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Offshoring and Heterogeneous Firms: One Job Offshored, One Job Lost?

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Author Info
Nana Bourtchouladze () (IUHEI, The Graduate Institute of International Studies, Geneva)
Abstract

Offshoring has gained a significant momentum in recent years. Firm size appears to be the leading factor differentiating firms that offshore from those that do not. We present a model that blends offshoring, or trade in tasks, with a Melitz-style model of monopolistic competition with heterogeneous firms and show that this is indeed the case. Accounting for firm heterogeneity offers new tools for analyzing the effects of offshoring on the employment dynamics within an individual firm and at the aggregate sector level. We show that offshoring unambiguously reduces per-firm labour demand in smaller firms, but has ambiguous effects in larger firms. As a result, irrespective of whether or not the number of firms operating in the offshoring nation increases, the overall sector employment may increase or decrease. Policies promoting free trade have a significant role to play in job creation. The model also permits a straightforward derivation of positive and normative effects of offshoring: trade in tasks increases productivity of active firms and improves welfare in the offshoring nation.

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Paper provided by Economics Section, The Graduate Institute of International Studies in its series HEI Working Papers with number 28-2007.

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Length: 55
Date of creation: Dec 2007
Date of revision: Dec 2007
Handle: RePEc:gii:giihei:heiwp28-2007

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Related research
Keywords: Trade in tasks; offshoring; heterogeneous firms; employment; productivity; welfare;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
F12 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Models of Trade with Imperfect Competition and Scale Economies
F16 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade and Labor Market Interactions
F29 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - Other

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  1. Deardorff, A.V., 1998. "Fragmentation Across Cones," Papers 98-14, Michigan - Center for Research on Economic & Social Theory.
    Other versions:
  2. Karsten Bjerring Olsen, 2006. "Productivity Impacts of Offshoring and Outsourcing: A Review," OECD Science, Technology and Industry Working Papers 2006/1, OECD, Directorate for Science, Technology and Industry. [Downloadable!]
  3. Deardorff, A.V., 1998. "Fragmentation in Simple Trade Models," Papers 98-11, Michigan - Center for Research on Economic & Social Theory.
    Other versions:
  4. Mary Amiti & Shang-Jin Wei, 2005. "Fear of service outsourcing: is it justified?," Economic Policy, CEPR, CES, MSH, vol. 20(42), pages 308-347, 04. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  5. Cosimo Beverelli, 2007. "Offshoring and Manufacturing Employment: A General Equilibrium Analysis," HEI Working Papers 25-2007, Economics Section, The Graduate Institute of International Studies, revised 11 Oct 2007. [Downloadable!]
  6. Baldwin, Richard & Robert-Nicoud, Frédéric, 2007. "Offshoring: General Equilibrium Effects on Wages, Production and Trade," CEPR Discussion Papers 6218, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  7. Davis, Donald R., 1995. "Intra-industry trade: A Heckscher-Ohlin-Ricardo approach," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 39(3-4), pages 201-226, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  8. Richard E. Baldwin & Rikard Forslid, 2006. "Trade Liberalization with Heterogenous Firms," NBER Working Papers 12192, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  9. Richard Baldwin & Toshihiro Okubo, 2005. "Heterogeneous Firms, Agglomeration and Economic Geography: Spatial Selection and Sorting," NBER Working Papers 11650, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  10. Melitz, Marc J, 2002. "The Impact of Trade on Intra-Industry Reallocations and Aggregate Industry Productivity," CEPR Discussion Papers 3381, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  11. Alexander HIJZEN & INUI Tomohiko & TODO Yasuyuki, 2007. "Does Offshoring Pay? Firm-Level Evidence from Japan," Discussion papers 07005, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI). [Downloadable!]
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  12. Gene M. Grossman & Esteban Rossi-Hansberg, 2006. "Trading Tasks: A Simple Theory of Offshoring," NBER Working Papers 12721, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  13. Findlay, Ronald & Jones, Ronald, 2000. "Factor bias and technical progress," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 68(3), pages 303-308, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  14. repec:fth:michin:422 is not listed on IDEAS
  15. Egger, Peter & Pfaffermayr, Michael & Wolfmayr-Schnitzer, Yvonne, 2001. "The international fragmentation of Austrian manufacturing: The effects of outsourcing on productivity and wages," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 12(3), pages 257-272, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  16. Amiti, Mary & Wei, Shang-Jin, 2006. "Service Offshoring, Productivity and Employment: Evidence from the US," CEPR Discussion Papers 5475, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  17. Gorg, Holger & Hanley, Aoife, 2005. "Labour demand effects of international outsourcing: Evidence from plant-level data," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 14(3), pages 365-376. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  18. Elhanan Helpman & Marc J. Melitz & Stephen R. Yeaple, 2004. "Export Versus FDI with Heterogeneous Firms," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(1), pages 300-316, March. [Downloadable!]
  19. repec:rus:hseeco:122439 is not listed on IDEAS
  20. repec:fth:michin:427 is not listed on IDEAS
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