Is There a Golden Rule for the Stochastic Solow Growth Model?

This paper analyzes the dependence of average consumption on the saving rate in a one-sector neoclassical Solow growth model with production shocks and stochastic rates of population growth and depreciation where arbitrary ergodic processes are considered. We show that the long-run behavior of the stochastic capital intensity, and hence average consumption along any sample-path, is uniquely determined by a random fixed point which depends continuously on the saving rate. This result enables us to prove the existence of a golden rule saving rate which maximizes average consumption per capita. We also show that the golden rule path is dynamically efficient. The results are illustrated numerically for Cobb-Douglas and CES production function