Can variable elasticity of substitution explain changes in labor shares?

IF 1.3 3区经济学 Q3 ECONOMICS

Journal of Macroeconomics Pub Date : 2023-06-01 DOI:10.1016/j.jmacro.2023.103518

Alessandro Bellocchi, Giuseppe Travaglini

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引用次数: 1

Abstract

In CES production functions, the magnitude of the elasticity of substitution between capital and labor ( $σ$ ) is crucial to explain the evolution of the labor share. The decline in labor share observed worldwide can be explained by capital accumulation if $σ > 1$ . However, empirical evidence on the value of $σ$ is mixed. To shed light on this issue, we employ a Variable Elasticity of Substitution (VES) production function where $σ$ is an endogenous driver of the labor share. Using macro data for six advanced OECD economies from 1980 to 2020 we provide estimates of $σ$ under imperfect competition. We test the prediction of the model by means of simulations. Mainly, we find that capital deepening, markup and technological change explain a significant part of the observed decline in labor shares. The results suggest complementarity between labor and capital in all the countries except the United States.

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可变替代弹性能否解释劳动份额的变化?

在CES生产函数中，资本和劳动之间替代弹性的大小(σ)对于解释劳动份额的演变至关重要。如果σ>1，全球范围内劳动收入占比的下降可以用资本积累来解释。然而，关于σ值的经验证据是混合的。为了阐明这个问题，我们采用可变替代弹性(VES)生产函数，其中σ是劳动份额的内生驱动因素。本文利用经合组织六个发达经济体1980 ~ 2020年的宏观数据，对不完全竞争条件下的σ进行了估计。我们用模拟的方法来检验模型的预测。主要是，我们发现资本深化、加价和技术变革解释了观察到的劳动份额下降的重要部分。结果表明，除美国外，所有国家的劳动力和资本都具有互补性。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Journal of Macroeconomics ECONOMICS-

CiteScore

2.50

自引率

7.10%

发文量

审稿时长

76 days

期刊介绍： Since its inception in 1979, the Journal of Macroeconomics has published theoretical and empirical articles that span the entire range of macroeconomics and monetary economics. More specifically, the editors encourage the submission of high quality papers that are concerned with the theoretical or empirical aspects of the following broadly defined topics: economic growth, economic fluctuations, the effects of monetary and fiscal policy, the political aspects of macroeconomics, exchange rate determination and other elements of open economy macroeconomics, the macroeconomics of income inequality, and macroeconomic forecasting.