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The Effect of Trade Liberalization on Wages and Employment: The Case of New Zealand

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  • Lang, Kevin

Abstract

Prior to trade liberalization in the l980s, New Zealand heavily protected low-wage industries. Consequently, trade liberalization was desirable from the perspective of both traditional and new trade theories. While liberalization decreased employment in protected industries somewhat, it also significantly affected wages, noticeably diminishing the effect of liberalization on employment in previously protected industries and, thus, reducing the postliberalization shift in the industrial composition of employment. The small effect of liberalization on the composition of employment suggests that the effect of tariffs on wages and firms' monopoly power substantially eliminated any effect of protection on the distribution of employment. Copyright 1998 by University of Chicago Press.

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  • Lang, Kevin, 1998. "The Effect of Trade Liberalization on Wages and Employment: The Case of New Zealand," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 16(4), pages 792-814, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:ucp:jlabec:v:16:y:1998:i:4:p:792-814
    DOI: 10.1086/209906
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Krugman, Paul R, 1987. "Is Free Trade Passe?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 1(2), pages 131-144, Fall.
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    Cited by:

    1. Debasis Bandyopadhyay, 2001. "The industry premium: What we know and what the New Zealand data say," New Zealand Economic Papers, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(1), pages 53-75.
    2. Diego E. Vacaflores, 2011. "Was Latin America Correct In Relying In Foreign Direct Investment To Improve Employment Rates?," Applied Econometrics and International Development, Euro-American Association of Economic Development, vol. 11(2).
    3. Stillman, Steven & Velamuri, Malathi & Aitken, Andrew, 2010. "The long-run impact of New Zealand's structural reform on local communities," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 38(4), pages 432-448, December.
    4. Rajesh Raj S.N. & Subash Sasidharan, 2015. "Impact of Foreign Trade on Employment and Wages in Indian Manufacturing," South Asia Economic Journal, Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka, vol. 16(2), pages 209-232, September.
    5. Halit Yanikkaya, 2013. "Is trade liberalization a solution to the unemployment problem?," Portuguese Economic Journal, Springer;Instituto Superior de Economia e Gestao, vol. 12(1), pages 57-85, April.
    6. Eugene Beaulieu & Vivek Dehejia & Hazrat-Omar Zakhilwal, 2004. "International Trade, Labour Turnover, and the Wage Premium: Testing the Bhagwati-Dehejia Hypothesis for Canada," CESifo Working Paper Series 1149, CESifo.
    7. Sholeh A. Maani, 2004. "Why Have Maori Relative Income Levels Deteriorated Over Time?," The Economic Record, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 80(248), pages 101-124, March.
    8. Jeff Borland, 2000. "Economic Explanations of Earnings Distribution Trends in the International Literature and Application to New Zealand," Treasury Working Paper Series 00/16, New Zealand Treasury.

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