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What is the Impact of an Exogenous Shock to the Wage Share? VAR Results for the US Economy, 1973–2018

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  • Deepankar Basu

    (Department of Economics, University of Massachusetts Amherst)

  • Leila Gautham

    (Department of Economics, University of Massachusetts Amherst)

Abstract

This paper uses a novel empirical strategy to present empirical estimates of the effect of an exogenous shock to distribution on demand and accumulation for the US economy from 1973 to 2018. We use recursive vector autoregressions to identify the impact of shocks to the wage share. We impose restrictions motivated by a simple neo-Kaleckian open-economy model, and build on the recursive identification scheme in Christiano, Eichenbaum and Evans (1999) to show that this small set of plausible and transparent assumptions are sufficient to identify the impact of shocks to distribution. We find that positive shocks to the wage share have long-lasting negative impacts on demand and growth. Our results are robust to the inclusion of additional variables and to differences in specification.

Suggested Citation

  • Deepankar Basu & Leila Gautham, 2019. "What is the Impact of an Exogenous Shock to the Wage Share? VAR Results for the US Economy, 1973–2018," UMASS Amherst Economics Working Papers 2019-08, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:ums:papers:2019-08
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    7. Lawrence J. Christiano & Martin Eichenbaum & Charles L. Evans, 2005. "Nominal Rigidities and the Dynamic Effects of a Shock to Monetary Policy," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 113(1), pages 1-45, February.
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Cem Oyvat & Oğuz Öztunalı & Ceyhun Elgin, 2020. "Wage‐led versus profit‐led demand: A comprehensive empirical analysis," Metroeconomica, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 71(3), pages 458-486, July.
    2. Marques, André M. & Lima, Gilberto Tadeu, 2022. "Testing for Granger causality in quantiles between the wage share in income and productive capacity utilization," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 290-312.
    3. Jose Barrales-Ruiz, Ivan Mendieta-Muñoz, Codrina Rada, Daniele Tavani, Rudiger von Arnim, 2020. "The distributive cycle: Evidence and current debates," Working Paper Series, Department of Economics, University of Utah 2020_07, University of Utah, Department of Economics.
    4. Ivan Mendieta-Munoz & Codrina Rada & Marcio Santetti & Rudiger von Arnim, 2020. "The US labour share of income: What shocks matter?," Working Paper Series, Department of Economics, University of Utah 2020_02, University of Utah, Department of Economics.
    5. Barrales-Ruiz, Jose & Arnim, Rudiger von, 2021. "Endogenous fluctuations in demand and distribution: An empirical investigation," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 204-220.
    6. Jose Barrales‐Ruiz & Ivan Mendieta‐Muñoz & Codrina Rada & Daniele Tavani & Rudiger von Arnim, 2022. "The distributive cycle: Evidence and current debates," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(2), pages 468-503, April.
    7. André M. Marques, 2022. "Reviewing demand regimes in open economies with Penn World Table data," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 90(6), pages 730-751, December.
    8. Stamegna, Marco, 2022. "Induced innovation, the distributive cycle, and the changing pattern of labour productivity cyclicality: a SVAR analysis for the US economy," MPRA Paper 113855, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    9. Codrina Rada, Ansel Schiavone, Rudiger von Arnim, 2021. "Goodwin, Baumol & Lewis: How structural change can lead to inequality and stagnation," Working Paper Series, Department of Economics, University of Utah 2021_04, University of Utah, Department of Economics.
    10. Gilberto Tadeu Lima & Andre M. Marques, 2022. "Demand and Distribution in a Dynamic Spatial Panel Model for the United States: Evidence from State-Level Data," Working Papers, Department of Economics 2022_21, University of São Paulo (FEA-USP), revised 05 Oct 2022.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Demand-distribution dynamics; neo-Kaleckian models; functional income distribution; VAR estimation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D3 - Microeconomics - - Distribution
    • C32 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Time-Series Models; Dynamic Quantile Regressions; Dynamic Treatment Effect Models; Diffusion Processes; State Space Models
    • E25 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Aggregate Factor Income Distribution

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