IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v15y2023i14p10883-d1191750.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Trade Liberalization, Distributional Coalitions and Economic Growth: A Case of Vietnam

Author

Listed:
  • Woocheol Lee

    (Department of International Trade, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 52828, Republic of Korea)

Abstract

This paper examines the economic growth of Vietnam by focusing on trade liberalization and the strategies that the distributional coalitions have chosen in response to this reform. It analyses the tariff schedules annexed to six key free trade agreements that Vietnam signed. This paper finds that the distributional coalitions intentionally under-protect three groups of products to keep their benefits. Group 1 consists of products with high amounts of revealed comparative advantages (RCAs) and a strong presence in the state sector. Group 2 comprises products with low RCAs and a tenuous presence of the state sector. Group 3 represents products where the presence of the state sector is strong, but their production capacities cannot meet the massive domestic demand. The strategically administered under-protection has also allowed the distributional coalitions to preserve their privileges. While these strategies have been effective in achieving static efficiency, they have been considerably less effective in bringing about structural changes necessary for sustainable long-run economic growth.

Suggested Citation

  • Woocheol Lee, 2023. "Trade Liberalization, Distributional Coalitions and Economic Growth: A Case of Vietnam," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-19, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:14:p:10883-:d:1191750
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/14/10883/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/14/10883/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Grossman, Gene M & Helpman, Elhanan, 1995. "The Politics of Free-Trade Agreements," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 85(4), pages 667-690, September.
    2. Yoko Niimi & Puja Vasudeva Dutta & L. Alan Winters, 2015. "Trade Liberalisation and Poverty Dynamics in Vietnam," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Non-Tariff Barriers, Regionalism and Poverty Essays in Applied International Trade Analysis, chapter 16, pages 333-365, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    3. Kolodko, Grzegorz W., 2000. "From Shock to Therapy: The Political Economy of Postsocialist Transformation," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198297437.
    4. Dollar, David, 2002. "Reform, growth, and poverty in Vietnam," Policy Research Working Paper Series 2837, The World Bank.
    5. Bhagwati, Jagdish N, 1982. "Directly Unproductive, Profit-seeking (DUP) Activities," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 90(5), pages 988-1002, October.
    6. Ka Zeng & Karen Sebold & Yue Lu, 2020. "Global value chains and corporate lobbying for trade liberalization," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 15(2), pages 409-443, April.
    7. Yoon Heo & Nguyen Khanh Doanh, 2009. "Trade Liberalisation and Poverty Reduction in Vietnam," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(6), pages 934-964, June.
    8. Acemoglu, Daron & Robinson, James A., 2006. "Economic Backwardness in Political Perspective," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 100(1), pages 115-131, February.
    9. Ivo Bischoff, 2007. "Model Uncertainty, Political Learning, and Institutions: A Broader View on Mancur Olson's Theory of Institutional Sclerosis," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 74(1), pages 34-49, July.
    10. Daniel Kahneman & Jack L. Knetsch & Richard H. Thaler, 1991. "Anomalies: The Endowment Effect, Loss Aversion, and Status Quo Bias," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 5(1), pages 193-206, Winter.
    11. Pham Dinh Long & Pham Thi Bich Ngoc & Holger Görg, 2021. "Trade Liberalization and Labor Market Adjustments: Does Rent Sharing Matter?," Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 57(6), pages 1828-1841, May.
    12. V. Popov., 2007. "Shock Therapy versus Gradualism: 15 Years Later," VOPROSY ECONOMIKI, N.P. Redaktsiya zhurnala "Voprosy Economiki", vol. 5.
    13. Ghosh, Madanmohan & Whalley, John, 2008. "State owned enterprises, shirking and trade liberalization," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 25(6), pages 1206-1215, November.
    14. Vladimir Popov, 2007. "Shock Therapy versus Gradualism Reconsidered: Lessons from Transition Economies after 15 Years of Reforms1," Comparative Economic Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Association for Comparative Economic Studies, vol. 49(1), pages 1-31, March.
    15. Lall, Sanjaya & Weiss, John & Zhang, Jinkang, 2006. "The "sophistication" of exports: A new trade measure," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 34(2), pages 222-237, February.
    16. Woocheol Lee, 2021. "Structural Change, Balance of Payments Constraint, and Economic Growth: Evidence from Vietnam," Review of Radical Political Economics, Union for Radical Political Economics, vol. 53(4), pages 631-653, December.
    17. Tang, Eddie Wing Yin & Hedley, R Alan, 1998. "Distributional Coalitions, State Strength, and Economic Growth: Toward a Comprehensive Theory of Economic Development," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 96(3-4), pages 295-323, September.
    18. Fukase, Emiko, 2013. "Export Liberalization, Job Creation, and the Skill Premium: Evidence from the US–Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA)," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 317-337.
    19. repec:bla:devpol:v:27:y:2009:i:5:p:483-502 is not listed on IDEAS
    20. Fukase, Emiko, 2013. "Export liberalization, job creation and the skill premium : evidence from the U.S.-Vietnam bilateral trade agreement," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6419, The World Bank.
    21. Minh Son Le & Jen-Je Su & Jeremy Nguyen, 2019. "Trade liberalisation, poverty, and inequality in Vietnam: a quantile regression approach," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 51(36), pages 3971-3981, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. L. Alan Winters & Antonio Martuscelli, 2014. "Trade Liberalization and Poverty: What Have We Learned in a Decade?," Annual Review of Resource Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 6(1), pages 493-512, October.
    2. Dong Xuan Nguyen, 2016. "Trade liberalization and export sophistication in Vietnam," The Journal of International Trade & Economic Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(8), pages 1071-1089, November.
    3. Poole, Jennifer & Santos-Paulino, Amelia & Sokolova, Maria & DiCaprio, Alisa, 2017. "The Impact of Trade and Technology on Skills in Viet Nam," ADBI Working Papers 770, Asian Development Bank Institute.
    4. Olivier Blanchard & Michael Kremer, 1997. "Disorganization," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 112(4), pages 1091-1126.
    5. Vladimir Popov, 2009. "Why the West Became Rich before China and Why China Has Been Catching Up with the West since 1949: nother Explanation of the “Great Divergence” and “Great Convergence” Stories," Working Papers w0132, New Economic School (NES).
    6. Kis-Katos, Krisztina & Sparrow, Robert, 2015. "Poverty, labor markets and trade liberalization in Indonesia," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 94-106.
    7. Subhayu Bandyopadhyay & Sajal Lahiri & Howard J. Wall, 2009. "Cross-border lobbying in preferential trading agreements: implications for external tariffs," Working Papers 2009-041, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
    8. Emiko Fukase & Will Martin, 2016. "Agro-processing and horticultural exports from Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2016-174, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    9. Aleksandr V. Gevorkyan & Jacob Assa, 2021. "Poverty in “Transition”: 30 Years After and in the Pandemic," American Journal of Economics and Sociology, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 80(4), pages 1233-1258, September.
    10. Ichiro Iwasaki & Taku Suzuki, 2016. "Radicalism Versus Gradualism: An Analytical Survey Of The Transition Strategy Debate," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(4), pages 807-834, September.
    11. Emiliano Magrini & Pierluigi Montalbano, 2012. "Trade openness and vulnerability to poverty: Vietnam in the long-run (1992-2008)," Working Paper Series 3512, Department of Economics, University of Sussex Business School.
    12. Emiliano Magrini & Pierluigi Montalbano & L. Alan Winters, 2017. "Vulnerability from trade in Vietnam," Working Papers 12/17, Sapienza University of Rome, DISS.
    13. Iwasaki, Ichiro & Kumo, Kazuhiro, 2016. "Decline and Growth in Transition Economies: A Meta-Analysis," CEI Working Paper Series 2016-9, Center for Economic Institutions, Institute of Economic Research, Hitotsubashi University.
    14. Vladimir A. Kozlov & Dina Y. Balalaeva, 2015. "Institutional Deficit and Health Outcomes in Post-Communist States," HSE Working papers WP BRP 25/PS/2015, National Research University Higher School of Economics.
    15. Csaba, László, 2009. "A szovjetológiától az új intézményi közgazdaságtanig - töprengések két évtized távlatából [From Sovietology to the new institutional economics - meditations from a distance of two decades]," Közgazdasági Szemle (Economic Review - monthly of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences), Közgazdasági Szemle Alapítvány (Economic Review Foundation), vol. 0(9), pages 749-768.
    16. Emiko Fukase & Will Martin, 2016. "Agro-processing and horticultural exports from Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series 174, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    17. Challet, Damien & Solomon, Sorin & Yaari, Gur, 2009. "The universal shape of economic recession and recovery after a shock," Economics - The Open-Access, Open-Assessment E-Journal (2007-2020), Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel), vol. 3, pages 1-24.
    18. Johannes Schwarzer, 2016. "Trade and Employment. An Overview," Discussion Notes 1601, Council on Economic Policies.
    19. Aristei, David & Perugini, Cristiano, 2012. "Inequality and reforms in transition countries," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 36(1), pages 2-10.
    20. Subhayu Bandyopadhyay & Sajal Lahiri & Suryadipta Roy, 2008. "Enlargement and common external tariff in a political-economic model of customs union," Working Papers 2008-022, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:14:p:10883-:d:1191750. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.