Three essays on economic growth:Economic freedom, intra-industry trade, foreign direct investment

Economic Freedom affects countries' economic development and their progress. However, economic growth is not only influenced by economic freedom, but also by other institutional factors and structural parameters such as savings rate, human capital and research and development expenditure, commercial and financial openness (Trade, Foreign Direct Investment and Financial Integration), infrastructure, competitiveness, financial development. This study aims to analyze the determinants of economic growth. The main findings of Chapter 2 are similar with the resource curse literature and general accepted theories i.e. economies rich in natural resources have tendency to grow slower than resource-poors and quality of institutions determines the curse or blessing in Natural Resource Rich countries. Economic freedom and its determinats show positive effect on Total Factor Productivity growth. In Chapter 3, the effects of Economic Freedom, Foreign Direct Investment, Human Capital, Intra-Industry Trade and their interaction effect together on Total Factor Productivity Growth are analysed and relation between Total Factor Productivity and other variables in both Natural Resource Rich countries, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries (OECD), except Foreign Direct Investment in Natural Resource Rich Countries has been observed. Whether Economic Freedom stimulates macroeconomic growth within non-linear endogenous growth model with the other growth determinants namely Saving Rate and Labor Force is analyzed in Chapter 4. Findings show relation between economic freedom and per capita growth.