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International Trade and Growth Miracles: the Implications of Nonhomothetic Preferences
Author(s) -
Mountford Andrew
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
review of international economics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.513
H-Index - 58
eISSN - 1467-9396
pISSN - 0965-7576
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-9396.2006.00633.x
Subject(s) - economics , autarky , per capita , per capita income , stock (firearms) , wage , monetary economics , capital (architecture) , labour economics , market economy , mechanical engineering , population , demography , archaeology , sociology , welfare , engineering , history
If the rate of saving increases with income then a low per capita level of the capital stock may be self‐sustaining. In these circumstances international trade may allow an economy to quickly increase its per capita capital stock in a self‐reinforcing “growth miracle” process. A labor‐abundant economy trading with a capital‐abundant economy will see its wage rate rise relative to autarky. This rise in the wage rate also increases the savings rate and so raises the following period’s per capita capital stock. In this way a low‐income economy may exhibit large and permanent increases in its level of GDP per capita after opening its markets to international trade.