Understanding International Trade

Insights from Trade Theory
Erscheinungsjahr 2026
ISBN: 978-0-19-782107-7
Verlag: Oxford University Press

Buch, Englisch, 240 Seiten, Print PDF, Format (B × H): 156 mm x 235 mm

In Understanding International Trade, Reto Foellmi and Stefan Legge provide a clear, structured, and profound introduction to the theory of international trade. Designed for students and practitioners with an interest in global economics, the book explains why nations trade, how trade affects welfare and income distribution, and what determines the patterns and volume of global trade flows.

Starting with the earliest trade models, such as Ricardo's theory of comparative advantage, the book walks through a range of foundational and advanced models, seeking a deep understanding while avoiding technical overload. It includes the Heckscher-Ohlin framework, specific-factors models, the Dornbusch-Fischer-Samuelson and the Eaton-Kortum model. It then transitions to modern trade theory, covering increasing returns to scale, monopolistic competition, and firm-level heterogeneity as in the Krugman and Melitz models. Each model is presented with a clear setup, graphical illustrations, and economic intuition, allowing readers to understand the underlying mechanisms as well as policy implications. The book emphasizes both the theoretical and empirical relevance of trade models. It explains how trade costs, productivity differences, and endowment structures influence trade flows, and introduces tools like the gravity equation for analyzing real-world data. While it focuses on real trade in goods, it also touches on factor mobility and the role of institutions in shaping trade outcomes.

A comprehensive yet approachable guide with exercises at the end of each chapter, this book offers a better understanding of the logic, structure, and real-world relevance of international trade theory.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Foellmi, Reto

Legge, Stefan

Inhaltsverzeichnis

- Chapter 1: The Ricardian Trade Model

- Chapter 2: The 2x2 Model

- Chapter 3: The Heckscher-Ohlin Model

- Chapter 4: The Specific-Factors Model

- Chapter 5: The-Dornbusch-Fischer-Samuelson Model

- Chapter 6: The Eaton-Kortum Model

- Chapter 7: The Krugman Model

- Chapter 8: The Melitz Model

- Chapter 9: The Gravity Equation

Über Autor(innen)

Reto Foellmi is Professor of International Economics at the University of St. Gallen, Director of SIAW-HSG, and currently Vice President for Institutes & Executive Education. Further, he is Research Fellow at CEPR. He earned his PhD in economics at the University of Zurich and has held visiting appointments at several universities. From 2007-2011, he was Associate Professor of Macroeconomics at the University of Bern. Foellmi's research interests lie in international trade, macroeconomics, distribution, and economic growth. He has published extensively on these subjects, including three books as well as several articles in leading journals.

Stefan Legge is a Lecturer in Economics as well as Vice Director and Head of Tax & Trade Policy at the ILE Institute of the University of St.Gallen in Switzerland. He received his PhD in Economics and Finance from the University of St.Gallen in 2016 and held visiting positions at Princeton, UC Berkeley, and UC San Diego. His research focuses on

international trade as well as macroeconomics and has been published in leading economics journals. Having won several teaching awards, also for MBA and Executive MBA courses, his opinion on current economic discussions is regularly published in leading international media.