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Closed Jaguar, Open Dragon: Comparing Tariffs in Latin America and Asia before World War II

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Michael A. Clemens
Jeffrey G. Williamson

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Abstract

Despite an enormous literature that has analyzed the comparative experiences of Latin America and Asia in post-World War II trade policy, almost no attention has been paid to the comparative experience prior to the wars. Even a cursory look at the best available empirical evidence reveals tremendous contrasts between the two regions. Latin America had the highest tariff barriers on earth before 1914; Asia had the lowest. Protected Latin America's belle ‚poque also boasted some of the most explosive growth performance on earth, while Asia registered some of the worst. What brought the two regions to the opposite ends of the tariff policy spectrum? And why are these quantum differences in economic performance so at odds with postwar conventional wisdom? We begin by describing a novel tariff database we have constructed from largely original sources. We explore the impact of colonial rule and unequal treaties' on Asian tariffs, as well as the impact of geography and political economy on Latin American tariffs. Limits to tariff policy autonomy explain one third of the vast difference between the two regions' tariffs before 1914; differences in the extent and structure of internal markets as well as the world tariff environment explain much of the rest. We conclude with an agenda for the future.

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Paper provided by National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc in its series NBER Working Papers with number 9401.

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Date of creation: Dec 2002
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Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:9401

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F1 - International Economics - - Trade
N7 - Economic History - - Economic History: Transport, International and Domestic Trade, Energy, and Other Services

References listed on IDEAS
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  1. J Anderson & J.P Neary, 1994. "Measuring the Restrictiveness of Trade Policy," CEP Discussion Papers 0186, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
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  2. Jeffrey D. Sachs & Andrew Warner, 1995. "Economic Reform and the Process of Global Integration," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 26(1995-1), pages 1-118. [Downloadable!]
  3. Brandt Loren, 1993. "Interwar Japanese Agriculture: Revisionist Views on the Impact of the Colonial Rice Policy and the Labor-Surplus Hypothesis," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 259-293, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. repec:att:wimass:1920019 is not listed on IDEAS
  5. Huber, J Richard, 1971. "Effect on Prices of Japan's Entry into World Commerce after 1858," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 79(3), pages 614-28, May-June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  6. Anderson, James E, 1998. "Trade Restrictiveness Benchmarks," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 108(449), pages 1111-25, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  7. John H. Coatsworth & Jeffrey G. Williamson, 2002. "The Roots of Latin American Protectionism: Looking Before the Great Depression," NBER Working Papers 8999, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  8. Baier, Scott L. & Bergstrand, Jeffrey H., 2001. "The growth of world trade: tariffs, transport costs, and income similarity," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 53(1), pages 1-27, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  9. Kevin O'Rourke & Jeffrey Williamson, 2001. "Globalization and History," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 1, volume 1, number 0262650592, 03.
  10. O'Rourke, Kevin H. & Williamson, Jeffrey G., 2002. "After Columbus: Explaining Europe'S Overseas Trade Boom, 1500 1800," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 62(02), pages 417-456, September. [Downloadable!]
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Cited by:
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  1. Leonardo Villar & Pilar Esguerra, 2005. "El Comercio Exterior Colombiano En El Siglo Xx," BORRADORES DE ECONOMIA 002468, BANCO DE LA REPÚBLICA. [Downloadable!]
  2. Carlo Pietrobelli & Silvia Nenci, 2007. "Does tariff liberalization promote trade? Latin America in the long run (1900-2000)," Working Papers 0704, CREI Università degli Studi Roma Tre, revised 2007. [Downloadable!]
  3. Tasso Adamopoulos, 2008. "Land Inequality and the Transition to Modern Growth," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 11(2), pages 257-282, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Leonardo Villar & Pilar Esguerra, . "Comercio Exterior Colombiano En El Siglo Xx," Borradores de Economia 358, Banco de la Republica de Colombia. [Downloadable!]
  5. Harold L. Cole & Lee E. Ohanian & Alvaro Riascos & James A. Schmitz, Jr., 2004. "Latin America in the rearview mirror," Staff Report 351, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. [Downloadable!]
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