The World Trade Network: empirical models and theoretical models: analysis of the economic relations and interdependence between countries through the use of Network Analysis techniques.

About the project

The World Trade Network: empirical models and theoretical models: analysis of the economic relations and interdependence between countries through the use of Network Analysis techniques.

Title: The World Trade Network: empirical models and theoretical models

Principal Investigators: Luca De Benedictis, Giorgio Fagiolo, Massimo Riccaboni, Lucia Tajoli

Funders: MIUR, PRIN

Duration: 2011-2015 – ongoing

Partners: Università di Macerata, Scuola di Studi Superiori Sant’Anna di Pisa

KEY RESEARCH QUESTIONS

OUTPUTS & IMPACT

KEY RESEARCH QUESTIONS

Research on countries’ international links using the methodology of network analysis was at the center of a research project financed by MIUR. The theme of the project was the analysis of the economic relations and interdependence between countries – in particular trade relations, but not exclusively – through the use of Network Analysis techniques. The objective was, on the one hand, the development of theoretical models that explain the evolution and structure of networks of international economic relations, on the other hand – using data of different nature and object – the description of the characteristics common to the different networks international trade (aggregate or sectoral trade, migration flows, direct investment abroad); investigating which statistical models allowed hypothesis testing on network properties; the critical analysis of classical econometric models based on the concept of gravitational equation; the study of how the international transmission of the economic cycle and the spread of shocks followed the reticular structure of relations between countries.

After the end of the PRIN project, research in this area is still going on, extending the analysis to other datasets and developing new methodologies.

OUTPUTS & IMPACTS

Main publications

De Lombaerde P., Iapadre P., McCranie A., Tajoli L., (2018), Using Network Analysis to Study Globalization, Regionalization and Multi-Polarity – Introduction to Special Section, Network Science, Vol. 6, issue 4, December.
Piccardi C, Tajoli L (2018), Complexity, centralization, and fragility in economic networks. PLoS ONE 13(11): e0208265. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0208265
Cingolani, I., Iapadre, L., Tajoli, L. (2018), International production networks and the world trade structure, International Economics, vol. 153.
De Benedictis L., L. Tajoli (2018), Global and local centrality of emerging countries in the world trade network, in Networks of International Trade and Investment. Understanding globalisation through the lens of network analysis, S. Gorgoni, A. Amighini, M. Smith (Eds.), Vernon Press.
Abbate, A., De Benedictis, L., Fagiolo, G., Tajoli, L. (2018), Distance-varying assortativity and clustering of the international trade network. Network Science, 1-28. doi:10.1017/nws.2018.7
Piccardi C., M. Riccaboni, L. Tajoli, Z. Zhu (2018), Random walks on the world input–output network, Journal of Complex Networks, https://doi.org/10.1093/comnet/cnx036.
Cingolani, I., C. Piccardi, L. Tajoli, (2015), Discovering Preferential Patterns in Sectoral Trade Networks,. DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0140951. pp.e0140951-1-e0140951-16, PLOS ONE, vol. 10 (10).
Piccardi C:, L. Tajoli (2015), Are Preferential Agreements Significant for the World Trade Structure? A Network Community Analysis, Kyklos, Vol. 68, No. 2.
De Benedictis, L., S. Nenci, G. Santoni, L. Tajoli, C. Vicarelli (2014), Network Analysis of World Trade using the BACI-CEPII dataset, Global Economic Journal, Vol. 14, Issue 3-4.
Iapadre P.L., L. Tajoli (2014), Emerging countries and trade regionalization. A network analysis, Journal of Policy Modeling, doi 10.1016/j.jpolmod.2013.10.010
Piccardi C:, L. Tajoli (2012), Existence and significance of communities in the world trade web, Physical Review E.