Joan Ripoll-i-Alcon, Ph.D., Economics & Finance, EUM (Escola Universitària del Maresme), Passeig del Callao s/n, Mataró (Barcelona), 08301, Spain
Objectives
This aim of this paper is to provide a comprehensive description of the evolution of foreign trade in emerging countries of Asia, Latin America and Europe for the period 1985-2007.
Data/ Methods
Our analysis will focus in regional trade integration –considering, both intraregional and interregional trade– as well as in the importance of inter-intra industrial trade in order to identify changing trade patterns, the role of comparative advantage and trade specialization, type of goods traded and competition degree observed in every area, using data compiled by the IMF Direction of Trade Statistics, the WTO database and the UN COMTRADE database.
Expected Results
The expanded presence of emerging economies in world trade has resulted largely from increased regional trade integration, especially in Asia and Europe.
This, in turn, reflects the geographical dispersion of production processes, with assembly operations migrating to low-wage countries, especially China, while high-wage economies specialize in the production of high-value components.
Emerging Economies has recently begun to move away from a concentration in lower-end products toward a more diversified export base.
The degree of competition appears to be intensifying within Asia and Latin America