity impact of macroeconomic policies, inclusiveness of growth, fiscal and gender issues in developing countries. She received her undergraduate degree in Economics from Brandeis University in 1999 and her PhD in Economics from MIT in 2005.