Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/66079 
Year of Publication: 
2005
Series/Report no.: 
NZ Trade Consortium Working Paper No. 40
Publisher: 
New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER), Wellington
Abstract: 
New Zealand import protection was been reduced from amongst the highest in the developed world in the 1980’s to about the OECD average in 1999. At that point, Government stopped further reductions that had been planned. That policy has left import protection on apparel goods (clothing and footwear) at high levels and restricted imports from many important trading partners, particularly in Asia. Future import protection in apparel goods may need to be revisited as New Zealand continues negotiations on free trade agreements with China and other countries. The consumer gains that could be made from further reductions in apparel tariffs and anti-dumping duties will be influenced by recent market changes in New Zealand. Markets have changed a great deal over the last few decades in response to a range of demand and supply side factors. This paper reports on consumer demand elasticities estimated over the last twenty years for apparel items purchased by New Zealand households that would be useful in evaluating further reductions in import protection. The Rotterdam model parameter estimates indicate that the demand for particular apparel items has been very price-elastic with significant cross-price elasticities. This would imply that the overall consumer gains from reductions in import protection for apparel might be less than in the past.
JEL: 
C32
D12
L67
R22
Document Type: 
Working Paper

Files in This Item:
File
Size
355.55 kB





Items in EconStor are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.