This thesis examines the impact of institutions, especially the financial institutions, on international trade and foreign direct investments. The first four chapters study the financial institutions and their impact on trade and international specialization. Specifically, the first chapter...

This paper explores whether countries that have a federal Constitution engage in more international trade. We identify two possible mechanisms through which political fragmentation of nation-states, namely federalism, might impact positively on trade globalization processes: domestic market...

We consider the impact of MERCOSUR on trade among Brazilian states and on trade by Brazilian states with MERCOSUR and the rest of the world. We use a theoretically founded gravity model to shed light on MERCOSUR’s possible creation and diversion effects as well as its “preference erosion”...

For several years, preferential trade agreements have been oriented towards initiating a deep integration process including a “democratic” clause. The inclusion of such a clause can be interpreted as a political choice to promote democracy. However, it can also be viewed as a pre-condition...

This paper provides an ex-post assessment of the Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) to see whether RTAs have been trade creating or trade diverting. We estimate the impact of RTAs on trade flows for country pair with dyed fixed effects and time dummies. These fixed effects capture the determinants...

For several years, preferential trade agreements have been oriented towards initiating a deep integration process. As a result, treaties include clauses concerning the harmonization of regulations, policies and standards. In order to join the European Union, a future member must be a stable...

We consider the effect of MERCOSUR on trade between Brazilian states and on trade of Brazilian states with the rest of the world. We use a gravity model to shed light on the possible diversion effect of MERCOSUR. Thanks to the data on inter-state trade only for four years including one available...

We analyze the integration of Brazilian states into domestic and foreign markets from the point of view of their supply conditions. The study period takes in the country’s fast liberalization process with its two sub-periods (1991 and 1997-99). We estimate the states’ domestic and foreign...

The electronic marketplaces, as an interorganizational entity, is not limited to a transactional dimension. Indeed, those companies that survived the initial consolidation have increasingly expanded their functions and contribute to a new competition dynamic. This new competitiveness has set off...