Central America, Panama, and the Dominican Republic : trade integration and economic performance / prepared by Stephanie Medina Cas, Andrew Swiston, and Luis-Diego Barrot.

Title from PDF title page (IMF Web site, viewed Sept. 28, 2012).

This paper studies the potential for the export sector to play a more important role in promoting growth in Central America, Panama, and the Dominican Republic (CAPDR) through deeper intra-regional and global trade integration. CAPDR countries have enacted many free trade agreements and other regional integration initiatives in recent years, but this paper finds that their exports remain below the norm for countries of their size. Several indexes of outward orientation are constructed and suggest that the breadth of geographic trading relationships, depth of integration into global production chains, and degree of technological sophistication of exports in CAPDR are less conducive to higher exports and growth than in fast-growing, export-oriented economies. To boost exports and growth, CAPDR should implement policies to facilitate economic integration, particularly building a customs union, harmonizing trade rules, improving logistics and infrastructure, and enhancing regional coordination.

Includes bibliographical references.

"Western Hemisphere Department."

"September 2012."

Cover; Contents; I. Introduction and Summary; II. Historical and Prospective Economic Performance; Figures; 1. Economic Growth in CAPDR; 2. Export-to-GDP Ratios, Average 1960-2009; 3. Openness and Growth; 4. Economic Size and Outward Orientation; 5. CAPDR: Exports by Destination; III. Trade Integration Agreements and Regional Initiatives; Box 1. Mesoamerican Project; 6. CAPDR: Average Effective Tariff Rates; 7. Programmed Harmonization of Tariffs under CAPDR; 8. CAPDR: Trade Logistics, Infrastructure, and Customs; IV. The Profile of CAPDR's Exports; A. Overall Exports of Goods and Services

9. CAPDR: Exports to GDP10. CAPDR: Exports of Goods and Services; B. Outward Orientation Indexes; 11. Exports of Small Countries; 12. Intra-Regional Exports of Small Countries; 13. CAPDR: Assessing Outward Orientation; 14. Sophistication of Services Exports; V. Outward Orientation and Economic Performance; A. Exports Model; Tables; 1. The Determinants of Exports to GDP; B. Growth Model; 15. Exports of Small Countries; 16. Intra-Regional Exports of Small Countries; 2. The Impact of Outward Orientation on Growth; VI. Conclusions; 17. CAPDR: Effect on Growth from Improving Export Structure

AppendixesI. Country Groupings, Data Definitions and Sources, and Formulas; Appendix Tables; A.1. Countries Included in the Analysis; A.2. Data Sources; II. Key Features of Multilateral Trade Agreements Involving CAPDR; III. International Trade Agreements in CAPDR; References

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