Has the Internet Increased Trade?Evidence from Industrial and Developing Countries

Clarke, George R. G. ; Wallsten, Scott J.

World Bank, Washington, D.C.

关键词: B2B;    B2C;    BASIC;    CALLS;    COMMUNICATION COSTS;   

DOI  :  10.1596/1813-9450-3215
RP-ID  :  WPS3215

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

If the Internet made it easier for firmsto enter new markets by reducing communication and searchcosts, then it may also have made it easier to export goodsand services. The authors find that higher Internetpenetration in developing countries is correlated withgreater exports to industrial countries, but not with tradebetween developing countries or with exports from industrialcountries. Interpreting the correlations is difficultbecause causation may run from Internet use to exports orfrom trade openness to Internet use. To test whetherInternet use affects export behavior, the authors endogenizeInternet use by using countries' regulation of dataservices and Internet provision as instrumental variables.The results are robust to endogenizing Internet penetration,suggesting that access to the Internet does affect theexport performance of firms in developing countries. Inother words, Internet access appears to stimulate exportsfrom poor countries to rich countries. Moreover, theanalysis suggests that regulatory policies affectingtelecommunications and Internet development indirectlyaffect trade, further emphasizing the importance ofderegulating potentially competitive services in thetelecommunications industry.