Australian Exports of Dairy Products

Abstract

Exports of dairy products are becoming increasingly important in terms of export earnings for Australia. The industry is the fourth highest foreign exchange earner compared to all Australia's food exports. However, Australian exports of dairy products account for about 67 per cent of the total Australian production of dairy products, and about 13 per cent of total world exports of dairy products. About 68 per cent of Australian dairy products exports are sold on Asian markets. The purpose of this paper is to examine the challenging issues and opportunities for Australian exports of dairy products on world markets and to identify potential and emerging export markets for Australian dairy products. Australia is highly restricted on its access to world dairy product markets by the impact of export subsidies and other trade barriers of overseas markets. The current economic and political crises in Asia are also not favourable to maintain export sales on some of the Asian markets. The export support scheme in Australia has made exporting attractive relative to domestic sales. But it is anticipated that the termination of the scheme after June 2000, will reduce production and exports by 6 and 20 per cent, respectively in the short run. However, in the long run, resources will be efficiently used without government intervention and Australian dairy products will also be competitive on the domestic market. There is scope for greater market opportunities in the emerging markets in Asia and other parts of the world for Australian dairy products. Australia will also benefit from the agreement on international trade that directs exporting countries to reduce export subsidy and remove nontariff trade barriers on exports of dairy products. Australia should implement appropriate measures to inaease the milk yield per cow, to improve the quality of dairy products and to identify the need for market promotion and research in order to increase the volume of dairy product exports on world markets, especially in Asia and other potential markets such as Middle East, Africa, Europe and the Americas.     

Export Market for Australian Beef Industry

Abstract

The aims of this paper are to examine the constraints and potentials for Australian beef industry on world export markets, and to identify the implications for other beef exporting countries. The survey of beef export constraints suggested that the effect of world beef price and cost of feed grains reduced beef export returns. The relative importance of these variables was tested using a linear regression model. The coefficients of these variables are statistically significant at 10 and 1 per cent levels, and the results suggest that world beef price and cost of feed grains are important determinants of Australian beef exports. The findings of this study also reveal that Australia is highly restricted in its access to world beef markets by the impact of rigid import controls, tariffs and other trade barriers including export subsidies provided by foreign countries for their own exports. Australia needs to give priority to diversification of export markets, particularly in the emerging markets in Africa, Asia, the Americas and the Middle East, where reduced tariff barriers are expected to improve market access. Australia also needs to increase productivity, improve cost efficiency, and undertake market research and promotion in order to be more competitive in the long run and to capture a sizeable market share from its major competitors.     

Australian Exports of Horticultural Crops with Special Reference to Fresh Citrus Fruits

Abstract

Exports of horticultural products, in particular fresh citrus fruits, are becoming increasingly important in terms of export earnings for Australia. However, Australian fresh citrus exports account for about 12 per cent of the total production of citrus. About 57 per cent of total exports is sold on Asian markets. The purpose of this study is to examine the problems and prospects for fresh citrus exports on world markets and, in particular, in the Asian region. The findings of the study reveal that higher freight and labour costs have made Australian citrus less competitive on world markets. Thus, producers have an incentive to sell over 80 percent of the total production of citrus on domestic markets. However, there is scope for greater market opportunities in the Asia-Pacific region for Australian fresh citrus fruits. Australia should increase the yield per tree, improve the quality of citrus fruits and identify the need for market promotion and research in order to increase the volume of citrus exports on world markets, especially in the Asia-Pacific region.     

Australia's Gone Chicken!

Abstract

The gross value of Australia's agriculture industry in 2001/2002 was A$38.4 billion with 65% allocated to exports. The major exports markets are South East Asia, Japan, USA, and the EU. Products include wool, beef, wheat, cotton, sugar, and wine. For Australia there have been significant changes over time in markets and production arrangements in the international arena. This is also true of the domestic market especially in the area of meat products. Australians, once dominant red meat eaters, have now “gone chicken.” The total yearly consumption of meats averages around 110 kg per person. Beef up until recent years has always been the dominant player. However, in the last 30 years chicken consumption has risen from being a marginal food item to being a product that is expected to eclipse beef consumption in the very near future. This paper explores the trends and examines the changes as they are reflected by the behaviour of consumers and market chain drivers. The paper provides suggestions that could be gainfully employed at the consumer behaviour levels for other meat producers.     

Australia's changing export pattern

Australia is frequently considered a farming country on the periphery of the world economy, whose exports are traditionally restricted to wheat, wool and dairy produce. However, this conception does not correspond anymore to the present shape of the Australian economy. After World War Il structural changes linked up the country with the world economy on a broader base, and Industrial products are becoming more and more Important to Australian exports. The following article deals with the determining factors of Australia's export oriented industrialisation and the future prospects for its progress from a farming country to an industrial nation.     

The internationalization of emerging stock markets

Stock markets in developing countries today account for about 7 per cent of world equity market capitalization, and this share is rising rapidly. Foreign investors have in the past often faced restrictive barriers to access to these emerging markets. A growing number of developing countries have now started to dismantle these barriers, however, resulting in an increasing interest by international portfolio managers in these emerging stock markets.     

Market access,supplier access,and Africa's manufactured exports: A firm level analysis

Abstract

In a large cross-country sample of manufacturing establishments drawn from 188 cities, average exports per establishments are smaller for African firms than for businesses in other regions. Based on the estimation of firm level exporting equations, we show that this is mainly because, on average, African firms face more adverse economic geography and operate in poorer institutional settings. One part of the effect of geography operates through Africa's lower ‘foreign market access’: African firms are located further away from wealthier or denser potential export markets. A second occurs through the region's lower ‘supplier access’: African firms face steeper input prices, partly because of their physical distance from cheaper foreign suppliers, and partly because domestic substitutes for importable inputs are more expensive. Africa's poorer institutions reduce its manufactured exports directly, as well as indirectly, by lowering foreign market access and supplier access. Both geography and institutions influence average firm level exports significantly more through their effect on the number of exporters than through their impact on how much each exporter sells onto foreign markets.     

Trade Diversion as Firm Adjustment to Trade Policy: Evidence from EU Anti‐dumping Duties on Vietnamese Footwear

This paper evaluates the impact of the 2006 European Union anti‐dumping (AD) action on Vietnamese footwear in three markets: imports to the EU, footwear producers in Vietnam, and the trade diversionary adjustment of Vietnamese firms in the US market. We find that the AD action reduced Vietnamese imports to the EU by as much as 65 per cent. Given that the EU makes up almost two‐thirds of Vietnam's footwear exports and footwear is among the top four export industries for Vietnam, this reduction is economically significant. Consistent with predictions of our model, we find evidence of trade diversion by Vietnamese producers from the EU to the US market. Our difference‐in‐difference estimates of the AD actions on the value of Vietnamese footwear imports to the United States ranged from 69 to 71 per cent over the period 2004–07 and 69 to 72 per cent in terms of quantity. These results highlight the spillover effects of trade policy in third markets when firms adjust to trade barriers. Our results are robust to triple‐difference specifications where we adjust for trend differences and a series of placebo specifications.     

Financial deregulation and integration: an Australian perspective

Many countries in recent years have progressively removed economic and financial barriers and this process has provided easier access to their capital markets. Further, such liberalization measures can impact upon the risk-return relationship between assets. This paper investigates whether the Australian stock market is segmented from or integrated into the world equity market. The aim is to ascertain if the liberalization undertaken in the Australian economy, in the form of financial deregulation in the early 1980s, has resulted in its integration with the world equity market. Consistent with expectations, we find evidence that the stock market was segmented in the pre-deregulation period but integrated following financial deregulation. The hypothesis that industry factors may impact upon integration could not be supported.Keywords: Australia; Deregulation; IntegrationJEL classification: F36; G12; G15     

The revealed comparative advantage of the east asian NICs

The spectacular export performance of the East Asian NICs is clearly indicated by their increasing shares of manufactured exports in the world markets. However, the conventional wisdom that the comparative advantage of industrialized countries such as Japan has systematically shifted to the NICs is challenged by the results from this study. A detailed analysis of the threedigit SITC product categories for manufactures indicates that NIC exports have not replaced Japan's in the U.S. market. The growth of manufactured exports from the NICs is moving along with the growth of Japan's exports in similar product categories but at different stages of the product cycle or of technology sophistication. Hence, the NICs, rather than replacing the exports from Japan, are merely supplying some complementary manufactured products to the industrialized market.     

Export Performance and Access to Intermediate Inputs: The Case of Rules of Origin Liberalisation

Internationally fragmented production processes have highlighted the need of efficient sourcing from foreign suppliers. This paper aims to investigate how exports of final goods are affected by better access to foreign intermediate inputs. In particular, the paper empirically tests whether expanding the set of available intermediate input suppliers through preferential rules of origin liberalisation affects exports of final goods. We exploit the introduction of the southern Mediterranean countries into the Pan‐Euro‐Med zone of diagonal cumulation which meant that foreign intermediate inputs could be used from more countries than before without jeopardising the preferential access to the EU. Using a fixed effects specification that controls for detailed levels of unobserved heterogeneity and multilateral resistance, we examine the effect of the new diagonal cumulation possibilities on southern Mediterranean exports to EU‐15. We find a positive effect on both export intensity, the value of exports, and export diversification, the number of exported products. Being part of the Pan‐Euro‐Med zone of diagonal cumulation is associated with a 20 per cent increase in export intensity and a 5 per cent increase in export diversification.     

我国大豆出口影响因素实证分析

我国种植大豆的历史悠久,总产量和出口量曾占世界市场份额的90%以上,与美国、巴西、阿根廷并列为世界四大大豆生产大国。基于引力模型,选取2008年我国大豆出口截面数据作为因变量,各国和各地区的GDP、人均GDP、我国与各国的的地理距离等数据作为自变量,实证分析了我国大豆出口的影响因素,证实了各进口国和地区的人均GDP与我国大豆出口呈正相关,进口国和地区的GDP和人均消费能力的增长在一定程度上有利于我国大豆的出口增长,而距离与我国大豆出口负相关。为提升我国大豆出口竞争力,应开拓市场,加强对外联系,增加对大豆的科研投入,减少大豆的生产成本,挖掘我国大豆的绿色能量。     

Pass-Through Elasticity,Substitution and Market Share: the Case for Sheep Meat Exports

This paper empirically examines the exchange rate pass-through elasticity, using sheep meat exports from the two major exporters, Australia and New Zealand. The results show the coexistence of incomplete and complete pass-through in the international sheep meat industry. The Australian sheep meat exporters have a relatively smaller market share than New Zealand and are not able to exercise monopoly power. New Zealand producers, on the other hand, can increase their mark-ups in those destination countries where they have a large market share.     

Barriers to Exporting: What are They and Who do They Matter to?

The international trade literatures on gravity modelling and firm‐level export behaviour have established that nontariff barriers are important impediments to international trade flows. In this paper, we provide fresh evidence on the actual barriers to exports firms face and how they vary with firm‐level characteristics. Our results indicate that the higher the export experience of firms the lower are the trade costs they face. These barriers are not related to other firm‐level characteristics, such as productivity and size, found by the literature to be associated with export market entry. Overall, these results suggest the existence of a process of learning to export whereby firms learn how to cope with export barriers through direct experience in export markets.     

Effects of Economic Recession on Export Activity

Abstract

Since 1920 there has been 15 economic recessions and expansions in the US and on average recessions have lasted just over a year. The most recent recession was that of 1989–1991, which, with the increased globalization of business, did not spare Australia. Using a geo-business model the research investigates changes in export managers' perceptions on a number of variables before and during the last recession. It also considers whether recession in the domestic market acted as a motivator for Australian firms to enter export markets. Data is analyzed from a survey that attracted respondents from 233 export firms. Findings are presented and implications for theory development and government and policy makers are discussed. Limitations are noted and directions for future research are indicated.     

Foreign Ownership and the Extensive Margins of Exports: Evidence for Manufacturing Enterprises in Germany

We examine how foreign ownership of a firm affects the variety of goods that the firm exports and the number of countries it trades with. We construct a simple theoretical model of how foreign ownership may affect these extensive margins of exports and take this model to data from Germany, one of the leading actors on the world market for goods. In line with theoretical predictions we find that foreign‐owned firms do export more goods to more countries after controlling for firm size, productivity and industry affiliation. These differences between foreign‐owned firms and domestically controlled firms are highly statistically significant, and they are large from an economic point of view, with foreign‐owned firms exporting up to 39 per cent more goods to up to 31 per cent more countries.     

Information and Export Performance

Exporters’ performance in a given market may affect their exports to the rest of the world. Importers base their future transaction decisions upon the information revealed by exporter’s performance in other countries. This paper estimates significant effects from these information spillovers on the export patterns of fourteen developing countries, and somewhat smaller effects for a sample of exporters from six developed countries. On the other hand, it is in developed countries’ markets that the largest information spillovers are generated. Indeed, increases in market share in the United States allows for significant increases in exports to the rest-of-the world associated with information spillovers. But developing country markets could also generate important amounts of information for regional exporters. Hong Kong is the top market in terms of generating information for other East Asian exporters, and the Argentinean and Chilean markets play an important role for exporters from other Latin American countries.

Some Aspects of Trade between Australia and Pacific Island Countries

Australia and Pacific Island countries (PICs) have maintained an ongoing trade and economic relationship for several years. The determinants of trade between Australia and PICs are examined using a gravity model by utilising time‐series cross‐country data for the period 1981 to 2005. The empirical findings indicate that imports by PIC from Australia are significantly determined by PICs’ population and their per capita GDP. The results also suggest that PICs’ exports are significantly determined by PICs and Australia's population, PICs’ infrastructure (telecommunications) and the distance to Australia. Consistent with the findings of other studies using the gravity model, distance is found to be a friction to PICs’ exports to Australia. While this study identifies factors influencing PICs’ trade with Australia, a more substantial issue for the governments and trade policy makers in PICs is to look into the generally disappointing long‐term trade performance. From a policy perspective, PICs would need to seriously look at increasing their export potential.     

Foreign competition and quality sorting: Overlaps in US and Chinese exports

The paper studies the performance of US exports conditional on presence and magnitude of Chinese exports in the same foreign markets. Outcomes within product—destination markets are analysed in a panel covering 4,219 products, 67 destinations and 11 years (1996–2006). Generally, an increasing exposure to Chinese export competition is related with lower US export revenues, quantity and market shares. Robustness checks support existence and direction of a causal relationship. Other outcomes, such as product switching, market exit and export unit value adjustments are less clear‐cut. Detailed analyses of responses in individual destinations and product categories suggest that this is, partly, because Chinese and US exports compete only in some markets. In product markets where lower US export quantity coincides with adjustments of export unit value, quality sorting appears to be prevalent. In some cases, however, lower export unit values appear to help export quantities remain unchanged. Overall, the average estimated displacement effects obtained from a pooled sample mask substantial panel‐unit heterogeneity.     

Deutschlands Position in der Weltwirtschaft

In recent years, German exports have increased at a slower pace than before the global financial crisis. Moreover, the growth contribution of foreign trade was significantly smaller. This article examines how German exports have developed since the turn of the millennium, both globally and in specific regions, and relative to world trade. The results are threefold. A look at the most important trade partners reveals that, firstly, the European economies continue to absorb the largest part of German exports. Asia and the US follow as the largest sales markets outside Europe. Secondly, the German world market share is mainly driven by the development of Germany’s market position in the EU and the US; China and the remaining Asian countries play a subordinated role in this respect. Thirdly, a comparison between the growth rates of German exports and world trade is not always useful for statements about the change in the German global market share.