We investigate theoretically and empirically the role of wholesalers in mediating the productivity effects of trade … liberalization. Intermediaries provide indirect access to foreign produced inputs. The productivity effects of input tariff cuts on … firms experience productivity gains from reducing input tariffs if trade intermediation of foreign inputs within their …

decisions, productivity, and firm performance. While input tariff liberalization directly affects input price benefits of … importing, its impact on trade participation generates indirect benefits through additional channels, such as productivity … importing's effect on intermediate input prices and productivity. We apply the model to examine the reaction of Chinese paint …