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Climatic Conditions and Productivity: An Impact Evaluation in Pre-industrial England

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  • Stéphane Auray
  • Aurélien Eyquem
  • Frédéric Jouneau-Sion

Abstract

In this paper, we bridge economic data and climatic time series to assess the vulnerability of a pre-industrial economy to changes in climatic conditions. We propose an economic model to extract a measure of total productivity from English data (real wages and land rents) in the pre-industrial period. This measure of total productivity is then related to temperatures and precipitations. We find that lower (respectively higher) precipitations (resp. temperatures) enhance productivity. Furthermore, temperatures also have non-linear effects on productivity: large temperature variations lower productivity.We perform counterfactual exercises and quantify the effects of large increases in temperatures on productivity, GDP and welfare.

Suggested Citation

  • Stéphane Auray & Aurélien Eyquem & Frédéric Jouneau-Sion, 2016. "Climatic Conditions and Productivity: An Impact Evaluation in Pre-industrial England," Annals of Economics and Statistics, GENES, issue 121-122, pages 261-277.
    • Handle: RePEc:adr:anecst:y:2016:i:121-122:p:261-277
    DOI: 10.15609/annaeconstat2009.121-122.261
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Gallic, Ewen & Vermandel, Gauthier, 2017. "Weather Shocks, Climate Change and Business Cycles," MPRA Paper 81230, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Olivier Damette & Claude Diebolt & Stephane Goutte & Umberto Triacca, 2020. "Cliometrics of Climate Change: A Natural Experiment on the Little Ice Age," Working Papers 02-20, Association Française de Cliométrie (AFC).
    3. Chai Liang Huang & Lai Ferry Sugianto, 2024. "The scorching temperatures shock effect on firms’ performance: a global perspective," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 62(4), pages 1651-1732, May.
    4. Olivier Damette & Claude Diebolt & Stephane Goutte & Umberto Triacca, 2020. "Cliometrics of Climate Change," Working Papers hal-03215675, HAL.
    5. José L. Martínes-González, 2015. "Did Climate Change Influence English Agricultural Development? (1645-1740)," Working Papers 0075, European Historical Economics Society (EHES).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Climatic Conditions; TFP Shocks; Real Wages; Real Rents.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C22 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Time-Series Models; Dynamic Quantile Regressions; Dynamic Treatment Effect Models; Diffusion Processes
    • N13 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations - - - Europe: Pre-1913
    • O41 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - One, Two, and Multisector Growth Models
    • O47 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Empirical Studies of Economic Growth; Aggregate Productivity; Cross-Country Output Convergence
    • Q54 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Climate; Natural Disasters and their Management; Global Warming

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