Informal trade and the price of import bans: Evidence from Nigeria
This paper studies the impact of trade restrictions and illegal trade on price disparities within Nigeria, where a long list of import prohibitions on various consumer goods have raised the price of the consumption basket. Large-scale illegal trade at the border with Benin allows traders bypass thes...
| Autores principales: | , , |
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| Formato: | Artículo preliminar |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
| Publicado: |
International Food Policy Research Institute
2016
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/147877 |
| _version_ | 1855528728517410816 |
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| author | Bensassi, Sami Jarreau, Joachim Mitaritonna, Cristina |
| author_browse | Bensassi, Sami Jarreau, Joachim Mitaritonna, Cristina |
| author_facet | Bensassi, Sami Jarreau, Joachim Mitaritonna, Cristina |
| author_sort | Bensassi, Sami |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | This paper studies the impact of trade restrictions and illegal trade on price disparities within Nigeria, where a long list of import prohibitions on various consumer goods have raised the price of the consumption basket. Large-scale illegal trade at the border with Benin allows traders bypass these prohibitions. We investigate whether this illegal trade mitigates the impact of import bans on domestic prices. Using a simple theoretical model and monthly price data, we exploit changes in the prohibition list, as well as spatial variation between border and non-border states, to identify the effect of smuggling. Results indicate that, for agricultural goods in particular, the price hike associated with an import ban is lower in border states. However, we find little evidence that bans disrupt the cointegration relationship between states. These results are consistent with a large diffusion of smuggled goods across Nigerian states, and with the higher price elasticity to distance in the illegal trade sector. |
| format | Artículo preliminar |
| id | CGSpace147877 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2016 |
| publishDateRange | 2016 |
| publishDateSort | 2016 |
| publisher | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| publisherStr | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1478772025-11-06T06:34:55Z Informal trade and the price of import bans: Evidence from Nigeria Bensassi, Sami Jarreau, Joachim Mitaritonna, Cristina informal sector trade barriers import controls prices This paper studies the impact of trade restrictions and illegal trade on price disparities within Nigeria, where a long list of import prohibitions on various consumer goods have raised the price of the consumption basket. Large-scale illegal trade at the border with Benin allows traders bypass these prohibitions. We investigate whether this illegal trade mitigates the impact of import bans on domestic prices. Using a simple theoretical model and monthly price data, we exploit changes in the prohibition list, as well as spatial variation between border and non-border states, to identify the effect of smuggling. Results indicate that, for agricultural goods in particular, the price hike associated with an import ban is lower in border states. However, we find little evidence that bans disrupt the cointegration relationship between states. These results are consistent with a large diffusion of smuggled goods across Nigerian states, and with the higher price elasticity to distance in the illegal trade sector. 2016-10-26 2024-06-21T09:23:26Z 2024-06-21T09:23:26Z Working Paper https://hdl.handle.net/10568/147877 en Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Bensassi, Sami; Jarreau, Joachim; and Mitaritonna, Cristina. 2016. AGRODEP Working Paper 0026. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://hdl.handle.net/10568/147877 |
| spellingShingle | informal sector trade barriers import controls prices Bensassi, Sami Jarreau, Joachim Mitaritonna, Cristina Informal trade and the price of import bans: Evidence from Nigeria |
| title | Informal trade and the price of import bans: Evidence from Nigeria |
| title_full | Informal trade and the price of import bans: Evidence from Nigeria |
| title_fullStr | Informal trade and the price of import bans: Evidence from Nigeria |
| title_full_unstemmed | Informal trade and the price of import bans: Evidence from Nigeria |
| title_short | Informal trade and the price of import bans: Evidence from Nigeria |
| title_sort | informal trade and the price of import bans evidence from nigeria |
| topic | informal sector trade barriers import controls prices |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/147877 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT bensassisami informaltradeandthepriceofimportbansevidencefromnigeria AT jarreaujoachim informaltradeandthepriceofimportbansevidencefromnigeria AT mitaritonnacristina informaltradeandthepriceofimportbansevidencefromnigeria |