Promotion of manufactured exports as development strategy of semi-industrialized countries: The Brazilian case

Zusammenfassung Die F?rderung der Industriewarenausfuhr als Entwicklungsstrategie halbindustrialisierter L?nder: Das brasilianische Beispiel. — In einigen bereits weiter fortgeschrittenen Entwicklungsl?ndern l?\t sich die auf ImportSubstitution basierende Wachstumsstrategie nicht l?nger verfolgen, da die M?glichkeiten der Umlenkung der Importnachfrage auf den heimischen Markt nahezu ersch?pft sind. Damit ergibt sich die Notwendigkeit der Wahl einer neuen Wachstumsstrategie. Da\ diese mit Erfolg eine Exportf?rderungspolitik sein kann, wird am Beispiel Brasiliens gezeigt. Die brasilianischen Ma\nahmen (Wechselkurspolitik, steuerliche Ma\nahmen, kreditpolitische Entscheidungen und direkte Unterstützung der Exporteure bei ihren Verkaufsbemühungen auf dem Weltmarkt) werden im einzelnen beschrieben und ihre Effekte abgesch?tzt. Die sehr hohen Zuwachsraten der industriellen Exporte und die zunehmende Diversifikation (im Hinblick auf L?nder und Produkte) lassen sich — zumindest teilweise — mit der neuen Strategie erkl?ren.

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Résumé L’encouragement de l’exportation de produits industriels comme stratégie de développement des pays semi-industrialisés: Le cas du Brésil. — Certains pays moins développés, qui ont basé leur stratégie de développement sur la substitution de l’importation, ne peuvent pas continuer dans cette voie, étant donné que les possibilités de tourner la demande d’importations vers le marché du pays ont été pratiquement épuisées. Il leur faut donc choisir une autre stratégie de développement. En examinant le cas du Brésil, cet article veut démontrer qu’on peut, avec succès, choisir une politique d’encouragement de l’exportation. Les mesures prises au Brésil comprennent une politique des changes, des mesures fiscales, une politique des crédits et d’autres mesures pour aider les exportateurs à réussir dans le marché mondial. Toutes ces mesures sont décrites en détail, et leurs effets sont calculés. Les taux d’accroissement toujours montants des exportations industrielles et la diversification, quant aux pays et quant aux produits, qui va en augmentant, doivent être attribués, au moins en partie, à la nouvelle stratégie.

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Resumen El fomento de la exportación manufacturera como estrategia de desarrollo en países semi-industrializados: El caso del Brasil. — En algunos países en desarrollo ya mas avanzados no es posible continuar persiguiendo una estrategia de crecimiento económico basada en la sustitución de importaciones, debido a que las posibilidades de tal sustitución han sido casi completamente consumidas. De ahí resulta la necesidad de adoptar una nueva estrategia de crecimiento. Que esta puede consistir en una política de promoción de las exportaciones, lo demuestran las recientes experiencias hechas en Brasil. El autor describe las diferentes medidas brasile?as al respecte (política cambiaria, medidas impositivas, decisiones crediticias, y asistencia directa para el marketing de los exportadores), y trata de evaluar su impacto. Sostiene el autor que las extraordinarias tasas de incremento de las exportaciones industrials y la creciente diversificación de productos y mercados es — al menos en parte — fruto de la nueva estrategia.

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Riassunto L’incremento delle esportazioni di merci industriali come strategia di sviluppo di Paesi semindustriali: l’esempio brasiliano. — In alcuni Paesi in via di sviluppo già molto progrediti, la strategia della crescita che si basa sulla sostituzione dell’importazione non si può seguire più a lungo, giacchè le possibilità di dirigere altrove sul mercato indigeno la domanda d’importazione sono press’ a poco esaurite. Con ciò si dà la necessità della scelta di una nuova strategia della crescita. Che questa possa essere con successo una politica di incremento dell’esportazione, viene mostrato in base all’esempio del Brasile. Le misure brasiliane (politica dei cambi, misure fiscali, decisioni di politica creditizia e appoggio diretto agli esportatori nei loro sforzi di vendita sul mercato mondiale) vengono singolarmente descritte e sono valutati i loro effetti. Il tasso d’incremento assai alto delle esportazioni industriali e la crescente diversificazione (in considerazione di Paesi e prodotti) si può —per lo meno in parte — spiegare con la nuova strategia.

     

Price instability and inflation: The Latin American case

This paper provides empirical evidence substantiating the existence of an over-time relationship between inflation and price variability for 23 Latin American countries, by employing a novel measure of price instability based on price expectations.     

Future sustainable Latin American growth: A need for savings

This article, starting from the Lewis emphasis upon increasing productivity, analyzes the external and internal sources of disequilibrium in Latin America over the last two decades. It indicates the impressive progress, and continuing requirements, that have been made in both dimensions over the last fifteen years. The real requirement for continued growth at high rates, emphasized by Lewis more than 45 years ago, is, however, increased rates of internal saving. Until the Latin American countries are able successfully to increase their domestic savings, hopes for sustained expansion will be continuingly frustrated.     

The role of real income level and income distribution in fulfillment of basic needs

Using internationally comparable estimates of real GDP per capita, along with World Bank data on seven basic-needs indicators and one income equality measure, relative importance of real income level and income equality, for improvement in the provision of basic needs, is assessed on the basis of a multiple regression model. Income level seems important in almost all cases; but the importance of income equality is observed only on a limited scale. Although income is probably more important in low-income LDCs, the relationships studied appear broadly similar in the low-income and the middle-income LDC contexts.     

Trade policies,macroeconomic adjustment,and manufactured exports: The Latin American experience

Conclusions Changes in trade policy, especially in quantitative import restrictions, have played an important role in the macroeconomic adjustment in all six countries. For long periods, trade policy tightenings and occasional liberalizations were the main instruments of balance-of-payments policy. Most tightenings were preceded by a deterioration in the current account. In several cases tight import restrictions had adverse effects on output and, hence, on investment and growth. Since changes in trade policies, referred to here as episodes, were usually part of a policy package, it is difficult to isolate the effects of the episodes themselves. Sometimes they have been followed by current account improvements and other times by deteriorations.     

The Structural Pension Reform in Chile: Effects, Comparisons with Other Latin American Reforms, and Lessons

Chile pioneered a structural reform in Latin America that privatizedits public pension system and influenced similar reforms inanother nine countries. Twenty-five years later, this articleevaluates the macroeconomic, microeconomic, and social effectsof this reform in Chile and the other countries in the region,and extracts lessons from those experiences. Fiscal costs ofthe reform have been high and prolonged, exceeded capital accumulation,and had a negative impact on national savings, but Chile's reformhas contributed to the development of capital markets; employer'scontributions were eliminated or reduced in half of the countriesand the worker's share in the total contribution averages 65per cent; competition is afflicted by a small number of administratorsand a high level of concentration; administrative costs arehigh and stagnant; capital returns are fair but declining; portfoliodiversification has been achieved only in Chile and Peru; labour-forcecoverage has declined in all ten countries, and gender and incomeinequalities have expanded. Footnotes ¹ E-mail addresses: aarenas{at}dipres.gob.cl; cmesa{at}usa.net     

An analytical defence of basic needs: The optimal-savings perspective

This paper seeks to provide an analytical defence of the basic needs approach to planning by invoking arguments derived from optimal-savings models. It shows that the ‘optimal’ provisions of basic needs, far from reducing growth, can have a salutory effect on it.     

Income growth, inequality and poverty reduction: A case study of eight provinces in China

This paper examines the growth performance and income inequality in eight Chinese provinces during the period of 1989–2004 using the China Health and Nutrition Survey data. It shows that income grew for all segments of the population, and as a result, poverty incidence has fallen. However, income growth has been uneven, most rapidly in coastal areas, and among the educated. A decomposition analysis based on household income determination suggests that income growth can largely be attributed to the increase in returns to education and to the shift of employment into secondary and tertiary sectors.     

比较与反思:拉美经济社会危机教训汲取

拉美国家在现代化进程中频繁出现的经济社会危机,既有理论上的误区与实践中的盲从,又有历史赋予的凝重和现实造成的迷惘;认真总结其经验教训,对于我国当前的新农村建设和实现城乡社会协调发展无疑具有重要的现实意义。     

Indicators of development: The search for a basic needs yardstick

The measurement of development efforts in developing countries has generally focused on the growth of GNP per head and related concepts. Increasingly, development economists have become aware that growth of output or income by themselves are not adequate indicators of development, and that the reduction of poverty and the satisfaction of basic human needs are goals that should show up in a measure of development. There has been growing interest in designing better measures of development, including modifications of GNP, social indicators and associated systems of social accounts, and composite indices of development. A review of these approaches and concepts points to the conclusion that the use of social and human indicators is the most promising supplement to GNP, particularly if work on social indicators is done in areas central to the basic needs approach.     

Basic needs: The case of Sri Lanka

This article has two related objectives: to judge Sri Lanka's success in meeting its ‘basic needs’ and growth objectives, and to use Sri Lanka's experience to cast light on general hypotheses regarding basic needs. The analysis suggests that Sri Lanka's social expenditures had a substantial cost in growth and unemployment. However, largely because of these social programmes, it has the best social indicators, compared to its income, of any country for which data are available. Its growth has, surprisingly, been above average for low-income countries. Implications for basic-needs programmes include the need to ‘target’ social programmes, the high priority of primary education and the potential high impact, but also high costs, of assuring minimum caloric intakes.     

Rural women and state policy: The Latin American agrarian reform experience

This review of 13 Latin American agrarian reforms shows that most have directly benefited only men. It is argued that this is largely because of the common designation of ‘households’ as the beneficiaries of an agrarian reform and the subsequent incorporation of only male household heads into the new agrarian reform structures. It is shown that a necessary, but not sufficient, condition for rural women to benefit on par with men is that they too be designated as beneficiaries. Women as well as men must be given access to land or the opportunity to participate within the agrarian cooperatives or state farms promoted by an agrarian reform. This comparative analysis of the Latin American agrarian reform demonstrates that this has happened only in countries where the incorporation of rural women to the reform is an explicit objective of state policy.     

Community participation for health: The case of Latin America

Current efforts at involving communities in health activities are analysed from a number of perspectives. Participation may be mainly aimed at easing resource constraints, through involvement in the implementation of health activities. Examples are the construction of health infrastructure, or the enlistment of community health workers — though in Latin America strong medical resistance to delegation has severely restricted their tasks. Participation in decision-making has been even more limited, with the exception of some small-scale NGO projects. Examples are next given of the differences that arise between projects with governmental or NGO sponsorship, or with a conservative or progressive orientation. Finally, the structure of the community, and the socio-political context in which it exists, are examined for the different constraints and opportunities they present to community participation for health.     

Special gains from trade with socialist countries: The case of Tanzania

Trade does not necessarily benefit all trading partners and heavy dependence on trade is a precarious matter. Trade with socialist countries could confer special advantages on Third World trading partners thus making a net benefit more likely. However this requires conditions in which trade ceases to be ‘mere exchange of commodities’ and becomes an element of planned economic integration. Given a non-planned Third World country like Tanzania and given recent approaches to international trade by most socialist countries, it is not surprising that Tanzania is shown to have derived no particular benefits from its trade with the socialist countries. The trade was merely an exchange of commodities, with the possible exception of the trade with China.     

Monetary unions, external shocks and economic performance: A Latin American perspective

During the last few years there has been a renewed analysis in currency unions as a form of monetary arrangement. This new interest has been largely triggered by the Euro experience. Scholars and policy makers have asked about the optimal number of currencies in the world economy. They have analyzed whether different countries satisfy the traditional “optimal currency area” criteria. These include, among other: (a) the synchronization of the business cycle; (b) the degree of factor mobility; and (c) the extent of trade and financial integration. In this paper I analyze the desirability of a monetary union from a Latin American perspective. First, I review the existing literature on the subject. Second, I use a large data set to analyze the evidence on economic performance in currency union countries. I investigate these countries’ performance on four dimensions: (a) whether countries without a national currency have a lower occurrence of “sudden stop” episodes; (b) whether they have a lower occurrence of “current account reversal” episodes; (c) what is their ability to absorb international terms of trade shocks; and (d) what is their ability to absorb “sudden stops” and “current account reversals” shocks. I find that belonging to a currency union has not lower the probability of facing a sudden stop or a current account reversal. I also find that external shocks have been amplified in currency union countries. The degree of amplification is particularly large when compared to flexible exchange rate countries.     

The structure of transport costs on Latin American exports

Zusammenfassung Die Struktur der Transportkosten für lateinamerikanische Exporte. — In dieser Studie wird die Struktur der Transportkosten für die Exporte aus acht lateinamerikanischen L?ndern untersucht. Die theoretische Spezifizierung der Transportkostenfunktion umfaβt die wichtigsten Merkmale der Transportwege und der Güter, die in die Nachfrage- und die Kostenseite der Transportpreise eingehen, wie Wert pro Stück, Entfernung, Volumen der Ware und Indikatoren für Skalenertr?ge beim Schiffstransport. Ein derartiges Modell wird mit disaggregierten Daten gesch?tzt für die Seetransportpreise von Exporten aus Argentinien, Brasilien, Chile, Kolumbien, Mexiko, Peru, Uruguay und Venezuela. Die Ergebnisse deuten darauf hin, daβ die wichtigeren empirischen Variablen einen groβen Teil der Variation in den Transportkosten erkl?ren. Allerdings unterscheidet sich das Gewicht der Charakteristika von Transportwegen und Gütern von Land zu Land erheblich. Praktisch k?nnten Funktionen dieses Typs benutzt werden, um Transportkosten zu veranschlagen, die h?ufig nicht statistisch erfaβt werden. Im Falle Lateinamerikas und anderer weniger entwickelter L?nder sind solche Berechnungen besonders wichtig, weil sie es gestatten, die cif-Preise zu sch?tzen, zu denen Güter auf den Exportm?rkten angeboten werden k?nnen. Als ein Nebenprodukt wird in dieser Studie auch die Frachtratendiskriminierung durch Schiffahrtskonferenzen untersucht. Im allgemeinen gibt es wenig Hinweise darauf, daβ von den Konferenzen m?gliche Monopolgewinne voll ausgesch?pft werden. Das kann durch Umfang und Art der lateinamerikanischen Exporte erkl?rt werden und auch durch das Vorhandensein eines ?Wettbewerbsrestes? in Form von alternativem Transportangebot durch Tramp- und Charterschiffahrt.

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Résumé La structure des frais de transport sur les exportations latino-américaines. — Cette étude examine la structure des frais de transport sur les exportations des huit pays latino-américains. La spécification théorique de la fonction de frais de transport inclut les caractéristiques majeures routières et des biens qui influent les cótes de demande et d’offre des frais de transport, comme la valeur unitaire, la distance d’embarquement, les biens encombrants, et les indicateurs des économies d’échelle en embarquement. Nous estimons un tel modèle avec les données disagrégées sur les frais de transport d’océan des exportations de l’Argentine, du Brésil, du Chili, de la Colombie, du Mexique, du Pérou, d’Uruguay et du Venezuela. Les résultats indiquent que les variables empiriques majeures expliquent un grand pourcentage des variations en frais de transport. Cependant les effets des caractéristiques routières et des biens varient considérablement parmi les pays individuels. Comme application, on peut utiliser les fonctions de frais de transport de cette manière pour projeter les frais de transport fréquentement pas observés. En cas de l’Amérique latine et des autre pays en voie de développement tels calculs sont particulièrement importants, parce qu’ils permettent des estimations des prix à la livraison (caf) pour lesquels on peut faire les biens disponibles sur les marchés d’exportation. Comme sous-produit, l’étude aussi examine le fait de discrimination en déterminant les tarifs de fret par les conférences des lignes d’océan. Généralement, il y a peu d’évidence de l’exploitation totale des profits monopolistiques par des conférences des lignes, c’est qui est expliqué par le volume et compositions des biens des exportations de l’Amérique latine et par la présence d’une ?pression de concurrence? de manière des services d’embarquement alternatifs comme des tramps et des charte-parties.

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Resumen La estructura de los costos de transporte sobre las exportaciones latinoamericanas. — Este estudio examina la estructura de costos de transporte sobre las exportaciones de ocho países latinoamericanos. La especificación teórjca de la función de costos de transporte incluye la ruta más importante y las caracterfsticas de los productos que entran en los aspectos de demanda y de costos para los cargos de transporte, tales como los valores unitarios, distancia de embarque, volumen del producto e indicadores de economías de escala en el embarque. Un modelo tal se estima con datos desagregados de cargos de transporte marítimo sobre las exportaciones de Argentina, Brasil, Chile, Colombia, México, Perú, Uruguay y Venezuela. Los resultados indican que las variables empíricas más importantes explican una gran proporción de la variación en los costos de transporte. Sin embargo, el impacto de la ruta y de las características de los productos varía considerablemente entre países individuales. Como aplicación, las funciones de costos de transporte de este tipo pueden ser utilizadas para proyectar costos de transporte que frecuentemente no se observan. En el caso de Latinoamérica y de otros países en desarrollo calculaciones de este tipo son especialmente importantes, ya que permiten estimaciones de los precios (cif) de entrega a los cuales los bienes pueden ofrecerse en meracados de exportaciones. Como coproducto el estudio también examina el asunto de la discriminatión de tarifas de las conferencias de lineas oceánicas. En general, existe poca evidencia de la completa explotación de ganancias monopólicas por las conferencias de lineas, lo que se explica por el volúmen y la composición de productos de las exportaciones latinoamericanas y la presencia de un ?márgen competitivo? en la forma de servicios de embarque alternativos como los ?charters? y los ?tramps?.