Braconier, Η. and Pisu, M., (2014), “Roads to deeper European integration”, VoxEu, 20 Φεβρουαρίου.
Over the past 60 years, increasing European integration has brought peace and security, besides contributing to large social welfare gains (through lower prices and a larger variety of products). Still, national borders matter a lot within Europe and a vast literature has documented the large negative effect of national borders on trade – also known as the border effect (Nitsch 2000, Head and Mayer 2000, Anderson and van Wincoop 2003, de Serres et al. 2001, Chen 2004).
There are several reasons why national borders impact negatively on trade, including language and cultural differences as well as other trade frictions. However, while virtually all studies in the area have found that these factors are important, they are insufficient to fully explain the border effect (see e.g. Anderson and van Wincoop 2003). Poor international transport networks could be another factor hindering international trade. As more than 70% of merchandise trade among European countries is transported by road, the effect of poor international road links could be particularly harmful for inter-European trade.
Σχετικές Αναρτήσεις
Shafik, N., (2013), “Europe’s Choice: Risk Stagnation or Pursue Integration”, iMFdirect Blog, 11 Οκτωβρίου.
Spolaore, En., (2013), “What Is European Integration Really About? A Political Guide for Economists”, Journal of Economic Perspectives, Vol. 27, N.3, pp. 125-44.
Yiangou, Jonathan, O’keeffe, Micheal, Glockler Gabriel, (2013), “Tough Love: How the ECB’s Monetary Financing Prohibition Pusher Deeper Euro Area Integration”, Journal of European Integration, Vol. 35, Issue 3, p.p. 223-237