Sorting, Matching and Economic Complexity
CID Faculty Working Paper No. 392
Muhammed A. Yildirim
March 2021
Abstract:
Assignment models in trade predict that countries with higher productivity levels are assortatively matched to industries that make better use of these higher levels. Here, we assume that the driver of productivity differences is the differential distribution of factors among countries. Utilizing such a structure, we define and estimate the average factor level (AFL) for countries and products using only the information about the production patterns. Interestingly, our estimates coincide with the complexity variables of (Hidalgo and Hausmann, 2009), providing an underlying economic rationale. We show that AFL is highly correlated with country-level characteristics and predictive of future economic growth.
Keywords: International Trade, Supermodularity, Ricardian Model, Assignment Models, Sorting, Complexity, Economic Complexity
JEL Classifications: F10, F11, F14, O41, O47, O50
Affiliated Program: Growth Lab