International Transmission of Inequality through Trade†

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Nigai, Sergey
• 署名单位: University of Colorado System; University of Colorado Boulder
• 刊物名称: AMERICAN ECONOMIC JOURNAL-ECONOMIC POLICY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1945-7731
• DOI: 10.1257/pol.20230497
• 发表日期: 2025
• 页码: 311-344
• 关键词: Firm heterogeneity; structural-change; Country size; wages; comovement; selection; income; QUALITY; margins; prices

摘要

I examine the international transmission of income inequality through trade. Using firm-level and aggregate data, I find that exporting to more unequal countries increases domestic inequality. I rationalize this finding by developing a model of international consumer targeting in which firms serve specific consumer segments in each market. Inequality in export markets shapes the distribution of firms' profits and, therefore, the incomes of individuals linked to them, widening domestic inequality. The calibrated model suggests that international inequality transmission explains 4.4 percent and 4.8 percent of the observed levels of Gini coefficients and income shares of the top 1 percent, respectively. (JEL D22, D31, D63, F14, F63)