The effect of the New Silk Road railways on aggregate trade volumes between China and Europe

Yuan Li, Kierstin Bolton and Theo Westphal

No 109/2016, Working Papers on East Asian Studies from University of Duisburg-Essen, Institute of East Asian Studies IN-EAST

Abstract: "One Belt, One Road" is an extensive and complex initiative whose potential effect and influence are still currently pending for answers. This paper addresses the following research question: What is the effect of the New Silk Road intercontinental railways on the trade between China and its trading partners in Central Asia and Europe? We focus on nine railway lines connecting Europe and China, which started operations between 2011 and 2015. The countries´ trade patterns with railway connections to China are then compared to the countries without railway connections to China. We find the intercontinental railways have a positive effect on China´s exports to its trading partners in Central Asia and Europe, especially concerning exports of manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment, and miscellaneous manufactured articles. Moreover, the intercontinental railways have a positive effect on China´s imports of food and live animals from its trading partners.

Keywords: One Belt; One Road; trade; transportation cost; weapons of the rich; everyday forms of policy influence (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F02 F14 R4 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cna, nep-int, nep-tra and nep-tre
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:zbw:udedao:1092016

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