Abstract Vertical specialization is a measure of the import content of exports. Given the widely recognized importance of trade in tasks and global production networks, vertical specialization has recently gained the attention of international trade researchers and policy makers. In this note,...

Abstract The massive globalization of production led by large firms in industrialized countries, combined with the policy shift in developing countries toward export-oriented growth, has meant that economic development has increasingly become synonymous with “economic upgrading” within...

Abstract We adopt a ‘parsimonious’ approach to measuring economic and social upgrading over 1990-2009 in four global value chains – apparel, mobile phones, agrofoods and tourism – based entirely on data published by international institutions. Economic upgrading is defined as a...

Abstract We implement a “parsimonious” and operational approach to measuring economic and social upgrading over 1990-2009 in four global value chains -- apparel, mobile phones, agrofoods and tourism -- based entirely on data published by international institutions. Economic upgrading is...

Abstract Aid for Trade is widely heralded as a success in promoting increased trade by developing countries. Increased trade, however, does not automatically translate into greater prosperity for workers or local communities. In a world characterized by global value chains (GVCs) in which large...

In conventional economic theories, population is determined outside of the economic system. However, classical political economists such as Adam Smith and Thomas Malthus have long argued for the endogenous determination of population, hence establishing a connection between economics and...

We conduct an input-output analysis of China’s employment changes due to changes in trade structure on sectoral level. We find that between 2002 and 2007 China generated about 71 million jobs due to trade expansion. We also estimate the additional amount of trade that would be needed if China...

Risk aggregation with dependence uncertainty refers to the sum of individual risks with known marginal distributions and unspecified dependence structure. We introduce the admissible risk class to study risk aggregation with dependence uncertainty. The admissible risk class has some nice...

The impact of hydraulic engineering works and human activities on hydrology has become a hot issue along with the economy and social development. The water cycle model of the upper reaches of the Yangtze River (URYR) is established based on the improved Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT)...