IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/jregsc/v60y2020i2p249-272.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Immigrant entrepreneurs, diasporas, and exports

Author

Listed:
  • Massimiliano Bratti
  • Luca De Benedictis
  • Gianluca Santoni

Abstract

This paper demonstrates the positive effect of immigrant entrepreneurs on manufacturing exports over and above that of diasporas. Using small‐scale regional administrative data, our instrumental variable estimates of export gravity models imply that ceteris paribus, that is, holding constant the total number of immigrants, the expected protrade effect of a migrant becoming an entrepreneur amounts to an average increase of US$5,946 in the export flows toward her country of origin. Besides these dyadic effects, immigrant entrepreneurs unlike nonentrepreneurial immigrants raise a region's overall competitiveness and export flows toward other destinations as well.

Suggested Citation

  • Massimiliano Bratti & Luca De Benedictis & Gianluca Santoni, 2020. "Immigrant entrepreneurs, diasporas, and exports," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 60(2), pages 249-272, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:jregsc:v:60:y:2020:i:2:p:249-272
    DOI: 10.1111/jors.12455
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/jors.12455
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/jors.12455?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Melitz, Jacques & Toubal, Farid, 2014. "Native language, spoken language, translation and trade," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(2), pages 351-363.
    2. Massimiliano Bratti & Luca Benedictis & Gianluca Santoni, 2014. "On the pro-trade effects of immigrants," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 150(3), pages 557-594, August.
    3. Gianmarco I. P. Ottaviano & Giovanni Peri, 2021. "Rethinking The Effect Of Immigration On Wages," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Firms and Workers in a Globalized World Larger Markets, Tougher Competition, chapter 9, pages 245-290, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    4. Binnur Balkan & Semih Tumen, 2016. "Immigration and prices: quasi-experimental evidence from Syrian refugees in Turkey," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 29(3), pages 657-686, July.
    5. Mariya Aleksynska & Giovanni Peri, 2014. "Isolating the Network Effect of Immigrants on Trade," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(3), pages 434-455, March.
    6. George J. Borjas, 2021. "The Economic Benefits from Immigration," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Foundational Essays in Immigration Economics, chapter 13, pages 411-430, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    7. Pierpaolo Parrotta & Dario Pozzoli & Mariola Pytlikova, 2014. "The nexus between labor diversity and firm’s innovation," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 27(2), pages 303-364, April.
    8. James E. Anderson & Eric van Wincoop, 2003. "Gravity with Gravitas: A Solution to the Border Puzzle," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 93(1), pages 170-192, March.
    9. Graneli, Anna & Lodefalk, Magnus, 2014. "Temporary Expats for Export: Firm-Level Evidence," Working Papers 2014:4, Örebro University, School of Business.
    10. Christopher Parsons & Pierre‐Louis Vézina, 2018. "Migrant Networks and Trade: The Vietnamese Boat People as a Natural Experiment," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 128(612), pages 210-234, July.
    11. Badi H. Baltagi & Peter Egger & Michael Pfaffermayr, 2014. "Panel Data Gravity Models of International Trade," CESifo Working Paper Series 4616, CESifo.
    12. Anthony Briant & Pierre-Philippe Combes & Miren Lafourcade, 2014. "Product Complexity, Quality of Institutions and the Protrade Effect of Immigrants," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(1), pages 63-85, January.
    13. Jennifer Hunt & Marjolaine Gauthier-Loiselle, 2010. "How Much Does Immigration Boost Innovation?," American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 2(2), pages 31-56, April.
    14. Walter Steingress, 2018. "The causal impact of migration on US trade: Evidence from political refugees," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 51(4), pages 1312-1338, November.
    15. David Card, 2009. "Immigration and Inequality," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 99(2), pages 1-21, May.
    16. Giovanni Peri & Francisco Requena‐Silvente, 2010. "The trade creation effect of immigrants: evidence from the remarkable case of Spain," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 43(4), pages 1433-1459, November.
    17. Krishna Patel & Francis Vella, 2013. "Immigrant Networks and Their Implications for Occupational Choice and Wages," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 95(4), pages 1249-1277, October.
    18. Joseph G. Altonji & David Card, 1991. "The Effects of Immigration on the Labor Market Outcomes of Less-skilled Natives," NBER Chapters, in: Immigration, Trade, and the Labor Market, pages 201-234, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    19. Jeffrey M Wooldridge, 2010. "Econometric Analysis of Cross Section and Panel Data," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 2, volume 1, number 0262232588, April.
    20. Francesc Ortega & Giovanni Peri, 2016. "Openness and income: The roles of trade and migration," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: The Economics of International Migration, chapter 10, pages 309-329, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    21. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/781v6i5nuc9v6okbq7i1iqqsk1 is not listed on IDEAS
    22. Magnus Lodefalk, 2016. "Temporary expats for exports: micro-level evidence," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 152(4), pages 733-772, November.
    23. Andreas Hatzigeorgiou & Magnus Lodefalk, 2016. "Migrants’ Influence on Firm-level Exports," Journal of Industry, Competition and Trade, Springer, vol. 16(4), pages 477-497, December.
    24. Combes, Pierre-Philippe & Lafourcade, Miren & Mayer, Thierry, 2005. "The trade-creating effects of business and social networks: evidence from France," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 66(1), pages 1-29, May.
    25. Adam M. Kleinbaum & Toby E. Stuart & Michael L. Tushman, 2013. "Discretion Within Constraint: Homophily and Structure in a Formal Organization," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 24(5), pages 1316-1336, October.
    26. repec:hal:pseose:halshs-00942726 is not listed on IDEAS
    27. Michel Beine & Simone Bertoli & Jesús Fernández-Huertas Moraga, 2016. "A Practitioners’ Guide to Gravity Models of International Migration," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(4), pages 496-512, April.
    28. Sanne Hiller, 2013. "Does immigrant employment matter for export sales? Evidence from Denmark," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 149(2), pages 369-394, June.
    29. Christian Dustmann & Tommaso Frattini & Anna Rosso, 2015. "The Effect of Emigration from Poland on Polish Wages," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 117(2), pages 522-564, April.
    30. Gianmarco I.P. Ottaviano & Giovanni Peri, 2021. "The economic value of cultural diversity: evidence from US cities," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Firms and Workers in a Globalized World Larger Markets, Tougher Competition, chapter 7, pages 187-222, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    31. Card, David, 2001. "Immigrant Inflows, Native Outflows, and the Local Labor Market Impacts of Higher Immigration," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 19(1), pages 22-64, January.
    32. Gould, David M, 1994. "Immigrant Links to the Home Country: Empirical Implications for U.S. Bilateral Trade Flows," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 76(2), pages 302-316, May.
    33. Wim Naudé & Melissa Siegel & Katrin Marchand, 2017. "Migration, entrepreneurship and development: critical questions," IZA Journal of Migration and Development, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 6(1), pages 1-16, December.
    34. Hsieh, Chang-Tai & Li, Nicholas & Ossa, Ralph & Yang, Mu-Jeung, 2020. "Accounting for the new gains from trade liberalization," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(C).
    35. Fally, Thibault, 2015. "Structural gravity and fixed effects," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 97(1), pages 76-85.
    36. George J. Borjas, 1994. "The Economics of Immigration," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 32(4), pages 1667-1717, December.
    37. Keith Head & John Ries, 1998. "Immigration and Trade Creation: Econometric Evidence from Canada," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 31(1), pages 47-62, February.
    38. George J. Borjas, 2015. "Immigration and Globalization: A Review Essay," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 53(4), pages 961-974, December.
    39. Combes, Pierre-Philippe & Lafourcade, Miren & Mayer, Thierry, 2005. "The trade-creating effects of business and social networks: evidence from France," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 66(1), pages 1-29, May.
    40. Jahn, Vera & Steinhardt, Max Friedrich, 2016. "Innovation and immigration — Insights from a placement policy," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 146(C), pages 116-119.
    41. William W. Olney, 2013. "Immigration And Firm Expansion," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(1), pages 142-157, February.
    42. Patricia Cortes, 2008. "The Effect of Low-Skilled Immigration on U.S. Prices: Evidence from CPI Data," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 116(3), pages 381-422, June.
    43. Marc J. Melitz, 2003. "The Impact of Trade on Intra-Industry Reallocations and Aggregate Industry Productivity," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 71(6), pages 1695-1725, November.
    44. Sascha Becker & Peter Egger, 2013. "Endogenous product versus process innovation and a firm’s propensity to export," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 44(1), pages 329-354, February.
    45. Bernt Bratsberg & Oddbjørn Raaum & Marianne Røed & Pål Schøne, 2014. "Immigration Wage Effects by Origin," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 116(2), pages 356-393, April.
    46. Rauch, James E., 1999. "Networks versus markets in international trade," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(1), pages 7-35, June.
    47. Mitaritonna, Cristina & Orefice, Gianluca & Peri, Giovanni, 2017. "Immigrants and firms’ outcomes: Evidence from France," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 62-82.
    48. Luca De Benedictis & Luca Salvatici (ed.), 2011. "The Trade Impact of European Union Preferential Policies," Springer Books, Springer, number 978-3-642-16564-1, June.
    49. Costas Arkolakis & Arnaud Costinot & Andres Rodriguez-Clare, 2012. "New Trade Models, Same Old Gains?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 102(1), pages 94-130, February.
    50. Stefan Lachenmaier & Ludger Wößmann, 2006. "Does innovation cause exports? Evidence from exogenous innovation impulses and obstacles using German micro data," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 58(2), pages 317-350, April.
    51. Alberto Alesina & Eliana La Ferrara, 2003. "Ethnic Diversity and Economic Performance," Harvard Institute of Economic Research Working Papers 2028, Harvard - Institute of Economic Research.
    52. James E. Anderson, 2011. "The Gravity Model," Annual Review of Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 3(1), pages 133-160, September.
    53. Clark, Kenneth & Drinkwater, Stephen, 2000. "Pushed out or pulled in? Self-employment among ethnic minorities in England and Wales," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 7(5), pages 603-628, September.
    54. Bastos, Paulo & Silva, Joana, 2012. "Networks, firms, and trade," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(2), pages 352-364.
    55. Chang-Tai Hsieh & Nicholas Li & Ralph Ossa & Mu-Jeung Yang, 2016. "Gains from Trade with Flexible Extensive Margin Adjustment," NBER Working Papers 22069, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    56. Osea Giuntella, 2012. "Do immigrants squeeze natives out of bad schedules? Evidence from Italy," IZA Journal of Migration and Development, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 1(1), pages 1-21, December.
    57. Wooldridge, Jeffrey M., 2009. "On estimating firm-level production functions using proxy variables to control for unobservables," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 104(3), pages 112-114, September.
    58. John Haltiwanger & Erik Hurst & Javier Miranda & Antoinette Schoar, 2017. "Measuring Entrepreneurial Businesses: Current Knowledge and Challenges," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number halt14-1.
    59. Mark G. Herander & Luz A. Saavedra, 2005. "Exports and the Structure of Immigrant-Based Networks: The Role of Geographic Proximity," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 87(2), pages 323-335, May.
    60. Mediha Sahin & Peter Nijkamp & Soushi Suzuki, 2014. "Contrasts and similarities in economic performance of migrant entrepreneurs," IZA Journal of Migration and Development, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 3(1), pages 1-21, December.
    61. James E. Rauch, 2001. "Business and Social Networks in International Trade," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 39(4), pages 1177-1203, December.
    62. Sparber, Chad, 2008. "A theory of racial diversity, segregation, and productivity," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(2), pages 210-226, October.
    63. James E. Rauch & Vitor Trindade, 2002. "Ethnic Chinese Networks In International Trade," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 84(1), pages 116-130, February.
    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. Oleg Firsin, 2022. "Which Immigrants Promote Trade with Third Party Countries? On the Role of Geographic and Linguistic Proximity," Eastern Economic Journal, Palgrave Macmillan;Eastern Economic Association, vol. 48(1), pages 1-44, January.
    2. Bastos, Paulo & Silva, Joana, 2012. "Networks, firms, and trade," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(2), pages 352-364.
    3. Amir Maghssudipour & Marco Bellandi & Annalisa Caloffi, 2023. "The role of language in international trade and the “made in Italy”," Economia e Politica Industriale: Journal of Industrial and Business Economics, Springer;Associazione Amici di Economia e Politica Industriale, vol. 50(3), pages 677-702, September.
    4. Hoch, Felix & Rudsinske, Jonas, 2021. "Building bridges: Bilateral manager connections and international trade," CIW Discussion Papers 4/2021, University of Münster, Center for Interdisciplinary Economics (CIW).
    5. Jahn, Vera & Steinhardt, Max Friedrich, 2018. "Immigration and new firm formation: Evidence from a quasi-experimental setting in Germany," Ruhr Economic Papers 787, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    6. Massimo Anelli & Gaetano Basso & Giuseppe Ippedico & Giovanni Peri, 2019. "Youth Drain, Entrepreneurship and Innovation," NBER Working Papers 26055, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    7. Anna D’Ambrosio & Sandro Montresor, 2022. "The pro-export effect of subnational migration networks: new evidence from Spanish provinces," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 158(1), pages 53-107, February.

    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. Marcus H. Böhme & Sarah Kups, 2017. "The economic effects of labour immigration in developing countries: A literature review," OECD Development Centre Working Papers 335, OECD Publishing.
    2. Massimiliano Bratti & Luca Benedictis & Gianluca Santoni, 2014. "On the pro-trade effects of immigrants," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 150(3), pages 557-594, August.
    3. Christopher R. Parsons & L. Alan Winters, 2014. "International migration, trade and aid: a survey," Chapters, in: Robert E.B. Lucas (ed.), International Handbook on Migration and Economic Development, chapter 4, pages 65-112, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    4. Anna D’Ambrosio & Sandro Montresor, 2022. "The pro-export effect of subnational migration networks: new evidence from Spanish provinces," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 158(1), pages 53-107, February.
    5. Ottaviano, Gianmarco I.P. & Peri, Giovanni & Wright, Greg C., 2018. "Immigration, trade and productivity in services: Evidence from U.K. firms," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 88-108.
    6. Hatzigeorgiou, Andreas & Lodefalk, Magnus, 2017. "Anti-Migration as a Threat to Internationalization?," Ratio Working Papers 302, The Ratio Institute.
    7. Andreas Hatzigeorgiou & Patrik Karpaty & Richard Kneller & Magnus Lodefalk, 2024. "Immigrant employment and the contract enforcement costs of offshoring," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 160(3), pages 953-981, August.
    8. Yuheng Lin & Dooruj Rambaccussing & Yu Zhu, 2024. "The impact of international students in the UK on the cultural goods trade," French Stata Users' Group Meetings 2024 29, Stata Users Group.
    9. Giovanni Peri & Francisco Requena, 2009. "The Trade Creation Effect of Immigrants: Testing the Theory on the Remarkable Case of Spain," RF Berlin - CReAM Discussion Paper Series 0915, Rockwool Foundation Berlin (RF Berlin) - Centre for Research and Analysis of Migration (CReAM).
    10. Albert Millogo & Ines Trojette, 2020. "Pro-trade effects of MENA immigrants in France: does governance matter?," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 40(4), pages 3219-3230.
    11. Giovanni Peri & Francisco Requena-Silvente, 2010. "The trade creation effect of immigrants: evidence from the remarkable case of Spain," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 43(4), pages 1433-1459, November.
    12. Gianluca Orefice & Hillel Rapoport & Gianluca Santoni, 2021. "How Do Immigrants Promote Exports? Networks, Knowledge, Diversity," CESifo Working Paper Series 9288, CESifo.
    13. Felbermayr, Gabriel & Grossmann, Volker & Kohler, Wilhelm, 2012. "Migration, International Trade and Capital Formation: Cause or Effect?," IZA Discussion Papers 6975, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    14. Miguel Cardoso & Ananth Ramanarayanan, 2022. "Immigrants and exports: Firm‐level evidence from Canada," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 55(3), pages 1250-1293, August.
    15. Giorgia Giovannetti & Mauro Lonati, 2014. "The impact of product quality on the pro-trade elasticity of immigrants," Working Papers - Economics wp2014_11.rdf, Universita' degli Studi di Firenze, Dipartimento di Scienze per l'Economia e l'Impresa.
    16. Steingress, Walter, 2015. "The Causal Impact of Migration on US Trade: Evidence from a Natural Experiment," IZA Discussion Papers 9058, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    17. Maria Santana-Gallego & Jordi Paniagua, 2022. "Tourism and migration: Identifying the channels with gravity models," Tourism Economics, , vol. 28(2), pages 394-417, March.
    18. Figueiredo, Erik & Lima, Luiz Renato & Orefice, Gianluca, 2020. "Migration, trade and spillover effects," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(2), pages 405-421.
    19. Noel Gaston & Douglas R. Nelson, 2013. "Bridging Trade Theory And Labour Econometrics: The Effects Of International Migration," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(1), pages 98-139, February.
    20. BELLINO, Antonella & CELI, Giuseppe, 2016. "The Migration-Trade Nexus in the Presence of Vertical and Horizontal Product Differentiation," CELPE Discussion Papers 137, CELPE - CEnter for Labor and Political Economics, University of Salerno, Italy.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • F10 - International Economics - - Trade - - - General
    • F14 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Empirical Studies of Trade
    • F22 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Migration
    • R10 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - General

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    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:bla:jregsc:v:60:y:2020:i:2:p:249-272. 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: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=0022-4146 .

    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.