Learning by doing, domestic and foreign technology spillovers in Thailand: Empirical evidence on productivity dynamics

The importance of total factor productivity for economic growth is now widely accepted. In this study we investigate the productivity growth process in Thailand, which has experienced an annual average growth of remarkable 6.6% during the period 1950 – 2000. It is our understanding that TFP growth in Thailand mainly have been driven by learning and imitation, while investment in own research and development has played a minor role. We offer an econometric analysis of agriculture-industry interaction for the period 1982 – 94 to investigate the role of learning by doing, intersectoral spillovers and foreign spillovers. Mainly short-run effects are identified, and in particular international spillovers are found to be important. Interestingly the magnitude of the foreign spillover effect is relatively equal across sectors, and hence both agriculture and industry have been able to take benefit of the open economy.