Trade in Services: A Review

Abstract

Services sector has emerged as the largest and fastest-growing sector in the world economy in the last two decades, providing more than 60 per cent of global output and, in many countries, an even larger share of employment. Not only has the services sector grown in terms of its share in global output and employment, its share in total trade has also grown rapidly in this period. The growing importance of services sector and the corresponding rise in its role in integrating the world economy has led to a stream of literature that examines different aspects of trade in services. This paper undertakes a selective review of both theoretical as well as empirical studies on trade in services. It identifies some of the conceptual issues in this area, e.g., whether theories of trade are relevant for services; what are the important barriers to trade in services; and how are these barriers measured. The main objective of the paper is to provide policy insights and future areas of research in trade in services.