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Tear down this wall: on the persistence of borders in trade

Author

Listed:
  • Volker Nitsch
  • Nikolaus Wolf

Abstract

Why do borders still matter for economic activity? The reunification of Germany in 1990 provides a unique natural experiment for examining the effect of political borders on trade. With the fall of the Berlin Wall and the rapid formation of a political and economic union, strong and strictly enforced administrative barriers to trade between East Germany and West Germany were eliminated completely within a very short period of time. Remarkable persistence in intra-German trade patterns along the former East-West border suggests that border effects are neither statistical artefacts nor driven by administrative barriers to trade, but arise from economic fundamentals.

Suggested Citation

  • Volker Nitsch & Nikolaus Wolf, 2013. "Tear down this wall: on the persistence of borders in trade," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 46(1), pages 154-179, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:cje:issued:v:46:y:2013:i:1:p:154-179
    DOI: 10.1111/caje.12002
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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • F14 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Empirical Studies of Trade
    • F15 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Economic Integration

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