Open access
Date
2019-05Type
- Journal Article
Abstract
The literature on the growth effects of European integration remains inconclusive. This is due to severe methodological difficulties mostly driven by country heterogeneity. This paper addresses these concerns using the synthetic control method. It constructs counterfactuals for countries that joined the European Union (EU) from 1973 to 2004. We find that growth effects from EU membership are large and positive, with Greece as the exception. Despite substantial variation across countries and over time, we estimate that without European integration, per capita incomes would have been, on average, approximately 10% lower in the first ten years after joining the EU. Show more
Permanent link
https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000342557Publication status
publishedExternal links
Journal / series
Journal of Monetary EconomicsVolume
Pages / Article No.
Publisher
ElsevierSubject
Economic growth; Integration; Institutions; European Union; Synthetic control methodMore
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