The firm level trade literature finds exporters are exceptional performers for a wide range of countries and measures. Paradoxically, the one documented exception is the world's largest trader, China. We show that this puzzling finding is entirely driven by the presence of firms that engage in...

The firm level trade literature finds exporters are exceptional performers for a wide range of countries and measures. Paradoxically, the one documented exception is the world's largest exporter, China. We show that this puzzling finding is entirely driven by firms that engage only in export...

Does entry into the export market enhance firms' productivity? In this paper, we estimate the instantaneous and long-run effects of exporting on the productivity of Chinese manufacturing firms during 2001 and 2007. We argue that pre-export R&D plays a crucial role in generating post-entry...

This paper examines why credit constraints for domestic and exporting firms arise in a setting where banks do not observe firms' productivities. To maintain incentive-compatibility, banks lend below the amount needed for first-best production. The longer time needed for export shipments induces...