Title

Heterogeneous Paths of Industrialization

Author(s)

Federico Huneeus Federico Huneeus (Yale University)

Richard Rogerson Richard Rogerson (Princeton University)

Abstract

Industrialization experiences differ significantly across countries. We use a bench-mark model of structural change to shed light on the sources of this heterogeneity and, in particular, the phenomenon of premature deindustrialization. Our analysis leads to three key findings. First, benchmark models of structural change robustly generate hump-shaped patterns for the evolution of the manufacturing sector. Second, heterogeneous patterns of catch-up in sectoral productivities across countries can generate variation in industrialization experiences similar to those found in the data, including premature deindustrialization. Third, differences in the rate of agricultural productivity growth across economies can account for a large share of the variation in peak manufacturing employment shares.

Creation Date

2020-07

Section URL ID

Paper Number

2020-23

URL

https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w27580/w27580.pdf

File Function

Jel

E24, O11

Keyword(s)

Structural transformation, Productivity growth, Industrialization

Suppress

false

Series

13