Chapter in book
Advances on International Economics (Edited by Carmen Díaz-Roldán and Javier Perote)
Date: September 2015
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
ISBN-13: 978-1-4438-7828-9
Advances on International Economics offers a broad overview of recent developments in international economics, both theoretical and empirical, adapted from contributions to the XV Conference on International Economics, organized by the Spanish Association of International Economics and Finance (AEEFI), and the University of Salamanca, Spain.
Book 
Offshoring in the Global Economy: Management Practices and Welfare Implications (with Joan Enric Ricart, Niccolò Pisani, and Adetunji Adegbesan)
Date: February 2011
Publisher: BBVA Foundation
ISBN-13: 978-84-92937-03-5
This book presents both the economic and management-oriented perspectives on offshoring. It reviews the latest literature in both fields, assesses the impact on labor markets, and describes the new wave of services offshoring and how managers are dealing with it. The book is directed to researchers in the field, managers, and government officials who want to understand the benefits of this business practice in the light of the recent developments.
Publications (peer reviewed) 
Tokenization in soccer leagues. Is fan engagement for real? (with Yuqing Xiao)
Published: Research in International Business and Finance, 76, April 2025, 102827.
doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ribaf.2025.102827
Abstract
Fan tokens grant sports supporters a set of rights that makes for a closer and more engaging association with their clubs. Our study offers a two-pronged strategy to consolidate our understanding of this new and disruptive asset class in the field of soccer. First, our event study shows that abnormal returns are negatively driven by fan sentiment during and around the clubs’ match days, yet the effect becomes positive when considering the national team’s match days. Second, our counterfactual simulations suggest that fan tokens are indeed driven by fan sentiments and not by mere crypto speculation. Our dataset contains data on the fan tokens of four major soccer clubs (Barcelona, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, and Juventus) during 2021-2023, and distinguishes between the teams’ local match days, UEFA Champions match days, and the World Cup’s match days. We believe our intuitions are timely and can be useful both as a guide for portfolio management and for tailoring the soon-to-be legislation of crypto assets in general and fan tokens in particular.
Keywords: tokens, clubs, event study, counterfactuals.
JEL Classification: Z23
Precious Metal Prices: A Tale of Four U.S. Recessions (with P. Garcia del Barrio, L. Gil-Alana, and F. Pérez de
Gracia)
Published: Studies in Economics and Finance, 41 (5), November 2024, 1012–1022.
doi:
https://doi.org/10.1108/SEF-09-2023-0550
Abstract
This paper empirically examines the degree of persistence in four precious metal prices (i.e., gold, palladium, platinum, and silver) during the last four U.S. economic recessions. Unit root
tests and fractional integration techniques suggest that gold still is the most prominent safe haven asset within this particular asset class. Our analysis highlights gold’s traditional role as a hedge against market uncertainty in post-pandemic new era, thus retaining its status quo as a store of value during economic contractions.
Keywords: precious metal prices, U.S. economic recessions, persistence, Covid-19.
JEL Classification: G10, G11, G15, F10
Spillover effects of energy transition metals in Chile (with F. Rios)
Published: Energy Economics, 134, June 2024, 107589.
doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eneco.2024.107589
Abstract
This paper examines the impact of spillover effects of energy transition metals in Chile. The study aims at identifying the causal relationships among these energy transition metals and other major assets like oil, gold, and bitcoin, and how they shape Chile's economy, both pre-COVID-19 and during the first months of the pandemic. Our Structural Vector Autoregressive analysis is carried out with daily frequency data for two separate periods, the pre-COVID-19 analysis (the whole of 2018) and the COVID-19 analysis (Feb 2020 to end of 2020). Our results suggest that Chile has been highly responsive to renewable energy shocks during COVID-19, in concert with an increased responsiveness to traditional oil-driven shocks. This lends weight to the idea that traditional energies are still relevant and concomitant with energy transition, especially in a small open resource-oriented economy like Chile. In addition to that, bitcoin shocks seem to have contributed to Chile's transition, likely as a result of bitcoin's extensive use of energy and its potential to increase renewable energy capacity. Policywise, our findings call for a watchful eye on regulatory constraints, excessively high royalties, and the maintenance of stabilization funds to mitigate uncertainty, all of which can affect Chile's competitive edge at an untimely hour.
Keywords: copper, lithium, COVID-19, SVAR.
JEL Classification: F62, G15, L61
Too hot and too close. Bitcoin and gold dynamics during COVID times
Published: Studies in Economics and Finance, 40 (5), November 2023, 901–912.
doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/SEF-03-2023-0123
Abstract
Bitcoin in particular and so-called cryptocurrencies in general have shaken up the financial world and seem to be claiming an increasing size of the market share in the last decade. These new virtual assets present investors with significant opportunities, but also with significant risks. This paper analyzes the connectedness between one such crypto, bitcoin, and other traditional assets (e.g. metals) in times of financial turbulence like the covid pandemic. Our impulse-response function, variance decomposition, and counterfactual analyses indicate that, as of late, bitcoin has become increasingly interdependent with gold, and seems just as suitable to hedge against market uncertainty—we believe this is a very timely conclusion given the pervasive uncertainty that dominates post-pandemic life.
Keywords: bitcoin, gold, COVID, hedge, VAR.
JEL Classification: G15, G12, G11
To comply or not to comply? How a UEFA wage-to-revenue requirement might affect the sport and managerial performance of soccer clubs? (with P. Garcia del Barrio)
Published: Managerial and Decision Economics, 44 (2), March 2023 (available online September 2022), 767–786.
doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/mde.3711
Abstract
This paper evaluates the soccer clubs’ compliance with a potential wage-to-revenue requirement by UEFA, and studies the effect on sport achievements resulting from sports and managerial skills. The empirical analysis uses data on first division teams of the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, and Ligue 1, from seasons 2009/10 to 2018/19. We measure the teams’ quality through the annual wages and use the wage-to-revenue ratio as a proxy measure for financial responsibility. Our results reveal that a more prudent financial performance, which is generally linked to good management practices, implies better sport performance and higher chances of qualifying for UEFA competitions.
Keywords: professional Soccer, wage-to-revenue ratios, Financial Fair Play, UEFA competitions, sport and managerial Skills.
JEL Classification: D22, J24, J33
Offshoring, welfare, and flexibility
in the context of US Protectionism (with J. Hromcova)
Published: International Economic Journal, 35(4), September 2021, 391–410
doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10168737.2021.1971281
Abstract
We reexamine the effects of offshoring in the US economy in the aftermath of the 2008 crisis. We use a matching model with endogenous adjustment of educational skills, while distinguishing between offshoring of high and low-skill activities. We first show that offshoring leads to a restructuring of the economy through a change in the wage premium where overall welfare is improved. Moreover, in a policy exercise we show that, if offshoring were to be opposed by a protectionist agenda, the resulting welfare losses could be counterbalanced by increased labor flexibility.
Keywords: offshoring, skills, welfare, wage premium, flexibility.
JEL Classification: F66, J64, F16, F17
On blockchains, cryptos, and media of exchange. Not there (yet)
This draft: February 2020 (pdf)
Published: International Journal of Intellectual Property Management, 11(1), March 2021, 81–94
doi: https://doi.org/10.1504/IJIPM.2021.113359
Abstract
Ever since the inception of the Blockchain technology and bitcoin (Nakamoto, 2008), the first and foremost of so-called cryptocurrencies, the prospect within the 'crypto' community has been one of growing decentralization and an impending threat to traditional monetary policy and its legal monopoly. Here we discuss the potential use of bitcoin and other competing 'cryptos' as media of exchange and argue that we are still far from seeing a dethroning of major currencies, in spite of the undermining effect that cryptos might have on monetary policy and central banking.
Keywords: Blockchain, bitcoin, cryptos, money, decentralization.
JEL Classification: E59, E58
Globalization, Welfare, and the Attitudes
toward Higher Education (with J. Hromcova)
This draft: April 2018 (pdf)
Published: Economic Modelling, 81, September 2019 (available online 2018), 503–517
doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.econmod.2018.05.013
Abstract
In this paper we study how the attitudes toward higher education may affect labor market outcomes in the context of globalization. In particular, we show that different educational attitudes are responsible for differences in the wage differential among countries. Using a matching model with two types of workers and firms, we find that there is a trade-off between the wage differential and the workers' welfare, namely, that an economy that is less willing to educate itself will display a lower wage differential but will lose in terms of welfare. Moreover, from a policy perspective, we show that the negative effects on welfare due to this disinclination to study can be offset by increased labor market flexibility. All things considered, policy makers ought to keep in mind that both a positive attitude toward higher education and labor market flexibility, can lead to improved overall performance in this increasingly globalized world.
Keywords: globalization, welfare, skills, education.
JEL Classification: F66, I25, J24, J64
Bubble Economics and Structural Change: The Cases of Spain and France Compared (with J. Hromcova)
This draft: March 2015 (pdf)
Published: Journal
of Economic Policy Reform, 21 (1), February 2018 (published online August 2016), 59–79
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17487870.2016.1213167
Abstract
This paper delves into the recent events that led to the formation of the housing bubble in Spain and the resulting structural change that is arguably needed to put the economy back into the right track. For this purpose we calibrate a model with different equilibria descriptive of the labor markets in Spain and France, where the unemployment rates went from the same initial spot to very different levels. In addition to this, we run a counterfactual analysis that throws some more light on the performance of the Spanish labor market and the housing bubble. Our results suggest that the unemployment rate in Spain has jumped to much higher levels while switching between equilibria or, what is the same, because of structural change. Moreover, our counterfactuals indicate that, first, there has been an important misdirection of resources into the construction industry mainly fueled by excessively low real interest rates and, second, the Spanish labor reform has fallen short of its own goals.
Keywords: structural change, bubble, unemployment, interest rate, productivity.
JEL Classification: J64, O57
Low-Skill Offshoring and Welfare Compensation Policies (with J. Hromcova)
This draft: June 2015 (pdf)
Published: Economic Modelling, 52, part B, January 2016, 408–426
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.econmod.2015.09.022
Abstract
We analyze the effects of low-skill offshoring on welfare. In the context of a matching model with different possible equilibria we discuss three alternative policies that could potentially outweigh the negative welfare effects of offshoring, namely, a change of the unemployment benefits, labor market flexibility, and a progressive tax structure. Our calibrations for the German economy suggest that increased flexibility can bring low-skill workers to pre-offshoring welfare levels, something that cannot be accomplished by meddling with the unemployment benefits scheme or a more progressive tax structure. In addition, we find that a full compensation can be achieved by an upgrading of low-skill workers, its size depending on the type of equilibrium involved. In sum, our analysis gives support to labor market flexibility and upgrading by education as best therapies for offshoring.
Keywords: offshoring, welfare, unemployment benefits, labor market flexibility, upgrading.
JEL Classification: F66, J68
More alike than different: The Spanish and Irish labour markets before and after the crisis (with P. Salvador)
This draft: June 2012 (pdf)
Published: IZA Journal of European Labor Studies, December 2012, 1:9
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/2193-9012-1-9
Abstract
Spain and Ireland might seem at first to feature very different labour markets, which go from very tight to very flexible labour conditions. Our analysis, however, goes beyond this simplistic argument and brings to light some important similarities. For this purpose, we estimate a dynamic multi-equation structural model for each country and offer two sets of dynamic simulations that account for the swings of the unemployment rates before and after the 2007 crisis. Our results suggest looking beyond the degree of flexibility in both labour markets and focusing instead on other variables usually neglected by more conventional approaches. In particular, such variables as the growth of capital stock, the growth of labour productivity, and demographics, succeed in explaining a great part of the changes in unemployment in both countries.
Keywords: unemployment dynamics, structural multi-equation models, chain reaction theory, simulations, PIGS.
JEL Classification: E24, J21, E22, C32
Employment effects of offshoring across sectors and occupations in Japan
This draft: February 2012 (pdf)
Published: Asian Economic Journal, 26 (4), December 2012, 289-311
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8381.2012.02089.x
Abstract
In the case of Japan, the studies conducted so far focus alone on firm-level data and delve into the productivity effects and the skill upgrading between skilled and unskilled workers. Here, we carry out an empirical analysis of the employment effects of offshoring for Japanese industries on a broader classification of skills or occupations, while considering the three major sectors of the economy and taking account of both services and materials offshoring. The results suggest that various types of offshoring affect occupations differently. In particular, services offshoring tends to benefit highly skilled occupations more, while materials offshoring tends to benefit production workers instead.
Keywords: offshoring, employment, sectors, occupations.
JEL Classification: F16, J23
The driving forces behind the falling labor share and persistent unemployment in Japan (with H. Sala)
This draft: March 2011 (pdf)
Published: Pacific Economic Review, 16 (5), December 2011, 577-603
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0106.2011.00566.x
Abstract
Like in most advanced countries the labor income share in Japan has been falling since the mid 1970s. However, in contrast to other advanced economies, Japan has experienced an exceptional recessive period during the 1990s and 2000s in which the rate of unemployment rose to a historical maximum of 5.5% in 2002, to persist above 4% in subsequent years. In this paper we examine the main causes behind the paths followed by the labor income share and the unemployment rate during the post-1997 crisis period (1997-2002) and the transition years that followed (2002-2009). We do so by estimating a multi-equation macro model that allows us to look separately at the various components of this particular labor market -wages, output and employment. Our main finding is that the fall in the labor share can be attributed to the changes that took place within the labor relations system -the weakening of unions mainly- and that the surge in unemployment can be altogether ascribed to the distorting effects of the sizeable and increasing public debt.
Keywords: labor income share, unemployment rate, labor-management relations, labor market, Japan.
JEL Classification: E25, J50, E24
The fading 1990s in Japan: Driving forces behind the unemployment upsurge (with H. Sala)
This draft: March 2008 (pdf)
Published: International Review of Economics and Finance, 18 (3), June 2009, 428-439
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.iref.2008.09.005
Abstract
This paper sheds new light on the causes of the unemployment upsurge in Japan during the “fading 1990s”, an unprecedented period of structural crisis. We estimate a labor market model and identify the main macroeconomic determinants of labor demand and labor supply decisions in the last decades. We then conduct dynamic simulations and assess the relative contribution of these determinants to the evolution of unemployment from 1990 to 2002. Beyond the leading role exerted by the decline in productivity growth, we find the active and expansionary measures undertaken by the government had an overall negative effect on the labor market.
Keywords: Japan, unemployment, productivity, macroeconomic policies, chain reaction theory.
JEL Classification: E24, E60, J01
Unemployment in Japan: A look at the lost decade (with H. Sala)
This draft: September 2008 (pdf)
Published: Asia Pacific Journal of Economics and Business, 12 (1), June 2008, 16-35
Abstract
The ‘lost decade’ in Japan was a period of steep surge in unemployment. It started in 1991 with the unemployment rate at 2.1%, and ended in 2002 when it reached a historical maximum of 5.5%. To assess the main causes of this rise we take a macroeconomic perspective and estimate a reduced-form unemployment model. This model, containing a rich set of variables, yields an interesting picture. The fall of private investment played the main role, while private consumption and the boost in government spending partially offset this recessive effect. In turn, the initial rise in participation rates and the East Asian crisis after 1997 added new burdens to the labor market. We conclude that a crucial issue in the medium-run is to avoid the consequences of the prolonged decline in investment in terms of reduced productivity growth and a weaker international trade performance.
Keywords: unemployment, reduced-form models, investment, economic policy, East Asian crisis.
JEL Classification: E24, F16, J01
Working papers 
Mining for efficiency: How blockchain could boost productivity in Chile's copper industry (with F. Rios and C. Peña)
This draft: November 2024
Abstract
This paper analyzes and assesses the potential impact of blockchain integration as smart contracts with external service companies and the status of implementation in Chile’s copper mining industry. The results suggest that high-impact projects in Chile's mining industry could benefit from integrating blockchain technology. However, these benefits will likely be concentrated among larger projects and contracts, where the costs of implementation and maintenance could be justified by the potential benefits. A survey on a selected group of senior professionals and executives shows that more than half of the respondents do not know the blockchain technology, and that 9% of the surveyed who know the technology are barely implementing it. Barriers include mining industry culture, implementation difficulties, uncertain net present value and internal rate of return, and in-house capabilities, among others.
Keywords: impact, blockchain, smart contracts, contractors, mining, productivity.
JEL Classification: L70, L20
Older working papers
Does compliance with Financial Fair Play rules improve the football clubs' sport performance and their chances to reach UEFA competitions? (with P. Garcia del Barrio)
This draft: June 2021 IZA DP-14474
Abstract
This paper evaluates the European football clubs’ compliance with UEFA Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations and the effect of financial stability on sport achievements. The empirical analysis uses data of teams competing in the 1st division of four top domestic leagues (Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, and Ligue 1) over the seasons 2009/10 to 2015/16. We control for team quality through the annual wages (in quadratic form) and use the Wage-to-Revenue (WRR) ratio as a proxy variable to measure how close the clubs meet the breakeven requirements. Our results reveal that greater financial responsibility implies better sport performance and higher chances to qualify for the Champions and Europa Leagues.
Keywords: professional football, financial fair play, competitive balance,
wage-to-revenue ratios.
JEL Classification: D22, J24, J33
New moneys under the new normal? Bitcoin and gold interdependence during covid times (with Jonathan Thoss)
This draft: April 2021 IZA DP-14323
Abstract
Bitcoin in particular and so-called cryptocurrencies in general have shaken up the financial world and seem to be claiming an increasing size of the market share. These new virtual assets present investors with significant opportunities, but also with significant risks. This paper analyzes the connection between one such crypto, bitcoin, and other traditional assets (e.g. metals) in times of financial turbulence. Our impulse-response function and variance decomposition analyses indicate that, as of late, bitcoin has become increasingly interdependent with gold, and seems just as suitable to hedge against market uncertainty—we believe this is a very timely conclusion given the pervasive uncertainty that dominates post-pandemic life.
Keywords: Bitcoin, gold, covid, impulse response.
JEL Classification: G15, G12, G11
Offshoring and skill-biased technical change in the context of US protectionism (with Jana Hromcova)
This draft: September 2019, IZA DP-12593
Abstract
We discuss the effects of offshoring on the labor market in a matching model with
endogenous adjustment of educational skills. We carry out a comparative statics analysis
and show that offshoring leads to a restructuring of the economy through skill-biased
technical change (SBTC) where overall welfare is improved. In a policy exercise we show
that, if offshoring were to be opposed by a protectionist agenda, labor market flexibility
can bring about the same welfare gain. In addition, we offer an empirical analysis aimed at
verifying the correlation between offshoring and SBTC in US manufacturing industries in
recent years. Our results show that different offshoring strategies affect SBTC differently. In particular, the evidence suggests that while high-skill offshoring strategies open the skill
gap, low-skill offshoring strategies tend to work in the opposite direction.
Keywords: Offshoring, skills, skill-biased technical change.
JEL Classification: F66, J64, F16, F17
Offshoring, Endogenous Skill Decision,
and Labor Market Outcomes (with Jana Hromcova)
This draft: February 2017, IZA DP-10299
Abstract
We discuss the effects of low-skill offshoring on the endogenous schooling decision of workers along with the potential changes in the labor market. The analysis is performed in the context of a matching model with different possible equilibria. Our exercise suggests that the endogenous upgrading of low-skill workers can only partially offset the welfare-deteriorating effects of offshoring. As a result, we aim at restoring pre-offshoring welfare levels by increasing the opportunity cost of staying low-skill. In addition to this, we also consider labor flexibility as an effective policy to deal with the adverse welfare effects of offshoring that befall those in the lowest end of the skill ladder.
Keywords: offshoring, welfare, skills, education, flexibility.
JEL Classification: F66, I25, J64
Low-skill offshoring: Labor market policies and welfare effects (with Jana Hromcova)
This draft: May 2014, IZA DP-8164
Abstract
We analyze the effects of low-skill workers offshoring on the welfare of the economy. In the context of a matching model with different possible equilibria, we discuss two policies that could potentially outweigh the negative welfare effects of offshoring, namely, an increase of the unemployment benefits and the flexibilization of the labor market. Our results suggest that, while both policy instruments can theoretically bring the economy back to previous welfare levels, careful thought should be given to the practicability of either measure. In particular, it would take a major increase of the unemployment benefits but only a small reduction in the vacancy cost to compensate for the negative welfare effects of offshoring. In addition, we also find that the compensation can be achieved by an upgrading of the low-skill workers that varies with the equilibria.
Keywords: offshoring, welfare, unemployment benefits, labor market flexibility, upgrading.
JEL Classification: F66, J68
Offshoring and productivity revisited:
A time-series analysis
This draft: March 2013, IZA DP-7323
Published: in Advances on International Economics, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2015.
Abstract
The subject of offshoring and productivity has not yet received the attention it deserves. Here I propose a simple framework for estimating the contribution of these strategies to the growth rate of labor productivity from a time-series perspective. This framework is then used to assess the impact of offshoring on skill upgrading and the labor share. For both empirical questions I take up the study of a group of Japanese industries during the recent years of slow growth. The results should be interpreted with caution yet clearly suggest that offshoring can improve labor productivity in the Semiconductors industry. Moreover, offshoring is found to be the source of important changes among industries with different skills (skill upgrading) and an important factor behind the fall of the labor share.
Keywords: offshoring, labor productivity, skill upgrading, labor share.
JEL Classification: J23, J24, E25
Japan and her dealings with offshoring: An empirical analysis with aggregate data
This draft: February 2011, IZA DP-5517
and IESE working paper 793 (earlier draft)
Abstract
First moves towards a real understanding of offshoring date back to very recent times, with employment and productivity effects occupying much of the literature around the subject. In particular for Japan, the studies conducted so far focus on the disaggregate level and put the stress on the productivity side alone. Here I carry out both the analyses of the employment and productivity effects at the aggregate level of the industry, covering the years 1980-2005. Moreover, I consider all industries within the economy and take account of both materials and services offshoring. My results suggest that we should expect, on average, a positive effect of services offshoring and a negative effect of materials offshoring on employment. However, the effects are rather negligible and only amount to a 1.5 to 2 percent loss of the change in employment. On the other hand, positive effects on the growth rate of productivity are found as a result of both types of offshoring, with larger effects from services. In particular, the average offshoring industry has higher productivity growth rates: 1.4 to 1.98 additional percentage points for services and 0.48 to 0.64 for materials.
Keywords: offshoring, Japan, employment, productivity.
JEL Classification: F16, J23, O47
The Japanese lost decade and beyond: A chain reaction theory approach
This draft: January 2011, IZA DP-5463
Abstract
The Japanese lost decade has become an intriguing puzzle for both economists and policy-makers alike, as the unemployment rate climbed to unprecedented levels and the growth rate of productivity decreased considerably. More recent times seem to present with a more optimistic outlook, but this is not yet the last word in the matter. In this paper we estimate two alternative multi-equation structural models descriptive of the Japanese labor market, that are then used to conduct dynamic simulations both for the lost decade period (1990-2002) and beyond (2002-2007). Our results point, primarily, to the damaging effects of the ever-increasing public debt as a major source of labor market inefficiencies. In addition, we find the fall in labor union power to have a significant easing effect on the unemployment rate, but also to be a major driver in the apparently eroding pattern of the labor income share in recent years.
Keywords: labor market dynamics, structural multi-equation models, chain reaction theory, simulations.
JEL Classification: C32, E17, E24, J08
Employment effects of offshoring. An application to Japanese industries, 1980-2005
This draft: September 2009 (pdf)
Abstract
This paper estimates the direct effects of materials and services offshoring on Japanese employment. My main finding is that the net amount of jobs lost to offshoring during the past two and a half decades is negligible, as it was the role of offshoring as a source of sector-bias change in an era of major structural changes for Japan. I argue that, as a natural result of trade and profit-seeking, the positive and negative forces entailed in the relocation of activities worldwide tend to compensate each other. My estimations indicate a total net loss of approximately 25,000 jobs during 1980-2005. This is a rather non-significant figure when compared to the 9.5 million jobs created in the same period. Further, the evidence presented here hints at the possibility of skill upgrading only as a result of services offshoring.
Keywords: offshoring, employment, Japan, deindustrialization.
JEL Classification: F16, J23
Offshoring: Facts and numbers at the country level (with Joan Enric Ricart)
This draft: September 2009 (pdf)
and
IESE working paper 792 (earlier draft)
Abstract
Offshoring has lately received wide attention. Its potential effects, mainly to be materialized in employment and productivity dislocations, are yet to be fully assessed. However, some consensus has been attained as to how to proxy its theoretical definition at an aggregate level. Here we review the most conventional indices the economic literature has so far produced, and employ them to provide an overview of the extent of the phenomenon for a group of countries. Contrary to common beliefs, our data reveal that offshoring is not exclusive of large developed economies. Further, we highlight the continuing prominence of the manufacturing over the services sector, and observe that while services offshoring is on the rise, it still represents a small fraction of total offshoring.
Keywords: offshoring, intermediate trade, aggregate data.
JEL Classification: F14, F40
