IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/imf/imfwpa/2018-086.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Economic Benefits of Export Diversification in Small States

Author

Listed:
  • Arnold McIntyre
  • Mike Xin Li
  • Ke Wang
  • Hanlei Yun

Abstract

The paper considers concepts of economic diversification with respect to exports (including service sectors) for small states. We assessed the economic performance of different groups of 34 small states over the period of 1990-2015 and found those more diversified experienced lower output volatility and higher average growth than most other small states. Our findings are consistent with conventional economic theories but we found that export diversification has a more significant impact on reducing output volatility than improving long run growth in small states. Diversification requires fundamental changes and should be contemplated in the context of a cohesive development strategy.

Suggested Citation

  • Arnold McIntyre & Mike Xin Li & Ke Wang & Hanlei Yun, 2018. "Economic Benefits of Export Diversification in Small States," IMF Working Papers 2018/086, International Monetary Fund.
  • Handle: RePEc:imf:imfwpa:2018/086
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/cat/longres.aspx?sk=45795
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Atish R. Ghosh & Jonathan D. Ostry, 1994. "Export Instability and the External Balance in Developing Countries," IMF Staff Papers, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 41(2), pages 214-235, June.
    2. Noy, Ilan, 2009. "The macroeconomic consequences of disasters," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(2), pages 221-231, March.
    3. David Greenaway & Wyn Morgan & Peter Wright, 1999. "Exports, export composition and growth," The Journal of International Trade & Economic Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 8(1), pages 41-51.
    4. Fahim Al-Marhubi, 2000. "Export diversification and growth: an empirical investigation," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 7(9), pages 559-562.
    5. Chris Papageorgiou & Nikola Spatafora, 2012. "Economic Diversification in LICs; Stylized Facts and Macroeconomic Implications," IMF Staff Discussion Notes 12/13, International Monetary Fund.
    6. Mona Haddad & Jamus Jerome Lim & Cosimo Pancaro & Christian Saborowski, 2013. "Trade openness reduces growth volatility when countries are well diversified," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 46(2), pages 765-790, May.
    7. Michaely, Michael, 1977. "Exports and growth : An empirical investigation," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 4(1), pages 49-53, February.
    8. Klinger, Bailey & Lederman, Daniel, 2006. "Diversification, innovation, and imitation inside the Global Technological Frontier," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3872, The World Bank.
    9. Peter K. Schott, 2004. "Across-Product Versus Within-Product Specialization in International Trade," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 119(2), pages 647-678.
    10. Eduardo Cavallo & Sebastian Galiani & Ilan Noy & Juan Pantano, 2013. "Catastrophic Natural Disasters and Economic Growth," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 95(5), pages 1549-1561, December.
    11. Feenstra, Robert & Hiau Looi Kee, 2004. "Export variety and country productivity," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3412, The World Bank.
    12. Hausmann, Ricardo & Klinger, Bailey, 2006. "Structural Transformation and Patterns of Comparative Advantage in the Product Space," Working Paper Series rwp06-041, Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government.
    13. Loayza, Norman V. & Olaberría, Eduardo & Rigolini, Jamele & Christiaensen, Luc, 2012. "Natural Disasters and Growth: Going Beyond the Averages," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(7), pages 1317-1336.
    14. Amit Khandelwal, 2010. "The Long and Short (of) Quality Ladders," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 77(4), pages 1450-1476.
    15. Hausmann, Ricardo & Rodrik, Dani, 2003. "Economic development as self-discovery," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 72(2), pages 603-633, December.
    16. Mr. A. Salehizadeh & Mr. Peter Berezin & Mr. Elcior Santana, 2002. "The Challenge of Diversification in the Caribbean," IMF Working Papers 2002/196, International Monetary Fund.
    17. Marianne Matthee & Wim Naudé, 2008. "The Determinants of Regional Manufactured Exports from a Developing Country," International Regional Science Review, , vol. 31(4), pages 343-358, October.
    18. Raddatz, Claudio, 2007. "Are external shocks responsible for the instability of output in low-income countries?," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 84(1), pages 155-187, September.
    19. Hochrainer, Stefan, 2009. "Assessing the macroeconomic impacts of natural disasters : are there any ?," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4968, The World Bank.
    20. Eduardo Cavallo & Sebastian Galiani & Ilan Noy & Juan Pantano, 2013. "Catastrophic Natural Disasters and Economic Growth," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 95(5), pages 1549-1561, December.
    21. Heiko Hesse, 2008. "Export Diversification and Economic Growth," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 28040, December.
    22. Love, James, 1986. "Commodity concentration and export earnings instability : A shift from cross-section to time series analysis," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 24(2), pages 239-248, December.
    23. Mr. Sebastian Acevedo Mejia, 2014. "Debt, Growth and Natural Disasters A Caribbean Trilogy," IMF Working Papers 2014/125, International Monetary Fund.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Sinesipho Siswana & Andrew Phiri, 2021. "Is Export Diversification or Export Specialization Responsible for Economic Growth in BRICS Countries?," The International Trade Journal, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(3), pages 243-261, May.
    2. Sèna Kimm Gnangnon, 2021. "Aid for trade and inflation: Exploring the trade openness, export product diversification and foreign direct investment channels," Australian Economic Papers, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 60(4), pages 563-593, December.
    3. Bashir, Muhammad Adnan & Sheng, Bin & Doğan, Buhari & Sarwar, Suleman & Shahzad, Umer, 2020. "Export product diversification and energy efficiency: Empirical evidence from OECD countries," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 232-243.
    4. Pankaj Dixit & Ramyar Rzgar Ahmed & Arvind Kumar Yadav & R. C. Lal, 2019. "Diversification of economy - an insight into inclusive growth & food security with special reference to Pakistan`s agriculture econom," Asian Journal of Agriculture and rural Development, Asian Economic and Social Society, vol. 9(1), pages 82-98, June.
    5. Young Ademola Obafemi, 2022. "Specialization Versus Diversification as Alternative Strategies for Sustainable Growth in Resource-Rich Developing Countries. Case of Nigeria," Studia Universitatis „Vasile Goldis” Arad – Economics Series, Sciendo, vol. 32(3), pages 1-47, September.
    6. Steven Bond-Smith, 2022. "Diversifying Hawai‘i’s specialized economy: A spatial economic perspective," Working Papers 2022-5, University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization, University of Hawaii at Manoa.
    7. Alexander Georgievich Gurinovich & Marina Afanasyevna Lapina & Alexey Evgenievich Ivanov, 2020. "Ways of Restricting the Rights of Taxpayers Under Agreements for the Avoidance of Double Taxation in National Legislation," SAGE Open, , vol. 10(4), pages 21582440209, October.
    8. Lee, Dongyeol & Zhang, Huan, 2022. "Export diversification in low-income countries and small states: Do country size and income level matter?," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 250-265.
    9. Oana Iuliana Rujoiu, 2021. "Challenges Relating Sustainable Structural Transformation," Ovidius University Annals, Economic Sciences Series, Ovidius University of Constantza, Faculty of Economic Sciences, vol. 0(1), pages 419-425, August.
    10. Mohammad W. Alomari & Ala' G. Bashayreh, 2020. "Modeling the Exports Diversification in the Oil Countries Growth: The Case of Gulf Cooperation Council Countries," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 10(3), pages 119-129.
    11. Bakari, Sayef & El Weriemmi, Malek, 2022. "Exploring the Impact of Agricultural Investment on Economic Growth in France," MPRA Paper 113970, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Sèna Kimm Gnangnon, 2022. "Export diversification and financial openness," International Economics and Economic Policy, Springer, vol. 19(4), pages 675-717, October.
    13. Shahzad, Umer & Lv, Yulan & Doğan, Buhari & Xia, Wanjun, 2021. "Unveiling the heterogeneous impacts of export product diversification on renewable energy consumption: New evidence from G-7 and E-7 countries," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 164(C), pages 1457-1470.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Felbermayr, Gabriel & Gröschl, Jasmin, 2014. "Naturally negative: The growth effects of natural disasters," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 92-106.
    2. Ouattara, Bazoumana & Strobl, Eric, 2013. "The fiscal implications of hurricane strikes in the Caribbean," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 105-115.
    3. Goetz von Peter & Sebastian von Dahlen & Sweta C Saxena, 2012. "Unmitigated disasters? New evidence on the macroeconomic cost of natural catastrophes," BIS Working Papers 394, Bank for International Settlements.
    4. Kousky, Carolyn, 2012. "Informing Climate Adaptation: A Review of the Economic Costs of Natural Disasters, Their Determinants, and Risk Reduction Options," RFF Working Paper Series dp-12-28, Resources for the Future.
    5. Francesco Porcelli & Riccardo Trezzi, 2019. "The impact of earthquakes on economic activity: evidence from Italy," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 56(4), pages 1167-1206, April.
    6. Volpe Martincus, Christian & Blyde, Juan, 2013. "Shaky roads and trembling exports: Assessing the trade effects of domestic infrastructure using a natural experiment," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(1), pages 148-161.
    7. Aye Mengistu, Alemu, 2009. "Determinants of Vertical and Horizontal Export Diversification: Evidences from Sub-Saharan Africa and East Asia," Ethiopian Journal of Economics, Ethiopian Economics Association, vol. 17(2), pages 107-107, August.
    8. Felipe Starosta de Waldemar, 2010. "How costly is rent-seeking to diversification: an empirical approach," Documents de travail du Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne 10008, Université Panthéon-Sorbonne (Paris 1), Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne.
    9. Breckner, Miriam & Englmaier, Florian & Stowasser, Till & Sunde, Uwe, 2016. "Economic Development and Resilience to Natural Catastrophes – Insurance Penetration and Institutions," VfS Annual Conference 2016 (Augsburg): Demographic Change 145501, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    10. Kousky, Carolyn, 2014. "Informing climate adaptation: A review of the economic costs of natural disasters," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 576-592.
    11. Peñaranda Molina, Diego Andrés, 2021. "Determinantes de la diversificación de exportaciones en Sudamérica: un análisis con datos de panel," Documentos de trabajo 3/2021, Instituto de Investigaciones Socio-Económicas (IISEC), Universidad Católica Boliviana.
    12. Loayza, Norman V. & Olaberría, Eduardo & Rigolini, Jamele & Christiaensen, Luc, 2012. "Natural Disasters and Growth: Going Beyond the Averages," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(7), pages 1317-1336.
    13. Rahul Anand & Ms. Kalpana Kochhar & Mr. Saurabh Mishra, 2015. "Make in India: Which Exports Can Drive the Next Wave of Growth?," IMF Working Papers 2015/119, International Monetary Fund.
    14. Chen, Yin-E & Li, Chunyan & Chang, Chun-Ping & Zheng, Mingbo, 2021. "Identifying the influence of natural disasters on technological innovation," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 22-36.
    15. Lee, Dongyeol & Zhang, Huan, 2022. "Export diversification in low-income countries and small states: Do country size and income level matter?," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 250-265.
    16. Peter Simonsen, 2012. "Earthquakes and Economic Growth," Development Research Working Paper Series 01/2012, Institute for Advanced Development Studies.
    17. Martin R. Goetz & Juan Carlos Gozzi, 2020. "Financial Integration and the Co-Movement of Economic Activity: Evidence from U.S. States," International Finance Discussion Papers 1305, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).
    18. Ruohan Wu, 2023. "Natural disasters, climate change, and structural transformation: A new perspective from international trade," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(5), pages 1333-1377, May.
    19. Hailu, Degol & Kipgen, Chinpihoi, 2017. "The Extractives Dependence Index (EDI)," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 251-264.
    20. Strulik, Holger & Trimborn, Timo, 2014. "Natural disasters and macroeconomic performance: The role of residential investment," University of Göttingen Working Papers in Economics 194 [rev.], University of Goettingen, Department of Economics.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:imf:imfwpa:2018/086. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Akshay Modi (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/imfffus.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.