آثار تجارت خارجي بر بهره وري : مورد ايران

The Effects of Foreign Trade on Productivity: the Case of Iran

In recent years, some authors have suggested that economic integration and liberalization of international trade are likely to have positive effects not only on productivity levels but also on long-term productivity growth rates in developing countries. Using a panel of Iranian manufacturing industries, this paper examines several alternative mechanisms through which trade contributes positively to productivity levels and growth rates. Special attention is paid to the trade liberalization implemented in Iran after 1989. The results indicate that reductions in rates of protection have significant positive effects on sectoral productivity levels. The estimates also suggest that after liberalization, increasing share of exports in total output increased average total factor productivity by 9.3 percent. However, the rates are found to be statistically insignificant. When there are greate price distortions and under- utilized capacity, import liberalization may well produce quick increases in factor productivity in short-term but something more fundamental has to come into play to increase the long-term growth rate.