RIETI - Are Export Promotion Measures Effective? A survey

Are Export Promotion Measures Effective? A survey

Export is arguably the most highly valued element in a prosperous economy of any nation. Governments have long attempted to boost their economies through specific diplomatic and economic policy initiatives targeting foreign markets and potential domestic exporters to increase their overseas market penetration, increasing their productivity and global reach. The significance of these official efforts by over 100 countries as of 2005 has led to a wealth of literature on the topic, examining it from a large variety of perspectives and with an equal variety of goals, from domestic to international effects, and from public sector to private sector initiatives and policies. The question on everyone's mind is whether these international governmental and non-governmental efforts are effective in their mission, and if so, which specific efforts are the most effective for which type of enterprise, and which produce the largest benefits to the economy.

The May, 2019 Issue of the RIETI Report features "Are Export Promotion Measures Effective? A survey," a column by RIETI Fellow Ryo MAKIOKA. This column is a survey of the current state of research and findings by researchers around the globe. Makioka examines the existing work in an attempt to develop a concise snapshot of the effectiveness of the respective measures being employed throughout the world and suggest directions for future work.

This month's featured article

Are Export Promotion Measures Effective? A survey

MAKIOKA RyoFellow, RIETI

This article introduces recent academic findings on the effects of export promotion policies. Export promotion policies for the purpose of discussion here refer to those implemented by public export promotion agencies (EPAs) in the form of direct support to exporting firms, excluding subsidization of production and investment, which could be export promotion measures defined in a broad sense. Specific types of support include: offering information on destination countries and export procedures, assisting firms' participation in overseas market survey missions and trade fairs, and supporting firms with their negotiations with importing firms. Agencies providing such support are in place in at least 103 countries as of 2005 (Lederman, Olarreaga, and Payton, 2010). In Japan, a series of government-affiliated agencies such as the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) provide support to exporting firms.

To read the full text
https://www.rieti.go.jp/en/special/policy-update/076.html

Recent articles on RIETI's website

"Destination of outward FDI and variation in employment in Japanese manufacturing firms"
by LIU Yang (Fellow, RIETI) / BIN Ni (Associate Professor, Hosei University; Consultant, Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia)
https://www.rieti.go.jp/en/columns/v01_0116.html

"Condition for the Use of Foreign Human Resources: Make Skill Assessment Consistent with Japanese Workers"
by HASHIMOTO Yuki (Fellow, RIETI)
https://www.rieti.go.jp/en/papers/contribution/hashimoto-yuki/01.html

"Global Value Chains—Greater Diversity of Business Partners Strengthens Network Resilience"
by TODO Yasuyuki (Faculty Fellow, RIETI)
https://www.rieti.go.jp/en/papers/contribution/todo/05.html

"Attractions Discovered by Inbound Tourists Widen the Choice for Japanese Tourists"
by KONISHI Yoko (Senior Fellow, RIETI)
https://www.rieti.go.jp/en/columns/a01_0518.html

"Japan's Low Labor Productivity: The gap with the U.S. and complex causes"
by MORIKAWA Masayuki (Vice President, RIETI)
https://www.rieti.go.jp/en/papers/contribution/morikawa/12.html

"Future Design Research: the Issues"
by KOBAYASHI Keiichiro (Faculty Fellow, RIETI)
https://www.rieti.go.jp/en/papers/contribution/kobayashi/70.html

"Asian currencies should appreciate together"
by Willem THORBECKE (Senior Fellow, RIETI)
https://www.rieti.go.jp/en/papers/contribution/willem-thorbecke/07.html

"Indirect trade and direct trade: Evidence from Japanese firm transaction data"
by ITO Tadashi (Professor, Faculty of International Social Sciences, Gakushuin University) / SAITO Yukiko (Senior Fellow, RIETI)
https://www.rieti.go.jp/en/columns/v01_0115.html

Event Information

For a complete list of past and upcoming event information.

Symposiums

Workshops

BBL Seminars

Fellow titles and links in the text are as of the date of publication.

For questions or comments regarding RIETI Report, please contact the editor.

*If the "Send by mailer" button does not work, please copy the address into your email "send to" field and connect the prefix and the suffix of the address with an "@", sending it normally.

RIETI Report is published bi-weekly.