Offshoring: Facts and figures at the country level

Offshoring has received wide attention lately. Its potential effects, mainly to be materialized in employment and productivity dislocations, are yet to be fully assessed. However, some consensus has been attained as to how to proxy its theoretical definition at an aggregate level. Here we review the most conventional indices the economic literature has so far produced, and employ them to provide an overview of the extent of the phenomenon for a group of countries. Contrary to common belief, our data reveal that offshoring is not exclusive to large developed economies. Further, we highlight the continuing prominence of the manufacturing over the services sector, and observe that, while services offshoring is on the rise, it still represents a small fraction of total offshoring. This is not to deny the employment creation brought about by this higher value-added offshoring or its potential to create more jobs in the future.