We study the optimal dynamics of an AK economy where population is uniformly distributed along the unit circle. Locations only differ in initial capital endowments. Despite constant returns to capital, we prove that transition dynamics will set in. In particular, we prove that the...

We study the optimal dynamics of an AK economy where population is uniformly distributed along the unit circle. Locations only differ in initial capital endowments. Despite constant returns to capital, we prove that transition dynamics will set in. In particular, we prove that the...

In this paper, we devise a social criterion in the spirit of the critical utility level of Blackorby-Donaldson (1984) to study an optimal population size problem in an endogenously growing economy populated by workers living a fixed amount of time and without capital accumulation. Population...

We show that leapfrogging and growth reversals entail sizeable welfare gains and losses, respectively, in an AK economy that cannot credibly commit to investment when borrowing from international financial markets. Small no-commitment delays originate a trade-off that has an ambiguous effect on...

In this paper, we apply two optimization methods to solve an optimal control problem of a linear neutral differential equation (NDE) arising in economics. The first one is a variational method, the second follows a dynamic programming approach. Due to the infinite dimensionality of the NDE, the...

We reconsider the optimal population size problem in a continuous time economy populated by homogenous cohorts with a fixed life span. This assumption is combined with a linear production function in the labor input and standard rearing costs. A general social welfare function is specified,...