International trade, the division of labor, and unemployment

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Matusz, SJ
• 刊物名称: INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC REVIEW
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0020-6598
• DOI: 10.2307/2527246
• 发表日期: 1996
• 页码: 71-84
• 关键词: product differentiation; comparative advantage; implicit contracts; MODEL; economies; POLICY; GROWTH; scale

摘要

I merge a model of monopolistic competition in the production of intermediate goods with the Shapiro-Stiglitz model of efficiency wages to show that the introduction of international trade leads to increased employment in both countries. The intuition is that trade results in a greater division of labor due to the increased variety of available intermediates. The resulting increase in productivity yields higher real wages, thus relaxing the efficiency-wage constraint and permitting an increase in employment. The increase in employment then magnifies the benefits of trade. Similar reasoning applies even when unemployment is generated from other processes.