International trade protectionism is frequently supported on the assumption that importables provide more jobs for unskilled labour than does the exportable sector. This contention is questioned here by reference to the factor intensity of New Zealand trade. Exportables are found to be more...

The trade and wages debate worldwide, over the last decade has focused attention on the possible relationships between trade liberalisation and the factor distribution of income. In Australia real wages in manufacturing have remained about the same since 1977 while real GDP has doubled. At the...

This paper aims to highlight the continued importance to New Zealand’s economic future of having a vibrant farming sector. It argues that New Zealand policymakers cannot afford to ignore or downplay the contribution of the primary sector in favour of promoting ‘sexy’ industries such as ICT...

The relative decline in unskilled wages worldwide has prompted some commentators to place the blame on globalisation and trade liberalisation. A more likely cause in the New Zealand context is technical change that favours the employment of skilled labour. This hypothesis is tested using shift...

Twice in the last decade there have been surges in the demand for property in New Zealand - what could be described as speculative bubbles. An important part of these demands has been that for owner occupied housing. This has occurred in a generally buoyant economic environment since the early...