The Behind-Border Measures Of FTA And Export Behaviors Of Chinese Manufacturing Enterprises

Accelerating the implementation of the free trade zone strategy is an important content of China’s new round of opening up to the outside world,and is also an inherent requirement and inevitable choice for China to deepen reform and opening up and build a new pattern of foreign economic and trade development during the 14 th Five-Year Plan.At present,China’s free trade zone strategy has already achieved initial results,mainly in the form of increasing number,enriching content and improving depth of free trade agreement(FTA).As the main form of participation in regional economic integration,the deepening development of free trade agreements,especially the inclusion of behind-border measures and the improvement of their depth,effectively reduces the trade costs that enterprises need to pay for exports,which has an impact on the export behaviors of Chinese manufacturing enterprises.And it has gradually become an important factor affecting Chinese manufacturing enterprises’ export decisions,export dual margins,export product quality and other export behaviors.Meanwhile,as the world’s largest manufacturing country,manufacturing industry has become an important part of China’s national economy and social development,and manufacturing enterprises,as the main body of microeconomic development,occupy an important position in the development of China’s national economy and foreign trade.The optimization of manufacturing enterprises’ export decisions,export dual margins,export product quality and other export behaviors are important for the healthy and orderly development of China’s manufacturing industry,the stable and positive development of the national economy and the high-quality development of China’s foreign trade.Based on the background,this paper provides a systematic and in-depth analysis of the impact of FTA behind-border measures on the export behaviors of Chinese manufacturing enterprises on the basis of quantifying the text of trade agreements.The research of this paper consists of seven specific chapters.Among them,Chapter 1 is introduction,which firstly elaborates the research background and research significance of this paper,and on this basis,a systematic review of the four types of literature related to this paper is conducted,and then elaborates the research ideas and research content as well as the research methods and technical route of this paper,and finally points out the innovation points and shortcomings of this study.Chapter 2 is the theoretical analysis of the impact of FTA behind-border measures on enterprises’ export behaviors.Based on a clear definition of the specific connotations of the three core concepts of FTA behind-border measures,enterprises’ export behaviors and the quantification of agreements’ text,this chapter analyzes the theoretical basis of FTA behind-border measures affecting enterprises’ export behaviors based on the theory of expanded free trade zone,the theory of the welfare effects of regional trade agreements and the theory of transaction cost,and then uses the theoretical models proposed by Lawless(2012),Hallak and Sivadasan(2013)to analyze the theoretical mechanism by which FTA behind-border measures affect enterprises’ export behaviors.Chapter 3 is the typical factual analysis of FTA behind-border measures and export behaviors of Chinese manufacturing enterprises.Based on the elaboration of the measurement methods of FTA behind-border measures and enterprises’ export behaviors respectively,this chapter analyzes the development status of China’s FTA behind-border measures from three aspects: the total depth of FTA behind-border measures,the depth of behind-border measures in each FTA,and the depth of main behind-border measures in FTA.And it also analyzes the development status of Chinese manufacturing enterprises’ export behaviors from three aspects: the export decisions,the export dual margins and the export product quality.Chapters 4 to 6 are empirical studies of FTA behind-border measures and export behaviors of Chinese manufacturing enterprises.These three chapters empirically analyze the specific impacts,mechanism and expansive impacts of the improvement of the depth of FTA behind-border measures on Chinese manufacturing enterprises’ export decisions,export dual margins and export product quality from the perspective of decision,scale and quality in turn.Chapter 7 is the research conclusions and policy recommendations.This chapter first summarizes the research conclusions of this paper,and then proposes policy recommendations to optimize the export behaviors of Chinese manufacturing enterprises based on the research conclusions.Through theoretical and empirical analysis,this paper draws the following research conclusions: First,the improvement of the depth of FTA behind-border measures can optimize the export behaviors of Chinese manufacturing enterprises,mainly in the form of promoting Chinese manufacturing enterprises to enter the markets of FTA partners,improving the dual margins of Chinese manufacturing enterprises’ exports to FTA partners,and promoting the upgrading of product quality of Chinese manufacturing enterprises’ exports to FTA partners.Second,the impacts of FTA behind-border measures on Chinese manufacturing enterprises’ export decisions,export dual margins and export product quality are heterogeneous due to the different FTA terms,different income levels of FTA partners,and different types of manufacturing enterprises.Third,trade cost is the main channel through which FTA behind-border measures affect Chinese manufacturing enterprises’ export decisions,export dual margins and export product quality,that is,the inclusion of FTA behind-border measures and the improvement of their depth can promote enterprises’ participation in exporting,improve enterprises’ export dual margins and promote the upgrading of enterprises’ export product quality by reducing the trade cost that enterprises need to pay for exporting.Fourthly,FTA behind-border measures have expansive impacts on the export duration,export volatility and technical structure of export products of Chinese manufacturing enterprises.The improvement of the depth of FTA behind-border measures can reduce the export risk of Chinese manufacturing enterprises and extend the duration of Chinese manufacturing enterprises’ exports to FTA partners;the improvement of the depth of FTA behind-border measures can reduce the export volatility of Chinese manufacturing enterprises and smooth out the fluctuation of Chinese manufacturing enterprises’ exports to FTA partners;the improvement of the depth of FTA behind-border measures can optimize the technical structure of export products of Chinese manufacturing enterprises and improve the technical content of Chinese manufacturing enterprises’ products exported to FTA partners.Based on the research conclusions,this paper proposes policy recommendations for optimizing the export behaviors of Chinese manufacturing enterprises,that is,China should continuously improve the depth of FTA behind-border measures.Specifically,First,China should continue to expand the radiation range of FTA behind-border measures,mainly including continuing to expand the radiation range of FTA behind-border measures in signed FTAs and in countries that have not signed trade agreements with China,that is,China should launch negotiations to upgrade signed FTAs and sign more FTAs that include behind-border measures.Second,China should improve the opening level of FTA behind-border measures orderly,mainly including focusing on improving the opening level of behind-border measures in low-level FTAs,continuously improving the opening level of universal inclusion of behind-border measures in FTAs,and further improving the opening level of high-level behind-border measures in FTAs.Third,China should enhance the implementation effects of FTA behind-border measures comprehensively,mainly including enhancing the economic benefits and the social benefits brought by FTA behind-border measures.In addition,China should develop differentiated response strategies for different trade agreement terms,countries with different income levels and different types of manufacturing enterprises,mainly including the response strategy combining universal inclusion,priority inclusion and selective inclusion,the response strategy combining full utilization and optimization adjustmen,and the response strategy combining active guidance and deepening reform.