We analyze two reasons for export prices to be different across markets namely, quality differentiation and variable markups and attempt to parse their relative importance and underlying drivers. To overcome identification issue, we consider a particular industry: Chinese fine art, given its...

This study uses international trade data to discern whether fine art is, on average, more an investment or a consumption good. Using a battery of novel measures, the chapter demonstrates that the flows of services embodied by visual artworks most closely resemble consumption services. A stylized...