Impact of Trade Openness on Economic Growth in Emerging Economies: A Panel Data Analysis

Abstract

The role of international trade in boosting economic growth is imperative in the era of globalization and trade liberalization. A trade openness policy can help stimulate economic growth mainly in two ways. Firstly, technology is transferred from developed countries to developing countries through imports. Secondly, the export promotion strategies facilitate the innovations and inventions promoting competition among the producers. In this way, research-intensive specialization culture is flourished in developing countries. This study aims at examining the effect of global trade orientation on growth in 23 emerging economies for the period 1995-2018. The panel data estimation approach including fixed effect and generalized method of moments (GMM) reveal a positive and statistically significant influence of trade openness on economic growth.  The empirical results are robust to the various specifications, supporting the trade-led growth notion in the economies under consideration. The emerging economies can achieve higher growth rates through trade openness and export promotion strategies.