Congrès Marx International V - Section Économie – Paris-Sorbonne et Nanterre – 3/6 octobre 2007
Long and short-run determinants of U.S. investment an econometric
estimation from a classical perspective
Sergio Cámara Izquierdo
Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Azcapotzalco Área de Investigación Sociedad y
Acumulación Capitalista
The paper is intended to estimate the determinants of the investment function in the US using an
econometric model. First, it is developed a critical revision of neoclassical, Keynesian and postKeynesian literature on investment determinants both theoretical and empirically. Then, the main contents
of the Marxian-classical theory of investment are discussed in order to construct an investment model.
The model is composed by a structural determinant of investment related to the long-run restriction
imposed by profitability and short-run determinants. Data from the U.S. are employed to estimate the
investment function. Results can be informative about the patterns of accumulation in the post-war U.S.
economy and the basis for the depiction of a structural change in the model of accumulation introduced
by neoliberalism. Also, it can shed light on the sustainability of the neoliberal model of accumulation and
growth.