Transportation gateways and trade: how accessibility to the border shapes the spatial concentration of commerce

Abstract

ABSTRACT Based on a micro-founded gravity equation and resorting to a new database of interregional trade flows within European Union countries, we study the asymmetric concentration of inflows in importing regions when exports come from regions with different geographical advantages in terms of their accessibility to the international border. As a case study we consider the Spanish–French border characterized by two distinct coastal gateways that funnel most road freight. Differentiating between domestic and international distances we conclude that the intensity of trade depends on the relative accessibility to the transportation network. We perform robustness checks for different sectors, and multimodal and re-exporting schemes.