Search Results
Trade Wars, Tech Rivalry and Geopolitical Tensions
An analysis of 'geopolitical distance' and exports highlights the links between geopolitical alignment and access to U.S. technology and goods.
Journal Article
Measuring Geopolitical Fragmentation: Implications for Trade, Financial Flows, and Economic Policy
Recent geopolitical tensions have revived interest in understanding the economic consequences of geopolitical fragmentation. Using bilateral trade flows, portfolio investment data, and detailed records of economic policy interventions, we revisit widely used geopolitical distance metrics, specifically the ideal point distance (IPD) derived from United Nations General Assembly voting. We document substantial variability in measured fragmentation, driven significantly by methodological choices related to sample periods and vote categories, especially in the wake of Russia’s 2022 invasion of ...
Working Paper
Technology, Geopolitics, and Trade
We study when unilateral export controls are optimal by quantifying how geopolitical rivalry reshapes trade in ideas. Empirically, cross-border technology flows are far more sensitive than goods trade to geopolitical distance, especially where IPR is weak, and these penalties intensify after 2017. Motivated by this evidence, we build a growth–trade model in which geopolitical distance raises breach risk in licensing; firms partially reprice risk via higher royalties but cannot fully insure quantities. In a consumption-only benchmark, a permanent rise in US–China geopolitical distance ...
Working Paper
Technology, Geopolitics, and Trade
We study when unilateral export controls are optimal by quantifying how geopolitical rivalry reshapes trade in ideas. Empirically, cross-border technology flows are far more sensitive than goods trade to geopolitical distance, especially where IPR is weak, and these penalties intensify after 2017. Motivated by this evidence, we build a growth–trade model in which geopolitical distance raises breach risk in licensing; firms partially reprice risk via higher royalties but cannot fully insure quantities. In a consumption-only benchmark, a permanent rise in US–China geopolitical distance ...
Working Paper
Technology, Geopolitics, and Trade
We study how geopolitical shocks reshape innovation through the contractual structure of cross-border technology adoption. Empirically, royalty flows are more sensitive than goods trade to geopolitical distance, especially where intellectual property enforcement is weak. We build a growth-trade model in which political risk raises breach hazards in licensing contracts. Firms reprice royalties but compliant adoption declines, and innovation incentives respond to the joint evolution of price and quantity. Quantitatively, fragmentation reallocates innovation and lowers the balanced-growth path ...