Análisis del desarrollo de la infraestructura de transporte y la competitividad en los países miembros de la Alianza del Pacífico (2007-2016) - Núm. 11-2, Julio 2019 - Revista Finanzas y Política Económica - Libros y Revistas - VLEX 839119664

Análisis del desarrollo de la infraestructura de transporte y la competitividad en los países miembros de la Alianza del Pacífico (2007-2016)

AutorRaúl Alberto Cortés Villafradez/Nicolás De la Peña Cárdenas
CargoMaster in Organizational Management, University of Quebec at Chicoutimi, Canadá/Master in International Affairs

Introduction

The main objectives of the Pacific Alliance (PA) are to increase regional integration, economic growth, and competitiveness. Therefore, in addition to achieving the flow of goods, capital, and people, it also seeks to consolidate a trade platform with an outlet to the countries of the Asia-Pacific region (Flores, 2017).

The concept of competitiveness has different theoretical perspectives that make it difficult to understand due to the quantity and complexity of the factors involved. The classic definition of competitiveness is given by Porter (2016, p. 224) as “the measure of production value per unit of labour or capital.” In that sense, it equates competitiveness with productivity, but it does not reduce it to it. The purpose of competitiveness studies is to determine causes that affect it.

This research aims to develop a comparative analysis of transport infrastructure and competitiveness variables of the countries that make up the Pacific Alliance Framework Agreement. This agrement was signed in 2012 by Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru and has been in force since 2014, and whose integration objective is based on the free movement of goods, services, capital, and people in order to create value chains and promote insertion in the Asia-Pacific region. The research uses a qualitative study to carry out a comparative analysis of variables. The type of tool used in the study is based on the compilation of statistical information obtained from databases on infrastructure and competitiveness of the Word Economic Forum (WEF), Infralatam, Doing Business, and Comtrade. It is important to clarify that the time series for this study are annualized and are only available from 2007 to 2016, which is why it was not possible to carry out econometric exercises. The null hypothesis of the paper is that improving transport infrastructure, through increased investment, leads to an increased competitiveness of the countries, especially when they are upgrading simultaneously, as is the case of the Pacific Alliance. Consequently, the research question is: Does increased transport infrastructure improve international integration performance in the Pacific Alliance member countries?

The paper consists of four sections. The first part presents a theoretical and conceptual framework for competitiveness, transport infrastructure, and the relationship between these two variables. The second part compares the overall competitiveness of the Pacific Alliance countries. In the third part, the transport infrastructure variables of the Pacific Alliance countries are studied. The fourth section analyzes comparative indicators of investment in transport infrastructure and their impact on competitiveness. The fifth section studies correlations between variables. Finally, the conclusions are presented.

1. Conceptual and Theoretical Background

Porter’s Classic Theory (2016) explains national competitiveness through conditions of production, related industries, firm structure, strategy, and rivalry. For Krugman (1994), it is the capacity of a country to produce the greatest number of globally competitive goods and services, allowing thus its inhabitants to enjoy a better quality of life. In this sense, countries, like companies, compete to develop markets, attract foreign investment, develop infrastructure, and ultimately promote the well-being of their people (Manzur et al., 2006).

In this sense, a distinction must be made between the microeconomic and macroeconomic perspectives of competitiveness. The first aspect refers to the capacity of companies to grow, make profits, and compete, so that it is based on the price, quality, and innovation of products. Thus, a company that is more competitive than others in its sector is more likely to make a higher profit and gain a larger market share. On the other hand, competitiveness at the macro level refers to the concept of national competitiveness. In that sense, institutions, policies, and other factors are the determinants of competitiveness. However, it is important to stress that the two perspectives are not mutually exclusive. In fact, macro competitiveness is recognized as one that provides an adequate environment and allows the development of competitive business activities. Porter (2016) acknowledges that a nation is competitive when it has competitive firms, but these can hardly become so without the right macro environment.

Despite this classification, competitiveness must be understood as a whole in which its different levels interact. Therefore, competitiveness has a systemic perspective (Zmuda, 2017). In this sense, competitiveness has some similarities with the theory of ecological organization, since competition generates pressures for the adaptation of certain actors, while putting pressure on other species in the trophic chain to adapt to changes in these other agents (Winsor, 1998). In that order of ideas, the study of transport infrastructure and competitiveness starts from the fact that changes in the meso level (infrastructure) affect the micro level (business behavior).

However, infrastructure is defined as the set of elements, endowments or services necessary for the proper functioning of a country, a city or an organization. In this sense, countries that make greater investments in transport infrastructure through the construction of civil works on roads, railways, ports, and airports, among others, will have more possibilities for their development and will improve their competitiveness in international markets for goods and services (Kiel et al., 2014). For his part, Frischmann (2012) states that infrastructure is transversal to all sectors of the economy and has the characteristics of a public good.

The World Economic Forum (2017) defines competitiveness as the set of institutions, policies, and factors that determine a country’s level of productivity. It is a construct that depends on several pillars, such as institutions, infrastructure, macroeconomic environment, health, and basic education, high level of education and skills development, efficient goods and services market, efficient labor market, financial market development, technology management, market size, business sophistication, and innovation. For the purposes of this research, competitiveness in infrastructure will be evaluated according to the Global Competitiveness Index, prepared by the World Economic Forum. This indicator consists of 12 pillars calculated based on primary sources (executive surveys) and secondary sources (international databases). All information from either primary or secondary sources was standardized on a scale of 1 to 7, with 1 being the lowest and 7 the highest. All indices, sub-indices, and the overall score of the Global Competitiveness Report used this scale.

In this article, the evaluation of infrastructure development levels is carried out using the infrastructure pillar of the Global Competitiveness Index, which is made up of two sub-indices: on the one hand, transport infrastructure; and, on the other, electrical and communications infrastructure. The variable to be studied in greater depth in this work is transport infrastructure, which is composed of six variables: (i) overall quality of infrastructure; (ii) quality of tracks; (iii) quality of rail infrastructure; (iv) quality of port infrastructure; (v) quality of air transport infrastructure; and (vi) availability of seats on airlines.

Transport infrastructure affects competitiveness through three mechanisms. First, it stimulates international and national trade by reducing transportation times and costs (Khadaroo & Seetanah, 2007; Zamora & Pedraza, 2013; Gani, 2017). Second, it increases interactions between economic agents, since it allows reaching larger markets in addition to reducing the dominant position. In addition, other sectors decline, given the relocation of economic activity (Chandra & Thompson, 2000; Gómez et al., 2016; Laird & Venables, 2017). Third, it connects regions that previously had restricted access to transport infrastructure, which stimulates improvements in education, health, and insertion in national and international economic circuits (Kiel, Smith & Ubbels, 2014).

Several studies have found empirical evidence that supports the theories mentioned above. For Spain (Benassi et al., 2015), Turkey (Cosar & Demir, 2016), and the Baltic states (Maciulis, Vasiliauskas & Jakubauskas, 2009), trade flows increased as a result of infrastructure improvements. For Chile, it is found that the destruction of transport infrastructure by the 2010 earthquake resulted in the reduction of international trade. Related effects have been measured for the Colombian case, finding that transport flows affect the economic structure between urban centres (Roda et al., 2015); logistics is also evidenced as an issue that limits competitiveness in Colombia (Franco, Gómez & Becerra, 2018). On the other hand, Duranton (2015) finds that the development of transport infrastructure in Colombia has significant effects on the exports of cities that benefit from infrastructure investments. In this regard, Yepes and Aguilar (2011) suggest promoting greater integration in the Americas, aiming to unleash cascading effects on productivity, interregional trade, and the insertion of countries into world economy. To this end, it is essential that there is an adaptation and expansion of regional, sub-regional, and national infrastructure, such as roads, railways, ports, airports, and power plants, which will have a positive effect on regional competitiveness by reducing logistics costs and attracting external investment.

According to Gutiérrez (2009), the lack of physical infrastructure aimed at economic development has been one of the most questioned elements in terms of the productive and competitive capacity of countries to face international trade, especially those in the process of development. In...

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