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Structural Change Within versus Across Firms: Evidence from the United States

Author

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  • Fort, Teresa
  • Ding, Xiang
  • Redding, Stephen
  • Schott, Peter

Abstract

We document the role of intangible capital in manufacturing firms' substantial contribution to non-manufacturing employment growth from 1977-2019. Exploiting data on firms' "auxiliary" establishments, we develop a novel measure of proprietary in-house knowledge and show that it is associated with increased growth and industry switching. We rationalize this reallocation in a model where firms combine physical and knowledge inputs as complements, and where producing the latter in-house confers a sector-neutral productivity advantage facilitating within-firm structural transformation. Consistent with the model, manufacturing firms with auxiliary employment pivot towards services in response to a plausibly exogenous decline in their physical input prices.

Suggested Citation

  • Fort, Teresa & Ding, Xiang & Redding, Stephen & Schott, Peter, 2022. "Structural Change Within versus Across Firms: Evidence from the United States," CEPR Discussion Papers 17352, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:17352
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    Cited by:

    1. is not listed on IDEAS
    2. Chen, Natalie & Novy, Dennis & , Perroni, Carlo & Chern Wong, Horng Chern, 2023. "Urban-Biased Structural Change," The Warwick Economics Research Paper Series (TWERPS) 1484, University of Warwick, Department of Economics.
    3. Ali Sen, 2024. "Structural Change at a Disaggregated Level: Sectoral Heterogeneity Matters," Working Papers 048, The Productivity Institute.
    4. Fariha Kamal & Jessica McCloskey & Wei Ouyang, 2022. "Multinational Firms in the U.S. Economy: Insights from Newly Integrated Microdata," BEA Working Papers 0202, Bureau of Economic Analysis.
    5. Xiang Ding, 2023. "Industry Linkages from Joint Production," Working Papers 23-02, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    6. Fernando Leibovici & David Wiczer, 2023. "Firm Exit and Liquidity: Evidence from the Great Recession," Opportunity and Inclusive Growth Institute Working Papers 074, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.
    7. Justin R. Pierce & Peter K. Schott & Cristina Tello-Trillo, 2022. "Trade Liberalization and Labor-Market Outcomes: Evidence from US Matched Employer-Employee Data," Working Papers 22-42, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    8. Kox, Henk L.M., 2022. "A micro-macro model of foreign direct investment: Knowledge-based gravity forces, self-selection and third-country effects," EconStor Preprints 266494, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.
    9. Martina Magli, 2022. "The spillover effect of services offshoring on local labour markets," CEP Discussion Papers dp1892, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
    10. Francesco Bripi & Raffaello Bronzini & Elena Gentili & Andrea Linarello & Elisa Scarinzi, 2022. "Structural change and firm dynamics in the south of Italy," Questioni di Economia e Finanza (Occasional Papers) 676, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    11. Ali Sen, 2024. "Structural Change at a Disaggregated Level: Sectoral Heterogeneity Matters," Working Papers 048, The Productivity Institute.
    12. Lorenz K.F. Ekerdt & Kai-Jie Wu, 2024. "The Rise of Specialized Firms," Working Papers 24-06, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    13. Stephen J. Redding, 2020. "Trade and Geography," NBER Working Papers 27821, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    14. Aaron Flaaen & Fariha Kamal & Eunhee Lee & Kei-Mu Yi, 2024. "An Anatomy of U.S. Establishments’ Trade Linkages in Global Value Chains," Working Papers 2419, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
    15. Greenland, Andrew & Ion, Mihai & Lopresti, John & Schott, Peter K., 2024. "Using equity market reactions to infer exposure to trade liberalization," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 152(C).
    16. repec:ces:ceswps:_10944 is not listed on IDEAS
    17. Teresa C. Fort, 2023. "The Changing Firm and Country Boundaries of US Manufacturers in Global Value Chains," Working Papers 23-38, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    18. Bripi, Francesco & Bronzini, Raffaello & Gentili, Elena & Linarello, Andrea & Scarinzi, Elisa, 2024. "Structural change and firm dynamics in Southern Italy," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 678-691.
    19. Singer, Gregor, 2024. "Complementary inputs and industrial development can lower electricity prices improve energy efficiency?," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 122365, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    20. Nicholas Bloom & Kyle Handley & André Kurmann & Philip A. Luck, 2024. "The China Shock Revisited: Job Reallocation and Industry Switching in U.S. Labor Markets," NBER Working Papers 33098, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.

    More about this item

    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • D24 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Production; Cost; Capital; Capital, Total Factor, and Multifactor Productivity; Capacity
    • L16 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Industrial Organization and Macroeconomics; Macroeconomic Industrial Structure
    • O47 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Empirical Studies of Economic Growth; Aggregate Productivity; Cross-Country Output Convergence

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