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Trade Policy and Market Power: Firm-level Evidence

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Abstract

This paper identifies the effect of trade policy on market power through new data and a new identification strategy. We use a large dataset containing export values and quantities by product and destination for all exporting firms in 12 developing and emerging countries over several years, merged with destination-product specific information on tariffs and non-tariff barriers. We identify market power by observing how exporting firms price discriminate across markets in reaction to variations in bilateral exchange rates. Pricing-to-market is prevalent in all regions of our sample, even among small firms, although it is increasing in firm size, in accordance with theory. More importantly, we find that the effect of non-tariff measures is not isomorphic to that of tariffs: the pricing-to-market behavior we observe suggests that, while tariffs reduce the market power of foreign firms through classic rent-shifting effects, non-tariff measures alter market structure and reinforce the market power of non-exiting firms, domestic and foreign ones alike.

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  • Alan Asprilla & Nicolas Berman & Olivier Cadot & Melise Jaud, 2018. "Trade Policy and Market Power: Firm-level Evidence," AMSE Working Papers 1848, Aix-Marseille School of Economics, France.
  • Handle: RePEc:aim:wpaimx:1848
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    Cited by:

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    2. Lili Yan Ing & Olivier Cadot & Muhammad Rizqy Anandhika & Shujiro Urata, . "Non-Tariff Measures in ASEAN: A Simple Proposal," Chapters, in: Lili Yan Ing & Santiago Fernandez de Cordoba & Olivier Cadot (ed.), Non-Tariff Measures in ASEAN, chapter 2, pages 13-36, Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA).
    3. Luca Macedoni & Ariel Weinberger, 2021. "Quality Misallocation, Trade, and Regulations," CESifo Working Paper Series 9041, CESifo.
    4. Clément Nedoncelle, 2021. "Temperatures, Firm Size and Exports in Developing Countries [Températures, Taille des Firmes, et Exportations dans les Pays en Développement]," Post-Print hal-03803308, HAL.
    5. Vincent Rebeyrol, 2023. "Protection Without Discrimination," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 133(655), pages 2807-2827.
    6. Rashid, Muhammad Mustafa, 2018. "Repercussions of International Trade on the Market Power of Firms in Different Market Structures," MPRA Paper 89889, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    7. Curzi, Daniele & Schuster, Monica & Maertens, Miet & Olper, Alessandro, 2020. "Standards, trade margins and product quality: Firm-level evidence from Peru," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    8. Dolabella, Marcelo, 2020. "Bilateral effects of non-tariff measures on international trade: Volume-based panel estimates," Comercio Internacional 46014, Naciones Unidas Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL).
    9. Ariel Weinberger & Luca Macedoni, 2023. "International Spillovers of Quality Regulations," Working Papers 2023-10, The George Washington University, Institute for International Economic Policy.
    10. Dela‐Dem Doe Fiankor & Oliver‐Ken Haase & Bernhard Brümmer, 2021. "The Heterogeneous Effects of Standards on Agricultural Trade Flows," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 72(1), pages 25-46, February.
    11. Georg Schneider & Frank Stähler & Georg U. Thunecke, 2022. "The (Non-)Neutrality of Value-Added Taxation," CESifo Working Paper Series 9663, CESifo.
    12. Macedoni, Luca & Weinberger, Ariel, 2022. "Quality heterogeneity and misallocation: The welfare benefits of raising your standards," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    13. Arnaud Z. Dragicevic, 2019. "Market Coordination Under Non-Equilibrium Dynamics," Networks and Spatial Economics, Springer, vol. 19(3), pages 697-715, September.
    14. Cali,Massimiliano & Montfaucon,Angella Faith Lapukeni, 2021. "Non-Tariff Measures, Import Competition, and Exports," Policy Research Working Paper Series 9801, The World Bank.
    15. Dela-Dem Doe Fiankor & Daniele Curzi & Alessandro Olper, 2021. "Trade, price and quality upgrading effects of agri-food standards [Endogenous Trade Policy with Heterogeneous Firms]," European Review of Agricultural Economics, Foundation for the European Review of Agricultural Economics, vol. 48(4), pages 835-877.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    trade policy; non-tariff measures; tariffs; exchange rate; price discrimination;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F12 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Models of Trade with Imperfect Competition and Scale Economies; Fragmentation
    • F13 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade Policy; International Trade Organizations
    • F14 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Empirical Studies of Trade
    • D40 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - General
    • F31 - International Economics - - International Finance - - - Foreign Exchange

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