Immigrant Links to the Home Country: Empirical Implications for U.S. Bilateral Trade Flows

Immigrants' ties to their home countries can play a key role in fostering bilateral trade linkages. Immigrant ties include knowledge of home-country markets, language, preferences, and business contacts that have the potential to decrease trading transaction costs. Empirical results for the United States suggest that immigrant links have historically been important in increasing bilateral trade flows with immigrants' home countries. Copyright 1994 by MIT Press.