Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-lj6df Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-05T08:40:42.522Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Assessment of tariff equivalents for services considering the zero flows

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 March 2013

AMÉLIE GUILLIN*
Affiliation:
Johannes Kepler Universität
*

Abstract

Measuring trade barriers in services is complex due to all the non-tariff barriers that exist. In this paper we rely on quantity measures using gravity equation. In order to take into consideration the presence of zero flows in the database, we use a sample selection model. Then, we use the results of both stages of the model to derive tariff equivalents based on the distribution of the estimated residuals. Applying this methodology to the Eurostat database, we obtain tariff equivalents for a large number of countries and for 11 services sectors. Our main conclusions are that protection is not homogeneous among sectors for a country and that services openness is not directly linked with the level of development. Our results are robust to changes in specification, but we do find that OLS estimations overestimate the commercial openness of the countries with many zero flows.

Type
Review Article
Copyright
Copyright © Amélie Guillin 2013 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Aitchison, J. and sBrown, J. A. C. (1957), The Lognormal Distribution, Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Anderson, J. E. (1979), ‘A Theoretical Foundation for the Gravity Equation’, American Economic Review, 69: 106116.Google Scholar
Anderson, J. E. and Marcouiller, D. (2002), ‘Insecurity and the Pattern of Trade: An Empirical Investigation’, Review of Economics and Statistics, 84–2: 342352.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Anderson, J. E. and van Wincoop, E. (2003), ‘Gravity with Gravitas: A Solution to the Border Puzzle’, American Economic Review, 93: 170192.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Anderson, J. E. and van Wincoop, E. (2004), ‘Trade Costs’, Journal of Economic Literature, 42–3: 691751.Google Scholar
Baldwin, R. (1994), Towards an Integrated Europe, London: CEPR.Google Scholar
Baldwin, R. and Taglioni, D. (2006), Gravity for Dummies and Dummies for Gravity Equations, CEPR Discussion Paper 5850.Google Scholar
Barro, R. J. and McCleary, R. M. (2003), ‘Religion and Economic Growth across Countries’, American Sociological Review, October: 760781.Google Scholar
Bernard, A. B. and Jensen, J. B. (2004), ‘Why Some Firms Export’, Review of Economics and Statistics, 86–2: 561569.Google Scholar
Bensidoun, I. and Ünal-Kesenci, D. (2008), Globalisation of Services: From Measurement to Analysis, OECD Working Paper, STD/DOC(2008)3/REV1.Google Scholar
Bergstrand, J. (1985), ‘The Gravity Equation in International Trade: Some Microeconomic Foundations and Empirical Evidence’, Review of Economics and Statistics, 69: 474481.Google Scholar
Bhagwati, J. N. (1984), ‘Splintering and Disembodiment of Services and Developing Nations’, The World Economy, 7: 133144.Google Scholar
Bhagwati, J. N. (1985), ‘Trade in Services and Developing Countries’, Tenth Annual Geneva Lecture at the London School of Economics, London.Google Scholar
Bikker, J. A. and De Vos, A. F. (1992), An International Trade Flow Model with Zero Observations: An Extension of the Tobit Model, Cahiers Economiques de Bruxelles, pp. 379404.Google Scholar
Brandicourt, V., Schwellnus, C., and Wörz, J. (2008), Austria's Potential for Trade in Services, FIW Research Report No. 002.Google Scholar
Cameron, A. C. and Trivedi, P. K. (2005), Microeconometrics: Methods and Applications, New York: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cave, W. (2006), ‘How are Services Being Internationalised?’, 7th OECD International Trade Statistics Expert Meeting, Paris, 11–14 September 2006.Google Scholar
Dark, K. R. (2000) Religion and International Relations, New York: St Martin's Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Deardorff, A. (1998), ‘Determinants of Bilateral Trade: Does Gravity Work in a Neoclassical World?’, The Regionalization of the World Economy, NBER, pp. 732.Google Scholar
Deardorff, A. and Stern, R. (1998), Measurement of Nontariff Barriers, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.Google Scholar
Dee, P. and Hanslow, K. (2000), Multilateral Liberalisation of Services Trade, International Trade EconWPA No. 0207002.Google Scholar
De Groot, H., Linders, G., Rietveld, P., and Subramanian, U. (2004), ‘The Institutional Determinants of Bilateral Trade Patterns’, Kyklos, 57–1: 103123.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dihel, N. and Sheperd, B. (2007), Modal Estimates of Services Barriers, OECD Trade Policy Working Paper No. 51.Google Scholar
Djankov, S., La Porta, R., Lopez-de-Silanes, F., and Shleifer, A. (2002), ‘The Regulation of Entry’, Quarterly Journal of Economics, 117: 137.Google Scholar
EC, IMF, OECD, UN, UNCTAD, and WTO (2002), Manual on Statistics of International Trade in Services, ST/ESA/STAT/SER.M/86.Google Scholar
Egger, P. (2002), ‘An Econometric View on the Estimation of Gravity Models and the Calculation of Trade Potentials’, World Economy, 25–2: 297312.Google Scholar
Felbermayr, G. J. and Kohler, W. (2006), ‘Exploring the Intensive and Extensive Margins of World Trade’, Review of World Economics, 142–4: 642674.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Francois, J. F. (2001), The Next WTO Round: North–South Stakes in New Market Access Negotiations, CIES Adelaide and the Tinbergen Institute.Google Scholar
Francois, J. F. and Hoekman, B. (1999), ‘Market Access in the Service Sectors’, Manuscript, Tinbergen Institute.Google Scholar
Francois, J. F., van Meijl, H., and van Tongeren, F. (2003), Trade Liberalization and Developing Countries under the Doha Round, CEPR Discussion Paper No. 4032.Google Scholar
Francois, J. F. and Manchin, M. (2007), Institutions, Infrastructure, and Trade, The World Bank Policy Research Working Paper No. 4152.Google Scholar
Frankel, J. A. (1997), Regional Trading Blocs in the World Economic System, Peterson Institute Press, No. 72.Google Scholar
Frankel, J. A. and Wei, S. J. (1998), ‘Regionalization of World Trade and Currencies: Economics and Politics’, in Frankel, J. A. (ed.), The Regionalization of the World Economy, University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Geloso-Grosso, M., Jankowska, A., and Gonzales, F. (2008), ‘Trade and Regulation: The Case of Construction Services’, OECD Experts Meeting on Construction Services.Google Scholar
Giovannini, E. and Cave, W. (2007), ‘The Statistical Measurement of Services: Recent Achievements and Remaining Challenges’, Metroeconomica, 58–3: 479501.Google Scholar
Gómez Herrera, E. (2010), ‘Are Estimation Techniques Neutral to Estimate Gravity Equations?’, ThE Papers working paper No. 10/05, http://ideas.repec.org/p/gra/wpaper/10-05.htm.Google Scholar
Guiso, L., Sapienza, P., and Zingales, L. (2003), ‘People's Opium? Religion and Economic Attitudes’, Journal of Monetary Economics, 50: 225282.Google Scholar
Guiso, L., Sapienza, P., and Zingales, L. (2006), ‘Does Culture Affect Economic Outcomes?’, Journal of Economic Perspectives, Spring 2006.Google Scholar
Guo, R. (2007), ‘Linguistic and Religious Influences on Foreign Trade: Evidence from East Asia’, Asian Economic Journal, 21–1: 101–21.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Haveman, J. and Hummels, D. (2004), ‘Alternative Hypotheses and the Volume of Trade: The Gravity Equation and the Extent of Specialization’, Canadian Journal of Economics, 37–1: 199218.Google Scholar
Heckman, J. (1979), ‘Sample Selection Bias as a Specification Error’, Econometrica, 47: 153161.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Helble, M. (2007), ‘Is God Good for Trade?’, Kyklos, 60–3: 385413.Google Scholar
Helpman, E., Melitz, M., and Rubinstein, Y. (2008), ‘Estimating Trade Flows: Trading partners and Trading Volumes’, Quarterly Journal of Economics, 123–2: 441487.Google Scholar
Hoekman, B. (1995), Assessing the General Agreement on Trade in Services, World Bank Discussion Paper No. 307. Washington D.C: World Bank.Google Scholar
Iannaccone, L. R. (1998), ‘Introduction to the Economics of Religion’, Journal of Economic Literature, 36: 1465–96.Google Scholar
Jansen, M. and Nordås, H. K. (2004), Institutions, Trade Policy and Trade Flows, CEPR Discussion Papers 4418.Google Scholar
Kalirajan, K. (2000), Restrictions on Trade in Distribution Services, Productivity Commission Staff Research Paper, Ausinfo, Canberra.Google Scholar
Kalirajan, K., McGuire, G., Nguyen-Hong, D., and Shuele, M. (2001), ‘Restrictiveness of International Trade in Banking Services’, in Findlay, C. and Warren, T. (eds.), Impediments to Trade in Services: Measurement and Policy Implications, New York: Routledge.Google Scholar
Kimura, F. and Lee, H.-H. (2006), ‘The Gravity Equation in International Trade in Services’, Review of World Economics, 142–1: 92121.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kox, H., Lejour, A., and Montizaan, R. (2004), The Free Movement of Services within the EU, CPB Document 69.Google Scholar
Kox, H. and Lejour, A. (2005), Regulatory Heterogeneity as Obstacle for International Services Trade, CPB Discussion Paper No. 49.Google Scholar
Lejour, A., Van Leeuween, N., and ten Gate, A. (2008), ‘The Quality of Bilateral Services Trade Data: Contribution to GTAP7 Database’, CPB Memorandum.Google Scholar
Lewer, J. and Van den Berg, H. (2007), ‘Estimating the Institutional and Network Effects of Religious Cultures on International Trade’, Kyklos, 60–2: 255277.Google Scholar
Linders, G.-J. (2004), The Effect of Domestic Institutions on International Trade Flows: A Sectoral Analysis, European Regional Science Association conference papers.Google Scholar
Linders, G.-J., Slangen, A., de Groot, H., and Beugelsdijk, S. (2005), Cultural and Institutional Determinants of Bilateral Trade Flows, Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 05-074/3.Google Scholar
Linders, G. and De Groot, H. (2006), Estimation of the Gravity Equation in the Presence of Zero Flows, Working Paper, Department of Spatial Economics, Tinbergen Institute, University of Amsterdam.Google Scholar
Lipsey, R. (2009), ‘Measuring International Trade in Services’, in International Trade in Services and Intangibles in the Era of Globalization, pp. 2770, http://ideas.repec-org/f/pli259.html.Google Scholar
Markusen, J. R. and Strand, B. (2008), ‘Offshoring of Business Services in Small, Open Economies: Toward a General-Equilibrium Modeling Approach’, Journal of Industry Competitiveness and Trade, 8: 231246.Google Scholar
Martin, W. and Pham, C. (2008), Estimating the Gravity Equation when Zero Trade Flows are Frequent, Economics Series 2008_03, World Bank.Google Scholar
Mattoo, A., Rathindran, R., and Subramanian, A. (2006), ‘Measuring Services Trade Liberalization and Its Impact on Economic Growth: An Illustration’, Journal of Economic Integration, 21–1: 6498.Google Scholar
McGuire, G. and Schuele, M. (2000), ‘Restrictiveness of International Trade in Maritime Services’, in Findlay, C. and Warren, T. (eds.), Impediments to Trade in Services: Measurement and Policy Implications, New York: Routledge.Google Scholar
Möhlmann, J., Ederveen, S., Groot, H., and Linders, G.-J. (2009), Intangible Barriers to International Trade: A Sectoral Approach, Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 09-021/3.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nguyen-Hong, D. (2000), Restrictions on Trade in Professional Services, Productivity Commission Staff Research Paper, Ausinfo, Canberra.Google Scholar
Nilsson, L. (2000), ‘Trade Integration and the EU Economic Membership Criteria’, European Journal of Political Economy, 16: 807827.Google Scholar
Nordås, H. and Kox, H. (2009), Quantifying Regulatory Barriers to Services Trade, OECD Trade Policy Working Papers 85.Google Scholar
Park, S.-C. (2002), Measuring Tariff Equivalents in Cross-Border Trade in Services, Working Paper No. 02-15, Korea Institute for International Economic Policy.Google Scholar
Rauch, J. E. (1999), ‘Networks Versus Markets in International Trade’, Journal of International Economics, 48: 735.Google Scholar
Rose, A. K. (2004), ‘Do We Really Know That the WTO Increases Trade?’, American Economic Review, 94: 98114.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sampson, G. P. and Snape, R. H. (1985), ‘Identifying the Issues in Trade in Services’, The World Economy, 8: 171181.Google Scholar
Santos Silva, J. and Tenreyro, S. (2003), Gravity-Defying Trade, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, Working Paper 03-1.Google Scholar
Santos Silva, J. and Tenreyro, S. (2006), ‘The Log of Gravity’, Review of Economics and Statistics, 88: 641658.Google Scholar
Soloaga, I. and Winters, L. A. (2001), ‘Regionalism in the Nineties: What Effect on Trade?’, North American Journal of Economics and Finance, 12: 129.Google Scholar
Stern, R. M. (2000), ‘Quantifying Barriers to Trade in Services’, Research Seminar in International Economics, Discussion Paper No. 470, University of Michigan.Google Scholar
Trewin, R. (2001), ‘A Price-Impact Measure of Impediments to Trade in Telecommunication Services’, in Findlay, C. and Warren, T. (eds.), Impediments to Trade in Services: Measurement and Policy Implications, New York: Routledge.Google Scholar
Walsh, K. (2008), ‘Trade in Services: Does Gravity Hold?’, Journal of World Trade, 42–2: 315334.Google Scholar
Warren, T. (2000), ‘The Impact on Output of Impediments to Trade and Investment in Telecommunications Services’, in Findlay, C. and Warren, T. (eds.), Impediments to Trade in Services: Measurement and Policy Implications, New York: Routledge.Google Scholar
Welch, P. J. and Mueller, J. J. (2001), ‘The Relationships of Religion to Economics’, Review of Social Economy, 59(2): 185202.Google Scholar
WTO (2010), ‘Measuring Trade in Services – A Training Module’, mimeo.Google Scholar
Supplementary material: PDF

Amélie Guillin Supplementary Material

Appendix

Download Amélie Guillin Supplementary Material(PDF)
PDF 32.7 KB