The Effect of Trade Liberalization on Informality and Wages: Evidence from Mexico

Benjamin Aleman-Castilla

CEP Discussion Papers from Centre for Economic Performance, LSE

Abstract: This paper studies the impact of NAFTA on informality and real wages in Mexico. Using a dynamic industry model with firm heterogeneity, it is predicted that import tariff elimination could reduce the incidence of informality by making more profitable to some firms to enter the formal sector, forcing the less productive informal firms to exit the industry, and inducing the most productive formal firms to engage in trade. The model also predicts market share reallocations towards the most productive firms, and an increase in real wages due to the increased labour demand by these firms. Using data on Mexican and U.S. import tariffs together with the Mexican National Survey of Urban Labour (ENEU), I find that reductions in the Mexican import tariffs are significantly related to reductions in the likelihood of informality in the tradable industries. I also find that informality decreases less in industries with higher levels of import penetration, while it decreases more in industries that are relatively more export oriented. Finally, I confirm that the elimination of the Mexican import tariffs is related to an increase in real wages, and that the elimination of the U.S. import tariff has contributed to the expansion of the formal-informal wage differentials.

Keywords: trade liberalization; informality; wage differentials (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F00 F02 F14 F15 F16 J00 J21 J23 J31 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2006-12
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-dev, nep-int and nep-lab
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (33)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp0763

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