In this thesis, I focused on the theory development and empirical analysis on topics relating to innovation and international trade. In Chapter 1, I measured the evolution of comparative advantage for over 60 economies using the Regression-Based Index (RBI) approach. The comparative advantage is measured over time and compared with cross-sectional measures of R&D intensity and skill intensity. The results show that non-OECD economies experienced larger changes in comparative advantage over time and are moving towards sectors with higher R&D and skill intensities. In Chapter 2, I developed a theoretical model to study the effectiveness of China’s provincial patent policies. The policies are divided into two types: reward policies and subsidy policies. The model is found to be consistent...[ Read more ]

In this thesis, I focused on the theory development and empirical analysis on topics relating to innovation and international trade. In Chapter 1, I measured the evolution of comparative advantage for over 60 economies using the Regression-Based Index (RBI) approach. The comparative advantage is measured over time and compared with cross-sectional measures of R&D intensity and skill intensity. The results show that non-OECD economies experienced larger changes in comparative advantage over time and are moving towards sectors with higher R&D and skill intensities. In Chapter 2, I developed a theoretical model to study the effectiveness of China’s provincial patent policies. The policies are divided into two types: reward policies and subsidy policies. The model is found to be consistent with empirical findings in that the policies have increased the patenting activities. In Chapter 3, I estimated the competitiveness of over 60 economies using different estimation models. I showed several results on balanced-trade competitiveness and comparative advantage.