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Revisiting Okun’s Law in European Union countries

Author

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  • Athina Economou
  • Iacovos N. Psarianos

Abstract

Purpose - – The purpose of this paper is to examine Okun’s Law in European countries by distinguishing between the transitory and the permanent effects of output changes upon unemployment and by examining the effect of labor market protection policies upon Okun’s coefficients. Design/methodology/approach - – Quarterly data for 13 European Union countries, from the second quarter of 1993 until the first quarter of 2014, are used. Panel data techniques and Mundlak decomposition models are estimated. Findings - – Okun’s Law is robust to alternative specifications. The effect of output changes to unemployment rates is weaker for countries with increased labor market protection expenditures and it is more persistent for countries with low labor market protection. Originality/value - – The paper provides evidence that the permanent effect of output changes upon unemployment rates is quantitatively larger than the transitory impact. In addition, it provides evidence that increased labor market protection mitigates the adverse effects of a decrease in output growth rate upon unemployment.

Suggested Citation

  • Athina Economou & Iacovos N. Psarianos, 2016. "Revisiting Okun’s Law in European Union countries," Journal of Economic Studies, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 43(2), pages 275-287, May.
  • Handle: RePEc:eme:jespps:v:43:y:2016:i:2:p:275-287
    DOI: 10.1108/JES-05-2013-0063
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. de Mendonça, Helder Ferreira & de Oliveira, Diego S.P., 2019. "Firms' confidence and Okun's law in OECD countries," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 98-107.
    2. Louail Bilal & Ben Haj Hamida Hayet, 2021. "Asymmetry Relationship between Economic Growth and Unemployment Rates in the Arab countries: Application of the OKUN Law during 1960-2017," Management, Sciendo, vol. 25(2), pages 1-21, December.
    3. Porras-Arena, M. Sylvina & Martín-Román, Ángel L., 2023. "The heterogeneity of Okun's law: A metaregression analysis," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 128(C).
    4. Compagnucci, Fabiano & Gentili, Andrea & Valentini, Enzo & Gallegati, Mauro, 2021. "Have jobs and wages stopped rising? Productivity and structural change in advanced countries," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 412-430.
    5. Tamás Kiss & Hoang Nguyen & Pär Österholm, 2023. "Modelling Okun’s law: Does non-Gaussianity matter?," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 64(5), pages 2183-2213, May.
    6. Davide Furceri & João Tovar Jalles & Prakash Loungani, 2020. "On the Determinants of the Okun’s Law: New Evidence from Time-Varying Estimates," Comparative Economic Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Association for Comparative Economic Studies, vol. 62(4), pages 661-700, December.
    7. Zambrano-Monserrate, Manuel A., 2024. "Labor dynamics and unions: An empirical analysis through Okun's Law," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 613-628.
    8. Thomas Obst, 2022. "Dynamic version of Okun’s law in the EU15 countries—The role of delays in the unemployment‐output nexus," Scottish Journal of Political Economy, Scottish Economic Society, vol. 69(2), pages 225-241, May.
    9. João Tovar Jalles, 2019. "On the Time‐Varying Relationship between Unemployment and Output: What shapes it?," Scottish Journal of Political Economy, Scottish Economic Society, vol. 66(5), pages 605-630, November.
    10. Nebot, César & Beyaert, Arielle & García-Solanes, José, 2019. "New insights into the nonlinearity of Okun's law," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 202-210.
    11. Ousama Ben-Salha & Zouhair Mrabet, 2019. "Is Economic Growth Really Jobless? Empirical Evidence from North Africa," Comparative Economic Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Association for Comparative Economic Studies, vol. 61(4), pages 598-624, December.

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