This paper suggests that the difference in the Theil indices of inequality between two economies approximately measures the relative loss of aggregate productivity caused by distortions in labor allocation. Moreover, the Theil index itself can be interpreted approximately as the possible maximum...

This paper develops a simple accounting framework that measures the effect of resource misallocation on aggregate productivity. This framework is based on a multi-sector general equilibrium model with sector-specific frictions in the form of taxes on sectoral factor inputs. Our framework is...