I document that (i) there is great heterogeneity in the physical weight of traded goods even within narrowly-defined product categories; (ii) heavier goods are more costly to produce; (iii) heavier goods exhibit a systematically higher product appeal or quality; (iv) heavier goods are more costly...

Trade taxes are often used as (a) a first-best instrument to manipulate the terms-of-trade, or (b) a second-best instrument to correct pre-existing market distortions. We analyze the (in)effectiveness of trade taxes at achieving these two policy goals. To this end, we derive sufficient...