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Growth accounting with misallocation: Or, doing less with more in Singapore

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  • John G. Fernald
  • Brent Neiman

Abstract

We derive aggregate growth-accounting implications for a two-sector economy with heterogeneous capital subsidies and monopoly power. In this economy, measures of total factor productivity (TFP) growth in terms of quantities (the primal) and real factor prices (the dual) can diverge from each other as well as from true technology growth. These distortions potentially give rise to dynamic reallocation effects that imply that change in technology needs to be measured from the bottom up rather than the top down. We show an example, for Singapore, of how incomplete data can be used to obtain estimates of aggregate and sectoral technology growth as well as reallocation effects. We also apply our framework to reconcile divergent TFP estimates in Singapore and to resolve other empirical puzzles regarding Asian development.

Suggested Citation

  • John G. Fernald & Brent Neiman, 2010. "Growth accounting with misallocation: Or, doing less with more in Singapore," Working Paper Series 2010-18, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.
    • Handle: RePEc:fip:fedfwp:2010-18
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    Cited by:

    1. Brent Neiman, 2014. "The Global Decline of the Labor Share," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 129(1), pages 61-103.
    2. John Fernald, 2015. "Comment on "Trends and Cycles in China's Macroeconomy"," NBER Chapters,in: NBER Macroeconomics Annual 2015, Volume 30, pages 90-100 National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Rod Tyers, 2008. "Competition Policy, Corporate Saving and China's Current Account Surplus," ANU Working Papers in Economics and Econometrics 2008-496, Australian National University, College of Business and Economics, School of Economics.
    4. Cette, Gilbert & Fernald, John & Mojon, Benoît, 2016. "The pre-Great Recession slowdown in productivity," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 3-20.
    5. Chun Chang & Kaiji Chen & Daniel F. Waggoner & Tao Zha, 2016. "Trends and Cycles in China's Macroeconomy," NBER Macroeconomics Annual, University of Chicago Press, vol. 30(1), pages 1-84.
    6. S.M. Thangavelu & Toh Mun Heng, 2005. "Bilateral “WTO-Plus†Free Trade Agreements : The WTO Trade Policy Review of Singapore 2004," Trade Working Papers 22590, East Asian Bureau of Economic Research.
    7. repec:kap:jproda:v:48:y:2017:i:2:d:10.1007_s11123-017-0516-4 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Jesus Felipe & J. S. L. Mccombie, 2007. "On the Rental Price of Capital and the Profit Rate: The Perils and Pitfalls of Total Factor Productivity Growth," Review of Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(3), pages 317-345.
    9. Bigsten, Arne & Durevall, Dick, 2004. "Kenya’s Development Path and Factor Prices 1964-2000," Working Papers in Economics 142, University of Gothenburg, Department of Economics.
    10. Gita Gopinath & Brent Neiman, 2014. "Trade Adjustment and Productivity in Large Crises," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(3), pages 793-831, March.
    11. Hyeok Jeong & Robert Townsend, 2007. "Sources of TFP growth: occupational choice and financial deepening," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 32(1), pages 179-221, July.
    12. David Rezza Baqaee & Emmanuel Farhi, 2017. "Productivity and Misallocation in General Equilibrium," NBER Working Papers 24007, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    13. Dai, Xiaoyong & Cheng, Liwei, 2016. "Market distortions and aggregate productivity: Evidence from Chinese energy enterprises," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 304-313.
    14. Sophie Piton, 2018. "Do Unit Labor Costs Matter? A Decomposition Exercise on European Data," PSE Working Papers halshs-01785345, HAL.
    15. Albert Bollard & Peter Klenow & Gunjam Sharma, 2013. "India's Mysterious Manufacturing Miracle," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 16(1), pages 59-85, January.
    16. Sophie Piton, 2017. "Economic Integration and the Non-tradable Sector: The European Experience," 2017 Papers ppi361, Job Market Papers.
    17. Albert Bollard & Peter Klenow & Gunjam Sharma, 2013. "India's Mysterious Manufacturing Miracle," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 16(1), pages 59-85, January.
    18. Jesus Felipe & John S.L. McCombie, 2013. "The Aggregate Production Function and the Measurement of Technical Change," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 1975, June.
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    21. John G. Fernald & J. Christina Wang, 2016. "Why Has the Cyclicality of Productivity Changed? What Does It Mean?," Annual Review of Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 8(1), pages 465-496, October.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Industrial productivity ; Productivity ; Technology ; Singapore;

    JEL classification:

    • E01 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - General - - - Measurement and Data on National Income and Product Accounts and Wealth; Environmental Accounts
    • F43 - International Economics - - Macroeconomic Aspects of International Trade and Finance - - - Economic Growth of Open Economies
    • O4 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity

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