Magnus Tolum Buus forsvarer sin ph.d.-afhandling

Magnus Tolum Buus forsvarer sin ph.d.-afhandling:"How Firms Expand in Export Markets. Evidence from Danish Data on Exporter-Importer Relationships and Export Promotion Services"

Kandidat:

Magnus Tolum Buus

Titel:

"How Firms Expand in Export Markets. Evidence from Danish Data on Exporter-Importer Relationships and Export Promotion Services".

Tid og sted

1. november 2019 kl. 12:15, Københavns Universitet, Øster Farimagsgade 5, 1353 København K, CSS 2.1.12. Af hensyn til kandidaten lukkes dørene præcis.

Bedømmelsesudvalg

Professor Bertel Schjerning, Økonomisk Institut, Københavns Universitet, Danmark (formand)
Professor Jim Tybout, Department of Economics, Penn State, USA
Associate Professor Kalina Manova, University Collee London, UK

Abstract 

This PhD dissertation consists of three self-contained chapters that all study separate aspects of firms’ expansion in export markets.  They share a common focus on how firms grow in foreign markets and how firm-specific trade policies support this growth.

The first chapter documents that Danish firms face considerable network effects in export markets. This means that exporters with large buyer networks more easily form more new buyer relationships. This finding has implications for exporters’ expansion strategies. I show that exporters set low prices upon entry to accumulate buyers, then increase prices as their network grows. I provide a simple theoretical framework through which this behavior can be rationalized. These finding make trade policies aiming at matching exporters with foreign importers more efficient.

The second chapter examines the effects of a particular firm-specific trade policy, namely export promotion services (EPS). We identify the causal impact by exploiting random targeting by the Trade Council in Denmark across firms. We find that EPS boost firms’ export sales on existing markets, leaving export prices and product quality largely unchanged. This means that EPS effectively shift out exporters’ demand in foreign markets.

The third chapter study the dual impact of EPS on foreign demand and the costs of export participation. Structural estimation shows that EPS increase foreign demand (in line with chapter two), and that EPS substantially reduces export costs for continuing exporters, whereas entry costs are left unchanged. This means that EPS support maintenance of existing export markets, rather than entry into new ones. Simulations show that this finding is important for how to increase export participation and export revenue through firm-specific trade policies: Improving the quality is more efficient than lowering the price.

Det vil være muligt før forsvaret at rekvirere en kopi af afhandlingen ved henvendelse til Receptionen (26.0.20), Økonomisk Institut.