Growing differently? Financial cycles, austerity, and competitiveness in growth models since the Global Financial Crisis

The paper contributes to the recent growth models debate through a cross-country analysis of drivers before and after 2008 Global Financial Crisis (GFC). It argues that widely used dichotomy export-led versus (debt-financed) consumption-led has lost its usefulness since GFC. Specifically, identifying contributions can give misleading results when economic change. contends Comparative Political Economy (CPE) neglected unstable nature financial drivers, effectively ignores fiscal policy, overemphasizes price competitiveness as driver. shows empirically that, first, debt-financed is cyclical booms come with busts debt overhang; second, post-GFC dynamics are strongly shaped by policy reaction; third, wage deflation played negligible role in driving growth. We conclude CPE needs broaden order understand how GFC transformed models.