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Infrastructure, Geographical Disadvantage, Transport Costs, and Trade

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  • Nuno Limão
  • Anthony J. Venables

Abstract

The authors use different data sets to investigate the dependence of transport costs on geography and infrastructure. Infrastructure is an important determinant of transport costs, especially for landlocked countries. Analysis of bilateral trade data confirms the importance of infrastructure and gives an estimate of the elasticity of trade flows with respect to the trade cost factor of around -3. A deterioration of infrastructure from the median to the 75th percentile raises transport costs by 12 percentage points and reduces trade volumes by 28 percent. Analysis of African trade flows indicates that their relatively low level is largely due to poor infrastructure.

Suggested Citation

  • Nuno Limão & Anthony J. Venables, 2001. "Infrastructure, Geographical Disadvantage, Transport Costs, and Trade," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 15(3), pages 451-45-479.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:wbecrv:2001:15:3:451--479
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    Cited by:

    1. Jaimovich, Esteban, 2019. "Roadways, input sourcing, and patterns of specialization," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    2. Collier, Paul & Venables, Anthony J., 2012. "Greening Africa? Technologies, endowments and the latecomer effect," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 34(S1), pages 75-84.
    3. Madsen, Jakob B. & Robertson, Peter E. & Ye, Longfeng, 2024. "Lives versus livelihoods in the middle ages: The impact of the plague on trade over 400 years," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 162(C).
    4. Redding, Stephen & Schott, Peter K., 2003. "Distance, skill deepening and development: will peripheral countries ever get rich?," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 72(2), pages 515-541, December.
    5. Barthélémy Bonadio, 2024. "Ports vs. Roads: Infrastructure, Market Access and Regional Outcomes," CESifo Working Paper Series 11383, CESifo.
    6. Pomfret, Richard & Sourdin, Patricia, 2009. "Have Asian trade agreements reduced trade costs?," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 20(3), pages 255-268, May.
    7. Konrad, Kai A., 2024. "China’s public international investment: A strategic-trade-policy perspective," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 139(C).
    8. Francisco, Kris A. & Tanaka, Makoto, 2019. "Does public infrastructure affect human capital? The effect of improved transport connectivity on children's education in the Philippines," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    9. Dennis Novy, 2013. "Gravity Redux: Measuring International Trade Costs With Panel Data," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 51(1), pages 101-121, January.
    10. Chauvet, Lisa & Ehrhart, Hélène, 2018. "Aid and growth: evidence from firm-level data," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 461-477.
    11. Anderson, Kym & Strutt, Anna, 2012. "The changing geography of world trade: Projections to 2030," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 23(4), pages 303-323.
    12. Baltagi, Badi H. & Egger, Peter & Pfaffermayr, Michael, 2007. "Estimating models of complex FDI: Are there third-country effects?," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 140(1), pages 260-281, September.
    13. Kai A. Konrad, 2023. "The Geoeconomics of Trade Infrastructure and the Innovation Competition between China and the US," Working Papers tax-mpg-rps-2023-14, Max Planck Institute for Tax Law and Public Finance.
    14. Geloso Grosso, Massimo & Shepherd, Ben, 2011. "Air cargo transport in APEC: Regulation and effects on merchandise trade," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 22(3), pages 203-212, June.
    15. Zhang, Kevin Honglin, 2014. "How does foreign direct investment affect industrial competitiveness? Evidence from China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 530-539.
    16. Yamashita, Nobuaki, 2011. "Production sharing and trade flows: A comparative analysis of Japan and the US," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 22(5), pages 383-397, October.
    17. Verma, Priyam, 2024. "Optimal Infrastructure after Trade Reform in India," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 166(C).
    18. Martínez-Zarzoso, Inmaculada & Felicitas, Nowak-Lehmann D. & Horsewood, Nicholas, 2009. "Are regional trading agreements beneficial?: Static and dynamic panel gravity models," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 20(1), pages 46-65, March.
    19. Dominik Boddin & Frank Stähler, 2024. "Import tariffs and transport prices," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 57(2), pages 430-458, May.
    20. Jetter, Michael & Mösle, Saskia & Stadelmann, David, 2019. "Cursed by no coast: How regional landlockedness affects income within countries," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 181(C), pages 70-73.
    21. Bu, Juan & Cuervo-Cazurra, Alvaro & Luo, Yadong & Wang, Stephanie Lu, 2024. "Mitigating soft and hard infrastructure deficiencies in emerging markets," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 59(4).
    22. Carrere, Celine, 2006. "Revisiting the effects of regional trade agreements on trade flows with proper specification of the gravity model," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 50(2), pages 223-247, February.
    23. Volpe Martincus, Christian & Carballo, Jerónimo & Garcia, Pablo M. & Graziano, Alejandro, 2014. "How do transport costs affect firms’ exports? Evidence from a vanishing bridge," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 123(2), pages 149-153.
    24. Bandara, Yapa M.W.Y. & Sharma, Kishor & Chakrabarty, Debajyoti, 2019. "Trends, patterns and determinants of production sharing in Australian manufacturing," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 1-11.
    25. Boulton, Thomas J. & Ellram, Lisa M., 2024. "The intersection of supply chain operations and finance: Logistics uncertainty and International IPO underpricing," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).

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