A recurring issue of considerable relevance at present is whether sufficient resources are being devoted to laying the foundations for continued economic growth. This question embraces a number of factors including education, training and fixed capital expenditure. This article considers the last of these topics. It describes trends in investment and the capital stock since the mid-J960s. The effects on output per employee of changes in capital deepening and in the utilisation of employed capital and labour are also discussed.
Fixed investment, the capital stock and factor utilisation