Management of a strategic policy, exports and external performance of the Colombian regions

Abstract

In terms of international trade, normative economics outrightly inspired the implementation of the economic policy. The classical and neoclassical interpretations of trade advocate for the full development of an export profile consistent with comparative advantage and endowments. In contrast, the new trade theory properly matches the implementation of a strategic trade policy. This article aims to hurl the theoretical discussion about the comparative advantages and the endowments-based export pattern into the regional export performance of Colombian departments In doing so, some theoretical bedrocks are highlighted, and a panel data technique is run for modeling the essence of regional exports. The conclusion reinforces the arguments of several authors asserting a raw material predominance in Colombian exports and the strong reliance on endowments of the Colombian department exports. Some ideas suggest the plausibility of a currently missing strategy of an explicit productive development policy or, in other words, the implementation of a Colombian-tailored strategic trade policy.