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Convergence of GDP per capita in advanced countries over the twentieth century

Author

Listed:
  • Antonin Bergeaud

    (Banque de France)

  • Gilbert Cette

    (Banque de France
    AMSE)

  • Rémy Lecat

    (Banque de France
    AMSE)

Abstract

This study compares GDP per capita levels and growth rates across 17 advanced economies over the period 1890–2013 using an accounting breakdown and runs Phillips and Sul (Econometrica 75(6):1771–1855, 2007) convergence tests. An overall convergence process has been at work among advanced economies, mainly after WWII, driven mostly by capital intensity and then TFP, while trends in hours worked and employment rates are disparate. However, this convergence process came to a halt during technology shocks, during the two world wars and since the 1990s, with the convergence of advanced economies stopping far from the level of US GDP per capita.

Suggested Citation

  • Antonin Bergeaud & Gilbert Cette & Rémy Lecat, 2020. "Convergence of GDP per capita in advanced countries over the twentieth century," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 59(5), pages 2509-2526, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:empeco:v:59:y:2020:i:5:d:10.1007_s00181-019-01761-x
    DOI: 10.1007/s00181-019-01761-x
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    GDP per capita; Productivity; Convergence; Technological change; Global history;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N10 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations - - - General, International, or Comparative
    • O47 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Empirical Studies of Economic Growth; Aggregate Productivity; Cross-Country Output Convergence
    • E20 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - General (includes Measurement and Data)

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