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Why Did Semiconductor Price Indexes Fall So Fast in the 1990s? A Decomposition

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  • Ana Aizcorbe

Abstract

Price deflators for semiconductors fell rapidly over the 1990s, pulled down by steep declines in the deflator for the microprocessor (MPU) segment that accelerated around 1995. A decomposition of a price index for Intel's MPUs suggests that virtually all of the declines in the price index--and the acceleration--can be attributed to quality increases associated with product innovation, rather than declines in the cost per chip. The sizable decline in Intel's margins from 1993--99 only accounted for about 6 percentage points of the average 24% decline per quarter in the price index and cannot explain the acceleration. (JEL D42, L63, O47) Copyright 2006, Oxford University Press.

Suggested Citation

  • Ana Aizcorbe, 2006. "Why Did Semiconductor Price Indexes Fall So Fast in the 1990s? A Decomposition," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 44(3), pages 485-496, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:ecinqu:v:44:y:2006:i:3:p:485-496
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1093/ei/cbj027
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. David M. Byrne & Stephen D. Oliner & Daniel E. Sichel, 2018. "How Fast are Semiconductor Prices Falling?," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 64(3), pages 679-702, September.
    2. Ana Aizcorbe & Jeffrey C. Chen, 2023. "Outlet Substitution Bias Estimates for Ride Sharing and Taxi Rides in New York City," Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE) Discussion Papers ESCoE DP-2023-02, Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE).
    3. Unni Pillai, 2013. "A Model of Technological Progress in the Microprocessor Industry," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 61(4), pages 877-912, December.
    4. Unni Pillai, 2014. "Input price and industry concentration in a Cournot oligopoly," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 34(3), pages 1704-1713.
    5. Wen Chen, 2017. "Do stronger intellectual property rights lead to more R&D-intensive imports?," The Journal of International Trade & Economic Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 26(7), pages 865-883, October.
    6. Greenstein, Shane & McDevitt, Ryan, 2011. "Evidence of a modest price decline in US broadband services," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 23(2), pages 200-211, June.
    7. Adam Hale Shapiro, "undated". "Decomposing Supply and Demand Driven Inflation," RBA Annual Conference Papers acp2023-03, Reserve Bank of Australia, revised Nov 2023.
    8. Pangburn, Michael S. & Sundaresan, Shankar, 2009. "Capacity decisions for high-tech products with obsolescence," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 197(1), pages 102-111, August.
    9. Ana Aizcorbe & Nicole Nestoriak, 2010. "Price Indexes for Drugs: A Review of the Issues," BEA Working Papers 0050, Bureau of Economic Analysis.
    10. Aizcorbe, Ana & Bridgman, Benjamin & Nalewaik, Jeremy, 2010. "Heterogeneous car buyers: A stylized fact," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 109(1), pages 50-53, October.
    11. Adam Hale Shapiro & Ana Aizcorbe, 2010. "Implications of Consumer Heterogeneity on Price Measures for Technology Goods," BEA Working Papers 0062, Bureau of Economic Analysis.
    12. Ana M. Aizcorbe & Jeff Chen, 2022. "Outlet Substitution Bias Estimates for Ride Sharing and Taxi Rides in New York City," BEA Working Papers 0192, Bureau of Economic Analysis.
    13. Adam Hale Shapiro, 2022. "Decomposing Supply and Demand Driven Inflation," Working Paper Series 2022-18, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D42 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Monopoly
    • L63 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Manufacturing - - - Microelectronics; Computers; Communications Equipment
    • 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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