TRANSACTION COST IMPAIRMENTS TO INTERNATIONAL TRADE: LESSONS FROM EGYPT
Associate Professor, Department of Economics, American University in Cairo, and Professor, Department of Economics, University of Southern California, respectively. The authors thank Nicolas Sanchez, Brian Levy, and two anonymous referees for their useful comments on earlier versions of the paper. They also thank the managers of producing and trading companies who gave so generously of their time. This is a revised version of a paper presented at the Western Economic Association International 70th Annual Conference in San Diego, California, July 6, 1995.
Abstract
Increasing evidence indicates the relative importance of transaction costs in international market penetration by LDC manufactured goods exporters. This paper identifies the sources and nature of these costs and recommends policies capable of helping LDC exporters overcome transaction cost-based obstacles to such exports. Data for the analysis are from questionnaires addressed to samples of manufactures exporters and trading intermediaries in Egypt.
