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The Choice of Technology and Rural-Urban Migration in Economic Development

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  • Haiwen Zhou

    (Department of Economics, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA 23529, USA)

Abstract

This paper studies a general equilibrium model of rural-urban migration in which manufacturing firms engage in oligopolistic competition and choose increasing returns technologies to maximize profits. Urban residents incur commuting costs to work in the Central Business District. Surprisingly a change in the size of the population or an increase in the exogenously given wage rate will not affect a manufacturing firm¡¯s choice of technology. This helps to explain why firms in developing countries may not adopt labor intensive technologies even under abundant labor supply. An increase in the number of manufacturing firms increases both the employment rate and the level of employment in the manufacturing sector. However, manufacturing firms choose less advanced technologies. Capital accumulation leads manufacturing firms to choose more advanced technologies, but may not increase employment in the manufacturing sector.

Suggested Citation

  • Haiwen Zhou, 2013. "The Choice of Technology and Rural-Urban Migration in Economic Development," Frontiers of Economics in China-Selected Publications from Chinese Universities, Higher Education Press, vol. 8(3), pages 337-361, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:fec:journl:v:8:y:2013:i:3:p:337-361
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    File URL: http://journal.hep.com.cn/fec/EN/10.3868/s060-002-013-0018-9
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Haiwen Zhou, 2019. "Resource abundance, market size, and the choice of technology," Bulletin of Economic Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 71(4), pages 641-656, October.
    2. Haiwen Zhou, 2023. "Impact of international trade under dual labor markets," Bulletin of Economic Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 75(4), pages 917-934, October.
    3. Haiwen Zhou, 2015. "Unemployment and Economic Integration for Developing Countries," Frontiers of Economics in China-Selected Publications from Chinese Universities, Higher Education Press, vol. 10(4), pages 664-690, December.
    4. Haiwen Zhou, 2015. "The Choice of Technology and Equilibrium Wage Rigidity," Frontiers of Economics in China-Selected Publications from Chinese Universities, Higher Education Press, vol. 10(2), pages 252-271, June.
    5. Haiwen Zhou, 2021. "Fixed Costs and the Division of Labor," Annals of Economics and Finance, Society for AEF, vol. 22(1), pages 63-81, May.
    6. Constantine Angyridis & Haiwen Zhou, 2022. "Search, technology choice, and unemployment," International Studies of Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 17(3), pages 296-310, September.
    7. Lei Wen & Haiwen Zhou, 2023. "The choice of technology in economic development," Australian Economic Papers, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 62(4), pages 747-763, December.
    8. Haiwen Zhou & Ruhai Zhou, 2016. "A Dynamic Model of the Choice of Technology in Economic Development," Frontiers of Economics in China-Selected Publications from Chinese Universities, Higher Education Press, vol. 11(3), pages 498-518, September.
    9. Marco Baudino, 2021. "Rural-to-urban migration in developing economies: characterizing the role of the rural labor supply in the process of urban agglomeration and city growth," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 66(3), pages 533-556, June.
    10. Christopher Colburn & Haiwen Zhou, 2022. "The partition of production between households and markets," International Studies of Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 17(1), pages 21-35, June.

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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • O14 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Industrialization; Manufacturing and Service Industries; Choice of Technology
    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure
    • R14 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Land Use Patterns

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