Evaluating the Market and Welfare Impacts of Agricultural Policies in Developed Countries: Comparison of Partial and General Equilibrium Measures

Gohin, Alexandre; Moschini, GianCarlo

Review of Agricultural Economics Vol. 28 no. 2 (Summer 2006): 195-211.

We revisit the question of choosing partial equilibrium or general equilibrium modeling in applied policy analysis in the context of evaluating the effects of a complete phase-out of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) of the European Union. We compare the results of three modelsラtwo three-sector general equilibrium models (one with an additional major distortion in the nonagricultural sector) and a two-sector partial equilibrium model. We find that the market effects of a complete phase-out of the CAP are quite comparable across these models. On the other hand, the measured welfare impacts may depend on the modeling choice.

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