2016 通信费用对国际贸易的影响评估.pdf

Assessing the Impact of Communication Costs on International Trade * By Carsten Fink, Aaditya Mattoo and Ileana Cristina Neagu Abstract: Communication costs are frequently cited as an important determinant of trade costs, but without any supporting empirical evidence. We test this relationship by incorporating alternative measures of communication costs in a model of bilateral trade. We find that international variations in communication costs indeed have a significant influence on trade patterns. Furthermore, estimates using disaggregated data reveal that the impact of communication costs on trade in differentiated products is larger than on trade in homogenous products - by as much as one-third. JEL Classification: F10 Keywords: International trade, trade costs, communication costs World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 2929, November 2002 The Policy Research Working Paper Series disseminates the findings of work in progress to encourage the exchange of ideas about development issues. An objective of the series is to get the findings out quickly, even if the presentations are less than fully polished. The papers carry the names of the authors and should be cited accordingly. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this paper are entirely those of the authors. They do not necessarily represent the view of the World Bank, its Executive Directors, or the countries they repr