How can we promote export growth and diversification? This is a perennial question for policymakers around the world, especially in developing countries. What type of exporters should we promote? Should we care about all potential exporters or only those of a particular size? If we frame our thinking in terms of size, then the existing trade literature provides some answers … [Read more...] about The Origin and Dynamics of Export Superstars
Trade Promotion
Latin America Needs to Adapt to the Downshift in Global Trade
According to the latest issue of the IDB’s Trade and Integration Monitor, Latin America’s exports of goods shrunk at annualized rates of 14.8% in 2015 and 8.5% in the first seven months of 2016. Likewise, exports of services contracted for the first time since the financial crisis (-2.4% in 2015). This two-year downturn marks a contraction phase that is now longer than the one … [Read more...] about Latin America Needs to Adapt to the Downshift in Global Trade
From the Andes to the World: How a Peruvian Company Conquered Global Value Chains
We’ve all heard about health benefits of “super foods” such as quinoa, chia, and amaranth, but how many of us know the stories behind the companies that make it possible for us to buy these products? Find out more about a surprising company that managed to cross borders with the help of ConnectAmericas, the online platform run by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to … [Read more...] about From the Andes to the World: How a Peruvian Company Conquered Global Value Chains
How trade, investment and cooperation between Japan and Latin America and the Caribbean can inspire our future trade relationship with Asia
From the perspective of Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) trade, the first decade of the 21st century was all about Asia. Driven by China’s strong growth and soaring demand for natural resources, trade between LAC and Asia grew at an annual average rate of 24 percent between 2003 and 2011. However, this once-dynamic relationship has now encountered serious headwinds. Trade … [Read more...] about How trade, investment and cooperation between Japan and Latin America and the Caribbean can inspire our future trade relationship with Asia
Indirect Exports: A Simple Route to Internationalization for SMEs?
In practically every country in the world, the percentage of large companies that export is much higher than the share of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that do so. This is due, among other factors, to the fact that large companies tend to have higher profit margins than SMEs and can thus underwrite the additional costs associated with the export process (e.g., … [Read more...] about Indirect Exports: A Simple Route to Internationalization for SMEs?