Productivity Relations among Second Wave Industrializers: Evidence from German–Swedish Benchmarks for 1907 and 1954

• Sweden and Germany are both famous as late industrializers, or more precisely as participants in the second wave of industrialization: after especially the United Kingdom led the way, a host of countries including Scandinavia and (the newly united) Germany followed from the 1870s on. The analysis of “late industrialization” often builds on a Gerschenkronian perspective, stressing the “advantages of backwardness” resulting on fast productivity growth. Furthermore, in economic history both Sweden and Germany have a reputation for strong iron and steel production, while Germany is also famous for its coal mines as well as the chemical industry and engineering. Sweden is more renowned for products relating to pulp and paper, but also engineering. This paper makes historical reconstructions of sectoral level productivity relations between manufacturing sectors in Sweden and Germany in 1907 and 1954 to establish which of the two countries had the more productive industries at different points in time from the late 19th century to the mid 20th century. We also focus specifically on the sectoral level.

Ämnesord

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Ekonomi och näringsliv -- Ekonomisk historia (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Economics and Business -- Economic History (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

productivity

manufacturing

industrialization

Germany

Sweden

Publikations- och innehållstyp

vet (ämneskategori)

kon (ämneskategori)