Introductory Essay

Abstract

While the precise nature of the causal links between economic growth and international trade may be a matter of dispute, there can be little doubt that growth and trade were closely related during the period of initial development of a world capitalist economy and that they continue to be so related in the present period. Whether one considers the Industrialisation of underdeveloped countries, the growth of the Eastern European economies or that of the advanced capitalist countries, trade and other international economic relationships are of considerable importance. As the overall volume of international trade has grown, its composition has, of course, changed, notable features being the increasing relative importance of trade in industrial, as opposed to primary, products and, in particular, the increasing share in world trade of intermediates and capital goods ([12], [20], [22]).

I should like to thank L. Mainwaring, J. S. Metcalfe, P. A. Samuelson and M. A. M. Smith for helpful comments on an earlier draft of this essay; they bear no responsibility for the views expressed in the present version.