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Capital and Economic Growth in Britain, 1270-1870: Preliminary Findings

Author

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  • Broadberry, Stephen
  • de Pleijt, Alexandra
Abstract
Estimates of capital formation and the stock of capital in Britain are provided for the period 1270-1870 and used to analyse economic growth. (1) We chart the growing importance of fixed relative to working capital, the declining importance of land and the growth of net overseas assets. (2) Kaldor’s stylised facts of a rising capital-labour ratio and a stationary capital-output ratio are broadly confirmed, but only if attention is confined to fixed capital. (3) Extensive form growth accounts suggest that output growth was driven largely by factor input growth, while intensive form growth accounts suggest that TFP growth was more important than capital deepening in explaining the growth of output per head. (4) The investment share of GDP increased substantially during the transition from pre-industrial to modern economic growth.

Suggested Citation

  • Broadberry, Stephen & de Pleijt, Alexandra, 2021. "Capital and Economic Growth in Britain, 1270-1870: Preliminary Findings," CEPR Discussion Papers 15889, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:15889
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    Cited by:

    1. Broadberry, Stephen, 2021. "Accounting for the Great Divergence: Recent Findings from Historical National Accounting," CEPR Discussion Papers 15936, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    2. Stephen Broadberry, 2024. "British Economic Growth and Development," Springer Books, in: Claude Diebolt & Michael Haupert (ed.), Handbook of Cliometrics, edition 3, pages 951-986, Springer.
    3. Seán Kenny & Jason Lennard & Kevin Hjortshøj O’Rourke, 2020. "An annual index of Irish industrial production, 1800-1921," Oxford Economic and Social History Working Papers _185, University of Oxford, Department of Economics.
    4. Lambert, Thomas, 2021. "The Baran Ratio, Investment, and British Economic Growth and Investment," MPRA Paper 109546, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    5. repec:cte:whrepe:33369 is not listed on IDEAS
    6. Thomas E. Lambert, 2024. "British Public Investment, Government Spending, Housing, and the Industrial Revolution: A Study of Governmental and Social Surplus Absorption," Journal of Economic Issues, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 58(4), pages 1378-1401, October.
    7. Thomas E. Lambert, 2024. "British Public Investment, Government Spending, Housing, and the Industrial Revolution: A Study of Governmental and Social Surplus Absorption," Journal of Economic Issues, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 58(4), pages 1378-1401, October.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Capital; Economic growth; Britain; Long run;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N13 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations - - - Europe: Pre-1913
    • N33 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy - - - Europe: Pre-1913
    • O10 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - General
    • O47 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Empirical Studies of Economic Growth; Aggregate Productivity; Cross-Country Output Convergence

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