The Emergence of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and its Impact on International Trade

Abstract

Trade as we know it will change. This is because the fourth industrial revolution—a period of rapid digital technological advancement—is beginning to impact the world. Coined in Germany as Industry 4.0, despite its name, this revolution is a process of emerging technologies established on older ones. Industry 4.0 represents the fusion of primarily digital developing technologies. This article examines the effects of Industry 4.0 and its revolutionary changes on the volume and nature of global trade, and identifies its quantitative, structural, and comparative impacts on countries and corporations using qualitative methods.. Implementing the core developments of Industry 4.0 will significantly change international trade volume and structure. There will be a significant shift toward services. The goods to gain prominence due to digitalization will mainly be those with high transportation, logistics, data, legislation, and transaction costs. Applying new technologies will also significantly alter the terms of trade.

Keywords: Industrial revolution 4.0, International trade, Digital technology.