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When Britain turned inward: Protection and the shift towards Empire in Interwar Britain

Author

Listed:
  • Alan de Bromhead
  • Alan Fernihough
  • Markus Lampe
  • Kevin Hjortshøj O'Rourke

Abstract

International trade became much less multilateral during the 1930s. Previous studies, looking at aggregate trade flows, have argued that discriminatory trade policies had comparatively little to do with this. Using highly disaggregated information on the UK’s imports and trade policies, we find that policy can explain the majority of Britain’s shift towards Imperial imports in the 1930s. Trade policy mattered, a lot.

Suggested Citation

  • Alan de Bromhead & Alan Fernihough & Markus Lampe & Kevin Hjortshøj O'Rourke, 2017. "When Britain turned inward: Protection and the shift towards Empire in Interwar Britain," NBER Working Papers 23164, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:23164
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Eichengreen, Barry & Irwin, Douglas A., 2010. "The Slide to Protectionism in the Great Depression: Who Succumbed and Why?," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 70(4), pages 871-897, December.
    2. James E. Anderson & J. Peter Neary, 1996. "A New Approach to Evaluating Trade Policy," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 63(1), pages 107-125.
    3. Bown, Chad & Crowley, Meredith A., 2016. "The Empirical Landscape of Trade Policy," CEPR Discussion Papers 11216, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    4. James E. Anderson & Yoto V. Yotov, 2010. "The Changing Incidence of Geography," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 100(5), pages 2157-2186, December.
    5. Christian Broda & David E. Weinstein, 2006. "Globalization and the Gains From Variety," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 121(2), pages 541-585.
    6. Eichengreen, Barry & Irwin, Douglas A., 1995. "Trade blocs, currency blocs and the reorientation of world trade in the 1930s," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 38(1-2), pages 1-24, February.
    7. Barbezat, Daniel, 1989. "Cooperation and Rivalry in the International Steel Cartel, 1926–1933," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 49(2), pages 435-447, June.
    8. Dye, Alan & Sicotte, Richard, 2006. "How brinkmanship saved Chadbourne: Credibility and the International Sugar Agreement of 1931," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 43(2), pages 223-256, April.
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    Blog mentions

    As found by EconAcademics.org, the blog aggregator for Economics research:
    1. Little Britain? Empire and the rise of protectionism in interwar Britain.
      by crowleymarkj in NEP-HIS blog on 2017-04-04 15:00:17

    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Simon P. Lloyd & Solomos Solomou, 2020. "The impact of the 1932 General Tariff: a difference-in-difference approach," Cliometrica, Springer;Cliometric Society (Association Francaise de Cliométrie), vol. 14(1), pages 41-60, January.
    2. Kevin Hjortshøj O’Rourke, 2018. "Two Great Trade Collapses: The Interwar Period and Great Recession Compared," IMF Economic Review, Palgrave Macmillan;International Monetary Fund, vol. 66(3), pages 418-439, September.
    3. Rodolfo Campos & Jacopo Timini, 2019. "An estimation of the effects of Brexit on trade and migration," Occasional Papers 1912, Banco de España.
    4. Maylis Avaro, 2020. "Zombie International Currency: The Pound Sterling 1945-1973," IHEID Working Papers 03-2020, Economics Section, The Graduate Institute of International Studies, revised 27 Apr 2021.
    5. Jason Lennard, 2020. "Uncertainty and the Great Slump," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 73(3), pages 844-867, August.
    6. Kevin Hjortshøj O'Rourke, 2017. "Two Great Trade Collapses: The Interwar Period & Great Recession Compared," NBER Working Papers 23825, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    7. Timothy Nussbaumer, 2017. "A study case on the caveats in the measurement of FTAs effect on trade: Switzerland's free trade agreements," Aussenwirtschaft, University of St. Gallen, School of Economics and Political Science, Swiss Institute for International Economics and Applied Economics Research, vol. 68(01), pages 139-167, December.
    8. Oosterlinck, Kim & Accominotti, Olivier & BRIERE, Marie & Burietz, Aurore & Szafarz, Ariane, 2020. "Did Globalization Kill Contagion?," CEPR Discussion Papers 14395, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    9. J., Julio, 2019. "Brexit trade impacts' and Mercosur's negotiations with Europe," MPRA Paper 94885, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • F13 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade Policy; International Trade Organizations
    • F14 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Empirical Studies of Trade
    • N74 - Economic History - - Economic History: Transport, International and Domestic Trade, Energy, and Other Services - - - Europe: 1913-

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