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Investment Constraints and Productivity Cycles in Bolivia

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  • Mendez-Guerra, Carlos

Abstract

Bolivia has suffered from a series of investment constraints and negative productivity cycles in the last half-century. In this context, this article first presents suggestive empirical evidence that physical capital accumulation has been constrained by high volatility in investment per worker, low marginal product of capital, and high adjustment costs. Next, the article presents evidence about the cyclical behavior of Bolivia’s total factor productivity (TFP) during the 1980-2008 period. As expected, the cyclical dynamics of TFP are shaped by cyclical variables such as terms of trade and fluctuations in the real exchange. However, economic policy variables (such as macroeconomic stabilization and external debt management), institutional variables (such as democracy and civil rights) and initial conditions also appear to be significant when explaining the behavior of Bolivia’s TFP.

Suggested Citation

  • Mendez-Guerra, Carlos, 2019. "Investment Constraints and Productivity Cycles in Bolivia," MPRA Paper 91861, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:91861
    as

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    File URL: https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/91861/1/MPRA_paper_91861.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Lucas, Robert E, Jr, 1990. "Why Doesn't Capital Flow from Rich to Poor Countries?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 80(2), pages 92-96, May.
    2. Rodrigo Fuentes & Mauricio Larraín & Klaus Schmidt-Hebbel, 2006. "Sources of Growth and Behavior of TFP in Chile," Latin American Journal of Economics-formerly Cuadernos de Economía, Instituto de Economía. Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile., vol. 43(127), pages 113-142.
    3. Francesco Caselli & James Feyrer, 2007. "The Marginal Product of Capital," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 122(2), pages 535-568.
    4. Newey, Whitney & West, Kenneth, 2014. "A simple, positive semi-definite, heteroscedasticity and autocorrelation consistent covariance matrix," Applied Econometrics, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), vol. 33(1), pages 125-132.
    5. Harberger, Arnold C, 1998. "A Vision of the Growth Process," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 88(1), pages 1-32, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    investment; productivity; capital accumulation; Bolivia;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O40 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - General
    • O47 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Empirical Studies of Economic Growth; Aggregate Productivity; Cross-Country Output Convergence
    • O5 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies
    • O54 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Latin America; Caribbean

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