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Luxembourg – diversifying a small open economy

Author

Listed:
  • Jan Stráský

    (OECD)

  • Eckhard Wurzel
Abstract
Developing activities in areas other than finance would help to sustain growth and deal with the declining potential output and trend productivity growth that Luxembourg’s economy is facing. Given the relatively high labour costs, Luxembourg’s future comparative advantages are likely to lie in higher value added and skill intensive activities. Further development of Luxembourg’s high living standards thus requires strengthening the economy’s growth potential via further diversification of activity in high value added sectors. Stepping up investment in knowledge based capital and enterprise innovation can help Luxembourg to maintain and further develop comparative advantages in high value added activities. The government is promoting the formation of enterprise clusters by providing networking, infrastructure investment and financial support for research and development. To enhance the efficiency of the government’s policy, high priority should be given to outcome-oriented evaluation. This is required to ensure that costly infrastructure investment yields good results. Further efforts should be made to create synergies via cross-border initiatives, in particular with respect to research. Experience in other countries points to the importance of regulatory framework conditions in product and labour markets to spur enterprise dynamics. Regulation in professional services can be made more competition friendly, and impediments to labour force participation, notably for women, can be reduced. Productivity and innovation are also affected by the effectiveness of the secondary education system to produce skilled workers, which in Luxembourg is hampered by high repetition rates among students. This Working Paper relates to the 2015 OECD Economic Survey of Luxembourg (www.oecd.org/eco/surveys/economic-survey-luxembourg.htm). Luxembourg – diversifier une petite économie ouverte Développer l’activité dans des domaines autres que la finance permettrait de soutenir la croissance et de faire face à la baisse de la production potentielle et de la croissance tendancielle de la productivité que connaît l’économie luxembourgeoise. Étant donné les coûts de main-d’oeuvre relativement élevés, les avantages comparatifs futurs du Luxembourg vont vraisemblablement reposer sur des activités à plus haute valeur ajoutée et à plus forte intensité de main-d’oeuvre qualifiée. Par conséquent, la progression du niveau de vie du Luxembourg, déjà élevé, exige le renforcement du potentiel de croissance de l’économie à travers une diversification plus poussée dans des secteurs d’activité à forte valeur ajoutée. Investir plus massivement dans le capital intellectuel et dans la capacité d’innovation des entreprises peut aider le Luxembourg à maintenir et à renforcer des avantages comparatifs dans des activités à forte valeur ajoutée. Le gouvernement s’emploie à promouvoir la mise en place de pôles d’entreprises en favorisant la constitution de réseaux, en investissant dans les infrastructures et en aidant financièrement la recherche-développement. Pour améliorer l’efficacité de la politique publique, il faudrait accorder une priorité élevée à la réalisation d’évaluations axées sur les résultats, afin de s’assurer que les investissements dans les infrastructures, qui sont coûteux, produisent des résultats satisfaisants. Il faut aussi s’employer davantage à générer des synergies par le biais d’initiatives transfrontalières, en particulier en matière de recherche. L’expérience d’autres pays fait ressortir l’importance que peut jouer le cadre réglementaire des marchés des produits et de l’emploi pour insuffler un nouveau dynamisme aux entreprises. Il est possible de rendre la réglementation des services professionnels plus favorable à la concurrence et de réduire les facteurs pesant sur le taux d’activité, notamment des femmes. L’efficacité du système d’enseignement secondaire au Luxembourg, qui se caractérise par un taux de redoublement élevé et a du mal à produire des travailleurs qualifiés, affecte également la production et l’innovation. Ce Document de travail se rapporte à l’Étude économique de l’OCDE de Luxembourg, 2015 (www.oecd.org/fr/eco/etudes/etude-economique-luxembourg.htm).

Suggested Citation

  • Jan Stráský & Eckhard Wurzel, 2015. "Luxembourg – diversifying a small open economy," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 1240, OECD Publishing.
  • Handle: RePEc:oec:ecoaaa:1240-en
    DOI: 10.1787/5jrzxg7g2klt-en
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    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1787/5jrzxg7g2klt-en
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    diversification; education; entrepreneuriat; entrepreneurship; government policy; infrastructure; innovation; intangible assets; recherche et développement; éducation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H52 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Government Expenditures and Education
    • H54 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Infrastructures
    • I25 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Economic Development
    • L25 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Firm Performance
    • L52 - Industrial Organization - - Regulation and Industrial Policy - - - Industrial Policy; Sectoral Planning Methods
    • L53 - Industrial Organization - - Regulation and Industrial Policy - - - Enterprise Policy
    • O31 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives
    • O32 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Management of Technological Innovation and R&D
    • O38 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Government Policy

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