Dissecting Thailand's International Trade: Evidence from 88 Million Export and Import Entries

Tosapol Apaitan, Piti Disyatat and Krislert Samphantharak
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Krislert Samphantharak: Associate Professor of Economics and Associate Dean, School of Global Policy and Strategy, University of California, San Diego. Author email: krislert@ucsd.edu

Asian Development Review, 2019, vol. 36, issue 1, 20-53

Abstract: This paper uses transaction-level data from Thailand to study concentration, specialization, and fragility of export activities. The paper shows that although exports have been an integral part of the development strategy of the country for several decades, direct engagement in international trade through exports is a rare activity. Export firms are different from their nonexport counterparts. Export activities are also extremely concentrated. There is a great deal of churning in Thai exports and exporting relationships are highly fragile. The findings highlight some cautions from a micro perspective about an export-oriented development strategy, particularly regarding concentration and vulnerability.

Keywords: export firms; export-oriented industrialization; international trade; Thailand (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F10 F14 F40 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1162/adev_a_00122 (application/pdf)

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Working Paper: Dissecting Thailand's International Trade: Evidence from 88 Million Export and Import Entries (2016)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:tpr:adbadr:v:36:y:2019:i:1:p:20-53

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