Similar to tariffs, non-tariff measures (NTMs) may restrict trade flows between countries. The Database of Ad Valorem Equivalent of Non-Tariff Measures, DAVE-NTM for short, presents the estimated ad valorem equivalent (AVEs) of NTMs, at detailed HS 6-digit level, with variations across importing and exporting countries. These estimated AVEs are from "Trade Fraud and Non-Tariff Measures" (Kee and Nicita, Journal of Internaltional Economics, Nov 2022). This paper provides a theoretical model and empirical evidence showing that discrepancies between the statistics of importing and exporting countries increase with AVEs, consistent with trade fraud due to traders intentionally mis-declaring countries of origin or misclassify products in order to evade NTMs. The results are driven by homogeneous products and the trade between developed and developing countries.
The dataset below are used to estimate AVE of NTMs and to replicate the tables reported in Kee and Nicita (2022). Two Readme files are provided as directions for use. Please cite the original paper when using these estimates and the data:
Kee, Hiau Looi and Nicita, Alessandro (2022). "Trade Fraud and Non-Tariff Measures," the Journal of International Economics 139, Article 103682.