Regional convergence, polarization and mobility in the European Union, 1980-1996

The aim of the paper is to analyse how the regional convergence, polarization and mobility have evolved in the EU from 1980 onwards. Using both simple and weighted indicators, the paper not only shows that all these three processes have been going on but that there are no sings of polarization and that the mobility degree (taken into account the whole period) is quite high. At the same time, the paper shows that the rate of convergence and the degree of mobility have declined, rising doubts about what may happen in the near future.

Migratory flows in Spain: a nonparametric and semiparametric approach

Labour market is characterized in Spain by a high persistence in unemployment rates. One of the main reasons of this persistence is the lack of labour mobility. The present paper addresses this issue empirically and analyses the determinants of migration in Spain from a regional standpoint. We used a panel data set that includes annual bilateral migratory flows between the 17 Spanish regions from 1995 through 2000. For this purpose, after a descriptive analysis, we develop a nonparametric approach to show the factors that influence in the magnitude of migratory flows. Later on, semiparametric estimation techniques are applied to provide more econometric evidence regarding migratory flows. Main conclusions are as follows: first, a high inertia in the migratory flows exists, that it is to say, migratory movements are very persistent; second, migratory flows mainly respond, though weakly, to the differentials of wages, unemployment rates and house prices between regions; third, migratory flows are also affected, to a great extent, by non economic factors. Keywords: migratory flows, regions, unemployment, wages. JEL classification: J61, R23, C14

Okun's law in the Spanish regions

The purpose of this paper is to analyse Okun's law for Spain and its seventeen regions over the period 1980-2004. Based on its “gap†specification and using two different detrending techniques, the results show that an inverse relationship between unemployment and output holds for most of the Spanish regions and for the whole country. However, the quantitative values of Okun''s coefficients for these regions are quite different. In addition, the coefficients for each region varied across the two detrending techniques. Even so, these coefficients are lower than those initially estimated by Okun and others.

Regional convergence, polarization and mobility in the European Union, 1980-1996

The aim of the paper is to analyse how the regional convergence, polarization and mobility have evolved in the EU from 1980 onwards. Using both simple and weighted indicators, the paper not only shows that all these three processes have been going on but that there are no sings of polarization and that the mobility degree (taken into account the whole period) is quite high. At the same time, the paper shows that the rate of convergence and the degree of mobility have declined, rising doubts about what may happen in the near future

Peace makers: from the polis to the Enlightenment

Lo que me propongo en este artículo es hacer un breve recorrido histórico desde la polis a la Ilustración para tratar de demostrar que, históricamente, ha habido dos visiones del mundo, dos concepciones morales, dos postulados antropológicos e históricosWhat I am trying in this article is to make an historical outlook from the polis to the Enlightenment to prove that, historically, there have been two views, two moral conceptions, two opposite anthropological and historical understandings, that have con

Migratory flows in Spain: a nonparametric and semiparametric approach

Labour market is characterized in Spain by a high persistence in unemployment rates. One of the main reasons of this persistence is the lack of labour mobility. The present paper addresses this issue empirically and analyses the determinants of migration in Spain from a regional standpoint. We used a panel data set that includes annual bilateral migratory flows between the 17 Spanish regions from 1995 through 2000. For this purpose, after a descriptive analysis, we develop a nonparametric approach to show the factors that influence in the magnitude of migratory flows. Later on, semiparametric estimation techniques are applied to provide more econometric evidence regarding migratory flows. Main conclusions are as follows: first, a high inertia in the migratory flows exists, that it is to say, migratory movements are very persistent; second, migratory flows mainly respond, though weakly, to the differentials of wages, unemployment rates and house prices between regions; third, migratory flows are also affected, to a great extent, by non economic factors. Keywords: migratory flows, regions, unemployment, wages. JEL classification: J61, R23, C1

Evaluating Labor Market Reforms: A General Equilibrium Approach

Job security provisions are commonly invoked to explain the high and persistent European unemployment rates. This belief has led several countries to reform their labor markets and liberalize the use of fixed-term contracts. Despite how common such contracts have become after deregulation, there is a lack of quantitative analysis of their impact on the economy. To fill this gap, we build a general equilibrium model with heterogeneous agents and firing costs in the tradition of Hopenhayn and Rogerson (1993). We calibrate our model to Spanish data, choosing in part parameters estimated with firm-level longitudinal data. Spain is particularly interesting, since its labor regulations are among the most protective in the OECD, and both its unemployment and its share of fixed-term employment are the highest. We find that fixed term contracts increase unemployment, reduce output, and raise productivity. The welfare effects are ambiguous.Fixed-term contracts, Firing costs, General equilibrium, Heterogeneous agents

EVALUATING LABOR MARKET REFORMS: A GENERAL EQUILIBRIUM APPROACH

Job security provisions are commonly invoked to explain the high and persistent European unemployment rates. This belief has led several countries to reform their labor markets and liberalize the use of fixed-term contracts. Despite how common such contracts have become after deregulation, there is a lack of quantitative analysis of their impact on the economy. To fill this gap, we build a general equilibrium model with heterogeneous agents and firing costs in the tradition of Hopenhayn and Rogerson (1983). We calibrate our model to Spanish data, choosing in part parameters estimated with firm-level longitudinal data. Spain is particularly interesting, since its labor regulations are among the most protective in the OECD, and both its unemployment and its share of fixed-term employment are the highest. We find that fixedterm contracts increase unemployment, reduce output, and raise productivity. The welfare effects are ambiguous.

La productividad de las regiones europeas: un análisis agregado y por sectores.

El objetivo del presente trabajo es analizar la productividad de las regiones europeas durante el periodo 1990-2011. Haciendo uso de diversas técnicas de análisis, se concluye que: a) la dispersión regional y sectorial es elevada; b) las ganancias de productividad agregada se deben, prácticamente en su totalidad, a aumentos en la productividad de los sectores; c) existe un proceso de convergencia beta, tanto a escala agregada como sectorial; d) lo mismo sucede, con la única excepción del sector industrial, con la convergencia sigma; e) la descomposición del proceso de convergencia en productividad revela que el mismo se sustenta, casi exclusivamente, en el efecto crecimiento de la productividad sectorial; y f) existe una evidente bipolarización en la distribución de productividad, si bien ésta ha decrecido en el tiempo.The aim of this paper is to analyse productivity at regional level in the EU between 1990 and 2011. By making use of various techniques it concludes that: a) the regional and sectoral dispersion of productivity is rather high; b) the gains experienced in aggregate productivity are due, almost entirely, to the sectors productivity growth effect; c) there is a beta-convergence process at the aggregate and sectoral levels; d) the same occurs for sigma-convergence, apart from the industrial sector; e) the accounting decomposition of the aggregate productivity convergence process reveals the sectoral productivity growth effect to be almost the only responsible for regional catching-up; and f) there exists an evident bipolarisation in the productivity distribution, although it has decreased over the sample period