Sources of Economic Growth in Latin American Countries

Abstract

The growth-accounting approach is used to see what economic growth the seven major Latin American countries have experienced and which experiences are common. The purpose is to determine which economic policies are conducive to growth. Statistics for the 1940 to 1974 period are presented on gross domestic product (GDP), the share of labor in terms of gross input (employment) and the quality component, and capital input. A comparison of these statistics shows a relationship between the rates of change in GDP and the total inputs in that countries experiencing extremely high or low rates of GDP growth had corresponding rates of capital-labor inputs. Labor quality was an important component in most countries in contrast to capital quality. 34 references.