Brazilian export growth and divergence in the tropics during the nineteenth century

Christopher David Absell
Authors registered in the RePEc Author Service: Antonio Tena Junguito

IFCS - Working Papers in Economic History.WH from Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Instituto Figuerola

Abstract: The objective of this paper is to reappraise both the accuracy of the official export statistics and the conventional narrative of Brazilian export growth during the period immediately following independence. We undertake an accuracy test of the official values of Brazilian export statistics and find evidence of considerable under-valuation. Once corrected, during the postindependence decades (1821-1849) Brazil's current exports represented a larger share of its economy and its constant growth is found to be more dynamic than any other period of the nineteenth century. We posit that this dynamism was related to an exogenous institutional shock in the form of British West Indies slave emancipation that afforded Brazil a competitive advantage.

Keywords: Brazil; trade; accuracy; export; growth; American; tropical; exports; Nineteenth; century (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F14 N76 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015-05-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-his and nep-int
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cte:whrepe:wp15-03

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