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Why `Buy American' is a bad idea but politicians still like it

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  • Mario Larch
  • Wolfgang Lechthaler

Abstract

When the world economy was recently hit by a severe recession, governments all over the world reacted by initiating stimulus packages. Some countries (among them, most notably, China and the US) tried to put special emphasis on their home industries by including `Buy National' clauses into the stimulus package. By analyzing the dynamics of transitory changes of trade barriers as a short-run response to an economic downturn, we show that beggar-thy-neighbour policies do not work. We then come up with two rationales that help us understand why countries nevertheless consider protectionism to be a good response to a recession: (i) the lobbying of domestic, non-exporting firms, and (ii) the relationship between vulnerability, the degree of openness and loss aversion of consumers.

Suggested Citation

  • Mario Larch & Wolfgang Lechthaler, 2011. "Why `Buy American' is a bad idea but politicians still like it," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 44(3), pages 838-858, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:cje:issued:v:44:y:2011:i:3:p:838-858
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-5982.2011.01657.x
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    Cited by:

    1. Larch, Mario & Lechthaler, Wolfgang, 2011. "Is there a short-run case for protectionism? Trade policy and the business cycle," Kiel Working Papers 1717, Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel).
    2. Замулин О.А. & Платонов К.Е., 2015. "Протекционизм Как Противоциклическая Политика," Журнал Экономика и математические методы (ЭММ), Центральный Экономико-Математический Институт (ЦЭМИ), vol. 51(3), pages 3-18, июль.
    3. Larch, Mario & Lechthaler, Wolfgang, 2013. "Buy National or Buy International? The optimal design of government spending in an open economy," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 26(C), pages 87-108.
    4. Lechthaler, Wolfgang, 2016. "Protectionism in a liquidity trap," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 145(C), pages 165-167.
    5. David R. DeRemer, 2015. "Opportunities for Cooperation in Removing Prohibitive Trade Barriers," CERS-IE WORKING PAPERS 1533, Institute of Economics, Centre for Economic and Regional Studies.
    6. Larch, Mario & Lechthaler, Wolfgang, 2016. "Buy National And The Business Cycle," Macroeconomic Dynamics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 20(5), pages 1196-1218, July.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • F11 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Neoclassical Models of Trade
    • F12 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Models of Trade with Imperfect Competition and Scale Economies; Fragmentation
    • F16 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade and Labor Market Interactions

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