Estimating the surplus in the periphery: an application to Turkey


Somel C.

CAMBRIDGE JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS, cilt.27, sa.6, ss.919-933, 2003 (SSCI) identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 27 Sayı: 6
  • Basım Tarihi: 2003
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1093/cje/27.6.919
  • Dergi Adı: CAMBRIDGE JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.919-933
  • Anahtar Kelimeler: economic surplus, dependency, development
  • Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi Adresli: Hayır

Özet

This note discusses how the economic surplus concept can be used to analyse the constraints the world system imposes on economic development. An estimation of the surplus for Turkey for 1980-96 utilises Kohler's unequal exchange analysis to measure the transfer of surplus abroad and the official minimum wage to calculate essential private consumption. The estimation yields the allocation of the surplus between nonessential consumption, investment and unrequited transfers abroad. The note assesses Lippit's argument that the main obstacle to development is the misuse of the surplus in the domestic economy and not transfers abroad.