Previous studies have argued that global value chains (GVCs) have increased the sensitivity of trade to external business cycle shocks. This may occur either because GVC trade is concentrated in durable goods industries, which are known to have high income elasticities (a composition effect), or...

The surge of oil prices in recent years has led to speculation that rising transportation costs could end the period of dramatic world trade growth Ñin the words of Rubin (2009), ÒÉYour world is going to get a whole lot smaller.Ó Using data from ChinaÕs Customs Statistics, we examine the...