Export Functions

Abstract

The factors affecting the quantity of goods exported by a country will be the same as those affecting a country’s demand for imports, though they may be expected to differ in relative importance. First, there is the ability and willingness of domestic producers to supply, which depends partly on capacity and partly on the domestic pressure of demand, which may divert goods away from foreign markets to the home market. Second, the price of exports compared with prices charged by foreign competitors in different export markets may be expected to exert some influence. Third, the level of income and expenditure in foreign markets will affect the quantity of exports sold. In addition a host of non-price factors may be expected to affect the demand for exports-such as the quality, design and reliability of goods, and the time it takes for their delivery. Some of these factors, more difficult to quantify, are discussed in Chapter 12.