Factory Europe? Brainier but Not Brawnier

Behar, Alberto ; Freund, Caroline

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: TARIFFS;    GROWTH RATES;    HARMONIZATION;    TRADE VOLUMES;    TRANSPORT SECTOR;   

RP-ID  :  103793

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

While intermediates comprise themajority of total goods trade in the European Union (EU),their share of total trade has remained flat since 1996.This implies that EU enlargement has had a limited effect onthe size of Factory Europe. However, enlargement coincideswith an increase in Factory Europe’s complexity. Using twonew measures of the complexity of intermediates products, weshow that internal EU intermediates trade has become moresophisticated and uses more relationship-specific inputsover time and relative to external EU trade. In other words,Factory Europe has become brainier but not necessarilybrawnier. There is also an asymmetry. While the 1995 EUmembers have not become more significant trading partnersfor the new members, the new members have become a moreimportant source of intermediates for the EU15 and also amore important market. In sum, the structure of EU trade haschanged--not only is the EU15 giving the new members abigger share of its tasks, it is also giving them harder ones.