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Domestic market integration in interwar Poland: Price dispersion dynamics and the impact of railways. Evidence from consumer good prices

Popa, Dominik LU (2026) EKHS11 20261
Department of Economic History
Abstract
Can a country created from three different territories achieve economic integration within two decades? The results of this paper, examining the domestic market integration in interwar Poland, indicate that, with some caveats, the feat is possible. Using a new dataset with unprecedented detail, price dispersion dynamics, the importance of old borders, and the impact of railway expansion on price gaps are examined. Price dispersion is found to have decreased overall, driven by decreases in 1924 28 and 1936 37. The old borders had a low but lingering effect in accounting for price dispersion. New rail line openings did not seem to substantially reduce price gaps in the affected cities. The findings paint a non monotone picture of the... (More)
Can a country created from three different territories achieve economic integration within two decades? The results of this paper, examining the domestic market integration in interwar Poland, indicate that, with some caveats, the feat is possible. Using a new dataset with unprecedented detail, price dispersion dynamics, the importance of old borders, and the impact of railway expansion on price gaps are examined. Price dispersion is found to have decreased overall, driven by decreases in 1924 28 and 1936 37. The old borders had a low but lingering effect in accounting for price dispersion. New rail line openings did not seem to substantially reduce price gaps in the affected cities. The findings paint a non monotone picture of the integration process. By excluding new line openings as a cause of integration, institutional changes, macroeconomic conditions, or the existing rail network are indicated as drivers of the process. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Popa, Dominik LU
supervisor
organization
course
EKHS11 20261
year
type
H1 - Master's Degree (One Year)
subject
language
English
id
9242502
date added to LUP
2026-09-07 14:15:03
date last changed
2026-09-07 14:15:03
@misc{9242502,
  abstract     = {{Can a country created from three different territories achieve economic integration within two decades? The results of this paper, examining the domestic market integration in interwar Poland, indicate that, with some caveats, the feat is possible. Using a new dataset with unprecedented detail, price dispersion dynamics, the importance of old borders, and the impact of railway expansion on price gaps are examined. Price dispersion is found to have decreased overall, driven by decreases in 1924 28 and 1936 37. The old borders had a low but lingering effect in accounting for price dispersion. New rail line openings did not seem to substantially reduce price gaps in the affected cities. The findings paint a non monotone picture of the integration process. By excluding new line openings as a cause of integration, institutional changes, macroeconomic conditions, or the existing rail network are indicated as drivers of the process.}},
  author       = {{Popa, Dominik}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Domestic market integration in interwar Poland: Price dispersion dynamics and the impact of railways. Evidence from consumer good prices}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}