💰Intro to Mathematical Economics Unit 5 – Matrix Theory in Input-Output Analysis

Key Concepts and Definitions

• Input-Output Analysis studies the interdependencies between economic sectors and industries
• Focuses on the flow of goods and services between industries and final consumers
• Leontief Model developed by Wassily Leontief in the 1930s forms the basis of Input-Output Analysis
• Intermediate goods are products used as inputs in the production of other goods and services
• Final demand represents the consumption of goods and services by end-users (households, government, exports)
• Technical coefficients denote the amount of input required from one industry to produce one unit of output in another industry
  • Calculated by dividing the input value by the total output of the consuming industry
• Leontief Inverse Matrix $(I - A)^{-1}$ captures the direct and indirect effects of changes in final demand on industry outputs

Matrix Basics and Notation

• Matrices are rectangular arrays of numbers arranged in rows and columns
• Denoted by uppercase letters (A, B, X)
• Elements of a matrix are denoted by lowercase letters with subscripts indicating row and column $(a_{ij})$
• Square matrices have an equal number of rows and columns
• Identity matrix (I) is a square matrix with 1s on the main diagonal and 0s elsewhere
  • Multiplying a matrix by the identity matrix results in the original matrix
• Matrix addition and subtraction are performed element-wise between matrices of the same dimensions
• Matrix multiplication (AB) is performed by multiplying rows of the first matrix (A) with columns of the second matrix (B)
  • The number of columns in A must equal the number of rows in B

Input-Output Tables and Matrices

• Input-Output tables represent the flow of goods and services between industries and final consumers
• Rows represent the distribution of an industry's output to other industries and final demand
• Columns show the inputs required by an industry from other industries and value-added components (wages, profits)
• Transactions table records the monetary value of flows between industries and final demand
• Technical coefficients matrix (A) is derived from the transactions table by dividing each input by the corresponding industry's total output
  • Represents the direct input requirements per unit of output
• Final demand vector (Y) shows the consumption of each industry's output by end-users
• Total output vector (X) represents the total production of each industry, including intermediate and final demand

Leontief Model and Inverse Matrix

• Leontief Model describes the relationship between industry outputs, technical coefficients, and final demand
• Fundamental equation: $X = AX + Y$, where X is the total output vector, A is the technical coefficients matrix, and Y is the final demand vector
• Solving for X yields: $X = (I - A)^{-1}Y$, where $(I - A)^{-1}$ is the Leontief Inverse Matrix
• Leontief Inverse Matrix captures the direct and indirect effects of changes in final demand on industry outputs
  • Each element $(l_{ij})$ represents the total output required from industry i to satisfy one unit of final demand in industry j
• Leontief Inverse is calculated by inverting the difference between the identity matrix (I) and the technical coefficients matrix (A)
• Changes in final demand $(\Delta Y)$ can be used to estimate changes in industry outputs $(\Delta X)$ using the Leontief Inverse: $\Delta X = (I - A)^{-1}\Delta Y$

Multiplier Effects and Economic Impacts

• Multiplier effects capture the ripple effects of changes in final demand on the economy
• Output multipliers measure the total change in output across all industries resulting from a one-unit change in final demand for a specific industry
  • Calculated by summing the elements in the corresponding column of the Leontief Inverse Matrix
• Income multipliers measure the total change in income (wages and salaries) resulting from a one-unit change in final demand
  • Derived by multiplying the output multipliers by the income coefficients (income-to-output ratios)
• Employment multipliers estimate the total change in employment resulting from a one-unit change in final demand
  • Obtained by multiplying the output multipliers by the employment coefficients (jobs-to-output ratios)
• Multiplier effects can be decomposed into direct, indirect, and induced effects
  • Direct effects are the initial changes in the industry directly affected by the change in final demand
  • Indirect effects are the changes in industries that supply inputs to the directly affected industry
  • Induced effects are the changes in household spending resulting from changes in income

Applications in Economic Analysis

• Input-Output Analysis is used to study the structure and interdependencies of an economy
• Helps policymakers assess the potential impacts of economic shocks, such as changes in government spending or trade policies
• Useful for analyzing the effects of investment projects or the introduction of new industries on the economy
• Regional Input-Output Models are developed to study the economic structure and impacts at a regional level (state, county)
• Environmental Input-Output Models incorporate environmental factors (pollution, resource use) to assess the environmental impacts of economic activities
• Input-Output Analysis can be combined with other economic models (CGE models) for more comprehensive analyses

Limitations and Assumptions

• Assumes fixed technical coefficients, implying constant returns to scale and no substitution between inputs
  • In reality, technical coefficients may change over time due to technological advancements or relative price changes
• Assumes homogeneous products within each industry, ignoring product differentiation
• Does not account for supply constraints, assuming that industries can always meet the demand for their products
• Static model that does not capture dynamic changes in the economy over time
• Aggregation bias may arise when grouping heterogeneous industries or products into broader categories
• Requires extensive data on inter-industry transactions, which may be costly and time-consuming to collect
• Assumes a closed economy, ignoring the effects of international trade

Problem-Solving Techniques

• Constructing an Input-Output table involves collecting data on inter-industry transactions and final demand
  • Data sources include national accounts, industry surveys, and supply-and-use tables
• Calculating technical coefficients requires dividing each input value by the corresponding industry's total output
• Deriving the Leontief Inverse Matrix involves subtracting the technical coefficients matrix (A) from the identity matrix (I) and then finding the inverse
  • Can be done using matrix inversion techniques (e.g., Gauss-Jordan elimination)
• Estimating changes in industry outputs due to changes in final demand involves multiplying the Leontief Inverse by the change in final demand vector
• Calculating multipliers requires summing the elements in the corresponding column of the Leontief Inverse (output multipliers) and multiplying by income or employment coefficients
• Interpreting the results involves analyzing the magnitude and distribution of changes in industry outputs, income, and employment
• Sensitivity analysis can be conducted by varying the assumptions or input data to assess the robustness of the results