Decomposition of the Change in Total Factor Productivity and Analysis of Regional Convergence in Our Country

Using Malmquist productivity index,the author decomposes the total factor productivity of 29 provinces of China within the period of 1991 to 2007 into technical change and technical efficiency change according to the constitutes and makes an analysis of the convergence of regional technical efficiency.The results indicate:(1) the TFP and technical change in the eastern,mid and western regions of China all presented the tendency of increase and then decrease around the year 1997,but the technical efficiency decreased gradually during the research period.(2) Technical change accounts for 75% of the regional divergence of TFP and technical efficiency change accounts for the left 25%.The changes in TFP and its constitutes before 1997 were helpful to reducing the regional divergence,but after 1997 they became one of the reasons for the broadening regional differences.(3) The technical efficiency among the 29 provinces and the internal provinces within the eastern,mid and western regions all changes with time and takes on an emanative trend.