Explaining regional unemployment differences in Germany: a spatial panel data analysis

This paper analyzes determinants for regional differences in German unemployment rates. We specify a spatial panel model to avoid biased and inefficient estimates due to spatial dependence. Additionally, we control for temporal dynamics in the data. Our study covers the whole of Germany as well as East andWest Germany separately. We exploit district-level data on 24 possible explanatory variables for the period from 1999 until 2007. Our results suggest that the spatial dynamic panel model is the best model for this analysis. Furthermore, we find that German regional unemployment is of disequilibrium nature, which justifies political interventions.