IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/iecepo/v20y2023i1d10.1007_s10368-023-00554-z.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Technical regulations and exporters’ dynamics: evidence from developing countries

Author

Listed:
  • Valentina Rollo

    (International Trade Centre)

Abstract

This paper estimates the relation between technical regulations and firms’ export dynamics using country-sector indicators from two firm-level datasets—the novel UN ITC NTM Business Surveys and the World Bank Exporter Dynamics Database—for 18 developing countries over the 2010–2014 period. The results from the analysis indicate that export markets where exporters perceive technical regulations as more burdensome are characterized by a lower number of exporters, a lower value of exports, and a higher concentration rate. These results are in line with the prediction of the heterogeneous firms’ trade theory (Melitz, 2003): additional trade costs are expected to push some firms out of exporting, therefore reducing the total number of exporters and increasing concentration. Also, technical regulations hit small firms’ exports twice as hard as they hit large firms, confirming that smaller firms react more strongly to changes in trade costs.

Suggested Citation

  • Valentina Rollo, 2023. "Technical regulations and exporters’ dynamics: evidence from developing countries," International Economics and Economic Policy, Springer, vol. 20(1), pages 189-212, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:iecepo:v:20:y:2023:i:1:d:10.1007_s10368-023-00554-z
    DOI: 10.1007/s10368-023-00554-z
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10368-023-00554-z
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10368-023-00554-z?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sarah Holzapfel & Meike Wollni, 2014. "Is GlobalGAP Certification of Small-Scale Farmers Sustainable? Evidence from Thailand," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 50(5), pages 731-747, May.
    2. Fontagné, Lionel & Orefice, Gianluca & Piermartini, Roberta & Rocha, Nadia, 2015. "Product standards and margins of trade: Firm-level evidence," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 97(1), pages 29-44.
    3. George Alessandria & Horag Choi, 2007. "Do Sunk Costs of Exporting Matter for Net Export Dynamics?," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 122(1), pages 289-336.
    4. Chakraborty, Pavel, 2017. "Environmental standards, trade and innovation: evidence from a natural experiment," Environment and Development Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 22(4), pages 414-446, August.
    5. Albornoz, Facundo & Calvo Pardo, Héctor F. & Corcos, Gregory & Ornelas, Emanuel, 2012. "Sequential exporting," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(1), pages 17-31.
    6. Matthieu Crozet & Emmanuel Milet & Daniel Mirza, 2013. "The Discriminatory Effect of Domestic Regulations on International Trade in Services: Evidence from Firm-Level Data," Post-Print halshs-00801398, HAL.
    7. Sanghamitra Das & Mark J. Roberts & James R. Tybout, 2007. "Market Entry Costs, Producer Heterogeneity, and Export Dynamics," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 75(3), pages 837-873, May.
    8. Maertens, Miet & Swinnen, Johan F.M., 2009. "Trade, Standards, and Poverty: Evidence from Senegal," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 37(1), pages 161-178, January.
    9. Subervie, Julie & Vagneron, Isabelle, 2013. "A Drop of Water in the Indian Ocean? The Impact of GlobalGap Certification on Lychee Farmers in Madagascar," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 57-73.
    10. Nicolas Berman & Philippe Martin & Thierry Mayer, 2012. "How do Different Exporters React to Exchange Rate Changes?," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 127(1), pages 437-492.
    11. Gita Gopinath & Brent Neiman, 2014. "Trade Adjustment and Productivity in Large Crises," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(3), pages 793-831, March.
    12. Nicolas Berman & Philippe Martin & Thierry Mayer, 2012. "How do Different Exporters React to Exchange Rate Changes?," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 127(1), pages 437-492.
    13. Henson, Spencer & Masakure, Oliver & Cranfield, John, 2011. "Do Fresh Produce Exporters in Sub-Saharan Africa Benefit from GlobalGAP Certification?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 39(3), pages 375-386, March.
    14. Henk Kox & Hildegunn Kyvik Nordås, 2007. "Services Trade and Domestic Regulation," OECD Trade Policy Papers 49, OECD Publishing.
    15. Pramila Crivelli & Jasmin Groeschl, 2016. "The Impact of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures on Market Entry and Trade Flows," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(3), pages 444-473, March.
    16. Thomas Chaney, 2008. "Distorted Gravity: The Intensive and Extensive Margins of International Trade," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 98(4), pages 1707-1721, September.
    17. Zhaohui Niu & Chang Liu & Saileshsingh Gunessee & Chris Milner, 2018. "Non-tariff and overall protection: evidence across countries and over time," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 154(4), pages 675-703, November.
    18. Karine Latouche & Emmanuelle Chevassus-Lozza, 2015. "Retailer Supply Chain and Market Access: Evidence From French Agri-food Firms Certified with Private Standards," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(8), pages 1312-1334, August.
    19. Andrew B. Bernard & J. Bradford Jensen, 2004. "Why Some Firms Export," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 86(2), pages 561-569, May.
    20. Facundo Albornoz & Hector Calvo-Pardo & Gregory Corcos & Emanuel Ornelas, 2012. "Sequential exporting: how firms break into foreign markets," CentrePiece - The magazine for economic performance 364, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
    21. Otsuki, Tsunehiro & Michida, Etsuyo & Nabeshima, Kaoru & Ueki, Yasushi, 2014. "Estimating the effect of chemical safety standards on firm performance in Malaysia and Vietnam," IDE Discussion Papers 455, Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization(JETRO).
    22. Andrew B. Bernard & Stephen J. Redding & Peter K. Schott, 2011. "Multiproduct Firms and Trade Liberalization," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 126(3), pages 1271-1318.
    23. Maggie Xiaoyang Chen & John Wilson & Tsunehiro Otsuki, 2008. "Standards and export decisions: Firm-level evidence from developing countries," The Journal of International Trade & Economic Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 17(4), pages 501-523.
    24. Reyes, Jose-Daniel, 2011. "International harmonization of product standards and firm heterogeneity in international trade," Policy Research Working Paper Series 5677, The World Bank.
    25. Hornok, Cecília & Koren, Miklós, 2015. "Administrative barriers to trade," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(S1), pages 110-122.
    26. Marc J. Melitz, 2003. "The Impact of Trade on Intra-Industry Reallocations and Aggregate Industry Productivity," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 71(6), pages 1695-1725, November.
    27. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/6apm7lruv088iagm4rv2c33jtg is not listed on IDEAS
    28. Thomas Chaney, 2008. "Distorted Gravity: The Intensive and Extensive Margins of International Trade," SciencePo Working papers hal-03579844, HAL.
    29. Spearot, Alan C., 2013. "Variable demand elasticities and tariff liberalization," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(1), pages 26-41.
    30. Schuster, Monica & Maertens, Miet, 2015. "The Impact of Private Food Standards on Developing Countries’ Export Performance: An Analysis of Asparagus Firms in Peru," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 208-221.
    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. Lee, Woori & Mulabdic, Alen & Ruta, Michele, 2023. "Third-country effects of regional trade agreements: A firm-level analysis," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    2. John C. Beghin & Miet Maertens & Johan Swinnen, 2017. "Nontariff Measures and Standards in Trade and Global Value Chains," World Scientific Book Chapters,in: Nontariff Measures and International Trade, chapter 2, pages 13-38 World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    3. John C. Beghin & Miet Maertens & Johan Swinnen, 2017. "Nontariff Measures and Standards in Trade and Global Value Chains," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: John Christopher Beghin (ed.), Nontariff Measures and International Trade, chapter 2, pages 13-38, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    4. Neri--Lainé,Matteo & Orefice,Gianluca & Ruta,Michele, 2023. "Deep Trade Agreements and Heterogeneous Firms Exports," Policy Research Working Paper Series 10277, The World Bank.
    5. Bas, Maria & Mayer, Thierry & Thoenig, Mathias, 2017. "From micro to macro: Demand, supply, and heterogeneity in the trade elasticity," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 1-19.
    6. Curzi, Daniele & Schuster, Monica & Maertens, Miet & Olper, Alessandro, 2020. "Standards, trade margins and product quality: Firm-level evidence from Peru," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    7. Schuster, Monica & Maertens, Miet, 2015. "The Impact of Private Food Standards on Developing Countries’ Export Performance: An Analysis of Asparagus Firms in Peru," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 208-221.
    8. Head, Keith & Mayer, Thierry, 2014. "Gravity Equations: Workhorse,Toolkit, and Cookbook," Handbook of International Economics, in: Gopinath, G. & Helpman, . & Rogoff, K. (ed.), Handbook of International Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 0, pages 131-195, Elsevier.
    9. Nicholas Sheard, 2014. "Learning to Export and the Timing of Entry to Export Markets," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 22(3), pages 536-560, August.
    10. Aeberhardt, Romain & Buono, Ines & Fadinger, Harald, 2014. "Learning, incomplete contracts and export dynamics: Theory and evidence from French firms," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 219-249.
    11. Egger, Peter & Foellmi, Reto & Schetter, Ulrich & Torun, David, 2023. "Gravity with History: On Incumbency Effects in International Trade," CEPR Discussion Papers 18421, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    12. Békés, Gábor & Muraközy, Balázs, 2012. "Temporary trade and heterogeneous firms," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(2), pages 232-246.
    13. Pisch, Frank & Berlingieri, Giuseppe, 2022. "Managing Export Complexity: The Role of Service Outsourcing," Publications of Darmstadt Technical University, Institute for Business Studies (BWL) 135680, Darmstadt Technical University, Department of Business Administration, Economics and Law, Institute for Business Studies (BWL).
    14. Ana P. Fernandes & Jing-Lin Duanmu, 2023. "Foreign Banks and Firms' Export Dynamics: Evidence from China's Banking Reform," Discussion Papers 2304, University of Exeter, Department of Economics.
    15. Giorgio Barba Navaretti & Giulia Felice & Emanuele Forlani & Paolo Garella, 2018. "Non-tariff measures and competitiveness," Development Working Papers 438, Centro Studi Luca d'Agliano, University of Milano, revised 01 Feb 2023.
    16. Melitz, Marc J. & Redding, Stephen J., 2014. "Heterogeneous Firms and Trade," Handbook of International Economics, in: Gopinath, G. & Helpman, . & Rogoff, K. (ed.), Handbook of International Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 0, pages 1-54, Elsevier.
    17. Timoshenko, Olga A., 2015. "Learning versus sunk costs explanations of export persistence," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 113-128.
    18. Ciliberto, Federico & Jäkel, Ina C., 2021. "Superstar exporters: An empirical investigation of strategic interactions in Danish export markets," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 129(C).
    19. Jesse Mora, 2023. "Export failure and its consequences: evidence from Colombian exporters," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 159(3), pages 697-755, August.
    20. Shuyao Yang, 2020. "Technical Barriers to Trade and Firms' Export Decisions," CESifo Working Paper Series 8693, CESifo.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    NTMs; Trade policy; Heterogeneous firms; Intensive margins; Extensive margins;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F14 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Empirical Studies of Trade
    • L25 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Firm Performance

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    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:kap:iecepo:v:20:y:2023:i:1:d:10.1007_s10368-023-00554-z. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.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.