Pymes manufactureras exportadoras en Colombia: un análisis de su actividad real

This paper examines why some small and medium enterprises, or SMEs, export while others do not, even when they face similar macroeconomic and trade policy situations. With this aim, the difference between SMEs that are exporters and those that are not during the period 2000-2012 is analysed statistically. The analysis confirms the modest orientation of Colombia’s industrial structure towards international markets. The SMEs that exported grew more in terms of industrial production than the non-exporting ones; in addition, they exhibited the greatest levels of capital and total number of employees. The hypothesis on pre-selection of SMEs to export according to labour productivity levels is also verified. Likewise, the companies that recorded the highest levels of productivity also presented the highest probabilities of exporting, although this probability registered a decreasing trend in the period analysed. The probability to export was also affected positively by those firms that did it in the past.