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 that do not directly import therefore...

How does import protection affect export performance? In trade models with scale economies, import liberalization can reduce industry-level exports by cutting domestic production. We show that this export destruction mechanism reduced US export growth following the permanent normalization of...

This paper studies the evolution of China's production and trade patterns during its integration into the global economy. We document and explain new facts concerning changes in production and exports at the industry and firm levels using microdata and a quantitative Ricardian and...

The literature on trade liberalization has recently shifted its attention from trade liberalization in imported final goods to studying the effects of trade liberalization in imported intermediate inputs. This emphasis fits very well the trade liberalization experience of China following its...

The literature on trade liberalization has recently shifted its attention from trade liberalization in imported final goods to studying the effects of trade liberalization in imported intermediate inputs. This emphasis fits very well the trade liberalization experience of China following its...

Chinese firms faced an all-around trade liberalization process during the early 2000s: lower barriers from other countries on Chinese goods, and lower Chinese barriers on other countries' goods and inputs. Using novel firm-level tariff data for trading Chinese manufacturing firms, this paper...

This paper proposes a new channel on the causal relation between trade liberalization and labor share changes. Since China’s accession to the WTO, a rise in market concentration and a decline in labor share have been observed in the manufacturing sectors in China. Using the Chinese...

We develop a dynamic structural model to analyze the impact of input tariff liberalization on input prices, trading decisions, productivity, and firm performance. While input tariff liberalization directly affects input price benefits of importing, its impact on trade participation generates...