Capital Measurement and Productivity Growth Across International Databases

A country’s multifactor productivity (MFP) growth, the growth of GDP that is not accounted for by growth of factor inputs, is of great interest as an indicator of living standards and technological progress. Yet different well-established databases show markedly different MFP growth rates for the same country and period. In this article, we show that differences in the measurement of capital input can account for one-third of the range of MFP growth rates across databases. Harmonizing a series of methodological choices for capital measurement substantially reduces variation across databases, but sizeable differences remain. This work highlights the continued relevance of these choices and can inform users who try to understand differences between databases and assess the robustness of differences in MFP growth across countries to measurement choices

Capital Measurement and Productivity Growth Across International Databases

A country’s multifactor productivity (MFP) growth, the growth of GDP that is not accounted for by growth of factor inputs, is of great interest as an indicator of living standards and technological progress. Yet different well-established databases show markedly different MFP growth rates for the same country and period. In this article, we show that differences in the measurement of capital input can account for one-third of the range of MFP growth rates across databases. Harmonizing a series of methodological choices for capital measurement substantially reduces variation across databases, but sizeable differences remain. This work highlights the continued relevance of these choices and can inform users who try to understand differences between databases and assess the robustness of differences in MFP growth across countries to measurement choices

Capital Measurement and Productivity Growth Across International Databases

A country’s multifactor productivity (MFP) growth, the growth of GDP that is not accounted for by growth of factor inputs, is of great interest as an indicator of living standards and technological progress. Yet different well-established databases show markedly different MFP growth rates for the same country and period. In this article, we show that differences in the measurement of capital input can account for one-third of the range of MFP growth rates across databases. Harmonizing a series of methodological choices for capital measurement substantially reduces variation across databases, but sizeable differences remain. This work highlights the continued relevance of these choices and can inform users who try to understand differences between databases and assess the robustness of differences in MFP growth across countries to measurement choices

Capital Measurement and Productivity Growth Across International Databases

A country’s multifactor productivity (MFP) growth, the growth of GDP that is not accounted for by growth of factor inputs, is of great interest as an indicator of living standards and technological progress. Yet different well-established databases show markedly different MFP growth rates for the same country and period. In this article, we show that differences in the measurement of capital input can account for one-third of the range of MFP growth rates across databases. Harmonizing a series of methodological choices for capital measurement substantially reduces variation across databases, but sizeable differences remain. This work highlights the continued relevance of these choices and can inform users who try to understand differences between databases and assess the robustness of differences in MFP growth across countries to measurement choices

Jobs and Productivity Growth in Global Value Chains:New Evidence for Twenty-five Low- and Middle-Income Countries

Using newly developed data, the evolution of job and productivity growth in global value chains (GVCs) is analyzed for 25 low- and middle-income countries. GVC jobs are found to be more productive than non-GVC jobs. Their share in the total labor force is small, in particular for low-income countries. Growth in GVC jobs varies widely across countries in the period 2000–2014. Part of this can be accounted for by differences in the type of consumer market served. A bigger part is accounted for by the speed with which countries expand activities within supply chains, measured by their shares in GVC value added. Expansion in GVCs is positively correlated with labor productivity across countries as well as over time within GVC

A note on technology shocks and the Great Depression

The role of technology shocks as a driver of the Great Depression is the topic of our own earlier work and the paper by Watanabe in this issue. While the two studies differ in their data and assumptions, they complement each other and strengthen the conclusion of both papers: technology shocks were not the driving force of the Great Depression

Visualizations for the 'London Effect' blog, published on 16 January 2023.

Visualizations for the 'London Effect' blog, published on 16 January 2023