Offshoring: Facts and Numbers at the Country Level

35 Pages Posted: 29 Jul 2009

See all articles by Pablo Agnese

Pablo Agnese

Universitat Internacional de Catalunya

J. E. Ricart

University of Navarra - IESE Business School

Date Written: May 1, 2009

Abstract

Offshoring has received wide attention lately. Its potential effects, mainly to be materialized in employment and productivity dislocations, are yet to be fully assessed. However, some consensus has been attained as to how to proxy its theoretical definition at an aggregate level. Here we review the most conventional indices the economic literature has so far produced, and employ them to provide an overview of the extent of the phenomenon for a group of countries. Contrary to common belief, our data reveal that offshoring is not exclusive to large developed economies. Further, we highlight the continuing prominence of the manufacturing over the services sector, and observe that, while services offshoring is on the rise, it still represents a small fraction of total offshoring. This is not to deny the employment creation brought about by this higher value-added offshoring or its potential to create more jobs in the future.

Keywords: offshoring, intermediate trade, aggregate data

JEL Classification: F01, F14, F40

Suggested Citation

Agnese, Pablo and Enric Ricart, Joan, Offshoring: Facts and Numbers at the Country Level (May 1, 2009). IESE Business School Working Paper No. 792, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1440127 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1440127

Pablo Agnese

Universitat Internacional de Catalunya ( email )

Immaculada 22
Barcelona, 08017
Spain

Joan Enric Ricart (Contact Author)

University of Navarra - IESE Business School ( email )

Avenida Pearson 21
Barcelona, 08034
Spain
34 3 204 40 00 (Phone)
34 3 280 11 77 (Fax)

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