ASEAN countries have liberalized intra-ASEAN trade over the last 20 years by establishing the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA). This paper aims to examine the impact of trade liberalization under AFTA on intra-ASEAN trade. By applying a gravity model, we find positive and significant trade creation...

The paper analyzes whether firms that start exporting become more productive utilizing recently developed sample matching procedures to control the problems from self-selection into the export market. We use plant level panel data on Korean manufacturing sector from 1990 to 1998. We find clear...

This paper investigates the relationship between firm-level upgrading and buyer-seller business networks in order to better understand how and to whom technology transfer occurs. Using firm’s self-reported buyer and supplier network data from business–to–business (B2B) markets in Southeast...

From a rising share in the global semiconductor market in the 1990s, which peaked at 7.7 percent in 1999, the standing of the Philippines has since weakened with shares declining to four percent in 2005 and 2.5 percent in 2012. Heavy reliance of the Philippine semiconductor industry on foreign...

While the impact of globalization on income inequality has received a lot of attention, little is known about its effect on the gender wage gap (GWG). This study argues that there is a systematic differece in GWG between exporting firms and non-exporters. By the virtue of being exposed to higher...

As the intra-ASEAN tariffs are virtually eliminated, it is the non-tariff measures and trade costs associated with moving goods and services across border that hinder intra-ASEAN trade. This paper focuses on reviewing the state of trade facilitation initiatives in ASEAN, especially on customs...

The number of bilateral and plurilateral free trade agreements (FTAs) in East Asia has increased rapidly after the 2000s behind the world trend of RTAs. Many studies tackled the challenge of figuring out the impact of FTAs in this region by applying various methodologies. The first half of this...

This paper uses a disaggregated (product-level) gravity approach to estimate the effect of ASEAN’s product-specific rules of origin (RoO) on regional trade, using original data on rules applicable at the six-digit level of the harmonized system. Overall, we find that the average ad-valorem...

This paper provides a theoretical and empirical analysis of the effects of one-sided tariff cuts on firms’ export product scope. The theoretical model explicitly incorporates cost of management in addition to the commonly used production cost. The analysis predicts that the home country’s...

In November 2012, the leaders of the ASEAN+6 countries agreed to launch a new FTA negotiation called the "Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership" (RCEP). In this paper, we conduct stocktaking studies of ASEAN's own FTA and five existing FTAs with 6 dialogue partner countries, to identify...