eastern europe: class 4
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Transcript eastern europe: class 4
Eastern Europe & Former
Soviet Union: Class 4
Russian Federation
Largest of former Soviet republics (150M)
rich in natural resources
no history of a market-based institutional
framework at beginning of transition
Early Transition Period
5
0
-5
-10
-15
-20
-25
-30
-35
-40
-45
GDP
Industrial Production
Investment
1992* 1993
1994
1995
1997
1998
Accumulated drop in GDP 1989-95
equals -52%.
Compare U.S. 1929-33 (-30.5%)
And the Russian decline followed a
period of steady decline
clearly the decline has slowed but
investment remains a major
problem
And unlike Poland
Sources of Russian investment 1993-95
60
50
40
State
30
Local
20
Mixed
Private
10
0
1993*
1994
1995(Jan-Jun)
Why has the Russian transition
been so unsuccessful?
Yeager, Tim. 1998. Institutions, Transition
Economies and Economic Development.
Chapter 8: Poland and Russia in transition.
Yeager’s perspective
THESIS: A major key to their diverging
performance lies in differences in their
institutional frameworks.
Poland has managed to create an
environment in which the rules of the
game are adequately spelled out.
Russia’s economy is plagued by crime,
corruption and high transaction costs
Far more “on-the-books”business
start-ups in Poland
evidence of faith in the system
much more informal activity in
Russia
can only exist if government chooses
or is unable to stop its growth
But such firms are small and invest
little
logical. Property rights are insecure
Russian mafia controls 40% of the
total economy
some 9,000 organized groups
employ about 100,000
pay no taxes; force legitimate
businesses to pay protection
1994: 70-80% of private businesses
paying extortion money.
Hedlund and Sundstrom. 1996. The Russian
economy after systemic change, Europe-Asia
Studies 48(6): 887-914.
Russian Inflation Rates, 1992-95(%)
Annual average
End of year
1992
1354
2318
1993
896
841
1994
220
205
1995
190
131
Factors
Monetary policy in perestroika years. More
money printed than in previous 30 years
combined
created a massive RUBLE OVERHANG
Russians unleashed price inflation to
eliminate the overhang which became
chronic.
Need austere monetary policy to turn off.
Became impossible politically.
Consequences of chronic
inflation
Shorten time horizons of economic
actors---> investment decline
sharp reductions in real incomes of
those on fixed incomes.
Increase in income inequality
Increase in regional inequality
PRIMITIVIZATION of Russian economy
Example 1 of primitivization:
Structural trends
The higher the degree of processing the
greater the fall in output
the relative importance of extractive
industries (natural gas, coal mining,
electricity generation etc.) has increased
Has made Russia more dependent on
world commodity prices
Example 2: Reversion to
barter economy
PBS Lehrer Hour, October 27,
1998
Example 3: Russian
morbidity and mortality
trends
Morbidity
Disease/health indicator
Typhoid/paratyphoid
Salmonellosis
Bacterial dysentry
Tuberculosis (first diagnosis)
Diphtheria
Whooping cough
Measles
Syphilis (first diagnosis)
Gonorrhoea
Proportion pregnant women anemic
Proportion newly born ill
% change 1992
13
8
-31
5
109
-22
-9
86
32
31
20
% change 1993
66
-15
25
11
290
63
302
141
25
NA
NA
Mortality
Life expectancy at birth
75
70
65
60
55
50
Men
Women
1993
1991
1989
1987
1985-86
1983-84
1981-82
40
1979-80
45
Russian life expectancy in
international perspective, 1994
Brazil
Mexico
Thailand
South Korea
China
Japan
Portugal
Spain
Sweden
United Kingdom
France
Germany
United States
Russia
0
20
Male
40
Female
60
80
100
Difference
Hypotheses
Glasnost in statistics
inadequate financing for medical system
food and drinking water contamination
ecological problems (air pollution)
high rate of birth defects
Increased homicides due to gang wars
and decline in public order
Problem with these
explanations???
Why the large gender gap???
One route to an explanation--focus on
trends in mortality causes
cardiovascular diseases
injuries including (homicide, suicide,
alcohol poisoning)
One model
IMPOVERISHMENT
INSTABILITY
(POLITICAL,
SOCIAL,
ECONOMIC)
BEHAVIORAL
CONSEQUENCES
INCREASED
MORTALITY
AND GENDER GAP