Immigration, Factor Endowments and the Productive Structure of Spanish Regions, 1996-2005

SERRANO G., REQUENA F. and MARTIN-MONTANER J. Immigration, factor endowments and the productive structure of Spanish regions, 1996-2005, Regional Studies. The participation of immigrants in the Spanish labour market has increased from less than 3% in 1996 to more than 13% in 2005. The factor proportion model of production was used to examine the impact of such a large labour supply shock on the industrial structure of Spanish regions. The results confirm that, first, labour endowment differences across regions help to explain the regional patterns of industry specialization. Second, immigrants and natives act as complementary factors in most industries. Third, the importance of immigration is relatively small compared with production technique changes and idiosyncratic industry changes in explaining the overall changes in industrial structure.