In conventional models of the open economy, the impact on the trade balance of a change in the terms of trade depends upon whether the Marshall-Lerner condition on demand elasticities is satisfied. This paper shows that, in a model which incorporates rational savings behavior, the link between...

This paper presents an empirical analysis of the macroeconomic and microeconomic factors underlying the causes and persistence of the U.S. external deficit in the 1980s. The paper begins with a review of the extensive literature on this subject, and then outlines an analytical framework that...