We study the relationship between tariffs and labor productivity in US manufacturing between 1870 and 1909. Using highly dis-aggregated tariff data, state-industry data for the manufacturing sector, and an instrumental variable strategy, results show that tariffs reduced labor productivity....

Over the last 200 years, economies have accumulated significant experience in managing capital flows in the face of globalization. This study examines management of capital flows since the 1800s with an eye towards providing historical lessons for Southeast Asia today. We start with the global...

For all its importance, there still is no comprehensive quantitative assessment of the Suez Canal's opening in 1869. We find that it led to a 72% relative increase in bilateral exports for affected country pairs and a likely permanent increase in world trade. With respect to the composition of...

Amid a recent surge in arguments that the global economy has begun to "de-globalize," a question has emerged: will globalization survive? In this book , Christopher M. Meissner argues that based on the long-run of history, globalization will not be easily vanquished.

Regional trade in South America since independence has long been much smaller than would be expected if geography were the only constraint on trade. Several potential explanations exist: low technological and demand complementarities; low productivity; high barriers to trade. We first argue that...

Bimetallism disappeared as a monetary regime in the 1870s. Flandreau (1996) clearly demonstrates that French bimetallism would have been able to withstand the German de-monetization of silver. Could it have withstood if many other countries in the world moved to the gold standard following in...