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International trade and the division of labour

Research output: Working paper

Published
Publication date2015
Place of PublicationLancaster
PublisherLancaster University, Department of Economics
<mark>Original language</mark>English

Publication series

NameEconomics working paper series

Abstract

This paper develops a model of international trade based on the division of labour under perfect competition. International trade, by eliminating the duplication of coordination costs, leads to a greater variety of intermediate goods, each produced at a larger scale than in autarky. The greater variety of intermediate inputs implies greater division of labour and hence gains from trade. Similarly to models of international trade under imperfect competition, the volume of trade depends on the relative sizes of the trading partners. Extending the model to two factors of production yields the additional result that if the two countries are sufficiently similar in their relative endowments, then both factors of production can experience gains from trade.