The extensive margin,sectoral shares,and international business cycles

Abstract This paper documents some previously neglected features of sectoral shares at business cycle frequencies in OECD economies. We find that the non‐traded output share is as volatile as aggregate GDP and for most countries is countercyclical. While the standard international real business cycle model has difficulty in accounting for these properties of the data, an extended model that allows for sectoral adjustment along both the intensive and the extensive margins does a much better job of replicating these statistics. The model also matches better the correlation between relative consumption growth and real exchange rate changes, a key measure of international risk‐sharing.