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Are Asian least developed countries sidelined in advanced manufacturing production networks?
Author(s) -
Suvannaphakdy Sithaxay,
DiCaprio Alisa
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
asian‐pacific economic literature
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.232
H-Index - 21
eISSN - 1467-8411
pISSN - 0818-9935
DOI - 10.1111/apel.12318
Subject(s) - proxy (statistics) , production (economics) , automotive industry , position (finance) , developing country , business , ask price , south asia , economics , international trade , international economics , development economics , industrial organization , economic growth , engineering , finance , macroeconomics , computer science , history , ethnology , machine learning , aerospace engineering
The production of parts for high‐technology final products can play an important role in advancing economic development. This appears a particularly attractive outcome for least developed countries (LDCs). But due to data constraints, analysis has been based largely on middle‐income economies. We seek to address this gap by using proxy data to explore the position of Asian LDCs in electronics and automotive production. Our analysis shows that there has been a surprising amount of LDC trade activity in these sectors over the past decade. In addition, a group of LDCs has succeeded in what appears to be successful engagement with these production networks. We discuss the forms of participation we observe and ask whether they might enable countries to attain development outcomes that might otherwise be out of reach.