The Price of Fairness: Tackling Mispricing of Commodity Exports from Poor Countries 

Abstract

This policy brief addresses the massive revenue losses faced by resource-rich developing countries due to trade mispricing—especially in the export of commodities like oil, metals, and grains. The authors outline concrete, unilateral policy measures that low-income countries can adopt to counter mispricing, including smart technologies, prescriptive tax approaches, and improved buyer selection by state-owned enterprises. The brief also discusses longer-term reforms such as unitary taxation and formulary apportionment to ensure fairer distribution of value across global supply chains. It draws on findings from the Swiss r4d research programme on illicit financial flows.

Keywords: Revenue Losses, Resource-rich Developing Countries, Developing Countries, International Trade, Trade Mispricing, Reforms, Policy Measures