International Trade and Transport Spatial Structure and Environmental Quality in a Global Economy

About this book

The spatial dimension of international trade theory has been neglected during most of its history. Trade barriers such as tariffs have been deemed more important. However, in an increasingly integrated world economy seeking to abolish tariffs, spatial considerations have gained in stature. On the way to fostering a spatial trade theory this text supplies a comprehensive analysis of all the different impacts of the inclusion of space and transport costs, covering orthodox trade theory, new trade theories, and economic geography. Karl Steininger also expands spatial analysis to cover spatial preferences and spatial discounting and catalogues the result of spatial production structure and environmental quality in a global economy. Finally, an empirical account is given of the trade and macro-implications of full cost pricing in transport.

Contents

The modelling of transport in international trade theory: the modelling of transport - a special case?; the "iceberg" approach (Samuelson-Mundell model); transport as a separate sector; which modelling is to be chosen; conclusions; appendix - the iceberg assumption for linear demand relationships. Transport in traditional trade theory: the basic model; partial equilibrium analysis; general equilibrium analysis; modifications when transport is a separate sector; the impacts of transport policy and technological change; conclusions; appendix - welfare analysis for different transport capital intensities. Transport in new trade theories: new trade theories and transport modelling; Neo-Heckscher-Ohlin theories; monopolistic competition; oligopoly and international transport cost; multinationals; transport as a separate sector; conclusions. Transport in economic geography: integrating trade and location theory - economic geography; location rent; central place; gravity; circularity; local external economies; monopolistic competition models of economic geography; conclusions. Foreign trade and spatial preferences: altruism and spatial discounting; spatial discounting and transport in partial equilibrium; spatial discounting and transport in general equilibrium; empirical analysis of the transport and spatial discounting distance-trade-off; conclusions; appendix - questionnaire. Foreign trade and transport cost internalization: model structure; data; simulations; sensitivity analysis; conclusions; appendix - transport intensity of foreign trade to and from Austria. Conclusions.

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