The Role of Financial Factors in the Trade Collapse: A Skeptic's View

Andrei Levchenko, Logan Lewis and Linda Tesar ()

No 616, Working Papers from Research Seminar in International Economics, University of Michigan

Abstract: This paper explores the role of financial factors in the 2008-9 collapse of U.S. imports and exports. Using highly disaggregated international trade data, we examine whether the cross-sectoral variation in how much imports or exports fell during this episode can be explained by financial variables. To do this, we employ a wide variety of possible indicators, such as standard measures of trade credit and external finance dependence, proxies for shipping lags at the sector level, and shares of intra-firm trade in each sector. Overall, there is very little evidence that financial factors played a role in the collapse of U.S. trade.

Keywords: 2008-2009 Crisis; International Trade; Financial Factors (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F41 F42 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 13 pages
Date: 2010-08
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (13)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:mie:wpaper:616

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