With increasing sophistication, economists have been estimating gravity equations for five decades. Robust evidence shows that borders and distance impede trade by much more than tariffs or transport costs can explain. We therefore advocate investigation of other sources of resistance, despite...

The location of financial activities is traditionally characterized by a great deal of inertia. However, the 2007-10 crisis may considerably modify the geography of finance and cause an upheaval in world hierarchy. The crisis hit the Western countries directly and the main financial centers have...

Since the Second World War, western governments have implemented trade liberalisation policies which have been very successful and have spread across the rest of the globe. However, some countries have remained outside this general movement because of national policies aimed at self-reliance, or...