THE INCIDENCE OF BENEFITS FROM UNITED-STATES SOYBEAN PRODUCTIVITY GAINS IN A CONTEXT OF WORLD-TRADE

A new procedure for measuring the ''K-shift'' in the supply function from new technology is introduced. This procedure is used to show that U.S. soybean total factor productivity increased by 1.6% per year between 1974 and 1983. Brazilian and Argentine soybean productivity increased 2.4% per year during this period. Total economic surplus in the U.S and the rest of the world increased between $1.7 and $3.2 billion. Of this total, U.S. resource owners received between $1.3 and $1.5 billion and U.S. consumers received between a $0-1 and $0.2 billion increase in income from increased soybean productivity.