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British Industrialization and the Profit Constraint Hypothesis: The Case of a Manchester Cotton Enterprise, 1798-1827

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  • Harvey S. James Jr.

    (University of Hartford)

Abstract

This paper test the hypothesis that capital market imperfections constrained the growth of British firms during the Industrial Revolution. Using data on the cost structure of a representative British cotton manufacturer during the 1798 to 1827 period, this paper shows that the scale of operation was too small. The findings suggests that industrialization could have proceeded more rapidly if firms would have had access to alternative sources of capital financing.

Suggested Citation

  • Harvey S. James Jr., 1996. "British Industrialization and the Profit Constraint Hypothesis: The Case of a Manchester Cotton Enterprise, 1798-1827," Economic History 9612003, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:wpa:wuwpeh:9612003
    Note: Type of Document - Word 7.0; prepared on IBM PC Pentium running Windows95; to print on HP laserjet 4; pages: 14; figures: none
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Braeutigam, Ronald R & Daughety, Andrew F & Turnquist, Mark A, 1982. "The Estimation of a Hybrid Cost Function for a Railroad Firm," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 64(3), pages 394-404, August.
    2. Braeutigam, Ronald R. & Daughety, Andrew F., 1983. "On the estimation of returns to scale using variable cost functions," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 11(1-2), pages 25-31.
    3. S. D. Chapman, 1979. "Financial Restraints on the Growth of Firms in the Cotton Industry, 1790–1850," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 32(1), pages 50-69, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    JEL classification:

    • N20 - Economic History - - Financial Markets and Institutions - - - General, International, or Comparative

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