Internationational Labor Movements, Trade Flows and Migration Transitions: A Theoretical Perspective

Abstract

This article presents a theoretical analysis of how the processes of industrialization and development interact with international trade in goods or services to influence a country's turning point from labor exporter to labor importer. It is concluded that trade in goods complements capital movements but substitutes for labor movements, whereas trade in services and labor movements complement each other. The proposed analytical framework suggests that both international trade and migration may contribute to, but cannot lead to, a development process that brings about a migration transition in surplus labor economies.