Rhine Capitalism - Tradable and Non-tradable Goods

Tradable and Non-tradable Goods

According to Albert, both models differ little in their respective ideas about which goods are not tradable – with one major exception: religions. Areas where the models diverge significantly are the realm of negotiable goods (commodities, services) and that of mixed goods.

1. Religions in the Rhine model do not function as economic institutions as they do, in part, in the US.
2. Companies are, in the neo-American model, negotiable goods as any others, whereas in the Rhine model they are a community.
3. Wages are determined by a momentary market situation in the neo-American system, while in the Rhine model they are more constant and take into consideration qualifications, seniority and nationally agreed pay scales.
4. Housing is mostly a market commodity in the US. In Rhine economies it is mixed, costs are often subsidized.
5. Urban transportation would be partly regulated in the USA also, but is more a commodity than a mixed good.
6. The mass media is traditionally commercial in the US. While in the Rhenish system there is a tendency toward privatization, the opposite can be found in the USA, and in the Rhenish system, the most watched television stations tend to be state-run.
7. Education is much more a commodity in the USA than in the Rhine model.
8. Health and legal professions: In the Rhine model a long tradition frees the members of a profession (e.g. doctors and lawyers) from the need to chase profit in order to be able to concentrate in a disinterested fashion on serving the public good. The service is a kind of an honor, and the expression for the payment in these areas (Honorar) is closely related to this underlying idea.