Trade Facilitation in Services
This paper examines the concept of trade facilitation in services from the perspective of the recent literature on the determinants of services trade. The aim is to conceptualize trade facilitation in this area as a dimension of international integration beyond the baseline restrictiveness of policy, as captured by indicators of discriminatory market access. The analysis focuses on the role of governance structures, institutions, and transparency in shaping the environment for trading in services internationally. In addition to examining these factors, the paper provides some novel empirical estimates. Using a gravity model, the analysis finds that the ad valorem equivalents of common measures of institutional quality, governance, and transparency are larger relative to measures of sheer policy restrictiveness, frequently a significant multiple. The paper also shows that the ad valorem equivalents of data restrictions are of similar magnitude to policy restrictions in services. The conclusion is that framing discussions of trade facilitation in services around the concept of reducing trade costs -- specifically those stemming from areas where improvement is needed in governance, institutions, and transparency -- could potentially bring significant benefits in increased integration of the global services economy.
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Working Paper biblioteca |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2020-05
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| Subjects: | SERVICES TRADE, TRADE IN SERVICES, TRADE RESTRICTIONS, RESTRICTIVENESS, GOVERNANCE, TRADE FACILITATION, MARKET ACCESS, GRAVITY MODEL, |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/240651588871781592/Trade-Facilitation-in-Services-Concepts-and-Empirical-Importance https://hdl.handle.net/10986/33743 |
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| Summary: | This paper examines the concept of trade
facilitation in services from the perspective of the recent
literature on the determinants of services trade. The aim is
to conceptualize trade facilitation in this area as a
dimension of international integration beyond the baseline
restrictiveness of policy, as captured by indicators of
discriminatory market access. The analysis focuses on the
role of governance structures, institutions, and
transparency in shaping the environment for trading in
services internationally. In addition to examining these
factors, the paper provides some novel empirical estimates.
Using a gravity model, the analysis finds that the ad
valorem equivalents of common measures of institutional
quality, governance, and transparency are larger relative to
measures of sheer policy restrictiveness, frequently a
significant multiple. The paper also shows that the ad
valorem equivalents of data restrictions are of similar
magnitude to policy restrictions in services. The conclusion
is that framing discussions of trade facilitation in
services around the concept of reducing trade costs --
specifically those stemming from areas where improvement is
needed in governance, institutions, and transparency --
could potentially bring significant benefits in increased
integration of the global services economy. |
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