IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kea/keappr/ker-20110630-27-1-06.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Accounting for Learning-by-Doing in Foreign Trade

Author

Listed:
  • Namsuk Choi

    (Korea Economic Research Institute)

Abstract

This paper attempts to account comprehensively for the role of learning-by-doing (LBD) in foreign trade. The importance of LBD on export performance is accounted for at various levels of aggregation, such as LBD at the product level, LBD at the market level, and more specifically, LBD at the market-and-product level. Using panel data covering 130 countries and 1,003 products during the period between 1962 and 2000, this paper finds a positive but concave relationship between foreign trade and LBD at various export levels, even after controlling for country income effects, openness, and per-capita GDP growth rates. Such relationship is stronger and less bounded at the product-specific level. However, with more meaningful changes, LBD at the market-specific level becomes more important than that at the product-specific level over a longer period of time.

Suggested Citation

  • Namsuk Choi, 2011. "Accounting for Learning-by-Doing in Foreign Trade," Korean Economic Review, Korean Economic Association, vol. 27, pages 115-138.
    • Handle: RePEc:kea:keappr:ker-20110630-27-1-06
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://keapaper.kea.ne.kr/RePEc/kea/keappr/KER-20110630-27-1-06.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Chuang, Yih-Chyi, 1998. "Learning by Doing, the Technology Gap, and Growth," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 39(3), pages 697-721, August.
    2. Bernard, Andrew B. & Bradford Jensen, J., 1999. "Exceptional exporter performance: cause, effect, or both?," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(1), pages 1-25, February.
    3. Ricardo Hausmann & Bailey Klinger, 2007. "The Structure of the Product Space and the Evolution of Comparative Advantage," Growth Lab Working Papers 10, Harvard's Growth Lab.
    4. Fernandes, Ana M. & Isgut, Alberto E., 2005. "Learning-by-doing, learning-by-exporting, and productivity : evidence from Colombia," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3544, The World Bank.
    5. Ohashi, Hiroshi, 2005. "Learning by doing, export subsidies, and industry growth: Japanese steel in the 1950s and 1960s," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 66(2), pages 297-323, July.
    6. Van Biesebroeck, Johannes, 2005. "Exporting raises productivity in sub-Saharan African manufacturing firms," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(2), pages 373-391, December.
    7. Alwyn Young, 1991. "Learning by Doing and the Dynamic Effects of International Trade," NBER Working Papers 3577, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    8. Alwyn Young, 1991. "Learning by Doing and the Dynamic Effects of International Trade," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 106(2), pages 369-405.
    9. Robert C. Feenstra & Robert E. Lipsey & Haiyan Deng & Alyson C. Ma & Hengyong Mo, 2005. "World Trade Flows: 1962-2000," NBER Working Papers 11040, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    10. Besedes, Tibor & Prusa, Thomas J., 2011. "The role of extensive and intensive margins and export growth," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(2), pages 371-379, November.
    11. Melitz, Marc J., 2005. "When and how should infant industries be protected?," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 66(1), pages 177-196, May.
    12. An, Galina & Iyigun, Murat F., 2004. "The export skill content, learning by exporting and economic growth," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 84(1), pages 29-34, July.
    13. Robert C. Feenstra & Andrew K. Rose, 2000. "Putting Things In Order: Trade Dynamics And Product Cycles," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 82(3), pages 369-382, August.
    14. De Loecker, Jan, 2007. "Do exports generate higher productivity? Evidence from Slovenia," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 73(1), pages 69-98, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Taguchi, Hiroyuki, 2022. "Manufacturing exports and institutional qualities: The case of central Asian countries," MPRA Paper 113585, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    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. Harrison, Ann & Rodríguez-Clare, Andrés, 2010. "Trade, Foreign Investment, and Industrial Policy for Developing Countries," Handbook of Development Economics, in: Dani Rodrik & Mark Rosenzweig (ed.), Handbook of Development Economics, edition 1, volume 5, chapter 0, pages 4039-4214, Elsevier.
    2. Muhammad Usman Arshad & Muhammad Nadir Shabbir & Momna Niazi, 2023. "Trade Openness and Public Innovation: A Causality Analysis," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(3), pages 21582440231, September.
    3. Harrison, Ann E. & Rodriguez-Clare, Andres, 2009. "Trade, Foreign Investment, and Industrial Policy," MPRA Paper 15561, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. An, Galina & Iyigun, Murat F., 2004. "The export skill content, learning by exporting and economic growth," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 84(1), pages 29-34, July.
    5. Pierluigi Montalbano & Silvia Nenci & Carlo Pietrobelli, 2018. "Opening and linking up: firms, GVCs, and productivity in Latin America," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 50(4), pages 917-935, April.
    6. Camila Casas & Federico J. Diez & Alejandra Gonzalez & Stefany Moreno, 2015. "Productivity and export market participation: evidence from Colombia," Working Papers 14-14, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.
    7. Ana M. Fernandes & Alberto E. Isgut, 2005. "Learning-by-Doing, Learning-by-Exporting, and Productivity: Evidence from Colombia," DEGIT Conference Papers c010_018, DEGIT, Dynamics, Economic Growth, and International Trade.
    8. Chandan Sharma & Ritesh Kumar Mishra, 2011. "Does export and productivity growth linkage exist? Evidence from the Indian manufacturing industry," International Review of Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(6), pages 633-652, November.
    9. Pedro Martins & Yong Yang, 2009. "The impact of exporting on firm productivity: a meta-analysis of the learning-by-exporting hypothesis," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 145(3), pages 431-445, October.
    10. Tomasz Brodzicki & Dorota Ciolek, 2016. "Creativity pays off. Innovation, innovation strategy, and internationalization," Working Papers 1601, Instytut Rozwoju, Institute for Development.
    11. Jože P. Damijan & Črt Kostevc, 2006. "Learning-by-Exporting: Continuous Productivity Improvements or Capacity Utilization Effects? Evidence from Slovenian Firms," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 142(3), pages 599-614, October.
    12. Manuel Tong Koecklin, 2018. "Experimenting in Export Markets," Economics PhD Theses 0918, Department of Economics, University of Sussex Business School.
    13. Cebeci, Tolga, 2014. "Impact of export destinations on firm performance," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6743, The World Bank.
    14. Pedro S. Martins & Yong Yang, 2007. "The Impact of Exporting on Firm Productivity: A Meta-Analysis," Working Papers 6, Queen Mary, University of London, School of Business and Management, Centre for Globalisation Research.
    15. Facundo Albornoz & Paolo Vanin, 2007. "Trade Policy and Industrial Structure," Discussion Papers 05-12, Department of Economics, University of Birmingham.
    16. Ricardo A. Lopez, 2007. "Exports and Productivity – Comparable Evidence for 14 Countries," CAEPR Working Papers 2007-028, Center for Applied Economics and Policy Research, Department of Economics, Indiana University Bloomington.
    17. Mary Amiti & Jozef Konings, 2007. "Trade Liberalization, Intermediate Inputs, and Productivity: Evidence from Indonesia," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 97(5), pages 1611-1638, December.
    18. Richard Harris & John Moffat, 2011. "R&D, Innovation and Exporting," SERC Discussion Papers 0073, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
    19. Francesco Serti & Chiara Tomasi, 2008. "Self-Selection and Post-Entry Effects of Exports: Evidence from Italian Manufacturing Firms," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 144(4), pages 660-694, December.
    20. Marianne Matthee & Neil Rankin & Tasha Naughtin & Carli Bezuidenhout, 2016. "The South African manufacturing exporter story," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2016-38, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Learning-by-Doing; Human Capital; Export Margin; Trade;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F10 - International Economics - - Trade - - - General
    • I20 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - General
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • O11 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Macroeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
    • O31 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives
    • O40 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - General

    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:kea:keappr:ker-20110630-27-1-06. 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: KEA (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/keaaaea.html .

    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.