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on Post Keynesian Economics |
| By: | Luis Bértola (Programa de Historia Económica y Social, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Universidad de la República) |
| Abstract: | This working paper discusses Piketty´s already famous book. It remarks some of the strong sides of the book, before critically discussing some aspects. It is argued that Piketty could have benefitted by using other theories of capital, different than the neoclassical one adopted. The note also places Piketty´s limited contribution, as seen in a more comprehensive context, in which international relations and reversal causality between growth and distribution are considered. The notes ends by pointing to the fact that Piketty presents modern development´s main stylized fact in a wrong way, because he is too narrowly focused on the developed regions |
| Keywords: | Desigualdad, periferia, capital |
| JEL: | N01 N36 B25 F63 O54 |
| Date: | 2016–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ude:doctra:47&r=pke |
| By: | Giorgos Galanis (University of Warwick, and Goldsmiths, University of London); Roberto Veneziani (Queen Mary University of London); Naoki Yoshihara (University of Massachusetts Amherst, Hitotsubashi University, and Kochi University of Technology) |
| Abstract: | This paper provides a formal dynamic analysis of exploitation, class inequalities and profits. A stylised model of a capitalist economy with two classes - workers and capitalists - is considered which extends Roemer [21, 22]. First, a dynamic generalisation of a key Marxian insight is provided by proving that the profitability of capitalist production is synonimous with the existence of exploitation. Second, it is shown that, in a competitive environment, asset inequalities are fundamental for the emergence of exploitation, but they are not sufficient for its persistence, both in equilibria with accumulation and growth, and, perhaps more surprisingly, in stationary intertemporal equilibrium paths. Finally, it is shown that labour-saving technical progress may yield persistent exploitation by ensuring the persistent abundance of labour. |
| Keywords: | Dynamics, Accumulation, Exploitation, Classes |
| JEL: | E11 D51 D63 C61 B24 |
| Date: | 2017–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:qmw:qmwecw:wp814&r=pke |
| By: | Amitava Krishna Dutt (University of Notre Dame, and FLACSO); Roberto Veneziani (Queen Mary University of London) |
| Abstract: | A simple classical-Marxian model of growth and distribution is developed in which education transforms low-skilled workers into high-skilled ones and in which high-skilled workers save and hold capital, therefore receiving both high-skilled wages and profit income. We analyze the implications for class divisions, growth and distribution, of the transformation of the modern capitalist economy from one in which the main class division is between capitalists who own capital and workers who only receive wage income into one in which education and human capital play a major role. We show than an expansion in education can have a positive effect on growth but by altering the distribution of income rather than by fostering technological change, and that it yields some changes in income distribution and the class structure of the capitalist economy, but need not alter its fundamental features. |
| Keywords: | Education, Human capital, Workers' savings, Growth, Distribution |
| JEL: | E2 E11 O41 I24 |
| Date: | 2017–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:qmw:qmwecw:wp816&r=pke |
| By: | Gräbner, Claudius; Kapeller, Jakop |
| Abstract: | This paper focuses on the complementarity between original institutional economics, Mario Bunge’s framework of systemism, and the formal tools developed by complexity economists, especially in the context of agent-based modeling. Thereby, we assert that original institutional economics might profit from exploiting this complementarity. |
| Keywords: | Aggregation, Original Institutionalism, Systemism, Agent-Based Computational Economics, Complexity |
| JEL: | B41 B52 C63 |
| Date: | 2015–06–19 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:77334&r=pke |
| By: | Peter Egger; Sergey Nigai; Nora Strecker |
| Abstract: | We examine the effects of globalization on the size and composition of tax revenues, worker-specific tax burdens, and effective average labor income tax rates using a unique international database on income tax calculators. We find that due to increasing mobility of firms and high-income workers, globalization led governments in OECD countries to seek tax revenues from alternative sources, specifically from employee-borne taxes paid by relatively less mobile middle-income workers. In 1994-2007, they experienced a globalization-induced rise in their personal income tax rate of around 1.5, whereas the top 1% of workers faced a reduction of approximately 1.5 percentage points. |
| Keywords: | Globalization, Income taxes, Tax progressivity, International trade, Migration |
| JEL: | F1 F6 H2 H3 |
| Date: | 2016–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lis:liswps:668&r=pke |
| By: | Mariacristina Piva (DISCE, Università Cattolica); Marco Vivarelli (DISCE, Università Cattolica - UNU-MERIT, Maastricht, The Netherlands and IZA, Bonn, Germany) |
| Abstract: | The aim of this paper is twofold. On the one hand, the economic insights about the employment impact of technological change are disentangled starting from the classical economists to nowadays theoretical and empirical analyses. On the other hand, an empirical test is provided; in particular, longitudinal data - covering manufacturing and service sectors over the 1998-2011 period for 11 European countries - are used to run GMM-SYS and LSDVC estimates. Two are the main results: 1) a significant labour-friendly impact of R&D expenditures (mainly related to product innovation) is found; yet, this positive employment effect appears to be entirely due to the medium-and high-tech sectors, while no effect can be detected in the low-tech industries; 2) capital formation is found to be negatively related to employment; this outcome points to a possible labour-saving effect due to the embodied technological change incorporated in gross investment (mainly related to process innovation). |
| Keywords: | technological change, employment, sectoral analysis, EU |
| JEL: | O33 |
| Date: | 2017–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ctc:serie5:ispe0078&r=pke |
| By: | Kabbashi M. Suliman (University of Khartoum) |
| Abstract: | The literature on distributive politics indicates that many low-income countries are saddled with extractive institutions that not only contribute to politically biased fiscal outcomes, but tend to undermine long-run real growth. An analytical narrative based on the critical juncture and path dependence general equilibrium approach is utilized to highlight the effects of the political institutions on the fiscal policy outcomes in Sudan and indicate their mechanisms of perpetuation. The results suggest that Sudan has experience two critical junctures that featured, respectively, the path-dependence of public source of finance and budgeting based on cotton and its eventual destruction. The political patronage appears to be the major mechanism of reproduction of the ‘path dependent’ state development including the source of public revenue. But, the greater centralization of power and parsonage networks has resulted in problematic incorporation of the rural communities triggering a process of territorial fragmentation that escalated into open civil wars, contributed to the cumulative decline of the historic source of public finance and eventually led to the breakup of the state. The policy implications of these findings are outlined. |
| Date: | 2016–01–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:erg:wpaper:1044&r=pke |
| By: | Anne-Francoise Lefevre (OECD); Michael Chapman (OECD) |
| Abstract: | The G20/OECD Task Force on Financial Consumer Protection has highlighted that "regulators and supervisors can use the insights gained through behavioural economics research to inform their approach to potential remedies to help consumers". This paper, prepared under the aegis of the G20/OECD Task Force, first provides some historical context for the development of the field of behavioural economics and its increased application to policy. It then looks more specifically at the application of behavioural economics in the area of financial consumer protection. Common biases that individuals demonstrate in the context of making financial decisions are identified, and an overview of how numerous governments are testing and implementing the application of behavioural economics for policies promoting financial consumer protection is provided. The paper concludes by highlighting the opportunity for behavioural economics to help provide cost-efficient ways of making policy more effective at promoting positive outcomes for consumers, and stressing the need to continue an open dialogue with policy makers, regulators and supervisors to exchange experiences and good practices. |
| Keywords: | behevioural economics, financial consumer protection |
| JEL: | D14 D18 G28 |
| Date: | 2017–03–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:dafaad:42-en&r=pke |
| By: | David Cobham (Heriot-Watt University); Abdallah Zouache |
| Abstract: | This paper analyzes the economic factors that lie behind the upheavals commonly known as the ‘Arab Spring,’ and the economic policy opportunities that a genuine Arab Spring might open up. The evidence suggests that the upheavals were unlikely to have been responses to economic downturns resulting from the global financial crisis, and more likely to have been influenced by the longer term performance of the Arab countries, which has been characterized by relatively slow economic growth as well as failure to move away from authoritarian political systems. The principles of Islamic economics have not provided the basis for a distinctive set of economic policies for new governments. The actual economic programs of some major Islamist political parties turn out to be typically centrist, not very well-developed, but not very different from the policies which non-Islamist (and non-authoritarian) parties might propose. The paper concludes by appealing for more research on specific economic policies that post-Arab spring reformist governments could implement. |
| Date: | 2015–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:erg:wpaper:975&r=pke |
| By: | Keith Slack |
| Abstract: | Civil society organizations have played various roles in promoting the capture of benefits from and protection against the negative impacts of extractive industries. Payment disclosure is one potentially powerful tool for such organizations to promote greater local benefit capture. Practitioners and academics have noted, however, that transparency alone does not equate to accountability. This is true in the extractive sectors, where political dynamics pose serious obstacles. The cases of Ghana and Peru provide examples of these dynamics. Strategies for overcoming them include strengthening the technical capacity of civil society organizations, providing civic education, targeting interventions better, and learning more deeply from positive examples. |
| Date: | 2017 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp2017-51&r=pke |
| By: | Gnutzmann, Hinnerk; Spiewanowski, Piotr |
| Abstract: | Food commodity prices escalated during the 2007/2008 food crisis, and have scarcely fallen since. We show that high fertilizer prices, driven by the formation of an international export cartel as well as high energy prices, explains the majority of the recent price spikes. In particular, we estimate the pure fertilizer cartel effect explains up to 50% of crisis food price increases. While population growth, biofuels, high energy prices and financial speculation doubtlessly put stress on food markets, our results help to understand the severity and sudden emergence of the crisis and suggest avenues to prevent its repetition. |
| JEL: | F10 L40 Q02 |
| Date: | 2016 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:vfsc16:145777&r=pke |
| By: | Berggren, Niclas (Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IFN)); Bjørnskov, Christian (Aarhus University); Nilsson, Therese (Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IFN)) |
| Abstract: | While previous research examines how institutions matter for general life satisfaction and how specific institutions embodying equal rights for gay people matter for the life satisfaction of gays, we combine these two issues to analyze how the latter type of institutions relates to general life satisfaction. The question is how people in general are affected by laws treating everyone equally irrespective of sexual orientation. We find that legal recognition of partnership, marriage and adoption rights, as well as an equal age of consent, relate positively to general life satisfaction. Consequently, same-sex marriage and similar reforms come at no “welfare” cost to society at large – if anything, the opposite appears to hold. We further build on previous research showing positive effects of economic freedom on happiness and on tolerance towards gay people and interact our rights measure with economic freedom. This reveals that the positive effect on general happiness of equal rights mainly appears in countries with low economic freedom. This likely follows because minority rights are perceived to indicate openness to much-desired reforms in other areas. |
| Keywords: | Life satisfaction; Same-sex marriage; Rights; Institutions; Culture; Immigration; Tolerance; Gays and lesbians; Minorities; Integration |
| JEL: | I31 Z13 Z18 |
| Date: | 2017–03–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:iuiwop:1156&r=pke |
| By: | Rahul Lahoti; Arjun Jayadev; Sanjay G. Reddy |
| Abstract: | We introduce two separate datasets (The Global Consumption Dataset (GCD) and The Global Income Dataset (GID)) making possible an unprecedented portrait of consumption and income of persons over time, within and across countries, around the world. The current benchmark version of the dataset presents estimates of monthly real consumption and income for every percentile of the population (a ‘consumption/income profile’) for more than 160 countries and more than half a century (1960-2015). We describe the construction of the datasets and demonstrate possible uses by presenting some sample results concerning the distribution of consumption, poverty and inequality in the world |
| Keywords: | Consumption, Income, Growth, Global Income Distribution, Poverty, Inclusive Growth, Inequality |
| JEL: | B41 C80 I30 I32 O10 O15 |
| Date: | 2016–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lis:liswps:655&r=pke |