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World Productivity: 1996–2014

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  • Mehrdad Esfahani
  • John G. Fernald
  • Bart Hobijn

Abstract

We use a new growth accounting method to quantify the drivers of world total factor productivity (TFP) growth during 1996–2014 and uncover four main results. World productivity growth is volatile from year to year. This mainly reflects reallocation of labor across country-industries. The contribution of country-industry level productivity growth to world productivity is relatively constant over time. This constancy masks that the increased importance of emerging economies offsets a productivity slowdown in advanced economies. After 2008, this offsetting effect dissipated and world TFP growth declined. These conclusions are robust to the inclusion of markups in the analysis.

Suggested Citation

  • Mehrdad Esfahani & John G. Fernald & Bart Hobijn, 2024. "World Productivity: 1996–2014," American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 16(3), pages 160-189, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:aea:aejmac:v:16:y:2024:i:3:p:160-89
    DOI: 10.1257/mac.20200480
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    1. David M. Byrne & John G. Fernald & Marshall B. Reinsdorf, 2016. "Does the United States Have a Productivity Slowdown or a Measurement Problem?," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 47(1 (Spring), pages 109-182.
    2. Cette, Gilbert & Fernald, John & Mojon, Benoît, 2016. "The pre-Great Recession slowdown in productivity," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 3-20.
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    8. Marcel Timmer & Abdul A. Erumban & Reitze Gouma & Bart Los & Umed Temurshoev & Gaaitzen J. de Vries & I–aki Arto & Valeria Andreoni AurŽlien Genty & Frederik Neuwahl & JosŽ M. Rueda?Cantuche & Joseph , 2012. "The World Input-Output Database (WIOD): Contents, Sources and Methods," IIDE Discussion Papers 20120401, Institue for International and Development Economics.
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    12. Robert Inklaar & Marcel P. Timmer, 2014. "The Relative Price of Services," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 60(4), pages 727-746, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Kevin Hjortshøj O’Rourke, 2021. "Capitalism: Worries of the 1930s for the 2020s," Working Papers 20210064, New York University Abu Dhabi, Department of Social Science, revised Apr 2021.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • E23 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Production
    • E32 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Business Fluctuations; Cycles
    • O30 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - 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

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