Does Financial Liberalization Spur Growth?

52 Pages Posted: 19 Apr 2001

See all articles by Geert Bekaert

Geert Bekaert

Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Finance

Campbell R. Harvey

Duke University - Fuqua School of Business; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Christian T. Lundblad

University of North Carolina Kenan-Flagler Business School; Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: September 2004

Abstract

We show that equity market liberalizations, on average, lead to a one percent increase in annual real economic growth. The effect is robust to alternative definitions of liberalization and does not reflect variation in the world business cycle. The effect also remains intact when an exogenous measure of growth opportunities is included in the regression. We find that capital account liberalization also plays a role in future economic growth, but, importantly, it does not subsume the contribution of equity market liberalizations. Other simultaneous reforms only partially account for the equity market liberalization effect. Finally, the largest growth response occurs in countries with high quality institutions.

Keywords: Equity Market Liberalization, Capital Account Openness, Quality of Institutions, GDP Growth, Shareholder Protection, Growth Opportunities, Legal Systems, Political Risk

JEL Classification: E32, F30, F36, F43, G15, G18, G28, O10, O11, O57

Suggested Citation

Bekaert, Geert and Harvey, Campbell R. and Lundblad, Christian T., Does Financial Liberalization Spur Growth? (September 2004). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=264818 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.264818

Geert Bekaert

Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Finance ( email )

NY
United States

Campbell R. Harvey (Contact Author)

Duke University - Fuqua School of Business ( email )

Box 90120
Durham, NC 27708-0120
United States
919-660-7768 (Phone)

HOME PAGE: http://www.duke.edu/~charvey

National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

1050 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
United States

Christian T. Lundblad

University of North Carolina Kenan-Flagler Business School ( email )

Kenan-Flagler Business School
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3490
United States
919-962-8441 (Phone)

Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise ( email )

Campus Box 3440, The Kenan Center
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-344
United States

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