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Journal of Economic Geography Advance Access originally published online on November 7, 2008
Journal of Economic Geography 2009 9(4):559-581; doi:10.1093/jeg/lbn045
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© The Author (2008). Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

Why an economic core: domestic transport costs

Rodney Ramcharan*

*International Monetary Fund, 700 19th Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20431, USA.

email <rramcharan{at}imf.org>

JEL classifications: R12, R40, F12

What determines the spatial distribution of economic activity? And why is economic activity sometimes ‘lumpy’, distributed in a core-periphery pattern in some countries? This article uses new subregional data on the spatial distribution of economic activity for a large cross section of countries, as well as information on roads, rails and surface topography to help understand the role of domestic transport costs in shaping economic geography. The evidence suggests a significant role for physical geography and transport costs in determining the location of economic activity. Countries with rougher surfaces have less developed road and rail transport networks, and greater spatial concentration of economic activity.

Keywords: spatial concentration, domestic transport costs
Date submitted: 23 August 2007     Date accepted: 8 October 2008


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