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Import Competition and the Great US Employment Sag of the 2000s

Author

Listed:
  • Daron Acemoglu
  • David Autor
  • David Dorn
  • Gordon H. Hanson
  • Brendan Price

Abstract

Even before the Great Recession, US employment growth was unimpressive. Between 2000 and 2007, the economy gave back the considerable employment gains achieved during the 1990s, with a historic contraction in manufacturing employment being a prime contributor to the slump. We estimate that import competition from China, which surged after 2000, was a major force behind both recent reductions in US manufacturing employment and--through input-output linkages and other general equilibrium channels--weak overall US job growth. Our central estimates suggest job losses from rising Chinese import competition over 1999-2011 in the range of 2.0-2.4 million.

Suggested Citation

  • Daron Acemoglu & David Autor & David Dorn & Gordon H. Hanson & Brendan Price, 2016. "Import Competition and the Great US Employment Sag of the 2000s," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 34(S1), pages 141-198.
    • Handle: RePEc:ucp:jlabec:doi:10.1086/682384
    DOI: 10.1086/682384
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    JEL classification:

    • F16 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade and Labor Market Interactions
    • J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure

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