Score contribution per author:
α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count
This paper presents an empirical analysis of the behavior of U.K. imports of manufactures, intended to develop understanding of nonprice competitiveness by evaluating the impact of capacity constraints, international specialization, and industrial standards. Two data sets are employed: aggregate data for the period 1970-93 and a panel of eighty-one industries for 1985-90. Structural stability in a model of the former suggests that no competitiveness improvement has occurred in domestic U.K. manufacturing which matches that found elsewhere for exports. The panel model shows the important impact of standards on imports, while confirming that skilled labor shortages are a key source of volatility. Copyright 1997 by Royal Economic Society.