The cost of being landlocked : logistics costs and supply chain reliability

A large proportion of the least developed countries are landlocked and their access to world markets depends on the availability of a trade corridor and transit systems. Based on empirical evidence from World Bank projects and assessments in Africa, Central Asia, and elsewhere, this paper proposes a microeconomic quantitative description of logistics costs. The paper theoretically and empirically highlights that landlocked economies are primarily affected not only by a high cost of freight services but also by the high degree of unpredictability in transportation time. The main sources of costs are not only physical constraints but widespread rent activities and severe flaws in the implementation of the transit systems, which prevent the emergence of reliable logistics services. The business and donor community should push toward implementation of comprehensive facilitation strategies, primarily at the national level, and the design of robust and resilient transport and transit regimes. A better understanding of the political economy of transit and a review of the implementation successes and failures in this area are needed.Transport Economics Policy&Planning,Transport and Trade Logistics,Common Carriers Industry,Economic Theory&Research,Rural Roads&Transport

The Poisson quasi-maximum likelihood estimator: A solution to the “adding up” problem in gravity models

This paper shows that the Poisson quasi-maximum likelihood estimator applied to the gravity model produces estimates in which, summing across all partners, actual and estimated total trade flows are identical. Other methods such as OLS do not have this desirable property. Indeed, Poisson is the only quasi-maximum likelihood estimator that preserves total trade flows. This result is an additional reason for preferring Poisson as a workhorse gravity model estimator

Fighting Corruption in-East Asia

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Fighting Corruption in East Asia

xxiii, 236 hlm.; 23 X 15 c

Fighting Corruption in East Asia : Solutions from the private sector

Worldwide, private firms-large and small, multinational and local agree that corruption increases the cost of doing business.XX, 223 hlm.: ilus.; 23 c

The Poisson quasi-maximum likelihood estimator: A solution to the “adding up” problem in gravity models

This paper shows that the Poisson quasi-maximum likelihood estimator applied to the gravity model produces estimates in which, summing across all partners, actual and estimated total trade flows are identical. Other methods such as OLS do not have this desirable property. Indeed, Poisson is the only quasi-maximum likelihood estimator that preserves total trade flows. This result is an additional reason for preferring Poisson as a workhorse gravity model estimator.International Trade; Gravity Model; Poisson; Quasi-Maximum Likelihood Estimator

Trade costs in the developing world : 1995 - 2010

The difference between results for developing and developed countries regarding trade costs is due in large part to the “technology” of trade: logistics and trade facilitation. In terms of policy implications, maritime transport connectivity and logistics performance are very important determinants of bilateral trade costs. Although developing countries are becoming more integrated into the world trading system in an absolute sense, their relative position is nonetheless deteriorating because the rest of the world is moving more quickly: sub-Saharan African countries and low income countries remain subject to very high levels of trade costs