A Report on the Impact of Transport Cost on Latin American Trade

This presentation argues that trade policy in the region has been too focused on removing tariffs, to the detriment of trade facilitation, particularly in transportation. It explores the impact of transport costs on trade in Latin America and the Caribbean, and argues that transport costs have assumed an unprecedented strategic importance to the region. The main objective of the presentation is to answer the questions: i) How do transport costs compare to tariffs? ii) How do transport costs in the LAC region compare to those elsewhere in the world? iii) How "transport-intensive" are LAC exports? iv) What are the main determinants of transport costs in the LAC region? v) What is the impact of transport costs on trade in the region? It was presented at Latin America/Caribbean and Asia/Pacific Economics and Business Association (LAEBA)'s 4th Annual Meeting held in Lima, Peru on June 16th, 2008.