Determinants and Costs of FTA Utilization

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 17H02530
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Economic policy
• Research Institution: Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization
• Principal Investigator: HAYAKAWA KAZUNOBU 独立行政法人日本貿易振興機構アジア経済研究所, その他部局等, 海外研究員 (40458948)
• Project Period (FY): 2017-04-01 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: 地域貿易協定 / FTA利用率 / アジア / 関税率

Outline of Final Research Achievements

I studied two kinds of topics using the utilization data of free trade agreements (FTAs) in East Asia. First, I examined firms’ tariff scheme choice when multiple FTAs are available. My result showed that when transaction values are larger, firms are more likely to choose FTA regimes rather than the most favoured nation regime. Among FTA regimes, furthermore, those with less restrictive rules of origin or lower preferential tariffs are likely chosen. Second, our median estimates show that costs for complying with rules of origin are around 1.5% of production costs, while costs for certifying origins are around 14% of fixed export costs. Furthermore, I found that these costs are significantly associated with port efficiency and corruption level in exporting and importing countries.

Free Research Field

国際貿易論

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

複数からの関税スキームの選択の分析、および原産地規則・証明にかかるコストを別々に計測することのいずれも、学術的に新しい試みであった。そして、前者では各FTAの利点、欠点を比較しながら合理的な選択が行われていること、後者では制度的な要素がFTA利用コストと密接に関連しているという、新しい発見がもたらされた。とくに後者は、今後、FTA利用を促進していくための政策を考える際に、有効な示唆を与えるものである。