IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/eti/dpaper/15054.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

A Half Century of Trans-Pacific Competition: Price level indices and productivity gaps for Japanese and U.S. industries, 1955-2012

Author

Listed:
  • Dale W. JORGENSON
  • NOMURA Koji
  • Jon D. SAMUELS

Abstract

Trans-Pacific competition between Japanese and U.S. industries has provided powerful incentives for mutually beneficial economic cooperation between Japan and the United States. The benefits would be greatly enhanced by the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership, an international agreement that would involve Japan, the United States, and 10 additional countries of the Asia-Pacific region. In this paper, we analyze competition between Japanese and U.S. industries in detail over more than a half century. We conclude with a discussion of opportunities for improving productivity performance in both countries. We first present new estimates of price level indices for Japan and the United States over the period 1955-2012. These indices are key indicators of international competitiveness between the two countries, often expressed as over-valuation or under-valuation of the Japanese yen relative to the U.S. dollar. We provide price level indices for outputs and inputs of 36 industries and for the two economies as a whole. The inputs at the industry level include capital, labor, energy, materials, and services (KLEMS). For an economy as a whole, output is gross domestic product (GDP) and the inputs are capital and labor services. We use our price level indices to generate new estimates of productivity gaps for the two countries and for individual industries. The productivity gap is an indicator of the efficiency of production. A wide Japan-U.S. productivity gap that existed in 1955 contracted for more than three decades, and Japan came close to parity with the United States in 1991. After the collapse of the "bubble economy" in Japan, the Japan-U.S. productivity gap widened again and only a few industries in Japan retained a productivity advantage over their U.S. counterparts in 2012. We conclude that industries sheltered from international competition offer the greatest opportunities for improvements in productivity performance.

Suggested Citation

  • Dale W. JORGENSON & NOMURA Koji & Jon D. SAMUELS, 2015. "A Half Century of Trans-Pacific Competition: Price level indices and productivity gaps for Japanese and U.S. industries, 1955-2012," Discussion papers 15054, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    • Handle: RePEc:eti:dpaper:15054
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.rieti.go.jp/jp/publications/dp/15e054.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kyoji Fukao, 2013. "Explaining Japan's Unproductive Two Decades," Asian Economic Policy Review, Japan Center for Economic Research, vol. 8(2), pages 193-213, December.
    2. NOMURA Koji & MIYAGAWA Kozo, 2015. "The Japan-U.S. Price Level Index for Industry Outputs," Discussion papers 15059, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    3. Dale Jorgenson & Koji Nomura, 2007. "The Industry Origins of the US-Japan Productivity Gap," Economic Systems Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(3), pages 315-341.
    4. Hamada, Koichi & Okada, Yasushi, 2009. "Monetary and international factors behind Japan's lost decade," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 23(2), pages 200-219, June.
    5. Gavin Cameron, 2005. "The Sun Also Rises: Productivity Convergence Between Japan and the USA," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 10(4), pages 387-408, December.
    6. Robert Inklaar & Marcel Timmer, 2007. "International Comparisons of Industry Output, Inputs and Productivity Levels: Methodology and New Results," Economic Systems Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(3), pages 343-363.
    7. Dale W. Jorgenson & Mun S. Ho & Kevin J. Stiroh, 2005. "Productivity, Volume 3: Information Technology and the American Growth Resurgence," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 1, volume 3, number 0262101114, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Yoko Konishi & Yoshihiko Nishiyama, 2020. "Efficiency of the Retail Industry and Inelastic Supply," International Association of Decision Sciences, Asia University, Taiwan, vol. 24(2), pages 134-166, June.
    2. Akihito Asano & Rod Tyers, 2016. "Japan's oligopolies: potential gains from third arrow reforms," CAMA Working Papers 2016-03, Centre for Applied Macroeconomic Analysis, Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University.
    3. Kyoji Fukao & Tatsuji Makino & Tokihiko Settsu, 2021. "Human Capital And Economic Growth In Japan: 1885–2015," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 35(3), pages 710-740, July.
    4. Yoko Konishi & Yoshihiko Nishiyama, 2020. "Efficiency of the Retail Industry and Inelastic Supply," Advances in Decision Sciences, Asia University, Taiwan, vol. 24(2), pages 134-166, June.
    5. Jon Samuels & Erich Strassner, 2019. "Toward a Global Integrated Industry-level Production Account: A Proposal," International Productivity Monitor, Centre for the Study of Living Standards, vol. 36, pages 7-33, Spring.
    6. Asano, Akihito & Tyers, Rod, 2019. "Japan's oligopolies: Potential economy wide gains from structural reforms," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 361-375.
    7. FUKAO Kyoji & IKEUCHI Kenta & KWON Hyeog Ug & YoungGak KIM & MAKINO Tatsuji & TAKIZAWA Miho, 2015. "Lessons from Japan's Secular Stagnation," Discussion papers 15124, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    8. KONISHI Yoko, 2017. "Global Service Value Chain in Japan: Inbound tourism cases," Policy Discussion Papers 17011, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    9. Kyoji FUKAO & Taisuke KAMEDA & Kota NAKAMURA & Ryoichi NAMBA & Masahiro SATO, 2017. "Measurement of Deflators and Real Value Added in the Service Sector," Economic Analysis, Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), vol. 194, pages 9-44, May.
    10. NOMURA Koji & MIYAGAWA Kozo, 2015. "The Japan-U.S. Price Level Index for Industry Outputs," Discussion papers 15059, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    11. KONISHI Yoko & NISHIYAMA Yoshihiko, 2016. "Efficiency of the Retail Industry: Case of inelastic supply functions," Discussion papers 16054, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    12. KONISHI Yoko & NOMURA Koji, 2015. "Energy Efficiency Improvement and Technical Changes in Japanese Industries, 1955-2012," Discussion papers 15058, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    13. FUKAO Kyoji & KIM YoungGak & KWON Hyeog Ug, 2021. "Sources of Growth and Stagnation in the Japanese Economy: An Analysis Based on Data for Listed Firms Spanning More Than Five Decades," Discussion papers 21094, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Koji Nomura & Kozo Miyagawa & Jon D. Samuels, 2018. "Benchmark 2011 Integrated Estimates of the Japan-U.S. Price Level Index for Industry Outputs," BEA Working Papers 0161, Bureau of Economic Analysis.
    2. Robert Inklaar & Marcel P. Timmer & Bart Van Ark, 2007. "Mind the Gap! International Comparisons of Productivity in Services and Goods Production," German Economic Review, Verein für Socialpolitik, vol. 8(2), pages 281-307, May.
    3. FUKAO Kyoji & IKEUCHI Kenta & KWON Hyeog Ug & YoungGak KIM & MAKINO Tatsuji & TAKIZAWA Miho, 2015. "Lessons from Japan's Secular Stagnation," Discussion papers 15124, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    4. Federico Biagi, 2013. "ICT and Productivity: A Review of the Literature," JRC Working Papers on Digital Economy 2013-09, Joint Research Centre.
    5. Andrea Fracasso, 2015. "Economic Rebalancing and Growth: the Japanese experience and China’s prospects," DEM Discussion Papers 2015/07, Department of Economics and Management.
    6. W Max Corden & Sisira Jayasuriya, 2016. "The Japanese macroeconomic mystery," Departmental Working Papers 2016-03, The Australian National University, Arndt-Corden Department of Economics.
    7. Nicholas Oulton, 2023. "Measuring Productivity: The Response of National Statistical Institutes to the OECD’s Productivity and Capital Manuals," International Productivity Monitor, Centre for the Study of Living Standards, vol. 45, pages 200-225, Fall.
    8. Diane Coyle & Jen‐Chung Mei, 2023. "Diagnosing the UK productivity slowdown: which sectors matter and why?," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 90(359), pages 813-850, July.
    9. Toma Lankauskiene, 2021. "Labour Productivity Growth Determinants in the Manufacturing Sector in the Baltic States," ConScienS Conference Proceedings 025tl, Research Association for Interdisciplinary Studies.
    10. Malmaeus, J. Mikael & Alfredsson, Eva C., 2017. "Potential Consequences on the Economy of Low or No Growth - Short and Long Term Perspectives," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 57-64.
    11. David Tao,Liang & Harry X,Wu, 2023. "Revisiting the role of ICT in China's growth," IDE Discussion Papers 883, Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization(JETRO).
    12. Elstner, Steffen & Grimme, Christian & Kecht, Valentin & Lehmann, Robert, 2022. "The diffusion of technological progress in ICT," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    13. Wulong Gu, 2018. "Accounting for Slower Productivity Growth in the Canadian Business Sector after 2000: The Role of Capital Measurement Issues," International Productivity Monitor, Centre for the Study of Living Standards, vol. 34, pages 21-39, Spring.
    14. Piotr Ciżkowicz & Andrzej Rzońca & Andrzej Torój, 2019. "In Search of an Appropriate Lower Bound. The Zero Lower Bound vs. the Positive Lower Bound under Discretion and Commitment," German Economic Review, Verein für Socialpolitik, vol. 20(4), pages 1028-1053, November.
    15. Betts, Caroline, 2021. "Accounting for Japan's Lost Score," MPRA Paper 109285, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    16. Szirmai, Adam & Verspagen, Bart, 2015. "Manufacturing and economic growth in developing countries, 1950–2005," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 46-59.
    17. Dariusz Cezary Kotlewski, 2023. "The soundness of returning to manufacturing through the lens of productivity accounting," Ekonomista, Polskie Towarzystwo Ekonomiczne, issue 3, pages 253-274.
    18. Bert M. Balk, 2010. "An Assumption‐Free Framework For Measuring Productivity Change," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 56(s1), pages 224-256, June.
    19. Maican, Florin G., 2012. "From Boom to Bust and Back Again: A dynamic analysis of IT services," Working Papers in Economics 543, University of Gothenburg, Department of Economics.
    20. Ilya B. Voskoboynikov, 2023. "Sources of productivity growth in Eastern Europe and Russia before the global financial crisis," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 59(3), pages 225-241, June.

    More about this item

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eti:dpaper:15054. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: TANIMOTO, Toko (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/rietijp.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.