Three sources of gains from trade under monopolistic competition are: (i) new import varieties available to consumers; (ii) enhanced efficiency as more productive firms begin exporting and less productive firms exit; (iii) reduced markups charged by firms due to import competition. The first source of gains can be measured as new goods in a CES utility function for consumers. We argue that the second source is formally analogous to the producer gain from new goods, with a constant-elasticity transformation curve for the economy. We suggest that the third source of gain can be measured using a translog expenditure function for consumers, which in contrast to the CES case, allows for finite reservation prices for new goods and endogenous markups.
Published: Robert C. Feenstra, 2010.
"Measuring the gains from trade under monopolistic competition,"
Canadian Journal of Economics,
Canadian Economics Association, vol. 43(1), pages 1-28, February.
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