Abstract
Price fluctuations are known to be rather chaotic and unpredictable. However, when these fluctuations are compared at different marketplaces some regular patterns appear. The precise nature of such regularities and what can be learned from them about the internal structure of an economic system are the purpose of this series of two papers. In this first paper the evolution of an economic system is analysed, namely in Germany during the period of its economic integration, that is to say during the 19th century. Different statistical measures are compared: the price ratio, the price correlations, the price dispersion, in order to characterise the increasing interdependence of economic activity centres. It is shown that this interdependence increases for every commodity according to a specific trend. Last, in order to link these results with the economic and political history of Germany some data are presented pertaining to the development of its domestic trade during the 19th century.
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