Unveiling Structure and Dynamics of Global Digital Production Technology Networks: A new digital technology classification and network analysis based on trade data

Antonio Andreoni, Guendalina Anzolin, Mateus Labrunje and Danilo Spinola
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Antonio Andreoni: Department of Economics, SOAS University of London
Guendalina Anzolin: Centre for Science, Technology and Innovation Policy, Institute for Manufacturing, University of Cambridge
Mateus Labrunje: Centre of Development Studies and Cambridge Industrial Innovation Policy, University of Cambridge

No 261, Working Papers from Department of Economics, SOAS University of London, UK

Abstract: This research pioneers the construction of a novel Digital Production Technology Classification (DPTC) based on the latest Harmonised Commodity Description and Coding System (HS2017) of the World Customs Organisation. The DPTC enables the identification and comprehensive analysis of 127 tradable products associated with digital production technologies (DPTs). The development of this classification offers a substantial contribution to empirical research and policy analysis. It enables an extensive exploration of international trade in DPTs, such as the identification of emerging trade networks comprising final goods, intermediate components, and instrumentation technologies and the intricate regional and geopolitical dynamics related to DPTs. In this paper, we deploy our DPTC within a network analysis methodological framework to analyse countries' engagements with DPTs through bilateral and multilateral trade. By comparing the trade networks in DPTs in 2012 and 2019, we unveil dramatic shifts in the global DPTs' network structure, different countries' roles, and their degree of centrality. Notably, our findings shed light on China's expanding role and the changing trade patterns of the USA in the digital technology realm. The analysis also brings to the fore the increasing significance of Southeast Asian countries, revealing the emergence of a regional hub within this area, characterised by dense bilateral networks in DPTs. Furthermore, our study points to the fragmented network structures in Europe and the bilateral dependencies that developed there. Being the first systematic DPTC, also deployed within a network analysis framework, we expect the classification to become an indispensable tool for researchers, policymakers, and stakeholders engaged in research on digitalisation and digital industrial policy.

Keywords: Digital Production Technology (DPT); DPT Classification; Network Analysis; Bilateral Trade; Digitalisation patterns. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F14 O14 O33 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 257
Date: 2023-12
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ino, nep-int, nep-net, nep-sea and nep-tid
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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