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The Network Structure of International Trade

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  • Thomas Chaney

    (ECON - Département d'économie (Sciences Po) - Sciences Po - Sciences Po - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)

Abstract

Motivated by empirical evidence I uncover on the dynamics of French firms' exports, I offer a novel theory of trade frictions. Firms export only into markets where they have a contact. They search directly for new trading partners, but also use their existing network of contacts to search remotely for new partners. I characterize the dynamic formation of an international network of exporters in this model. Structurally, I estimate this model on French data and confirm its predictions regarding the distribution of the number of foreign markets accessed by exporters and the geographic distribution of exports.

Suggested Citation

  • Thomas Chaney, 2014. "The Network Structure of International Trade," Post-Print hal-03579668, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:journl:hal-03579668
    DOI: 10.1257/aer.104.11
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://sciencespo.hal.science/hal-03579668
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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D85 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Network Formation
    • F1 - International Economics - - Trade

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