British capital and merchandise exports, 1870-1913: the bilateral case of New Zealand

Varian, Brian D. (2017) British capital and merchandise exports, 1870-1913: the bilateral case of New Zealand. Australian Economic History Review, 57 (2). pp. 239-262. ISSN 0004-8992

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Abstract

The Ford thesis argued that there was a short-term causal relationship between British overseas investment and British merchandise exports in the late nineteenth century. However, economic historians since Ford have found little empirical evidence in support of this argument. Using data on bilateral British lending, this article finds that such a relationship did exist, with British ex ante lending preceding merchandise exports by 2 years. A case study of New Zealand, which had an extraordinarily high share of Britain in its imports, reveals that the relationship was conditional upon the lending being allocated to social overhead capital.

Item Type:	Article
Official URL:	http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(IS...
Additional Information:	© 2016 Economic History Society of Australia and New Zealand and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd
Divisions:	Economic History
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HC Economic History and Conditions
JEL classification:	F - International Economics > F2 - International Factor Movements and International Business > F21 - International Investment; Long-Term Capital Movements N - Economic History > N7 - Transport, International and Domestic Trade, Energy, Technology, and Other Services > N73 - Europe: Pre-1913 N - Economic History > N7 - Transport, International and Domestic Trade, Energy, Technology, and Other Services > N77 - Africa; Oceania
Date Deposited:	19 Jan 2017 16:47
Last Modified:	12 Dec 2024 01:25
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/68925

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