Assortative Matching of Exporters and Importers
本文通过考察贸易自由化期间出口商—进口商匹配的变化,研究出口企业与进口企业如何基于自身能力进行匹配。在近年来墨西哥—美国纺织品与服装贸易自由化过程中,出口商和进口商不仅改变贸易量,还经常更换其主要伙伴。我们构建了一个出口商与进口商的多对多匹配模型,其中更换伙伴是主要的调整边际,模型刻画了贝克尔式的按能力正向同类匹配。贸易自由化通过引致系统性的伙伴更换,实现了有效的全球买方—供应商匹配,并提高了消费者福利。数据证实了模型预测的伙伴更换模式。
英文原文
This paper studies how exporting and importing firms match based on their capability by investigating the change in such exporter-importer matching during trade liberalization. During the recent liberalization of the Mexico-U.S. textile and apparel trade, exporters and importers often switch their main partners as well as change trade volumes. We develop a many-to-many matching model of exporters and importers where partner switching is the principal margin of adjustment, featuring Beckerian positive assortative matching by capability. Trade liberalization achieves efficient global buyer-supplier matching and improves consumer welfare by inducing systematic partner switching. The data confirm the predicted partner-switching patterns.