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When and why did eastern European economies begin to fail? Lessons from a Czechoslovak/UK productivity comparison, 1921-1991

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  • Broadberry, Stephen
  • Klein, Alexander

Abstract

Czechoslovak industrial labour productivity fluctuated around two-thirds of the UK level under the private sector regime between the wars. Under the central planning regime of the postwar period, Czechoslovakia's comparative productivity position initially improved to around three-quarters of the UK level by the early-1960s, before falling back. During the 1980s, the deterioration of Czechoslovakia's productivity performance accelerated sharply, falling to around one-third of the UK level. Central planning was able to achieve a satisfactory productivity performance during the era of mass production, but could not adapt to the requirements of flexible production technology during the 1980s.

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Bibliographic Info

Article provided by Elsevier in its journal Explorations in Economic History.

Volume (Year): 48 (2011)
Issue (Month): 1 (January)
Pages: 37-52

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Handle: RePEc:eee:exehis:v:48:y:2011:i:1:p:37-52

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Web page: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/622830

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Keywords: Industrial productivity Czechoslovakia Britain;

References

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  15. Whitesell, Robert S, 1985. "The Influence of Central Planning on the Economic Slowdown in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe: A Comparative Production Function Analysis," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 52(206), pages 235-44, May.
  16. Fremdling, Rainer & De Jong, Herman & Timmer, Marcel P., 2007. "British and German Manufacturing Productivity Compared: A New Benchmark for 1935/36 Based on Double Deflated Value Added," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 67(02), pages 350-378, June.
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Citations

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Cited by:
  1. E. Farvaque & A. Mihailov & A. Naghavi, 2011. "The Grand Experiment of Communism: Discovering the Trade-off between Equality and Efficiency," Working Papers wp776, Dipartimento Scienze Economiche, Universita' di Bologna.
  2. Carlin, Wendy & Schaffer, Mark & Seabright, Paul, 2013. "Soviet power plus electrification: What is the long-run legacy of communism?," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 50(1), pages 116-147.

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