International Convergence and Divergence of Material Input Structures: An Industry-Level Perspective

Erik Dietzenbacher (1) , Alex R. Hoen (2) , Bart Los (3) , Jan G. Meist (1)

1 Faculty of Economics
2 Dutch Association of Insurers
3 Faculty of Economics

This paper analyzes whether international material input structures have converged or diverged over time. Pooled variances for 25 industries were obtained from OECD input-output tables in constant prices for nine countries over the period 1971-1990. It is found that high-tech industries were mainly characterized by divergence of material input structures, whereas convergence was found for many low-tech, more mature industries. In line with studies on (labor) productivity growth rates, convergence of material input structures was prevalent in the 1970s, while divergence dominated in the 1980s.

Mots clés: Social Sciences & Humanities

Erik Dietzenbacher, Alex R. Hoen, Bart Los, Jan G. Meist. International Convergence and Divergence of Material Input Structures: An Industry-Level Perspective. Applied Economics, 2009, 41 (26), pp.3337-3344. ⟨10.1080/00036840701439355⟩. ⟨hal-00582054⟩