Are unemployment rates in OECD countries stationary? Evidence from univariate and panel unit root tests

"This paper revisits the dynamics of unemployment rate for 29 OECD countries over the period of 1980-2013. Numerous empirical studies of the dynamics of unemployment rate are carried out within a linear framework. However, unemployment rate can show nonlinear behaviour as a result of business c...

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Main Authors: Khraief, Naceur, Shahbaz, Muhammad, Heshmati, Almas, Azam, Muhammad
Institution:ETUI-European Trade Union Institute
Format: TEXT
Language:English
Published: Bonn 2015
IZA
Online Access:https://www.labourline.org/KENTIKA-19107811124919250939-are-unemployment-rates-in-oeCD.htm
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author Khraief, Naceur
Shahbaz, Muhammad
Heshmati, Almas
Azam, Muhammad
author_facet Khraief, Naceur
Shahbaz, Muhammad
Heshmati, Almas
Azam, Muhammad
collection Library items
description "This paper revisits the dynamics of unemployment rate for 29 OECD countries over the period of 1980-2013. Numerous empirical studies of the dynamics of unemployment rate are carried out within a linear framework. However, unemployment rate can show nonlinear behaviour as a result of business cycles or some idiosyncratic factors specific to labour market (Cancelo, 2007). Thus, as a testing strategy we first perform Harvey et al. (2008) linearity unit root test and then apply the newly ESTAR nonlinear unit root test suggested by Kruse (2011). This test has higher power than conventional unit root tests when time series exhibits nonlinear behaviour. Our empirical findings provide significant evidence in favour of unemployment rate stationarity for 25 countries. For robustness purpose, we have also used panel unit root tests without and with structural breaks. The results show that unemployment hysteresis hypothesis is strongly rejected when taking into account the cross-sectional and structural break assumptions. Thus, unemployment rates are expected to return back to their natural levels without executing any costly macroeconomic labour market policies by the OECD's governments."
format TEXT
id 19107811124919250939_9b15856d5e1a4722bc71ddc0372fdb7b
institution ETUI-European Trade Union Institute
is_hierarchy_id 19107811124919250939_9b15856d5e1a4722bc71ddc0372fdb7b
is_hierarchy_title Are unemployment rates in OECD countries stationary? Evidence from univariate and panel unit root tests
language English
physical 32 p.
Digital
publishDate 2015
publisher Bonn
IZA
spellingShingle Khraief, Naceur
Shahbaz, Muhammad
Heshmati, Almas
Azam, Muhammad
Are unemployment rates in OECD countries stationary? Evidence from univariate and panel unit root tests
thumbnail https://www.labourline.org/Image_prev.jpg?Archive=107379192555
title Are unemployment rates in OECD countries stationary? Evidence from univariate and panel unit root tests
url https://www.labourline.org/KENTIKA-19107811124919250939-are-unemployment-rates-in-oeCD.htm