Technology and Geography in the Second Industrial Revolution: New Evidence from the Margins of Trade

Michael Huberman, Christopher C.M. Meissner and Kim Oosterlinck

ULB Institutional Repository from ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles

Abstract: Belle Époque Belgium recorded an unprecedented trade boom. Exploiting a new granular trade dataset, we find that the number of products delivered abroad and destinations serviced more than doubled in less than 40 years. To explain this remarkable achievement, we study the relationship between trade costs and the intensive and extensive margins of trade. The establishment of a foreign diplomatic network that lowered beachhead costs and enabled the entry of new products was an essential fact of the trade boom. Interestingly, the expansion in trade in certain sectors did not translate into faster productivity growth. We offer some explanations.

Date: 2017-03
Note: SCOPUS: re.j
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Published in: The Journal of economic history (2017) v.77 n° 1,p.39-89

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Related works:
Journal Article: Technology and Geography in the Second Industrial Revolution: New Evidence from the Margins of Trade (2017)
Working Paper: Technology and Geography in the Second Industrial Revolution: New Evidence from the Margins of Trade (2015)
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