Petróleo y Enfermedad Holandesa en el Ecuador, 2001 – 2015

La literatura de la economía del desarrollo, considera que un país con auge por hidrocarburos sufre de la enfermedad holandesa cuando el incremento del ingreso de capitales por el sector en auge, las remesas o la inversión extranjera, producen apreciación del tipo de cambio real que provoca desindustrialización. Los objetivos de esta investigación fueron establecer si la economía ecuatoriana sufrió del mal holandés en el segundo auge petrolero del Ecuador, entre el periodo 2001-2014 y determinar las variables que explican estos síntomas. Para ello, se realiza un análisis descriptivo basado en información del Banco Central y se construyen dos modelos econométricos con series de tiempo, donde las variables independientes son el tipo de cambio real y el peso de los bienes transables y los bienes no transables. Las variables independientes son el precio del petróleo, el gasto público, el índice de precios del consumidor y las exportaciones manufactureras. Los resultados muestran que la economía ecuatoriana presentó síntomas del mal holandés como el estancamiento de la industria, pero, no existe suficiente evidencia empírica que permita aseverar que fue causado por la apreciación del tipo de cambio real y el incremento de los precios del petróleo. Palabras clave: Enfermedad Holandesa, Petróleo, Tipo de Cambio Real, Transables y No Transables. Abstract The literature on development economics considers that a country with a hydrocarbon boom suffers from the Dutch Disease when the increase in capital inflows by the booming sector, remittances or foreign investment produces appreciation of the real exchange rate that causes deindustrialization. The objectives of this research were to establish if the Ecuadorian economy suffered from Dutch disease in the second oil boom in Ecuador between the period 2001 - 2014 and to determine the variables that explain these symptoms. For this, a descriptive analysis based on information from the Central Bank is carried out and two econometric models with time series are constructed, where the independent variables are the real exchange rate and the weight of tradable goods and nontradable goods. The independent variables are the price of oil, public spending, consumer´s price index and manufacturing exports. The results show that the Ecuadorian economy presented symptoms of the Dutch disease such as the stagnation of the industry, but there is not enough empirical evidence to assert that it was caused by the appreciation of the real exchange rate and the increase in oil prices.Keywords: Dutch Disease, Oil, Real Exchange Rate, Tradable and Non-Tradable

Natural Resources and Local Communities: Evidence from a Peruvian Gold Mine

This paper examines the local economic impact of Yanacocha, a large gold mine in Northern Peru. Using annual household data from 1997 to 2006, we find evidence of a positive effect of the mine's demand for local inputs on real income. The effects are only present in the supply market and surrounding areas, and reach unskilled workers in non-mining sectors. Consistent with a general equilibrium framework, we also find an increase in the local price of nontradable goods. Taken together, our results underline the potential of backward linkages from extractive industries to create positive spillovers in less developed economies. (JEL L72, O13, O18, Q32, Q33, R11)

Dutch Disease – Ökonomische Prozesse und Implikationen für die Entwicklungszusammenarbeit

SummaryWe analyze some potential adverse macroeconomic side-effects of aid transfers: Real appreciation of the recipient′s currency may impair the aggregate output via crowding-out productive export sectors, the so-called Dutch Disease.We use simplified balance sheets to elucidate the effects of four typical combinations of the following actions: The government may or may not spend the value of the aid transfer for nontradable goods. The central bank may or may not sell the respective reserves.If the loss of competitiveness induced by the appreciation is over-compensated by the improved productivity induced by the use of the transfer, then there is no need to worry about the Dutch Disease.

MACROECONOMIC EFFECTS OF GREATER COMPETITION IN THE SERVICE SECTOR: THE CASE OF ITALY

In this paper we assess the effects of increasing competition in the service sector in one country of the euro area. We focus on Italy, which, based on cross-country comparisons, stands out as the country with the highest markups in nonmanufacturing industries among the OECD countries. We propose a two-region (Italy and the rest of the euro area) dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model where we introduce nontradable goods as a proxy for services and we allow for monopolistic competition in labor, manufacturing, and services markets. We then use the model to simulate the macroeconomic and spillover effects of increasing the degree of competition in the Italian services sector. According to the results, reducing the markups in services to the levels prevailing in the rest of the euro area induces in the long run an increase in Italian GDP equal to 11% and an increase in welfare (measured in terms of steady state consumption equivalents) of about 3.5%. Half of the GDP increase would be realized in the first three years. The spillover effects to the rest of the euro area are limited: consumption, investment, and GDP increases are relatively small.