IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/pacecr/v31y2026i3p267-282.html

Effects of Trade Liberalization on Health: Evidence From the Size of Trading Networks

Author

Listed:
  • Cheuk Yin Ho
  • Zhejun Liu

Abstract

This paper estimates the impact of the number of trading partners on public health. The identification strategy exploits the gravity equation to estimate country‐fixed effects on the likelihood of trading network formation in the first stage. Then it uses the fixed‐effect estimates as control functions in a second‐stage model that relates health outcomes to the number of trading partners. We find that opening trade with more countries deteriorates domestic health, such as a lower life expectancy and a higher child mortality, death rate, and HIV infection. Further investigations suggest that the mechanism probably operates through spillover effects, in which the average health quality of trading partners declines when the home country expands its trading network by trading with more developing countries.

Suggested Citation

  • Cheuk Yin Ho & Zhejun Liu, 2026. "Effects of Trade Liberalization on Health: Evidence From the Size of Trading Networks," Pacific Economic Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(3), pages 267-282, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:pacecr:v:31:y:2026:i:3:p:267-282
    DOI: 10.1111/1468-0106.70025
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-0106.70025
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/1468-0106.70025?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
    ---><---

    More about this item

    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:pacecr:v:31:y:2026:i:3:p:267-282. 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.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using 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=1361-374X .

    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.