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Real Exchange Rates and Skills

Author

Listed:
  • Vincent Bodart

    (Université catholique de Louvain)

  • Jean-François Carpantier

    (CREA, Université du Luxembourg)

Abstract

While most of the literature on the determination of real exchange rates is focused on the role of standard macroeconomic variables, there exists how- ever a few papers that are more concerned by the impact of factors which are usually considered to play a key role in the process of economic development, like demography or inequality. In the present paper, we extend this small branch of the literature by exploring the relationship between labor skills and real exchange rates over the long-run. Using panel regressions covering 22 countries over the period 1950-2010, we find that labor skills are indeed a structural determinant of real exchange rates, with a permanent increase of the skilled-unskilled labor ratio leading to a long-run appreciation of the real exchange rate. This findings is robust to the inclusion of several control variables, like those used in traditional analyses of real exchange rates.

Suggested Citation

  • Vincent Bodart & Jean-François Carpantier, 2014. "Real Exchange Rates and Skills," DEM Discussion Paper Series 14-03, Department of Economics at the University of Luxembourg.
    • Handle: RePEc:luc:wpaper:14-03
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    Cited by:

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    2. Jean-François Carpantier, 2021. "Commodity Prices in Empirical Research," Dynamic Modeling and Econometrics in Economics and Finance, in: Gilles Dufrénot & Takashi Matsuki (ed.), Recent Econometric Techniques for Macroeconomic and Financial Data, pages 199-227, Springer.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Real exchange rate; human capital; skills; Balassa-Samuelson effect.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C23 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Models with Panel Data; Spatio-temporal Models
    • F31 - International Economics - - International Finance - - - Foreign Exchange
    • F41 - International Economics - - Macroeconomic Aspects of International Trade and Finance - - - Open Economy Macroeconomics
    • I25 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Economic Development

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