The Impact of the U.S. Interstate Commodity Flows on Income Convergence: A Spatial Econometrical Analysis

• Main Authors: Hsin-An Wang, 王信安
• Other Authors: Nai-Fong Kuo
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2009
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/97166023634702750545

碩士 === 世新大學 === 財務金融學研究所(含碩專班) === 97 === This paper considers a socio-economic weight in spatial econometric models on the income convergence study of U.S. 48 states over the period 2000-2004. Using 2002 Commodity Flow Survey data, the study constructs a binary commodity flow weight which represents the network of inter-state trade flows. The result shows that the spatial autocorrelation in the levels of state per capita incomes is much stronger by the commodity flow weight than the contiguity weight. The indirect effects of income convergence which come from the spatial spillover effects of inter-state trades are higher than those come from the geographic contiguity. Moreover, the spatial multiplier effects of the trade flows are also higher than those of contiguity. The spatial error model is appropriate for the absolute convergence while for the conditional convergence, the spatial lag model is appropriate. In short, the impact of the inter-state trade flows on income convergence is higher than the one of the contiguity.