Production processes are increasingly organized in international value-chain networks. The involved firms can be operating at arm’s length or be vertically integrated. Both the incidence and the direction of integration (backward or forward in the value chain) depend on specific...

Using a three factor knowledge-capital model of trade and multinational activity, we consider a set of policy experiments to assess the welfare effects of trade and investment liberalization in general equilibrium. Specifically, we address the question of whether and under which circumstances a...

This paper provides an analysis of outsourcing and trade in a spatial model a la Hotelling. In this setting, we discuss the trade-off between transport-cost-related disadvantages and outsourcing-induced production cost advantages of a large economy. The model gives a rich picture of possible...

This paper analyses the effects of Agenda 2000's policy reform on the stocks of outward FDI to the European Union member countries. In a three-factors proximity-concentration New Trade Theory model we indentify the channels of influence on the FDI decision. In the empirical part, we estimate a...

This paper formulates an empirical model to estimate the impact of endogenous new RTA membership on trade structure. The likelihood of new RTA membership is influenced by economic fundamentals such as country size, factor endowments and trade and investment costs. In a sample of country-pairs...

This paper uses a large panel of OECD data on stocks of outward foreign direct investment (FDI) to evaluate the impact of bilateral investment treaties. For several variants of the knowledge capital model of multinationals, we demonstrate that investment treaties exert a significant positive...

This paper analyzes the growth of Metropolitan Statistical Areas in the PRC between 1992 and 2013 by focusing on the night-light radiance — a measure of economic activity — of connected subcity places that we refer to as a natural city. This paper documents the rapid growth of natural cities...

A number of recent developments, including the analysis of firm level adjustment to falling trade costs, have contributed to a revival of interest in intra-industry trade. Most empirical work still relies on the standard Grubel-Lloyd measure. This however refers only to international trade,...

This paper provides an empirical analysis of the effects of new product versus process innovations on export propensity at the firm level. Product innovation is a key factor for successful market entry in models of creative destruction and Schumpeterian growth. Process innovation helps securing...

We challenge the common practice of estimating gravity equations with time-interval data in order to capture dynamic-adjustment effects to trade-policy changes. Instead, we point to a series of advantages of using consecutive-year data recognizing dynamic-adjustment effects. Our analysis reveals...