In this article we open discussion of a very important question for workers, especially in
developing countries: Why is capitalism unable to absorb all the exploitable labor force? There is a
serious precarization of labor going on all around the world, but it is much worse in underdeveloped
countries. How does importing means of production affect the composition of capital in
underdeveloped countries and worsen the problem of precarization? An account is examined based on
value theory and such composition is estimated in the case that means of production are
imported.
Labor theory of value has received considerable attention among Marxists and their critics. No agreement has been reached as to what labor theory of value is (Foley, 2000), Itoh, 1988; Kliman, 2006; Laibman, 1992 and Mohun, 2000). Paradoxically there are empirical studies showing strong association between labor values and market prices. Such works could inject new energy into Marxist theory of value; nevertheless some critics have questioned such empirical findings because: a) there is a problem of spurious correlation involved, and b) measures of association vary with changes in the physical units of the analyzed merchandises.
The current paper aims to contribute to the study of the relation between the interest rate and the rate of profit by presenting an empirical analysis of the United States economy during the period of 1869 to 2009. The main findings rendered are: 1) the general rate of profit has set an upper limit for the real short-term and long-term interest rates; 2) the real long-term interest rate has undergone similar changes to those of the general rate of profit, whereas the real short-term interest rate has experienced movements opposite to the latter; and 3) evidence supports heterodox theories which stress that monetary policy affects the distribution of income through the modification of the rate of profit.
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