International trade is a form of communication between producers of different countries, arising on the basis of the international division of labor, and expresses their mutual economic dependence.

International trade is the process of buying and selling between buyers, sellers and intermediaries in different countries.

The term "foreign trade" refers to the trade of a country with other countries, consisting of paid import (import) and paid export (export) of goods.

At different times, various theories of world trade appeared and were refuted, which in one way or another tried to explain the origin of this phenomenon, to determine its goals, laws, advantages and disadvantages. The following are the most common theories of international trade.

Mercantelist theory of international trade.

Of the theories of international trade, the mercantilist theory was the first to appear, developed and put into practice in the 16th-18th centuries. Thomas Maine and Antoine Montchretien were prominent representatives of this school. Supporters of this theory did not take into account the benefits that countries receive from the import of foreign goods and services in the course of the international division of labor, and only export was considered economically justified. Therefore, the mercantilists believed that the country should limit imports (except for the import of raw materials) and try to produce everything itself, as well as encourage the export of finished products in every possible way, seeking an influx of currency (gold). The influx of gold into the country as a result of a positive trade balance increased the opportunities for capital accumulation and thus contributed to the economic growth, employment and prosperity of the country.

The main drawback of this theory should be considered the idea of ​​mercantilists, dating back to the Middle Ages, that the economic benefit of some participants in a barter transaction (in this case, exporting countries) turns into economic damage to others (importing countries). The main advantage of mercantilism is the export support policy he developed, which, however, was combined with active protectionism and support for domestic monopolies. In Russia, the most prominent mercantilist was probably Peter I, who in every possible way encouraged Russian industry and the export of goods, including through high import duties, the distribution of privileges to domestic monopolists.

Theory absolute advantages A. Smith.

From a completely different premise (compared to the mercantilist theory) came the theory of absolute advantages. Its creator, Adam Smith, begins the first chapter of his famous book An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776) by saying that "the greatest progress in development productive force labor, and a great deal of the art, skill, and ingenuity with which it is directed and applied, appear to have been the consequence of the division of labour," and further concludes that "if any foreign country can supply us with some commodity at at a cheaper price than we ourselves are able to make it, it is much better to buy it from her with some part of the product of our own industrial labor applied in that area in which we have some advantage.

The theory of absolute advantage states that it is expedient for a country to import those goods for which its production costs are higher than those of foreign countries, and to export those goods for which its production costs are lower than those of foreign countries, i.e. there are absolute benefits. In contrast to the mercantilists, A. Smith advocated freedom of competition within the country and on the world market, sharing the principle of "laissez-faire" put forward by the French economic school of physiocrats - non-intervention of the state in the economy.

To the most strong side The theory of absolute advantages should be attributed to the fact that it demonstrates the advantages of international trade for all its participants, to the weak side - that it leaves no place in international trade for those countries in which all goods are produced without absolute advantages over other countries.

The theory of comparative advantages D. Ricardo.

Former London dealer David Ricardo, in his book "Principles of Political Economy and Taxation" (1817), devoted a chapter to this theory, in which he proved that it is beneficial for all countries to participate in international trade.

D. Riccardo proved that international exchange is possible and desirable in the interests of all countries.

The essence of the theory of comparative advantage is this: if each country specializes in those products in the production of which it has the greatest relative efficiency, or relatively lower costs, then trade will be mutually beneficial for both countries. The principle of comparative advantage, when extended to any number of countries and any number of products, can be of universal significance.

Thus, the theory of relative advantage recommends that a country import that good whose production costs in the country are higher than those of the exported good. Subsequently, economists proved that this applies not only to two countries and two goods, but also to any number of countries and goods.

The main advantage of the theory of comparative advantage is convincing evidence that international trade is beneficial to all its participants, although it may give less benefit to some, and more to others.

The main drawback of Ricardo's theory can be considered that it does not explain why comparative advantages have developed. A serious drawback of the theory of comparative advantages is its static nature. This theory ignores any fluctuations in prices and wages, it abstracts from any inflationary and deflationary gaps in the intermediate stages, from all sorts of balance of payments problems. The theory proceeds from the fact that if workers leave one industry, they do not become chronically unemployed, but move to another industry that is more productive.

Theory of ratios of factors of production.

The above question is largely answered by the theory of the ratio of factors of production, developed by the Swedish economists Eli Heckscher and Bertil Ohlin and detailed in the latter's book entitled Interregional and International Trade (1933). Using the concept of factors of production (economic resources), created by the French entrepreneur and economist J.-B. Say and later supplemented by other economists, the Heckscher-Ohlin theory draws attention to the different endowment of countries with these factors (more precisely, labor and capital, since Heckscher and Ohlin focused on only two factors). The abundance, excess of some factors in the country makes them cheap compared to other, less represented factors. The production of any product requires a combination of factors, and a commodity whose production is dominated by comparatively cheap, surplus factors will be relatively cheap both domestically and internationally. foreign market and thus will have a comparative advantage. According to the Heckscher-Ohlin theory, a country exports those goods, the output of which is based on factors of production that are surplus to it, and imports goods, for the production of which it is less endowed with factors of production.

Leontief's paradox.

The Heckscher-Ohlin theory is shared by most modern economists. However, it does not always give a direct answer to the question why this or that set of goods prevails in the country's exports and imports. An American economist of Russian origin V. Leontiev, studying US foreign trade in 1947, 1951 and 1967, pointed out that this country with relatively cheap capital and expensive labor force participates in international trade not in accordance with the Heckscher-Ohlin theory: it was not exports that turned out to be more capital-intensive, but imports.

The so-called Leontief paradox has the following explanations:

a highly skilled American workforce requires a large investment of capital for its preparation (i.e., American capital is invested more in human resources than in production capacity);

the production of American export goods is spent in large volumes of imported mineral raw materials, in the extraction of which American capital was invested.

But in general, the Leontief paradox is a warning against the straightforward use of the Heckscher-Ohlin theory, which, as its subsequent testing has shown, works in most, but not in all cases.

Russia can rather be attributed to a case typical of the Heckscher-Ohlin theory: an abundance of natural resources, the presence of large production capacities (i.e., real capital) for the processing of raw materials (metallurgy, chemistry) and a number of advanced technologies (mainly in the production of weapons and dual-use goods ) explain the greater export of raw materials, simple metallurgical and chemical products, military equipment and dairy products.

At the same time, the Heckscher-Ohlin theory does not answer the question why modern Russia with its huge agricultural resources, little agricultural products are exported, but on the contrary, they are imported into huge quantities; why, in the presence of a relatively cheap and skilled labor force, the country exports little, but imports a lot of civil engineering products. Probably, to explain the causes of international trade in certain goods, it is not enough just to have different endowments of countries with factors of production. It is also important how effectively these factors are used in a particular country.

Theory of competitive advantages.

This theory was developed by the American economist M. Porter. One of the common problems of foreign trade theories is the combination of the interests of the national economy and the interests of firms participating in international trade. This is connected with the answer to the question: how do individual firms in specific countries obtain competitive advantages in world trade in certain goods, in specific industries?

In his book "International Competition" (1990), he concludes that the international competitive advantages of national firms depend on the macro environment in which they operate in their own country.

Based on the study of the practices of companies in 10 leading countries, which account for almost half of world exports, he put forward the concept of "international competitiveness of nations". The competitiveness of a country in international exchange is determined by the impact and interconnection of four main components:

factor conditions;

demand conditions;

the state of service and related industries;

strategy of the company in a certain competitive situation.

Factor conditions are determined by the presence of economic factors, including those arising in the production process (increase in labor productivity with a shortage of labor resources, the introduction of compact, resource-saving technologies with limited land, the development of information technologies). The second component - demand - is decisive for the development of the company. At the same time, the state of domestic demand, in conjunction with the potential opportunities of the external market, decisively influences the firm's situation. Here it is important to identify national characteristics (economic, cultural, educational, ethnic, traditions and habits) that affect the exit of the company outside the country. M. Porter's approach assumes the prevailing importance of the requirements of the domestic market for the activities of individual companies.

Third - the state and level of development of service and related industries and industries. Availability of appropriate equipment, close contacts with suppliers, commercial and financial structures. Fourth, the firm's strategy and competitive situation. The market strategy chosen by the firm organizational structure providing the necessary flexibility are important prerequisites for successful entry into international trade. Sufficient competition in the domestic market is a serious incentive. Artificial dominance through state support- a negative decision leading to waste and inefficient use of resources. The theoretical premises of M. Porter served as the basis for developing recommendations at the state level to increase the competitiveness of foreign trade goods in Australia, New Zealand and the USA in the 90s.

Alternative theories international trade.

In recent decades, significant shifts have taken place in the directions and structure of world trade, which are not always amenable to exhaustive explanation within the framework of classical trade theories. This encourages both the further development of existing theories and the development of alternative theoretical concepts. The reasons for this are as follows: 1) the transformation technical progress into the dominant factor in world trade; 2) increasing specific gravity in trade in counter deliveries of similar manufactured goods produced in countries with approximately the same supply of factors of production; and 3) a sharp increase in the share of world trade attributable to intra-company trade. Let's look at some alternative theories.

Theory of the product life cycle.

The essence of the product life cycle theory is as follows: the development of world trade in finished products depends on the stages of their life, i.e. the period of time during which the product has viability in the market and ensures the achievement of the goals of the seller.

The product life cycle covers four stages - introduction, growth, maturity and decline. The first stage is the development new products in response to emerging needs within the country. Therefore, the production of a new product is small-scale, requires highly skilled workers and is concentrated in the country of innovation (usually an industrialized country), while the manufacturer occupies an almost monopoly position and only a small part of the product enters the foreign market.

In the growth stage, the demand for a product grows and its production expands and gradually spreads to other countries, the product becomes more standardized, competition between manufacturers increases and exports expand.

The stage of maturity is characterized by large-scale production, in competition the price factor becomes predominant, and as markets expand and technologies spread, the country of innovation no longer has a competitive advantage. The shift of production to developing countries begins, where cheap labor can be effectively used in standardized production processes.

As the product lifecycle enters a decline phase, demand, especially in developed countries, is declining, production and sales markets are concentrated mainly in developing countries, and the country of innovation becomes a frequent importer.

The product life cycle theory quite realistically reflects the evolution of many industries, but is not a universal explanation for the development of international trade. If Scientific research and development, advanced technology ceases to be the main factor determining competitive advantage, then the production of the product will indeed move to countries that have a comparative advantage in other factors of production, such as cheap labor. However, there are many products (with a short life cycle, high transportation costs, having significant opportunities for quality differentiation, a narrow circle of potential consumers, etc.), which do not fit into the life cycle theory.

The theory of scale effect.

In the early 80s. P. Krugman, K. Lancaster and some other economists proposed an alternative to the classical explanation of international trade, based on the so-called scale effect.

The essence of the effect theory is that with a certain technology and organization of production, the long-term average production costs per unit of output decrease as the volume of output increases, i.e., there is an economy due to mass production.

According to this theory, many countries (in particular, industrialized ones) are provided with the main factors of production in similar proportions, and in these conditions it will be profitable for them to trade among themselves if they specialize in those industries that are characterized by the presence of the effect of mass production. In this case, specialization allows you to expand production volumes and produce a product at a lower cost and, therefore, at a lower price. In order for this effect of mass production to be realized, a sufficiently capacious market is needed. International trade plays a decisive role in this, as it allows expanding markets. In other words, it allows the formation of a single integrated market, more capacious than the market of any single country. As a result, consumers are offered more products and at lower prices.

At the same time, the realization of economies of scale, as a rule, leads to a violation of perfect competition, since it is associated with the concentration of production and the consolidation of firms that turn into monopolists. Accordingly, the structure of markets is changing. They become either oligopolistic with a predominance of inter-industry trade in homogeneous products, or markets of monopolistic competition with developed intra-industry trade in differentiated products. In this case, international trade is increasingly concentrated in the hands of giant international firms, transnational corporations, which inevitably leads to an increase in the volume of intra-company trade, the directions of which are often determined not by the principle of comparative advantage or differences in the availability of factors of production, but strategic goals the firm itself.

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5.4 Brief introduction to international trade theory

The modern world economy is a system of economic relations between different countries and regions of the world, based on international trade and the international division of labor. International trade develops because it brings benefits to the countries participating in it. In this regard, one of the main questions that the theory of international trade must answer is what underlies this gain from foreign trade, or, in other words, what determines the direction of foreign trade flows.

The basic principles of the international division of labor and international trade were formulated two centuries ago by the English economists Adam Smith and David Ricardo. A. Smith in his book "A Study on the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations" (1776) formulated the theory absolute advantage and showed that countries are interested in the free development of international trade, since they can benefit from it regardless of whether they are exporters or importers.

Recall that absolute advantage is the ability to produce more units of a given product with the same input of resources, or (which is the same thing), to produce a unit of a good with fewer resources.

D. Ricardo in his "Principles of Political Economy and Taxation" (1817) proved that the principle of absolute advantage is only a special case general rule, and substantiated the theory comparative advantage. Recall that comparative advantage is the ability to produce a good or service at a relatively lower opportunity cost. Recall that the opportunity cost is lost production opportunities, expressed in the refusal to produce another good in the production of this one.

In the two centuries since Smith and Ricardo, the theory of international trade has undergone significant development, but the basic principles largely remained unshakable (at least until the 2008 Nobel laureate Paul Krugman proposed his theory of international trade). These principles can be summarized in one sentence: the international division of labor and trade are based on comparative advantage.

A country produces the product in which it has a comparative advantage. A country that specializes in the production of a product becomes its exporter (that is, a seller in international trade). At the same time, the country buys goods from other countries, being their importer.

The ratio of exports and imports is reflected in the trade balance. The balance of trade is the difference between exports and imports.

trade balance = Ex - Im

If import costs exceed export earnings (Im > Ex), then this corresponds to a state of trade deficit. A country buys more foreign goods than it sells domestic goods to foreigners.
In this case, the country needs more funds to settle with foreign counterparties for imports than it receives from foreign counterparties for its exports. In other words, as economists say, the trade deficit must be financed.

Financing the trade deficit, i.e. difference between import costs and export earnings can be:

• or at the expense of foreign (external) loans from other countries or from international financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, etc.;
• or through the sale to foreigners of financial assets (private and public valuable papers) and receipts into the country Money towards their payment.

In both cases, there is an inflow of funds from the foreign sector into the country (to the financial market), which is called capital inflow, and this makes it possible to finance the trade balance deficit.
That is, the trade deficit corresponds to the inflow of capital into the country.

If the income from exports exceeds the costs of imports (Ex > Im), which means a surplus (surplus) of the trade balance, then capital outflow occurs from the country, since in this case foreigners sell their financial assets to this country and receive the necessary for payment for export cash.
The trade surplus corresponds to the outflow of capital from the country.

Economic theory shows that international trade is a means by which countries, by developing specialization, can increase the productivity of available resources and thus increase the volume of goods and services produced and increase the level of well-being. We have already considered a simple model of trade, where in the course of trade two countries received an increase in their consumption opportunities, which can be shown as the movement of the CPV of each of the economies to the right-up.

Trade allows its participants to realize their comparative advantage. Steven Landsburg's The Couch Economist gives an example that the US has two ways of producing cars: in Detroit and Iowa. One of them involves the production of cars in factories in Detroit, the other involves the cultivation of wheat in the fields in Iowa. The second way implies that the grown wheat will be exchanged for cars in the course of international trade (for example, for Japanese Toyotas). Which of these methods is preferable? It all depends on the opportunity costs of each method. It may well be that, having a comparative advantage in growing wheat (i.e., lower opportunity costs), American economy will find that it is profitable for her to completely abandon the production of cars in Detroit in favor of the production of cars in Iowa (that is, in favor of growing wheat, its further export to Japan, and the import of Japanese cars).

5.4.1. Foreign trade policy

The modern world economy operates in the context of globalization, which is a new level and type of internationalization of production. Countries and regions of the world are closely interconnected not only by large-scale commodity and financial flows, but also by international production and business, information technology, scientific knowledge flows, close cultural and other contacts. The interdependence of individual countries and regions in the world economy has sharply increased. For example, American corporations are as dependent on cheap Chinese labor as Chinese consumers are on high-quality American technology products.

Although free trade leads to an increase in the economic well-being of all countries - both exporters and importers, in practice, international trade almost nowhere and never really developed freely without state intervention. The history of international trade is at the same time the history of the development and improvement of state regulation of international trade. In the course of the development of foreign trade relations, the economic interests of various social groups and segments of the population, and the state inevitably becomes involved in this conflict of interests. The state is an active participant in international trade relations, conducting foreign trade policy(regulation of international trade). Foreign trade policy is one of the areas of state regulation of the economy.

The main instruments of foreign trade policy:

1. Import duty - the state monetary collection from the imported (imported) goods.
2. Export duty is a state monetary fee from exported (exported) goods.
3. Quoting (establishing a quota) is a limitation in quantitative or value terms of the volume of products allowed to be imported into the country (import quota) or exported from the country (export quota) for a certain period.
4. Licensing - regulation of foreign trade through permits issued government bodies to export or import goods in prescribed quantities for a certain period of time.
5. Voluntary export restriction - a quantitative restriction of exports based on the obligation of one of the trading partners to limit the volume of exports.
6. An export subsidy is a financial benefit provided by the state to an exporter to expand the export of goods abroad.
7. Dumping is the sale of goods on the foreign market at a price below the normal level, that is, below the price of a similar product on the domestic market of the exporting country.
8. An international cartel is an agreement between exporters of any product from different countries, aimed at ensuring control over production volumes and setting favorable prices.
9. An embargo is a prohibition by a state of the import into or export from any country of goods or financial assets.

Foreign trade policy measures aimed at protecting the domestic market from foreign competition through various instruments of trade policy are called policies. protectionism.

Despite the fact that modern economic theory associates protectionism (as well as any regulation of the economy) with welfare losses for society, protectionism is used everywhere. The logic of protectionism is to create favorable conditions for the development of domestic sectors of the economy, protecting them from competition with foreign goods.

Why is protectionism so bad? The obvious answer is that protectionism prevents the economy from realizing its comparative advantage. For example, if Russia has a comparative advantage in energy production and France in food production, then in international trade, according to the theory of comparative advantage, Russia should specialize in energy production and France in food production. With full specialization, Russia will focus only on oil production, and will import food from France for its own consumption. This state of affairs will not suit in the first place Russian manufacturers foodstuffs, which over time will find ever-increasing competition from imported French products. Under these conditions, domestic producers of Russian products will take actions aimed at lobbying their interests. In other words, using political support, domestic producers will try to create conditions for themselves that will limit competition from imports. This is precisely what the policy of protectionism is all about.

Protectionism harms competition because it distorts the incentives of companies. In order to win the consumer in a competitive economy, the company must win the competition, that is, to offer a product best quality or at a lower price. In the case of protectionism, when domestic products protected from foreign competition by import duties or other barriers, domestic producers have no incentive to improve product quality because they are protected from competition from foreign producers. Instead of developing new products and constantly improving quality, these companies are trying to lobby for more favorable protectionist conditions for themselves. Over time, the quality of the products of these companies begins to lag significantly behind the quality of similar foreign products. As a result, consumers receive a product of inferior quality than they would have received in the absence of protectionism.

A good example is Russia, with its strong oil industry and a weak auto industry. Having undoubted comparative advantages in oil production over many countries (the cost of oil production in Russia is lower than in the USA and European countries), Russia is realizing its comparative advantages. At the same time, it is also clear that Russia does not have a comparative advantage in the production of automobiles. If not for numerous trade barriers to foreign cars and numerous subsidies to the domestic auto industry, then Russian consumers could long ago buy better foreign cars cheaper than the Russian Lada. Maybe it would be more profitable for Russia not to produce cars at all and focus only on oil production? The theory of comparative advantage claims that this is the case. Why, then, does Russia produce cars and continue to subsidize and protect domestic producers with import duties? Most likely, the answer does not lie in the economic plane. Perhaps Russia does not want to depend on foreign car imports. Perhaps Russia does not want to lay off hundreds of thousands of workers employed in the domestic auto industry. Perhaps there are other motives. In any case, the current state of the domestic automotive industry is a clear example of the fact that protectionism, distorting the incentives of firms in protected industries, does not lead to the best consequences for consumers and society in the long run.

Arguments for protectionism

• Protection of young industries.
• Protection of politically sensitive industries
• Maintain employment.

Arguments against protectionism

• Loss of economic efficiency (or, as economists say, net social loss)
• Distortion of incentives for companies in protected industries.
• Retaliatory protectionist measures of other economies.

Modern trade relations are the intersection of many opposing trade interests. Each country is involved in a variety of trade and financial relationships with other economies. When pursuing a protectionist policy, each country should remember that the introduction of protective measures is accompanied by retaliatory restrictive measures on the part of trading partners. For example, under pressure from the American steel lobby, the US government in March 2002 introduced restrictive tariffs ranging from 8 to 30% on imports. various kinds steel and steel products produced in a number of countries in Europe, Asia and Latin America. Following this decision, a number of countries decided to impose retaliatory restrictive tariffs on a number of US goods. The matter went to trade war. As a result, the Bush administration decided to eliminate import duties, fearing the loss of international markets for a number of American goods.

In a more negative scenario, events developed in the post-Great Depression of the 1930s. After an unprecedented drop in demand in almost all developed economies of the world, countries Western Europe decided to resort to a tough protectionist policy to protect their domestic industries from foreign (primarily American) imports. As a result of the widespread use of trade restrictions, the volume of world trade decreased by 3 times from 1929 to 1933, and the recovery from depression by a number of countries stretched for ten or more years. Countries have responded to trading partner restrictions by imposing new trade restrictions. Countries, even realizing that total trade barriers lead to a deterioration in their well-being, could not refuse to use them. In conditions where trade barriers are used everywhere, if one of the participants in the trade wants to abandon them, while all the others continue to apply, this will lead to the total impoverishment of this participant. In other words, if there is a risk that other participants will continue to apply trade barriers, no one will want to be the first to abandon them. At that time, trading partners lacked coordination. Under these conditions, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) was formed in 1947, which in 1995 was transformed into the World trade organization(WTO). The WTO is responsible for the development and implementation of new trade agreements, and also monitors compliance by members of the organization with all agreements signed by most countries in the world. That is, the WTO acts as the organizer of world trade relations, which the world lacked until 1947. The main function of the WTO is to monitor how the participants in trade relations comply with the agreements reached on trade liberalization.

The most popular model of trade relations is the model of trade in two goods between two countries. This model will be discussed in the Market Equilibrium chapter, after we are familiar with economic concepts supply and demand.

Mercantilist theory developed and put into practice in XVI-XVIII centuries, is first of theories of international trade.

Supporters of this theory believed that the country should limit imports and try to produce everything itself, as well as encourage the export of finished products in every possible way, seeking an influx of currency (gold), i.e., only exports were considered economically justified. As a result of a positive trade balance, the influx of gold into the country increased the opportunities for capital accumulation and thus contributed to the economic growth, employment and prosperity of the country.

Mercantilists did not take into account the benefits that countries receive in the course of the international division of labor from the import of foreign goods and services.

According to the classical theory of international trade emphasizes that "the exchange is favorable for each country; every country finds in it an absolute advantage, the necessity and importance of foreign trade is proved.

For the first time, the free trade policy was defined A. Smith.

D. Ricardo developed the ideas of A. Smith and argued that it is in the interests of each country to specialize in production, in which the relative benefit is the greatest, where it has the greatest advantage or the least weakness.

Ricardo's reasoning found expression in comparative advantage theory(comparative production costs). D. Ricardo proved that international exchange is possible and desirable in the interests of all countries.

J. S. Mill showed that, according to the law of supply and demand, the price of exchange is set at such a level that the total exports of each country can cover its total imports.

According to Heckscher-Ohlin theories countries will always seek to covertly export surplus factors of production and import scarce factors of production. That is, all countries tend to export goods that require significant costs factors of production, which they have in relative abundance. As a result Leontief's paradox.

The paradox is that, using the Heckscher-Ohlin theorem, Leontief showed that the American economy in the postwar period specialized in those types of production that required relatively more labor than capital.

Theory of comparative advantage was developed by taking into account the following circumstances affecting international specialization:

1. the heterogeneity of production factors, primarily the labor force, which differs in skill level;
2. the role of natural resources, which can only be used in production in conjunction with large amounts of capital (for example, in extractive industries);
3. influence on the international specialization of foreign trade policy of states.

The state can restrict imports and stimulate domestic production and exports of products of those industries that are intensively used relatively scarce factors of production.

Michael Porter's Theory of Competitive Advantage

In 1991, the American economist Michael Porter published a study entitled "Competitive Advantages of Countries", published in Russian under the title "International Competition" in 1993. In this study, a completely new approach to the problems of international trade has been worked out in sufficient detail. One of the prerequisites for this approach is the following: Firms compete in the international market, not countries. To understand the country's role in this process, it is necessary to understand how an individual firm creates and maintains competitive advantage.

Success in the foreign market depends on the right choice competitive strategy. Competition involves constant changes in the industry, which significantly affects the social and macroeconomic parameters of the home country, so the state plays an important role in this process.

According to M, Porter, the main unit of competition is the industry, i.e. a group of competitors that produce goods and services and directly compete with each other. The industry produces products with similar sources competitive advantage, although the boundaries between industries are always quite vague. Choice firm's competitive strategy There are two main factors influencing the industry.

1. industry structures, in which the company operates, i.e. features of competition. Five factors influence competition in the industry:

1) the emergence of new competitors;

2) the emergence of substitute goods or services;

3) the ability of suppliers to bargain;

4) the ability of buyers to bargain;

5) rivalry between already existing competitors.

These five factors determine the profitability of an industry as they affect the fees charged by firms, their costs, capital investments, etc.

The entry of new competitors reduces the overall profit potential of the industry as they bring new capacity into the industry and seek market share, and the introduction of substitute products or services limits the price a firm can charge for its product.

Suppliers and buyers, bargaining, benefit, which can lead to a decrease in the company's profits -

The price to pay for competitiveness when competing with other firms is either additional costs or lower prices, and as a result, a reduction in profits.

The value of each of the five factors is determined by its main technical and economic characteristics. For example, the ability of buyers to bargain depends on how many buyers the firm has, how much sales are per buyer, whether the price of the product is a significant part of the buyer's total costs, and the threat of new competitors depends on how difficult it is for a new competitor to "penetrate" into the industry. .

2. The position the firm occupies in the industry.

The firm's position in the industry is determined primarily by competitive advantage. A firm outperforms its rivals if it has a stable competitive advantage:

1) lower costs, indicating the ability of the company to develop, produce and sell a comparable product at a lower cost than competitors. Selling goods at the same or approximately the same price as competitors, the company in this case receives a large profit.

2) differentiation of goods, i.e. the ability of a company to meet the needs of the buyer by offering a product or more High Quality, or with special consumer properties, or with a wide range of after-sales services.

Competitive advantage gives higher productivity than competitors. Another important factor influencing a firm's position in an industry is the scope of competition, or the breadth of purpose a firm is pursuing within its industry.

Competition does not mean equilibrium, but constant change. Every industry is constantly being improved and updated. Moreover, the home country plays an important role in stimulating this process. Home country - it is a country where strategy, core products and technology are developed and where a workforce with the necessary skills is available.

M. Porter identifies four properties of the country that form the environment in which local firms compete and influence its international success (Figure 4.6.). The dynamic model of the formation of the competitive advantages of the industry can be represented as a national rhombus.

Figure 4.6. Determinants of a Country's Competitive Advantage

Countries are most likely to succeed in those industries where the components of the national diamond are mutually reinforcing.

These determinants, individually and collectively as a system, create the environment in which firms in a given country are born and operate.

Countries achieve success in certain industries because the environment in these countries is developing most dynamically and, by constantly setting challenges for firms, makes them better use existing competitive advantages.

Advantage on every determinant is not a prerequisite for competitive advantage in the industry. It is the interaction of advantages across all determinants that provides self-reinforcing winning moments that are not available to foreign competitors.

Every country, to varying degrees, possesses the factors of production necessary for the activities of firms in any industry. The theory of comparative advantage in the Heckscher-Ohlin model is devoted to the comparison of available factors. The country exports goods in the production of which various factors are intensively used. However, the factors as a rule, are not only inherited, but also created, therefore, in order to obtain and develop competitive advantages, it is not so much the stock of factors on this moment how much the speed of their creation. In addition, an abundance of factors can undermine competitive advantage, and a lack of factors can spur innovation, which can lead to long-term competitive advantage. At the same time, endowment with factors is quite important, so this is the first parameter of this component of the "rhombus".

endowment with factors

Traditionally, economic literature distinguishes three factors: labor, land and capital. But their influence is now more fully reflected by a slightly different classification:

· human resources, which are characterized by the quantity, qualifications and cost of the labor force, as well as the length of normal working hours and work ethic.

These resources are divided into numerous categories, since each industry requires a certain list of specific categories of workers;

physical resources, which are determined by the quantity, quality, availability and cost of land, water, minerals, forest resources, electricity sources, etc. They can also include climatic conditions, geographical location and even time zone;

· a resource of knowledge, i.e. a set of scientific, technical and commercial information that affects goods and services. This stock is concentrated in universities, research organizations, data banks, literature, etc.;

· financial resources, characterized by the amount and cost of capital that can be used to finance industry;

infrastructure, including the transport system, communication system, post services, transfer of payments between banks, the healthcare system, etc.

The set of applied factors in different industries varies, Firms achieve a competitive advantage if they have at their disposal cheap or high-quality factors that are important when competing in a particular industry. Thus, the location of Singapore on an important trade route between Japan and the Middle East made it the center of the ship repair industry. However, obtaining a competitive advantage based on factors depends not so much on their availability as on their effective use, since MNEs can provide missing factors by purchasing or locating activities abroad, and many factors move relatively easily from country to country.

Factors are divided into basic and developed, general and specialized. The main factors include natural resources, climatic conditions, geographical location, unskilled labor, etc. The country receives them either by inheritance or with little investment. They are of little value to a country's competitive advantage, or the advantage they create is not sustainable. The role of the main factors is reduced due to a decrease in the need for them or due to their increased availability (including as a result of the transfer of activities or purchases from abroad). These factors are important in the extractive industries and V sectors related to agriculture, developed factors include modern infrastructure, highly skilled labor force, etc.

Theories of international trade

It is these factors that are most important, as they allow you to achieve a higher level of competitive advantage.

According to the degree of specialization, factors are divided into general, which can be applied in many industries, and specialized. Specialized factors form a more solid and long-term basis for competitive advantage than general ones.

The criteria for dividing factors into basic and developed, general and specialized must be considered in dynamics, since they change over time. The factors differ depending on whether they arose naturally or were created artificially. All factors that contribute to the achievement of higher levels of competitive advantage are artificial. Countries succeed in the sectors in which they are best able to create and improve the necessary factors.

Conditions (parameters) of demand

The second determinant of national competitive advantage is domestic demand for the goods or services offered by that industry. Influencing economies of scale, demand in the domestic market determines the nature and speed of innovation. It is characterized by: structure, volume and nature of growth, internationalization.

Firms can achieve competitive advantage with the following basic characteristics of the demand structure:

· a significant share of domestic demand falls on global market segments;

Buyers (including intermediaries) are choosy and make high demands, which forces firms to raise standards for the quality of product manufacturing, service and consumer properties of goods;

the need for the home country arises earlier than in other countries;

The volume and nature of growth in domestic demand allows firms to gain a competitive advantage if there is a demand abroad for a product that has a strong demand in the domestic market, and there are also a large number of independent buyers, which creates a more favorable environment for renewal;

· domestic demand is growing rapidly, which stimulates the intensification of capital investment and the rate of renewal;

· the domestic market is quickly saturated, as a result, competition is becoming tougher, in which the strongest survive, which forces them to enter the foreign market.

The influence of demand parameters on competitiveness also depends on other parts of the diamond. Thus, without strong competition, a wide domestic market or its rapid growth does not always stimulate investment. Without the support of relevant industries, firms are unable to meet the needs of discerning customers, etc.

Related and supporting industries

The third determinant that determines national competitive advantage is the presence in the country of supplier industries or related industries that are competitive in the world market,

In the presence of competitive industries-suppliers, it is possible:

• efficient and fast access to expensive resources, such as equipment or skilled labor, etc.;

coordination of suppliers in the domestic market;

· Facilitating the process of innovation. National firms benefit most if their suppliers are globally competitive.

The presence in the country of competitive related industries often leads to the emergence of new highly developed types of production. related These are industries in which firms can interact with each other in the process of forming a value chain, as well as industries that deal with complementary products, such as computers and software. Interaction can take place in the field of technology development, production, marketing, service. If there are related industries in the country that can compete in the world market, access to the exchange of information and technical interaction is opened. Geographical proximity and cultural affinity lead to a more active interchange than with foreign firms.

The success of one industry in the world market can lead to the development of the production of additional goods and services. However, the success of supplier and related industries can affect the success of national firms only if the other components of the diamond are positively affected.

SUMMARY OF LECTURES ON THE COURSE "WORLD ECONOMY".FROLOVA T.A.

Topic 1. THEORIES OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE 2

1. Comparative advantage theory 2

2. Neoclassical theories 3

3. Heckscher-Ohlin theory 3

4. Leontief's paradox 4

5. Alternative theories of international trade 4

Topic 2. WORLD MARKET 6

1. The essence of the world economy 6

2. Stages of formation of the world economy 6

3. Structure of the world market 7

4. Competitive struggle in the world market 8

5. State regulation world trade 9

Topic 3. WORLD MONETARY SYSTEM 10

1. Stages of development of the world monetary system 10

2. Exchange rates and currency convertibility 12

3. State regulation of the exchange rate 14

4. Balance of payments 15

Topic 4. INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC INTEGRATION 17

1. Forms of economic integration 17

2. Forms of capital flow 17

3. Consequences of the export and import of capital 18

4. Labor force migration 20

5. State regulation labor migration 21

Topic 5. GLOBALIZATION AND PROBLEMS OF THE WORLD ECONOMY 22

1.Globalization: essence and problems generated by it 22

3. International economic organizations 23

Topic 6. SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONES (SEZ) 25

1. Classification of FEZ 25

3. Benefits and phases of the FEZ life cycle 26

Topic 1. THEORIES OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE

1. The theory of comparative advantage

Theories of international trade have gone through a number of stages in their development along with the development of economic thought. However, their main questions were and remain the following: what underlies the international division of labor? What international specialization is most effective for countries?

The foundations of the theory of international trade were laid at the end of the XVIII - early XIX c.c. English economists Adam Smith and David Ricardo. Smith in his work "Research on the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations" showed that countries are interested in the free development of international trade, because. can benefit from it whether they are exporters or importers. He created the theory of absolute advantage.

Ricardo, in his work Principles of Political Economy and Taxation, proved that the principle of absolute advantage is only a special case of the general rule, and substantiated the theory of comparative advantage.

A country has an absolute advantage if there is a good that, per unit cost, it can produce more than another country.

These advantages can, on the one hand, be generated by natural factors - special climatic conditions, the availability of natural resources. Natural benefits play a special role in agriculture and in extractive industries.

On the other hand, the benefits may be acquired, ie. due to the development of technology, advanced training of workers, improvement of the organization of production.

In conditions where there is no foreign trade, each country can consume only those goods and only that amount of them that it produces.

The relative prices of commodities in the domestic market are determined by their relative costs of production. The relative prices for the same product produced in different countries are different. If this difference exceeds the cost of transporting goods, then there is an opportunity to profit from foreign trade.

For trade to be mutually beneficial, the price of goods on the foreign market must be higher than domestic price in the exporting country and lower than in the importing country.

Basic theories of international trade

The benefit that countries receive from foreign trade will be an increase in consumption, which can be due to 2 reasons:

change in the structure of consumption;

production specialization.

As long as there are differences in domestic price ratios between countries, each country will have comparative advantage, i.e. she will always find a commodity whose production is more profitable, given the existing cost ratio, than the production of the rest.

Total output will be greatest when each good is produced by the country that has the lowest opportunity cost. The directions of world trade are determined by relative costs.

2. Neoclassical theories

Modern Western economists have developed Ricardo's comparative cost theory. The most famous is the model of opportunity costs, the author of which is the American economist G. Haberler.

A model of the economy of 2 countries in which 2 goods are produced is considered. Production possibilities curves are assumed for each country. It is considered that the best technology and all resources are used. In determining the comparative advantages of each country, the production of one good is taken as the basis, which has to be reduced in order to increase the production of another good.

This model of the division of labor is called neoclassical. But it is based on a number of simplifications. It comes from having:

only 2 countries and 2 products;

free trade;

labor mobility within the country and immobility (lack of overflow) between countries;

fixed production costs;

lack of transport costs;

no technical changes;

complete interchangeability of resources in their alternative use.

3. Heckscher-Ohlin theory

In the 30s. In the 20th century, Swedish economists Eli Heckscher and Bertel Ohlin created their own model of international trade. By this time, great changes had taken place in the system of the international division of labor and international trade. The role of natural differences as a factor in international specialization has noticeably decreased, and manufactured goods began to predominate in the exports of developed countries. The Heckscher-Ohlin model is intended to explain the causes of international trade in manufactured goods.

in the production of various goods, factors are used in various proportions;

the relative endowment of countries with factors of production is not the same.

From this follows the law of proportionality of factors: in an open economy, each country tends to specialize in the production of goods that require more factors with which the country is relatively better endowed.

International exchange is the exchange of abundant factors for rare ones.

Thus, in a hidden form, surplus factors are exported and scarce factors of production are imported, i.e. the movement of goods from country to country compensates for the low mobility of factors of production on a global scale.

In the process of international trade, the prices of factors of production are equalized. Initially, the price of a factor in excess will be relatively low. Excess capital leads to specialization in the production of capital-intensive goods, the overflow of capital into export industries. As the demand for capital increases, the price of capital rises.

If there is an abundance of labor in the country, then labor-intensive goods are exported. The price of labor (wages) also increases.

4. Leontief's paradox

Vasily Leontiev, after graduating from Leningrad University, studied in Berlin. In 1931 he emigrated to the USA and began teaching at Harvard University. Since 1948, he was appointed director of the economic research service. Developed a method economic analysis input-output (used for forecasting). In 1973 he was awarded the Nobel Prize.

In 1947, Leontiev made an attempt to empirically test the conclusions of the Heckscher-Ohlin theory and came to paradoxical conclusions. Examining the structure of US exports and imports, he found that US exports were dominated by relatively more labor-intensive goods, while imports were dominated by capital-intensive goods.

Given that in the post-war years in the United States, capital was a relatively abundant factor of production, and the level of wages was much higher than in other countries, this result contradicted the Heckscher-Ohlin theory and therefore was called the Leontief paradox.

Leontief hypothesized that, in any combination with a given amount of capital, 1 man-year of American labor is equivalent to 3 man-years of foreign labor. He suggested that the greater productivity of American labor is due to the higher skills of American workers. Leontiev conducted a statistical test that showed that the United States exports goods that require more skilled labor than imported ones.

This study served as the basis for the creation by the American economist D. Keesing in 1956 of a model that takes into account the qualifications of the labor force. Three factors are involved in production: capital, skilled and unskilled labor. The relatively abundance of highly skilled labor leads to the export of goods that require a large amount of skilled labor.

Later models by Western economists used 5 factors: financial capital, skilled and unskilled labor, land suitable for agricultural production, and other natural resources.

5. Alternative theories of international trade

In the last decades of the 20th century, significant shifts take place in the directions and structure of international trade, which are not always explained by the classical theory of MT. Among such qualitative shifts, one should note the transformation of scientific and technical progress into a dominant factor in international trade, the increasing share of counter deliveries of similar manufactured goods. There was a need to take this influence into account in the theories of international trade.

Product life cycle theory.

In the mid 60s. In the 20th century, the American economist R. Vernon put forward the theory of the product life cycle, in which he tried to explain the development of world trade in finished products based on the stages of their life.

The life stage is the period of time during which the product has viability in the market and achieves the goals of the seller.

The product life cycle covers 4 stages:

Implementation. At this stage, a new product is developed in response to an emerging need within the country. Production is small-scale, requires highly skilled workers and is concentrated in the country of innovation. The manufacturer occupies an almost monopoly position. Only a small part of the product goes to the foreign market.

Height. Demand for the product is growing, its production is expanding and spreading to other developed countries. The product becomes standardized. Competition is growing, exports are expanding.

Maturity. This stage is characterized by large-scale production, the competitive struggle is dominated by the price factor. The country of innovation no longer has competitive advantages. Production is moving to developing countries where labor is cheaper.

decline. In developed countries, production is decreasing, sales markets are concentrated in developing countries. The country of innovation becomes a net importer.

The theory of scale effect.

In the early 80s. In the 20th century, P. Krugman and K. Lancaster proposed an alternative explanation of international trade based on the scale effect. The essence of the effect lies in the fact that with a certain technology and organization of production, long-term average costs decrease as the volume of output increases, i.e. economies of scale arise.

According to this theory, many countries are provided with the main factors of production in similar proportions, and therefore it will be profitable for them to trade among themselves if they specialize in industries that are characterized by the presence of a mass production effect. Specialization allows you to expand production volumes, reduce costs, price. In order for economies of scale to be realized, a capacious market is needed, i.e. world.

Technological gap model.

Proponents of the neo-technological direction tried to explain the structure of international trade by technological factors. The main advantages are associated with the monopoly position of the innovator firm. A new optimal strategy for firms: to produce not what is relatively cheaper, but what everyone needs, but which no one can produce yet. As soon as this technology can be mastered by others - to produce something new.

The attitude towards the state has also changed. According to the Heckscher-Ohlin model, the task of the state is not to interfere with firms. Economists of the neo-technological direction believe that the state should support the production of high-tech export goods and not interfere with the curtailment of obsolete industries.

The most popular model is the technology gap model. Its foundations were laid in 1961 in the work of the English economist M. Posner. Later, the model was developed in the works of R. Vernon, R. Findley, E. Mansfield.

Trade between countries can be driven by technological changes occurring in one industry in one of the trading countries. This country is gaining a comparative advantage: new technology makes it possible to produce goods at low cost. If created New Product, then the innovator firm has a quasi-monopoly for a certain time, i.e. earns additional profit.

As a result of technical innovations, a technological gap has formed between countries. This gap will be gradually bridged as other countries will begin to copy the innovation of the innovator country. Posner introduces the notion of a “stream of innovation” that occurs over time in different industries and different countries to explain the constantly existing international trade.

Both trading countries benefit from the innovation. As it spreads new technology the less developed country continues to gain while the more developed country loses its advantage. Thus, international trade exists even with the same endowment of countries with factors of production.

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Modern theories of the world economy

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Krugman and Lancaster's theory of economies of scale was established in the 1980s. This theory provides an explanation of the modern causes of world trade from the point of view of the economics of the firm. The authors believe that the maximum benefit is available in industries where production is carried out in large quantities, because. in this case, there is an effect of scale.

The origins of the theory of economies of scale go back to A. Marshall, who noticed the main reasons for the advantage of a group of companies compared to a separate company. M. Camp and P. Krugman made the greatest contribution to the modern theory of the scale effect. This theory explains why there is trade between countries that are equally endowed with factors of production. The producers of such countries agree among themselves that one country receives both its own market and the market of a neighbor for free trade in a specific product, but in return gives another country a market segment for another product. And then the producers of both countries get markets for themselves with a greater absorption capacity of the goods. And their buyers are cheaper goods. Because with the growth of market volumes, economies of scale begin to operate, which looks like this: as the scale of production increases, the cost of producing each unit of output decreases.

Why? Because production costs are not growing at the rate at which production volumes are growing. The reason is as follows. That part of the costs, which is called "fixed", does not grow at all, and the part that is called "variables" is growing at a slower rate than production volumes. Because the main ingredient in variable costs production is the cost of raw materials. And when buying it in larger volumes, the price per unit of goods decreases. As you know, the more “wholesale” the lot, the more favorable the purchase price.

Many countries are provided with the basic factors of production in similar proportions, and therefore it will be profitable for them to trade among themselves if they specialize in industries that are characterized by the presence of a mass production effect. Specialization allows you to expand production volumes, reduce costs, price.

In order for economies of scale to be realized, the most capacious market is needed, i.e. world. And then it turns out that in order to increase the volume of their market, countries of equal ability agree not to compete on the same products in the same markets [which leads producers to reduce incomes]. On the contrary, to expand their opportunities for sales from each other, providing free access to their markets to firms of partner countries, by SPECIALIZING EACH COUNTRY IN “THE OWN” PRODUCTS.

It becomes profitable for countries to specialize and exchange even technologically homogeneous, but differentiated products (the so-called intra-industry trade).

Vorsicht The scale effect is observed up to a certain limit of the growth of this very scale. At some point in time, gradually increasing management costs become exorbitant and "eat up" the firm's profitability from increasing its scale. Because more and more large companies become more and more difficult to manage.

Theory of the product life cycle. This theory, as applied to explaining the specialization of countries in the world economy, appeared in the 60s of the XX century. The author of this theory Vernon, explained world trade in terms of marketing.

The fact is that a product in the course of its existence on the market goes through a number of stages: creation, maturity, decline in production and disappearance. According to this theory, industrialized countries specialize in the production of technologically new goods, while developing countries specialize in the production of obsolete goods, since in order to create new goods it is necessary to have significant capital, highly qualified specialists, and advanced science in this field. All this is available in industrialized countries.

According to Vernon's observations, at the stages of creation, growth and maturity, the production of goods is concentrated in industrialized countries, because. during this period, the product gives maximum profit. But over time, the product becomes obsolete and goes into the stage of "recession" or stabilization. This is facilitated by the fact that there are goods - competitors of other firms, diverting demand. As a result of all this, the price and profit fall.

The production of obsolete goods is now transferred to poorer countries, where, firstly, it will become a novelty again, and secondly, its production in these countries will be cheaper. At the same stage of product obsolescence, a firm may sell a license to manufacture its product to a developing country.

The product life cycle theory is not a universal explanation for the development of international trade. There are many products with a short life cycle, high transportation costs, with a narrow circle of potential consumers, etc., which do not fit into the life cycle theory.

But most importantly, for a long time now, global corporations have been placing the production of both commercial novelties and obsolete goods in the same developing countries.

international trade

Another thing is that while the product is new and expensive, it is sold mainly in rich countries, and as it becomes obsolete, it goes to poorer ones. And in this part of his theory, Vernon is still relevant.

M. Porter's theory of competitive advantages. Another important theory explaining the specialization of countries in the world economy is M. Porter's theory of competitive advantages. In it, the author examines the specialization of countries in world trade in terms of their competitive advantages. According to M. Porter, for success in the world market, it is necessary to combine the correctly chosen competitive strategy of companies with the competitive advantages of the country.

Porter highlights four signs of competitive advantage:

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Traditional and more developed form of international economic relations is foreign trade. Trade accounts for about 80% of the total volume of international economic relations.

For any country, the role of foreign trade can hardly be overestimated. According to J. Sachs, "the state success of any country in the world is based on foreign trade. Not a single country has yet managed to create a healthy economy, isolated from the world economic program." Through trade, countries are able to specialize in several key areas of the economy. they have the opportunity to import products that they do not produce themselves. In addition, trade contributes to the spread of new ideas and technologies.

Modern theories international trade have their own history. The question is why do countries trade with each other? - was set by economists simultaneously with the emergence in the early 17th century. early schools of economic thought.

International trade is a form of communication between producers of different countries, arising on the basis of MRI, and expresses their mutual economic dependence. International trade is the total turnover between all countries of the world. Each state faces a choice in determining the main non-state national policy in the field of foreign trade, which in general can be defined as a choice between free trade and protectionism. The need for choice involves the study of the theory of this issue. Main classical theories international trade are:

1. Mercantilist theory.

2. The theory of absolute advantages.

3. The theory of comparative advantage.

4. The theory of the ratio of factors of production and how its refutation of the Leontiev paradox.

Mercantilist theory. It arose in the era of great geographical discoveries, when the discovery of new lands with their natural resources (the main one was gold) led to the seizure of territories, the formation of colonies. The national economies of Europe were strengthened by capturing new territories and dividing spheres of influence.

Mercantilists (Thomas Man (1571-1641), Charlie Davinant, John Baptiste Colbert, William Petty) were the first to propose a coherent theory of international trade. They believed that the wealth of countries depends on the quality of the gold and silver they possess, and they believe that:

1) should withdraw more goods than enter, this will ensure the influx of gold as payments, which will increase domestic production, domestic spending and increase the level of employment of its population.

2) to regulate foreign trade in such a way as to increase the share of exports and reduce the share of imports; the purpose of such regulation is to obtain a positive trade balance with the help of tariffs, quotas and other instruments of trade policy.

3) the need to prohibit or strictly organize the export of raw materials and allow duty-free imports of raw materials. This was supposed to allow the accumulation of gold reserves in the country and keep export prices for finished products low.

4) it is necessary to prohibit all trade of the colonies with other countries, except with the mother country. Such a situation will undoubtedly ensure only the mother country the right to sell colonial goods abroad, and the colonies will turn into suppliers of raw materials and materials.

According to the mercantilist theory, the wealth of one country can only be increased at the expense of the impoverishment of another; the growth of wealth is only possible through redistribution. In order to provide the state with a worthy place in the world, a strong state machine is occupied, which includes the army, military and merchant navy and which can provide superiority over other countries.

One of the first critics of the mercantilist theory was the English economist David Hume. (The influx of gold as a result of a positive trade balance will increase the money supply within the country and lead to an increase in wages and prices. As a result of rising prices, the country's competitiveness has decreased, etc.).

The theory of absolute advantages.(Chief Representative Adam Smith). According to this theory, international trade is profitable if two countries trade in goods that each country produces at a lower cost than the partner country. Countries export those goods in the production of which they have advantages, and import those in the production of which the advantage belongs to their trading partners. In accordance with the views of A. Smith:

1) the government should not interfere in foreign trade, but should maintain a free trade regime;

2) states and individuals should specialize in the production of those goods in the production of which they have advantages, and trade them in exchange for goods, the advantages in the production of which they do not have;

3) foreign trade stimulates the development of labor productivity by expanding the market outside the state;

4) export is a positive factor for the economy, because ensures the sale of surplus products; export subsidies are a tax on the population and lead to higher domestic prices and should therefore be abolished.

The theory of absolute advantage is that countries export goods that they produce at lower cost and import goods that other countries produce at lower cost.

The theory of comparative advantage. Ch. representative - David Ricardo. The theory of comparative advantage is that countries specialize in the production of those goods that they will produce at a relatively lower cost compared to other countries. In this case, trade will be mutually beneficial for both countries, regardless of whether production in one of them is absolutely more efficient than in the other. Price imported goods is determined through the price of a good that must be exported to pay for imports, so the final price ratio in trade is determined by the domestic demand for goods in one of the trading countries. As a result of trade based on comparative advantage, one of the countries receives a positive economic effect, called the gain from trade. The gain from trade is the economic effect that each of the countries participating in trade receives if it specializes in trade in the product in the production of which it has a relative advantage.

Theory of the ratio of factors of production.(Representatives - Henscher and Ohlin). Essence - the difference in the relative prices of goods in different countries, and therefore, economic trade between them is explained by the different relative endowment of countries with production factors. Each country exports those goods for the production of which it has a relatively surplus of factors of production, and imports those goods for the production of which it experiences a relative shortage of factors of production. International trade leads to the equalization of absolute and relative prices not only for goods, but also for factors of production in trading countries.

The theory of different relative endowment with factors of production as a basis for international trade is presented in the form of two interrelated theorems: the Heckshir-Ohlin theories and the theories of leveling prices for factors of production (P. Samuelson).

Leontief's paradox. Numerous empirical tests have cast doubt on the Heckscher-Ohlin theory.

Leontief's paradox lies in the fact that, contrary to theory, labor-saturated countries export capital-intensive products, while capital-saturated countries export labor-intensive ones. However, Leontief's paradox left numerous questions unanswered, and other empirical studies that took into account the skill composition of the labor force and covered a wider range of countries confirmed the validity of the theory of comparative advantage. But the Leontief paradox continues to serve as a serious warning against the straightforward use of the Heckshir-Ohlin theory.

Each country seeks to optimize its trade relations with other countries. This is facilitated by theories of international trade, which describe its benefits for a particular country on the basis of factor advantages.

An attempt to determine the meaning of foreign trade, to formulate its goals, was made in the economic doctrine of the mercantilists at the stage of the decline of feudalism and the birth of capitalist relations (XV-XVII centuries). In accordance with the thesis about the determining role of the sphere of circulation, which was the basis of their views, the wealth of the country lies in the possession of values, primarily in the form of gold and precious metals. Representatives of mercantilism T. Man, A. Montchretien believed that the increase in gold reserves is the most important task of the state, and foreign trade should, above all, ensure the receipt of gold. This is achieved by the excess of exports of goods over their imports, active trade balance.

The main theories of international trade were laid down in the late 18th - early 19th centuries. Adam Smith and David Ricardo.

A. Smith's theory of absolute advantage
A. Smith in his book “A Study on the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations” (1776) formulated the theory of absolute advantage and showed that countries should be interested in the free development of international trade, since they can benefit from it regardless of whether they are exporters or importers.

The essence of the theory of absolute advantage is as follows: if a country can produce a particular product more and cheaper than other countries, then it has an absolute advantage. These absolute advantages can, on the one hand, be generated by natural factors - special climatic conditions or the presence of huge natural resources. On the other hand, the advantages in the production of various products (primarily in the manufacturing industries) depend on the prevailing working conditions: technology, qualifications of workers, organization of production, etc.

In conditions where there is no foreign trade, each country can only consume those goods and the quantity that it produces. The prices of these commodities in the market are determined by the national costs of their production.

Things are different in the presence of foreign trade. Due to differences in the availability of factors of production, the technologies used, the qualifications of the labor force, etc., domestic prices for the same goods in different countries are always different. For foreign trade to be profitable, the price of a good on the foreign market must be higher than the domestic price of the same good in the exporting country. The benefit to countries from foreign trade will be the increase in consumption, which may be due to the specialization of production.

Conclusion: each country should specialize in the production of the product in which it has an exclusive (absolute) advantage.

D. Ricardo's theory of relative advantage

D. Ricardo in his "Principles of Political Economy and Taxation" (1817) proved that the principle of absolute advantage is only a special case of the general rule, and substantiated the theory of comparative advantage.

To illustrate the relative advantages, Ricardo took two countries - England and Portugal, two commodities - wine and cloth, and took into account only one factor - national differences in values ​​due to labor costs. He conventionally measured production costs by working time.

In this example, the production of wine and cloth in Portugal is absolutely more efficient than in England. Based on the logic of common sense, it can be argued that if production in a given country (Portugal) is more efficient, goods are cheaper, then there is no reason to buy more expensive goods in a country (England), where their production is more expensive. However, this is at first glance. If we follow the principle of comparative advantage, then we should compare not the absolute, but the relative effect. In Portugal, the cost of cloth production is 2:1 of the cost of wine production, and in England it is 4:3, that is, relatively less.

With wine, the situation is the opposite. The efficiency of wine production in Portugal in comparison with the production of cloth is higher than in England (1/2< 3/4). Следовательно, Португалии из соображений эффективности национальной экономики выгодней сосредоточить труд и капитал в виноделии, заменив производство сукна на его импорт из Англии. Англии по тем же соображениям выгоднее специализироваться на производстве сукна, импортируя вино из Португалии.

Heckscher-Ohlin's theory of international trade

The theory of comparative advantage of D. Ricardo does not answer the question: “What causes differences in costs between countries?” The Swedish economist E. Heckscher and his student B. Ohlin tried to answer this question. According to them, the differences in costs between countries are mainly due to the fact that the relative endowment of countries with factors of production is different.

In accordance with the Heckscher-Ohlin model of international trade, the prices of factors of production are equalized in the process of international trade. The essence of the alignment mechanism is as follows. Initially, the price of factors of production ( wage, lending interest, rent, etc.) will be relatively low for those that are abundant in a given country, and high for those that are scarce. The specialization of a country in the production of capital-intensive goods leads to an intensive flow of capital into export industries. The demand for capital increases in comparison with its supply and, accordingly, its price (interest on capital) increases. On the contrary, the specialization of other countries in the production of labor-intensive goods causes the movement of significant labor resources into the corresponding industries, and the price of labor (wages) also increases accordingly.

Thus, in accordance with this model, both groups of countries are gradually losing their initial advantages, and their levels of development are leveling off. This creates conditions for expanding the range of export industries, their deeper inclusion in the international division of labor, taking into account the comparative advantages that have arisen at a new level of their development.

Leontief's paradox

The well-known American economist of Russian origin Wassily Leontiev in the mid-1950s made an attempt to empirically test the main conclusions of the Heckscher-Ohlin theory and came to paradoxical conclusions. Using the input-output intersectoral balance model built on the basis of data on the US economy for 1947, V. Leontiev proved that relatively more labor-intensive goods prevailed in American exports, while capital-intensive goods dominated in imports. This empirically obtained result contradicted what the Heckscher-Ohlin theory suggested, and therefore received the name "Leontief's paradox". Subsequent studies confirmed the presence of this paradox in the post-war period not only for the United States, but also for other countries (Japan, India, etc.).

Numerous attempts to explain this paradox made it possible to develop and enrich the Heckscher-Ohlin theory by taking into account additional circumstances that affect international specialization, among which we can note: the heterogeneity of production factors, primarily the labor force, which can vary significantly in terms of qualifications; quality management decisions; state foreign trade policy, etc.

Stolper-Samuelson theorem

Wolfgang F. Stolper and P. Samuelson proved that, under certain conditions, foreign trade divides society into those who remain in net gain and those who suffer losses.

Prerequisites: a country produces two goods (for example, wheat and cloth) using two factors of production (for example, land and labor); none of the goods is used to produce the other; there is absolute competition; the supply of factors is given; for the production of one of the goods (wheat), land is intensively used, and the second (cloth) is labor-intensive both in terms of foreign trade and without it; both factors can move between sectors (but not between countries); the establishment of trade relations leads to an increase in the relative price of one of the goods (for example, wheat).

Stolper-Samuelson theorem: under the above assumptions, the establishment of trade relations and free trade inevitably lead to an increase in the reward of a factor intensively used in the production of a good whose price is rising (land), and a decrease in the reward of a factor intensively used in the production of a good whose price is rising. falls (labor), regardless of what the structure of consumption of these goods by the owners of factors of production.

Jones amplification effect

According to the Stolper-Samuelson theorem, international trade leads to an increase in the price of a factor intensively used to produce a good whose price is rising and a decrease in the price of a factor intensively used to produce a good whose price is falling. However, the question arises: is the increase (or decrease) in the price of a factor of production proportional to the increase (or decrease) in the price of the goods produced with its help?

Economic analysis shows that an increase or decrease in the price of factors of production occurs in more than increases or decreases the price of goods produced with their help. This effect is called the Jones amplification effect.