Evolutionary Micro-dynamics and Changes in the Economic Structure

The paper develops a growth model with evolutionary micro–founded structural change. The model endogenises both technical change and changes in final and intermediate demand as affecting macro-economic growth, through the structural change of the economy. The aim is to formally account for the empirical stylised fact of the changes in the sectoral structure of the economy which have led to the growth of services in most advanced countries over the last decades. At the mesomacro level of analysis, we investigate whether the structural changes leading to the growth of services are mainly demand-led, both in terms of final consumption and intermediate demand. At the micro-level of analysis, we explore whether demand constraints affect the degree of exploitation of technological opportunities. The simulated results are based on the use of the actual Input–Output coefficients in the case of Germany. Four scenarios have been identified, which account for the effects of a set of key parameters on the changes in the structure of the economy