We consider whether Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries are mainly poor because they are governed worse than other countries, as suggested by recent studies on the supremacy of institutions. Our empirical results show that the supremacy of institutions does not hold. SSA countries appear to face...

There is surprisingly little macroeconomic empirical research which would support a presumed link between education and development. I identify three major reasons why it remains difficult to estimate the economic relevance of education as a determinant of growth and development. First, most...

Easterly has written a unique book about the international differences in the standard of living, which have never been larger in the history of mankind than today. What makes Easterly's book unique is the masterly mixture of four elements: a first-hand knowledge of developing countries, a...

We suggest a new way to quantify the growth effects of capital mobility. We find that for reasonable parameter values, capital mobility has a large impact on income growth.

Competitive pressures for EU industries have mounted because the international division of labour through trade has been complemented by corporate globalisation strategies. The EU is shown to' have dealt with this challenge less successfully than the other two members of the Triad. So far, it...

Regional output per worker has converged across Chinese provinces in 1979- 1989. The estimated rate of convergence is 2.2 percent. This rate of convergence can be explained by neoclassical growth model conditional on assumptions about factor mobility and production elasticities. My empirical...

Since the 1980s, competitive pressure has increased in the world economy. In addition to traditional trade flows, the globalisation of production and markets has greatly enhanced the complexity of the international division of labour. Declining transaction and information costs have stimulated...