Working Paper: NBER ID: w5665
Authors: Douglas A. Irwin
Abstract: In the century after the Civil War, roughly two-thirds of U.S. dutiable imports were subject to specific duties whose ad valorem equivalent was inversely related to the price level. This paper finds that import price fluctuations easily dominate commercial policies (changes in rates of import duty) in bringing about changes in the average U.S. tariff from 1865-1973. About three-quarters of the post-Smoot Hawley decline in U.S. tariffs, for example, can be attributed to higher import prices, the remainder to negotiated reductions in tariff rates.
Keywords: tariffs; import prices; ad valorem duties; specific duties
JEL Codes: F13; F14
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| import prices (P22) | average ad valorem tariff rates (H25) |
| import price movements (E30) | average tariff rates (F13) |
| import prices (P22) | decline in U.S. tariffs (F13) |
| average ad valorem equivalent of specific duties (H25) | price level (E30) |
| import prices (P22) | passive changes in tariffs (F13) |
| import prices (P22) | tariff movements (O24) |