Disentangling services in developing regions: A test of Kaldor's first and second laws

Gisela Di Meglio and Jorge Gallego

Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, 2022, vol. 60, issue C, 221-229

Abstract: The paper analyses the contribution of services vis-à-vis manufacturing as a driving force of economic growth in developing regions. In doing so, we test Kaldor´s first and second growth laws for different service categories, providing a comparative view across Asia, Latin America, and Africa. The work focuses attention on the importance of sector-level disaggregation in exploring the relationship between productivity and economic growth. Hence, it accounts for services sector heterogeneity to help to disentangle those specific branches that may fuel economic growth in the different regions. Panel data estimations are performed for a sample of 32 countries during 1970–2010. Our findings support the key role of manufacturing for growth. However, they also emphasise how market services (particularly, business service activities) may also enhance productivity and output growth ‘à la Kaldor’. The research supports recent claims for modernising industrial policy in a way that promotes but is not limited to manufacturing.

Keywords: Services; Structural change; Economic growth; Productivity; Developing countries (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: L80 O11 O14 O47 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:streco:v:60:y:2022:i:c:p:221-229

DOI: 10.1016/j.strueco.2021.11.007

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