Tracking wage inequality trends with prices and different trade models: evidence from Mexico

Mexican wage inequality rose following Mexico’s accession to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade/World Trade Organization in 1986. Since the mid-1990s, however, wage inequality has been falling. Since most trade models suggest that output prices can affect factor prices, this paper explores the relationship between output prices and wage inequality. A Salter–Swan trade model with firm heterogeneity driven by variations in the relative price of tradable relative to non-tradable goods can explain the decline in wage inequality. The paper compares this model’s predictions with Mexican inequality statistics using data on output prices, census data, and quarterly household survey data. In spite of the model’s simplicity, the model’s predictions match Mexican variables reasonably well during the years when wage inequality fell.     

Skill, trade, and international inequality

Heckscher-Ohlin trade theory suggests that greater opennesstends to enlarge inter-country differences in stocks of skill(or human capital), which new growth theory suggests would causeinter-country divergence of per capita incomes. Econometricanalysis of data on about 90 countries during 1960-90 confirmsthat greater openness tends to cause divergence of secondaryand tertiary enrolment rates between more-educated and less-educatedcountries, and also between land-scarce and land-abundant countries.These findings may have implications for the optimal choiceof trade policies by poor countries.     

Multinational companies and wage inequality in the host country: The case of Ireland

Multinational Companies and Wage Inequality in the Host Country: The Case of Ireland. — In this paper, the authors analyze the impact of multinational companies on wage inequality in a host country. Based on a model, in which the introduction of new technologies leads to increases in the demand for skilled labour and, therefore, to rising wage inequality, they econometrically study the Irish manufacturing sector between 1979 and 1995. They examine inequality between wages for skilled and unskilled labour within the same manufacturing sector. Their results indicate that there is an inverted-U relationship between wage inequality and multinationals, i.e., with the increasing presence of multinationals, wage inequality first increases, reaches a maximum, and decreases eventually.     

Does North-South horizontal intra-industry trade really exist? An analysis of the toy industry

Does North-South Horizontal Intra-Industry Trade Really Exist? An Analysis of the Toy Industry. — In a combination of a case study approach and econometric analysis, bilateral intra-industry trade between high income countries and low income countries in the toy industry is investigated. In a number of products there is important bilateral intra-industry trade between both groups of countries. Econometric analysis in which a number of the explanatory variables used were quantified on the basis of the information supplied by the industry-spokesmen yields results which strongly support the view that the bilateral IIT between the high income countries and the low income countries in the toy industry is determined significantly by horizontal product differentiation and economies of scale.     

Upstreamness,exports, and wage inequality: Evidence from Chinese manufacturing data

In this paper we investigate within-firm wage inequality across heterogeneous industries that hold different positions in the domestic value chain, and across heterogeneous firms that have different exposure to trade. We find that the wage inequality problem is more severe in upstream industries than in downstream ones, and among firms with greater exposure to trade (i.e., larger export share of sales). Our findings support both classic and new new trade theories on wage inequality. In downstream industries where Chinese firms are typically engaged in processing and assembly work with intensive use of unskilled labor, trade leads to less wage inequality within firms. However, trade also introduces pro-competitive effects which usually benefit exporters and their skilled labor. The results hold after various checks and controls for robustness.     

Foreign direct investment, intellectual property rights, and wage inequality in China

This article incorporates foreign direct investment (FDI) and product differentiation in a general equilibrium trade model. The analysis shows that freer trade and FDI will upgrade China's technology, improve its skills of labor, and increase the competitiveness of local firms in the international market. At the same time, the relative wage of skilled labor to unskilled labor will rise. The size of this rise will be affected by the degree of protection for intellectual property rights. These theoretical results are consistent with empirical evidence. The analysis provides insights in coordinating policies on FDI, labor market reform, and intellectual property rights protection.     

Exchange rate volatility,sectoral trade,and the aggregation bias

This paper proposes a sectoral theoretical model in an imperfect competition framework, with country-specific and industry-specific original variables, notably factor productivity, scale economies, or product differentiation. It is then empirically estimated in a panel data model, at a sectoral and geographical disaggregation level, to test the impact of exchange rate volatility on G-7 countries' exports. Economies of scale are estimated from a non-linear translog production system. Two exchange rate volatility measurements have been used: the moving sample standard deviation and the GARCH approach. The main finding shows that the impact of exchange rate volatility on exports varies considerably, depending on the industry covered and the export destination markets. As a consequence, there is both a sectoral and geographical aggregation bias when estimating the effects of exchange rate variations. JEL no. F1, F12, F14     

Labour market inequality between men and women: Allocational differences versus wage rate differences

Summary This article discusses the question to what extent there are differences between men and women concerning the allocation of workers to jobs on the one hand and the remuneration for a given allocation on the other. Human capital variables do not only affect the allocation of men and women to job levels and job categories differently, they also have different effects on wage rates for men and women in given job levels and job categories. The wage gap between men and women partly stems from the fact that men and women have different personal characteristics, and partly from the different allocation of men and women to job levels and job categories. Besides, wage rate inequality stems from the different rewards for men and women with given characteristics. By decomposing the average wage rate difference between men and women it can be established that 40 percent of this difference can be attributed to differences concerning education, experience, and age; 28 percent to differences in the allocation of men and women to job levels and job categories, and 32 percent to higher rewards for men than for women with given characteristics.Economic Institute/Centre for Interdisciplinary Research on Labour Market and Distribution Issues (CIAV) Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht; Economic Institute/Centre for Interdisciplinary Research on Labour Market and Distribution Issues (CIAV), ijksuniversiteit Utrecht, and Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI), Den Haag. The authors wish to thank the Dutch Wage Bureau for making available the data, and Frank Kalshoven, Ingrid Plas and Yolanda Grift for their computational assistance.     

The theory of wage differentials,induced technical progress and the pure theory of International trade

Zusammenfassung Die Theorie der Lohnunterschiede, des induzierten tech-nischen Fortschritts und die reine Theorie des internationalen Handels. — In der Literatur über die Theorie der Lohnunterschiede und des internationalen Handels wird gew?hnlich angenommen, die Lohnunterschiede seien exogen und die Ausgangs-lage sei ein Gleichgewicht. Der vorliegende Aufsatz geht abweichend davon von einem Ungleichgewichtszustand aus. Es wird ein Modell entwickelt, in dem technischer Fortschritt als Folge intersektoraler Lohnunterschiede entsteht (unter der Annahme einer Untergrenze für die Lohns?tze, die durch Subsistenzüberlegungen bestimmt wird). Aus der Untersuchung ergibt sich folgendes: (1) Eine Volkswirtschaft, die durch Lohnunterschiede gekennzeichnet ist, kann sich in eine Volkswirtschaft mit Subsistenz-L?hnen verwandeln. In diesem Fall gibt es automatische Kr?fte, die das System von einem Typ verzerrender Rahmenbedingungen (Lohnunterschiede) zu einem anderen Typ verzerrender Rahmenbedingungen (Subsistenz-L?hne) überleiten. (2) Eine Volkswirtschaft, die durch Lohnunterschiede gekennzeichnet ist, kann eine optimale L?sung infolge des Wirkens zweier Arten von technischem Fortschritt erreichen, n?mlich (a) durch den technischen Fortschritt, der durch intersektorale Lohnunterschiede hervorgerufen wird und (b) durch den technischen Fortschritt vom Kennedy-Typ. Die Literatur über Lohnunterschiede und Handel war haupts?chlich damit besch?ftigt, die Folgen eines exogen bestimmten Lohnes, der keine Beziehungen zu den Parametern des Modells hat, zu untersuchen, und hat dabei die Prüfung der Mechanismen vernachl?ssigt, die imstande sein k?nnen, die Lohnunterschiede zu beseitigen. Dieser Aufsatz ist ein kleiner Beitrag dazu, diese Lücke im Schrifttum auszufüllen.

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Résumé La théorie des différentiels salariaux, le progrès technique induit et la théorie pure du commerce international. — Dans la littérature sur la théorie des différentiels salariaux et le commerce international, on généralement regarde le différentiel salarial comme être exogène et la position initiale comme être une position d’équilibre. Ce papier se sépare de cette pratique générale et regarde la situation initiale comme être une position de diséquilibre. Nous établons un modèle dans lequel le progrès technique entre comme conséquence d’un différentiel salarial intersectoriel (en supposant l’existence d’une borne plus basse des taux salariaux à cause de la considération de subsistence). Les propositions suivantes sont déri-vées de l’investigation, (1) Une économie caractérisée par un différentiel salarial peut transformer elle-même dans une économie de salaire minimum de subsistence. En conséquence il y a des forces automatiques menant le système d’un type de cadre distors (différentiels salariaux) à un autre type de cadre distors (salaire minimum de subsistence). (2) Une économie caractérisée par un différentiel salarial peut arriver à une solution de ?first best? via l’opération des deux types du progrès technique, viz. (a) le progrès technique induit par le différentiel salarial intersectoriel et (b) le type du progrès technique de Kennedy. La littérature sur les différentiels salariaux et le commerce extérieur a princi-palement exploré les conséquences d’un taux salarial fixé exogènement qui n’interagit pas avec les paramètres du modèle et c’est pourquoi a négligé l’étude des mécanismes automatiques qui peuvent éliminer le différentiel salarial. Ce papier est une contri-bution mineure de remplir la lacune dans la littérature sur les différentiels salariaux et le commerce extérieur.

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Resumen La teoría de los salarios diferenciales, progreso técnico inducido y la teoría pura del comercio internacional. — En la literatura sobre la teoría de los salarios diferenciales y el comercio international, la diferencia salarial se considera generalmente como exógena y la posición inicial como una posición de equilibrio. El presente artículo se aleja de esta práctica general y considera la situación inicial como una posición de desequilibrio. Se construye un modelo en que el progreso técnico se produce como una consecuencia del salario difenrencial intersectorial (asumiendo la existencia de un límite aún inferior para las tasas salariales determina-das por la consideratión de subsistencia). Las proposiciones siguientes emergen de la investigación. (1) Una economía caracterizada por una diferencia salarial puede transformarse en una economía de salarios mínimos de subsistencia. De tal manera existen fuerzas automáticas que llevan el sistema de un tipo de marco distorsionador (salarios diferenciales) a otro tipo de marco distorsionador (salarios minimos de subsistencia). (2) Una economía caracterizada por salarios diferenciales puede alcanzar una solución first best via la operación de dos tipos de progresos técnicos, (a) progreso técnico inducido por el diferencial salarial intersectorial y (b) el tipo Kennedy de progreso técnico. La literatura sobre salarios diferenciales y comercio se ha preocupado en su mayor parte de la exploración de las consecuencias de una tasa salarial fijada exó-genamente que no interactúa con los parámetros del modelo, no habiéndole dado la debida importancia al estudio de mecanismos automáticos que pueden ser capaces de remover las diferencias salariales. Este artículo es una contribución menor hacia el relleno de la laguna en la literatura sobre salarios diferenciales y comercio.

     

Country size and the trade effects of the euro

This paper investigates whether small countries gain relatively more than large countries from an ‘expansion’ of their market through the creation of a single currency. The introduction of the euro offers a particularly valuable source to test this hypothesis, which we motivate using the theoretical model by Casella of the year 1996. Our results from a panel data analysis, using both aggregate and disaggregated trade data, point to a statistically significant but quantitatively moderate small country bonus. On average, the euro has led to an improvement of the small euro area’s relative export performance by 3–9%.

Structural characteristics of firms and industries and black and white wage inequality in the U.S. economy: 1988

The effects of firm and job characteristics on the wages of blacks and whites are analyzed using data from the 1988 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth [Bureau of Labor Statistics, 1997]. This study focuses on 2,370 full-time private sector employees. The results show that, first, blacks are disproportionately employed in large establishments despite their lower cognitive achievements. Second, blacks do not enjoy significant wage premiums associated with supervisory positions. Third, although the wage gap between blacks and whites is reduced considerably, controlling for education and cognitive skills, the gap increases significantly when structural attributes are included in the wage regressions despite the large wage premiums associated with employment in large establishments.     

Measuring network effects on trade: A reexamination

Building upon [Greaney, T.M., 2005. Measuring network effects on trade: are Japanese affiliates distinctive? Journal of the Japanese and International Economies 19, 194–214], this research provides improved estimates of the impact of network effects on trade conducted by foreign affiliates operating in the US. With an expanded and improved data set, I find that both home and regional biases are much stronger for affiliates’ imports than for their exports. At the country-specific level, I find evidence to support the hypothesis that Japanese affiliates have particularly strong network effects, but these effects are limited to a home bias effect alone. Although Japanese affiliates show signs of a regional, or Asian, network effect in their import pattern, the strength of this effect is the weakest among all of the countries tested. Only two countries’ affiliates show signs of regional bias in their export behavior, Australia and the Netherlands.     

Dynamic comparative advantage and the welfare effects of trade

Developing economies may face a trade-off between specializingaccording to existing comparative advantage (in low-technologygoods), and entering sectors in which they currently lack acomparative advantage, but may acquire such an advantage inthe future as a result of the potential for productivity growth(in high-technology goods). Comparative advantage is endogenouslydetermined by past technological change, while simultaneouslyshaping current rates of innovation. Hence, specialization accordingto current comparative advantage under free trade may be welfarereducing. Selective intervention may be welfare improving, bothfor the economy undertaking it, and for its trade partner.     

Skill formation and job matching effects in wage growth in Ethiopia

This paper analyses production and labour market data on manufacturingfirms in Ethiopia in order to test for skill formation and job-matchingeffects in wage growth. Estimated age and job seniority profilesof relative marginal productivity and relative wages indicatethat both on-the-job skill formation and job matching are significantsources of the growth of productivity and wages with time inthe labour market. However, there is also evidence that jobmatching is by far the more important of the two sources.     

Time zone-related continuity and synchronization effects on bilateral trade flows

This paper finds the first empirical evidence of the time zone-related continuity effects on international trade. Several recent studies in the fragmentation/distance literatures provide theoretical justification for both positive (continuity) and negative (synchronization) effects of increased time zone differences on global export flows. This paper explicitly tests for the presence of both effects using bilateral manufacturing and service trade for 20 countries and 56 partner countries from 2000 to 2008. Results consistent with the theoretical expectations are found using a Poisson pseudo-maximum likelihood estimator. The general time zone difference effect on total exports is negative, suggesting the synchronization effect dominates. However, for services trade, the positive continuity effect is noted, indicating that time zones affect manufacturing and service trades differently. These results are robust to changes in the time zone, distance, and language measures, as well as alternate estimation techniques.     

On the bilateral trade effects of free trade agreements between the EU-15 and the CEEC-4 countries

The expansion of regionalism has spawned an extensive theoretical literature analysing the effects of free trade agreements (FTAs) on trade flows. In this paper we focus on FTAs (also called European agreements) between the European Union (EU-15) and the Central and Eastern European countries (CEEC-4, i.e. Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland and Romania) and model their effects on trade flows by treating the agreement variable as endogenous. Our theoretical framework is the gravity model, and the econometric method used to isolate and eliminate the potential endogeneity bias of the agreement variable is the fixed effect vector decomposition (FEVD) technique. Our estimation results indicate a positive and significant impact of FTAs on trade flows. This finding is robust to the inclusion in the sample of a group of control countries (specifically Belarus, the Russian Federation and the Ukraine) that did not sign an FTA. Besides, we show that trade growth after the FTA agreement with the EU was signed exceeded trade growth of the control group of countries, which did not become members.