ABSTRACT
The word "structural" came to be used more and more and it was clear that much industrial policy throughout the world was concerned with the structures of national economies and the changing structure of the world economy. Insofar as "structural" meant "sectoral," it seemed the right word to apply to questions of whether the loss of American competitiveness was in part the result of clinging too long to an outdated pattern of production. Americans have argued about measures that in other countries would be called "industrial policy." Probably the tariff should be included in the list although it was more a reaction to events than the planned protection of infant industries that is sometimes depicted. The oldest and best established American sectoral policy concerns agriculture and it is worth noting that its supposed success has been cited by some people as evidence of what a proper industrial policy should be.
