In addition, high wages reduce profits, which may dampen investment. This negative demand effect (on exports and investment) can potentially outweigh the positive effect on consumption, especially if exports are price elastic (as in the case of commodities). This will lower average wages in the economy as a whole and boost its competitiveness (Kucera, 2002) and may thus have a positive impact on exports. A more thorough analysis of this and other possible channels for gender-related impacts would require a broad sample of countries and detailed information on their internal demand structures. Efforts to raise women’s wages in the interests of greater equity may lead to growth in a non-profit-led economy, but they may also spark an economic contraction as a result of their negative effects on investment and exports. These short-term disturbances in demand may not only reduce male employment and output but may also make it difficult to achieve long-term growth.