THE IMPACT OF COMPETITIVENESS ON GROWTH PERFORMANCE OF UPPER-MIDDLE INCOME GROUP COUNTRIES: 1997-2020 PANEL ARDL ANALYSIS

Abstract

The main objective of this study is to measure the impact of competitiveness on economic growth. Another piece of information to be obtained from the study is whether Heckscher-Ohlin's propositions about foreign trade are valid in developing upper-middle-income countries. For this purpose, the period 1997-2020 of 13 countries (China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Bulgaria, Mexico, Brazil, Jordan, South Africa, Argentina, Venezuela) was empirically examined. In the research, per capita income was used as the dependent variable to represent economic growth. Labor stock, capital stock, and Competitiveness Index are included in the model as explanatory variables. According to the Panel ARDL findings, the competitiveness index and labor stock contribute positively to economic growth. 1 unit increase in capital stock reduces national income per capita by 170.47 units