Did structural change account for productivity growth within manufacturing during the import substitution era? A historical appraisal of Mexico, Argentina, and Brazil

摘要

The long-term productivity dynamics of Latin America have been the focus of vast research looking to understand the origins of the growth underperformance of the region. Based on new estimates from official industrial censuses from 1935 to 1975, this paper reassesses whether there was a process of structural change within the manufacturing industries of Mexico, Argentina, and Brazil. It presents a quantitative reassessment of the dynamics of productivity in these industries providing a new decomposition of labor productivity growth at a more disaggregated level. The overall results from a shift-share analysis are unable to find substantial evidence of structural change within manufacturing in these countries over the period.