Trade Treaties and the Boost of Argentine Exports, 1880-1929

From the Independence, the region that later became Argentina was interested in promoting foreign economic relations. One way was to sign trade treaties, in particular since the second half of nineteenth century. All of them had a clear goal: to improve commercial connections not only with European countries but also with American ones. In fact, the literature has recognised those agreements as part of the country´s economic integration into the global system during the so-called First Globalisation (c. 1850-1914). Nevertheless, to the best of our knowledge, their impact on foreign trade has not been measured. Thus, in this research, we ask whether a direct link existed between the signing of agreements and the performance of different types of exports (livestock, crops, and processed agri-food products), and the application of the Most Favoured Nation clause (absolute or conditional). Specifically, the sources used to carry out this analysis are a database of Argentine exports from 1880 to 1929 and each of the ratified trade treaties signed by Argentina during the period (or before).