IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/asiaec/v22y2008i4p359-396.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Lewis Growth Model and China's Industrialization

Author

Listed:
  • Nazrul Islam
  • Kazuhiko Yokota

Abstract

This paper examines China's industrialization in the light of the Lewis growth model. It begins with a perusal of Lewis's own writings and those of Fei and Ranis to clarify certain assumptions and predictions of the Lewis model. The paper then reviews previous applications of the Lewis model in studying industrialization of other countries, and notes the methodological problems that arise in this regard. In applying the Lewis model to study China's industrialization, the paper focuses on the dynamic relationship between wage and marginal product of labor in the traditional sector. For this purpose, the paper estimates a production function for China's agricultural sector using province level data and compares the estimated marginal product of labor with the corresponding wage of the sector. The results show that the marginal product has been increasing (from below) at a faster pace than the wage, as is predicted by the Lewis model. The results indicate that China as a whole is steadily moving toward the Lewis Turning Point.

Suggested Citation

  • Nazrul Islam & Kazuhiko Yokota, 2008. "Lewis Growth Model and China's Industrialization," Asian Economic Journal, East Asian Economic Association, vol. 22(4), pages 359-396, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:asiaec:v:22:y:2008:i:4:p:359-396
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8381.2008.00282.x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8381.2008.00282.x
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/j.1467-8381.2008.00282.x?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Rosenzweig, Mark R., 1988. "Labor markets in low-income countries," Handbook of Development Economics, in: Hollis Chenery & T.N. Srinivasan (ed.), Handbook of Development Economics, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 15, pages 713-762, Elsevier.
    2. Colin Kirkpatrick & Armando Barrientos, 2004. "The Lewis Model After 50 Years," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 72(6), pages 679-690, December.
    3. Nazrul Islam, 2003. "What have We Learnt from the Convergence Debate?," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 17(3), pages 309-362, July.
    4. Matsuyama, Kiminori, 1992. "Agricultural productivity, comparative advantage, and economic growth," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 58(2), pages 317-334, December.
    5. Fei, John C H & Ranis, Gustav, 1969. "Economic Development in Historical Perspective," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 59(2), pages 286-400, May.
    6. Coate, Stephen & Ravallion, Martin, 1993. "Reciprocity without commitment : Characterization and performance of informal insurance arrangements," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 1-24, February.
    7. Townsend, Robert M, 1994. "Risk and Insurance in Village India," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 62(3), pages 539-591, May.
    8. Ranis, Gustav, 1978. "Equity with growth in Taiwan: How `special' is the `special case'?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 6(3), pages 397-409, March.
    9. Amartya K. Sen, 1966. "Peasants and Dualism with or without Surplus Labor," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 74(5), pages 425-425.
    10. Eswaran, Mukesh & Kotwal, Ashok, 1993. "A theory of real wage growth in LDCs," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 42(2), pages 243-269, December.
    11. Ranis, Gustav, 2004. "Arthur Lewis' Contribution to Development Thinking and Policy," Center Discussion Papers 28410, Yale University, Economic Growth Center.
    12. Gary S. Fields, 2004. "Dualism In The Labor Market: A Perspective On The Lewis Model After Half A Century," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 72(6), pages 724-735, December.
    13. Minami, Ryoshin, 1968. "The Turning Point in the Japanese Economy," Economic Review, Hitotsubashi University, vol. 19(3), pages 220-229, July.
    14. Putterman, Louis, 1992. "Dualism and Reform in China," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 40(3), pages 467-493, April.
    15. Lewis, W Arthur, 1979. "The Dual Economy Revisited," The Manchester School of Economic & Social Studies, University of Manchester, vol. 47(3), pages 211-229, September.
    16. Xu, Yingfeng, 1994. "Trade liberalization in China: A CGE model with Lewis' rural surplus labor," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 5(2), pages 205-219.
    17. Robert Tignor, 2004. "Unlimited Supplies Of Labor1," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 72(6), pages 691-711, December.
    18. Nazrul Islam, 2004. "New growth theories: what is in there for developing countries?," Journal of Developing Areas, Tennessee State University, College of Business, vol. 38(1), pages 171-212, September.
    19. Ryoshin Minami, 1964. "Economic Growth And Labour Supply," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 16(2), pages 194-200.
    20. Ryoshin Minami, 1968. "The Turning Point in the Japanese Economy," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 82(3), pages 380-402.
    21. Dale W. Jorgenson, 1967. "Surplus Agricultural Labour And The Development Of A Dual Economy," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 19(3), pages 288-312.
    22. repec:hoo:wpaper:e-92-3 is not listed on IDEAS
    23. Gustav Ranis, 2004. "ARTHUR LEWIS's CONTRIBUTION TO DEVELOPMENT THINKING AND POLICY," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 72(6), pages 712-723, December.
    24. Fields, Gary S, 1994. "Changing Labor Market Conditions and Economic Development in Hong Kong, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan, China," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 8(3), pages 395-414, September.
    25. Ranis, Gustav, 1995. "Another Look at the East Asian Miracle," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 9(3), pages 509-534, September.
    26. Gustav Ranis, 2004. "Arthur Lewis' Contribution to Development Thinking and Policy," Working Papers 891, Economic Growth Center, Yale University.
    27. Lin, Justin Yifu, 1992. "Rural Reforms and Agricultural Growth in China," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 82(1), pages 34-51, March.
    28. Leeson, P F, 1979. "The Lewis Model and Development Theory," The Manchester School of Economic & Social Studies, University of Manchester, vol. 47(3), pages 196-210, September.
    29. Bramall, Chris, 2000. "Sources of Chinese Economic Growth, 1978-1996," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198296973.
    30. Nazrul Islam, 1995. "Growth Empirics: A Panel Data Approach," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 110(4), pages 1127-1170.
    31. Ranis, Gustav, 1973. "Industrial Sector Labor Absorption," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 21(3), pages 387-408, April.
    32. Peter H. Lindert & Jeffrey G. Williamson, 1983. "English Workers’Living Standards During the Industrial Revolution: A New Look," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 36(1), pages 1-25, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Michele Bruni & Claudio Tabacchi, 2011. "Present and Future of the Chinese Labour Market," Center for the Analysis of Public Policies (CAPP) 0083, Universita di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Dipartimento di Economia "Marco Biagi".
    2. Andersson, Fredrik N.G. & Edgerton, David L. & Opper, Sonja, 2013. "A Matter of Time: Revisiting Growth Convergence in China," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 239-251.
    3. Fukao, Kyoji & 深尾, 京司 & Yuan, Tangjun, 2012. "China'S Economic Growth, Structural Change And The Lewisian Turning Point," Hitotsubashi Journal of Economics, Hitotsubashi University, vol. 53(2), pages 147-176, December.
    4. Qi DONG & Tomoaki MURAKAMI & Yasuhiro NAKASHIMA, 2018. "Estimating China’S Agricultural Capital Stock From 1952 To 2012," Regional and Sectoral Economic Studies, Euro-American Association of Economic Development, vol. 18(2), pages 53-70.
    5. Knight, John & Deng, Quheng & Li, Shi, 2011. "The puzzle of migrant labour shortage and rural labour surplus in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 585-600.
    6. GOLLEY, Jane & WEI, Zheng, 2015. "Population dynamics and economic growth in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 15-32.
    7. Kwan, Fung & Wu, Yanrui & Zhuo, Shuaihe, 2018. "Surplus agricultural labour and China's Lewis turning point," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 244-257.
    8. Prema-chandra Athukorala & Zheng Wei, 2015. "Economic Transition and Labour Market Dynamics in China: An Interpretative Survey of the ‘Turning Point’ Debate," Departmental Working Papers 2015-06, The Australian National University, Arndt-Corden Department of Economics.
    9. Golley, Jane & Meng, Xin, 2011. "Has China run out of surplus labour?," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 555-572.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ge, Suqin & Yang, Dennis Tao, 2011. "Labor market developments in China: A neoclassical view," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 611-625.
    2. Prema-chandra Athukorala & Zheng Wei, 2015. "Economic Transition and Labour Market Dynamics in China: An Interpretative Survey of the ‘Turning Point’ Debate," Departmental Working Papers 2015-06, The Australian National University, Arndt-Corden Department of Economics.
    3. Gary S. Fields, 2004. "Dualism In The Labor Market: A Perspective On The Lewis Model After Half A Century," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 72(6), pages 724-735, December.
    4. Prema†chandra Athukorala & Zheng Wei, 2018. "Economic Transition And Labour Market Dynamics In China: An Interpretative Survey Of The €˜Turning Point’ Debate," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(2), pages 420-439, April.
    5. John Knight, 2021. "A Tale of Two Countries and Two Stages: South Africa, China and the Lewis Model," South African Journal of Economics, Economic Society of South Africa, vol. 89(2), pages 143-172, June.
    6. Yoichi MINE, 2006. "The Political Element In The Works Of W. Arthur Lewis: The 1954 Lewis Model And African Development," The Developing Economies, Institute of Developing Economies, vol. 44(3), pages 329-355, September.
    7. Xiaobing Wang & Jenifer Piesse, 2010. "The microfoundations of dual economy models," Economics Discussion Paper Series 1010, Economics, The University of Manchester.
    8. Anne Villamil & Xiaobing Wang & Yuxiang Zou, 2020. "Growth and development with dual labor markets," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 88(6), pages 801-826, December.
    9. Golley, Jane & Meng, Xin, 2011. "Has China run out of surplus labour?," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 555-572.
    10. Sonja S. Teelucksingh & Paulo A.L.D. Nunes, 2010. "Biodiversity Valuation in Developing Countries: A Focus on Small Island Developing States (SIDS)," Working Papers 2010.111, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    11. Esteban-Pretel, Julen & Sawada, Yasuyuki, 2014. "On the role of policy interventions in structural change and economic development: The case of postwar Japan," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 67-83.
    12. Marktanner Marcus & Makdisi Samir, 2008. "Development against All Odds? The Case of Lebanon," Review of Middle East Economics and Finance, De Gruyter, vol. 4(3), pages 101-133, September.
    13. Salvatore Capasso & Maria Rosario Carillo & Rita De Siano, 2012. "Migration Flows, Structural Change And Growth Convergence: A Panel Data Analysis Of The Italian Regions," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 80(4), pages 468-498, July.
    14. Dalila Nicet-Chenaf & Eric Rougier, 2009. "Human capital and structural change: how do they interact with each others in growth," Post-Print hal-00798441, HAL.
    15. Kirkpatrick, Colin & Barrientos, Armando, 2004. "The Lewis Model After Fifty Years," Development Economics and Public Policy Working Papers 30550, University of Manchester, Institute for Development Policy and Management (IDPM).
    16. Codrina Rada, 2007. "A growth model for a two-sector economy with endogenous productivity," Working Papers 44, United Nations, Department of Economics and Social Affairs.
    17. Kwan, Fung & Wu, Yanrui & Zhuo, Shuaihe, 2018. "Surplus agricultural labour and China's Lewis turning point," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 244-257.
    18. Colin Kirkpatrick & Armando Barrientos, 2004. "The Lewis Model After 50 Years," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 72(6), pages 679-690, December.
    19. Capolupo, Rosa, 2009. "The New Growth Theories and Their Empirics after Twenty Years," Economics - The Open-Access, Open-Assessment E-Journal (2007-2020), Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel), vol. 3, pages 1-72.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:asiaec:v:22:y:2008:i:4:p:359-396. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/eaeaaea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.