IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/sza/wpaper/wpapers75.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

World Rankings of Comparative Advantage in Service Exports

Author

Listed:
  • Johan Fourie

    (Department of Economics, University Of Stellenbosch)

  • Dieter von Fintel

    (Department of Economics, University Of Stellenbosch)

Abstract

World service exports have grown at a rapid rate over the past few decades. While some countries have benefited from the surge in service exports, others have been left behind. This paper provides a snapshot of the current state of trade in services using three measures of the Balassa index to reveal comparative advantage, both by country and by service sector. Ranking tables are reported for countries with a GDP above $100 billion in 2005, although 147 countries are included in the analysis. (The full results are provided in the appendix). An overview of the performance of G8 and O5 countries is also provided.

Suggested Citation

  • Johan Fourie & Dieter von Fintel, 2009. "World Rankings of Comparative Advantage in Service Exports," Working Papers 03/2009, Stellenbosch University, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:sza:wpaper:wpapers75
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.ekon.sun.ac.za/wpapers/2009/wp032009/wp-03-2009.pdf
    File Function: First version, 2009
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Langhammer, Rolf J., 2002. "Developing Countries as Exporters of Services: What Trade Statistics Suggest," Journal of Economic Integration, Center for Economic Integration, Sejong University, vol. 17, pages 297-310.
    2. P. K. M. Tharakan & Ilke Van Beveren & Tom Van Ourti, 2005. "Determinants of India's Software Exports and Goods Exports," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 87(4), pages 776-780, November.
    3. Belay Seyoum, 2007. "Revealed comparative advantage and competitiveness in services," Journal of Economic Studies, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 34(5), pages 376-388, October.
    4. Frank Leung & Kevin Chow & Jessica Szeto & Dickson Tam, 2008. "Service Exports: The Next Engine of Growth For Hong Kong?," Working Papers 0804, Hong Kong Monetary Authority.
    5. Brian Hindley & Alasdair Smith, 1984. "Comparative Advantage and Trade in Services," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 7(4), pages 369-390, December.
    6. Mrs. Poonam Gupta & Mr. James P. F. Gordon, 2004. "Understanding India’s Services Revolution," IMF Working Papers 2004/171, International Monetary Fund.
    7. Baldwin, Robert E, 1971. "Determinants of the Commodity Structure of U.S. Trade," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 61(1), pages 126-146, March.
    8. Sanjaya Lall & Frances Stewart (ed.), 1986. "Theory and Reality in Development," Palgrave Macmillan Books, Palgrave Macmillan, number 978-1-349-18128-5, October.
    9. Keld Laursen, 1998. "Revealed Comparative Advantage and the Alternatives as Measures of International Specialisation," DRUID Working Papers 98-30, DRUID, Copenhagen Business School, Department of Industrial Economics and Strategy/Aalborg University, Department of Business Studies.
    10. Meyer, Thomas, 2007. "India's specialisation in IT exports: Offshoring can't defy gravity," Research Notes 27, Deutsche Bank Research.
    11. Bertrand Quélin & Bert Flier & Frans A.J. van den Bosch & Henk W. Volberda & Carlo A. Carnevale & Neil Tomkin & Leif Melin & Mark P. Krieger, 2001. "The Changing Landscape of the European Financial Services Sector," Post-Print hal-00459864, HAL.
    12. Hoekman, Bernard & Mattoo, Aaditya, 2008. "Services trade and growth," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4461, The World Bank.
    13. Banga Rashmi, 2005. "Trade in Services: A Review," Global Economy Journal, De Gruyter, vol. 5(2), pages 1-24, June.
    14. Svaleryd, Helena & Vlachos, Jonas, 2005. "Financial markets, the pattern of industrial specialization and comparative advantage: Evidence from OECD countries," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(1), pages 113-144, January.
    15. Thomas Vollrath, 1991. "A theoretical evaluation of alternative trade intensity measures of revealed comparative advantage," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 127(2), pages 265-280, June.
    16. Catherine L. Mann, 2004. "The US Current Account, New Economy Services, and Implications for Sustainability," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 12(2), pages 262-276, May.
    17. Catherine Yap Co, 2007. "US Exports of Knowledge‐intensive Services and Importing‐country Characteristics," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(5), pages 890-904, November.
    18. Sanjaya Lall, 1986. "The Third World and Comparative Advantage in Trade Services," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: Sanjaya Lall & Frances Stewart (ed.), Theory and Reality in Development, chapter 8, pages 122-138, Palgrave Macmillan.
    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. Nuno Cunha & Rosa Forte, 2017. "The Comparative Advantages in the Services Sector of Developing Economies," Global Economy Journal (GEJ), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 17(4), pages 1-24, December.
    2. Ranjan Dash & P. Parida, 2013. "FDI, services trade and economic growth in India: empirical evidence on causal links," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 45(1), pages 217-238, August.
    3. Nyahoho Emmanuel, 2010. "Determinants of Comparative Advantage in the International Trade of Services: An Empirical Study of the Hecksher-Ohlin Approach," Global Economy Journal, De Gruyter, vol. 10(1), pages 1-24, February.
    4. Jens Oelgemoeller, "undated". "Analyzing the international competitiveness of the industry in Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain using revealed comparative advantages (RCA) indicators," Working Papers 201286, Institute of Spatial and Housing Economics, Munster Universitary.
    5. Joanna Stefaniak-Kopoboru & Joanna Kuczewska, 2016. "Export Specialization In Services Of The Visegrad Countries," Equilibrium. Quarterly Journal of Economics and Economic Policy, Institute of Economic Research, vol. 11(2), pages 265-284, June.
    6. Oelgemöller, Jens, 2012. "Analyzing the international competitiveness of the industry in Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain using revealed comparative advantages (RCA) indicators," CAWM Discussion Papers 61, University of Münster, Münster Center for Economic Policy (MEP).
    7. Maureen Were & Maureen Odongo, 2023. "Competitiveness and diversification of services exports in sub‐Saharan Africa," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(2), pages 363-381, February.
    8. Joseph Francois & Bernard Hoekman, 2010. "Services Trade and Policy," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 48(3), pages 642-692, September.
    9. Dominika Choros-Mrozowska, 2020. "Changes and Comparisons in Pattern of Polish Chinese Trade within the “16+1” Format," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(2), pages 327-342.
    10. Sèna K. Gnangnon, 2021. "Aid for Trade and services export diversification in recipient countries," Australian Economic Papers, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 60(2), pages 189-225, June.
    11. Setyastuti, Rini & Adiningsih, Sri & Widodo, Tri, 2018. "The Dynamics of Comparative Advantage in the ASEAN Region," MPRA Paper 86541, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Amador, João & Cabral, Sónia & Ramos Maria, José, 2007. "International Trade Patterns over the Last Four Decades: How does Portugal Compare with other Cohesion Countries?," MPRA Paper 5996, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    13. Martin Grančay & Tomáš Dudáš, 2019. "Bilateral trade flows and comparative advantage: does the size matter?," Society and Economy, Akadémiai Kiadó, Hungary, vol. 41(4), pages 397-413, December.
    14. Umar Fachrudin & Fithra Faisal Hastiadi, 2016. "Impact Analysis of Normalized Revealed Comparative Advantageon ASEAN’s Non-Oil and Gas Export Pattern Using Gravity-Model Approach," Working Papers in Economics and Business 201603, Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Indonesia, revised May 2016.
    15. Roesmara Donna, Duddy & Widodo, Tri & Adiningsih, Sri, 2017. "Dynamics of Trade Specialization in Middle East and North Africa (MENA)," MPRA Paper 77439, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    16. Tri WIDODO, 2009. "Comparative Advantage: Theory, Empirical Measures And Case Studies," Review of Economic and Business Studies, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, issue 4, pages 57-82, November.
    17. Lee, Jim, 2011. "Export specialization and economic growth around the world," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 35(1), pages 45-63, March.
    18. Depetris Guiguet, Edith & García Arancibia, Rodrigo & Rossini, Gustavo, 2010. "Consistencia de indicadores de especialización en el comercio internacional. Aplicación al caso de la mantequilla en Argentina y Uruguay = Consistency of Specialization Indicators. An Application to A," Revista de Métodos Cuantitativos para la Economía y la Empresa = Journal of Quantitative Methods for Economics and Business Administration, Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Department of Quantitative Methods for Economics and Business Administration, vol. 9(1), pages 85-105, June.
    19. Sarker, Rakhal, 2018. "Trade Expansion, International Competitiveness and the Pursuit of Export Diversification in Bangladesh," Bangladesh Development Studies, Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS), vol. 41(02), pages 1-25, June.
    20. Galina Boyanova Zaharieva, 2020. "International Services Trade Competitiveness of EU-27 Countries," Business & Management Compass, University of Economics Varna, issue 3, pages 273-296.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    services trade; RCA; competitive advantage; Balassa index; developing countries;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F14 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Empirical Studies of Trade

    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:sza:wpaper:wpapers75. 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: Melt van Schoor (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/desunza.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.