Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/129999 
Year of Publication: 
2015
Series/Report no.: 
School of Economics Discussion Papers No. 1505
Publisher: 
University of Kent, School of Economics, Canterbury
Abstract: 
We provide a general theoretical characterization of how technology choice affects the long-run elasticity of substitution between capital and labour. While the shape of the technology frontier determines the long-run growth path and the long-run elasticity, adjustment costs in technology choice allow capital-labour complementarity in the short run. We develop a class of production functions that are consistent with balanced growth even in the presence of permanent investment-specific or other kinds of biased technical progress but where, consistent with empirical evidence, short-run dynamics are characterized by complementarity. Importantly, the approach is easily implementable and yields a powerful way to introduce CES-type production functions in macroeconomic models. We provide an illustration within an estimated dynamic general equilibrium model and show that the use of the new production technology provides a good match for the short and medium run behavior of the US labour share.
Subjects: 
balanced growth
appropriate technology
elasticity of substitution
JEL: 
E25
O33
O40
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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