Maritime transport costs have a significant impact on the trade in agricultural goods. Maritime transport costs represent a high proportion of the imported value of agricultural products -- 10% on average, which is a similar level of magnitude as agricultural tariffs. This study shows that a...

Trade logistics facilitate trade. Quality logistics services play an important role in facilitating the transportation of international trade in goods: inefficient logistics services impede trade by imposing an extra cost in terms of time as well as money. As developed nations shift from...

While it is widely accepted that there are adjustment costs associated with the reallocation of resources in response to freer trade, in most models these costs are assumed to be very small. However, more recent evidence is casting doubt on this assumption. This paper develops a unique dataset...

The proliferation of preferential trade agreements has posed challenges for the multilateral trading system. But regional trade agreements (RTAs) also allow countries to develop and strengthen trade disciplines beyond what is possible at the multilateral level. In some instances, RTAs explore...

Trade deficits and surpluses are sometimes attributed to intentionally low or high exchange rate levels. The impact of exchange rate levels on trade has been much debated but the large body of existing empirical literature does not suggest an unequivocally clear picture of the trade impacts of...

Demand for non-renewable natural resources is forecast to rise steadily over the coming decades. Underlying trends of long-term rising demand and falling supply of mineral resources will inevitably increase pressure on prices and intensify competition for scarce resources. This can create a...

Mineral resources present a formidable source of wealth but a formidable challenge to regulate in order to maximize social welfare from their extraction. Some resource-rich countries, such as Chile, have been successful in developing their economies and managing their revenue streams...

Governments intervene in non-renewable natural resources sectors more than in many others, including through the use of export taxes and quotas. Industrial raw materials sectors are characterized by a number of specificities: production is often geographically concentrated, firms are often large...