Economic Geography, Politics, and the World Trade Regime

Stephanie J Rickard

doi:10.1017/s1474745622000040

Abstract

AbstractAlthough globalization and the world trade regime have reduced the significance of distance between countries, within countries geography matters now more than ever. Inside countries’ borders, economic activities, such as production and employment, occur unevenly across space. As a result, international trade impacts parts of a country differently. Some areas benefit from rising trade, while others experience reductions in local wages and employment as a result of increased import competition. Because regions’ experience of globalization varies, public opinion about trade differs across geographic areas within countries. Voters living in regions advantaged by trade are more likely to support economic openness, while voters living in regions negatively impacted by trade are more skeptical of the benefits of globalization. The geographic disparities in public attitudes towards trade often align with salient political cleavages. As a result, debates over trade have become increasingly polarized in many countries, which may threaten states’ continued economic openness as well as their engagement with, and even support for, the world trade regime.

Highlights

Many observers predicted that globalization would bring about the ‘death of distance’ (e.g., Cairncross, 2001)
Globalization and the world trade regime have shrunk the significance of space between countries, geography matters more than ever within countries
Economic geography shapes the distributional consequences of international trade with implications for trade politics and the world trade regime

Summary

Introduction

Many observers predicted that globalization would bring about the ‘death of distance’ (e.g., Cairncross, 2001). Globalization and the world trade regime have shrunk the significance of space between countries, geography matters more than ever within countries Economic activities, such as production and employment, occur unevenly across space inside countries’ borders, and as a result, international trade impacts communities in the same country differently. Because trade has varied effects on different areas within a country, public opinion about globalization is divided. Economic activities, such as production and employment, are often ‘lumpy’ – that is they are unevenly distributed across space – both within countries and between them. Economic geography refers to the distribution of production and employment across geographic space. Agriculture activities frequently occur in areas where there are few other employment opportunities and, as a result, exhibit high levels of relative concentration. For the world trade regime, it may be the consequences rather than the causes of economic geography that matter most

Economic Geography and Trade Shocks

Changing Patterns of Economic Geography

Economic Geography and Trade Preferences

Economic Geography and Politics

Findings

Economic Geography and Policy