Size of government and economic growth in the largest Latin American country Articles uri icon

authors

  • CACICEDO DOS SANTOS, THIAGO
  • FERREIRA DE MENDOÇA, HELDER

publication date

  • August 2015

start page

  • 904

end page

  • 910

issue

  • 11

volume

  • 22

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

  • 1350-4851

Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)

  • 1466-4291

abstract

  • This article provides empirical evidence regarding the effect of the size of government on economic growth in the Brazilian economy for the period from January 2000 to March 2013. In particular, an analysis is conducted to see whether the Armey curve fits well for the Brazilian case and the optimal government size is also estimated. The findings indicate that an increase in the size of government contributes to economic growth and that the optimal size for the Brazilian government would be approximately 22% of GDP. Brazil crossed over this limit in 2005.

subjects

  • Economics

keywords

  • size of government; government expenditure; armey curve; economic growth