The determinants of the intermediate products export: The case of Switzerland

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Abstract. International trade relations are an important aspect of the international economy. The form and structure of international trade has changed in recent years and this fact deserves particular analysis. Global value chains are an significant objectivity in today's times. It is noteworthy that global supply (or value) chains are basically the production networks that span multiple countries, with at least one country importing inputs (intermediate goods) and exporting production (final goods). Many products in today's era consist of intermediate inputs from other countries. The proportion of intermediate goods that a country exports helps it to become a key trading partner. Value-added imports have such an essential role in the exports of countries that they ultimately determine the price of final goods. Moreover, intermediate goods have the characteristic of being shaped on the basis of their technological level. That is, an input can be labour-intensive or technology-intensive. Virtually any commodity can be considered an intermediary. There is no clear definition of intermediate goods. This point, of course, makes it difficult to identify those factors which determine the exports of intermediate goods. In this reality the exports of intermediate goods are worthy of further research. The present study will attempt to investigate the determinants of intermediate goods exports using Switzerland as a case study. The methodology adopted is Linear Regression - Ordinary Least Squares (OLS). Keywords. Global Trade, Switzerland, Intermediate Product Exports, OLS. JEL. F10, F14, F40.