P: ISSN No. 2394-0344 RNI No.  UPBIL/2016/67980 VOL.- VII , ISSUE- V August  - 2022
E: ISSN No. 2455-0817 Remarking An Analisation
An Analysis of Trade Potential among BRICS Nations
Paper Id :  16358   Submission Date :  2022-08-05   Acceptance Date :  2022-08-19   Publication Date :  2022-08-25
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Somnath Pruthi
Assistant Professor
Economics
Guru Jambheshwar University Of Science & Technology
Hisar,Haryana, India
Abstract
The purpose of the study is to identify the trade Potential among the BRICS nations. The study uses Export diversification (EDI), Export concentration (ECI), Import Concentration (ICI) and Import Diversification (IDI) indices and trade volumes to determine the trade Potential among BRICS nations. In terms of Export diversification, the Russia, China and Brazil were found with the increasing trend of EDI which signifies that these countries have more competitiveness among BRICS nations and have economic potential to compete with other developed countries. Similarly, in terms of Import diversification India and China are at high among BRICS nations which is the witness of their increasing growth trajectory and may contribute to their development significantly.
Keywords Trade policy, Empirical studies of Trade Potential, Regional Blocs JEL Codes : F13, F14, F19.
Introduction
BRICS in Global Economy- From the start of the 21st century, the BRICS countries have been well-thought-out the five emerging developing economies in the world. BRICS contributes seventeen percent in world trade and thirty percent in world GDP. Originally, the term BRIC was used by economists to denote emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, and China, however, these countries have involved in annual summits since 2009, and the group has included South Africa in 2010. During 2008 to 2018, the world GDP has grown by 2.5 percent on an average, every year. However, GDP growth in the BRICS nations has grown faster than the world GDP growth at 3.9 percent, during 2008-18, courtesy India and China, which grew on an average by 6.7 percent and 8.1 percent, respectively. In 2021, China has the largest GDP of the BRICS country, around at 17 trillion U.S. dollars, while the others have generated below three trillion. Collectively, the BRICS alliance has a GDP over 25 trillion U.S. dollars in 2021, which is somewhat more than GDP of the United States. World Economic Forum has ranked China at 5th, India at 30th, Russia 35th, Brazil at 41th and South Africa at 45th place in global manufacturing index. India has been addressed as the fifth largest manufacturer in world with value USD 400 billion in 2016. Out of total BRICS trade, the contribution by its member are 12.08, 2, 1.11, 1.56 and 0.51 for China, India, Brazil, Russia and South Africa respectively. Intra-BRICS export has been increased from 4.27 percent to 9.29 percent during 2001 to 2021. Although, BRICS exports with the rest of world has been decreased from 95.73 percent to 90.71 percent during 2001-2021 which confirms its changing position in the world order.
Objective of study
1. To analyse the trends of Trade among Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa 2. To analyse the trade Competitiveness of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa using Export/ Import Diversification and Export/ Import Concentration indices. 3. To derive policy implications for regional blocs or grouping.
Review of Literature

No country in this world can produce everything to fulfil all needs of its people as given the Law of Scarcity. Therefore, the exchange/ trade at subnational, national and international level is essential and required. Indeed, there is scope of inter and intra- Industry trade among different countries of the world. Burange et al. (2013) has proposed that trade liberalization boosts the economy of nation and hence promote its value of trade. Without any free trade agreements, a country has to face several barriers like tariff, currency swaps, export licenses, import licenses, import quotas, subsidiaries etc. In order to overcome such barriers countries, need to come together to form regional trade agreement. BRICS is an acronym for the association of five nations i.e., Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. MEA GOI (2013) the term BRIC was coined by O’Neil of Goldman Sacks in his paper “The world needs better economic BRIC”. EXIM bank of India (2016) 1st BRIC Meeting of foreign Ministers was held in 2006 which laid the foundation stone of BRIC. Earlier before the induction of South Africa, it was termed as BRIC with four member nations. In 2010 South Africa joined BRIC in 2010 to form it BRICS and attended third BRICS Summit as a formal member. Morazan et al. (2012) highlighted that either the GDP and economy of South Africa are much smaller than the other four members but still it had a greater potential with stable political structure. It has been ranked as upper middle-income country and only African country to get place in G 20. Due to these potentials the BRIC members agreed to invite South Africa to join BRIC. BRICS (2017) BRICS has undergone nine summits from 2009 to 2017 i.e.,1st BRIC summit held in June 2009 Yekaterinburg, Russia to discuss the issues like global financial crisis, potential of BRIC dialogue, food security, climate change, energy security, the G20 summit etc. It summarized a joint statement on Global Food Security. The 2nd summit of BRIC was held in April 2010 in Brasillia, Brazil to address the issues including the global financial crisis, the selection of mechanism of World Bank and senior management of IMF, G 20 affairs, UN reform, climate change etc. It adopted the joint statement to generate BRIC cooperation and coordination. The 3rd BRIC summit was held in April 2011, in Sanya city of China with the theme of “Broad vision, Shared Prosperity” to move forward for cooperation within BRICS. The 4th summit was held in New Delhi in March 2012, India with the theme of “BRICS Partnership for Global Stability, Security and Prosperity” to discuss upon the issues of global governance and sustainable development. The 5th BRICS Summit was held in March 2013 in Durban, South Africa under the theme “BRICS and Africa: Partnership for development, Integration and Industrialization”. They proposed the establishment of Contingent Reserve Arrangement and New Development Bank and along with Business council and Think tank Council. The 6th BRICS Summit was held in Fortaleza in July 2014, Brazil under the theme “Inclusive Growth: Sustainable Solutions” to discuss the issues like sustainable development, political coordination and inclusive growth. The 7th BRICS Summit was held in July 2015 in Ufa city of Russia under the theme “BRICS Partnership- a Powerful Factor of Global Development” on the issues including global economic cooperation. The 8th BRICS Summit was held in Goa in October 2016, India under the theme “Building Responsive, inclusive and Collective Solutions” to discuss on the issues relating to international political, global governance and economic issues, climate change, counter terrorism, BRICS Cooperation etc. The 9th BRICS Summit was held in Xiamen September 2017, China under the theme “BRICS: Stronger Partnership for a Brighter Future” for the issues including global economic governance, promoting development of sports, cooperation and common development, cultural exchanges, etc. Several researchers like Burange et al. (2013), Bhattacharya & Bhattacharya (2016), Rasoulinezhad & Jabalameli (2018), Chatterjee et al. (2014) have supported that foreign trade cooperation among the BRICS nations have positive impact over the economic growth of India. Bhattacharya & Bhattacharya (2016) proposed that India has become an open economy not in BRICS but also worldwide. The study supported that India’s trade openness has exceeded China, Russia and Brazil. The study also revealed that by increasing the share of BRICS in international trade it will lead to a significant position of BRICS in international trade negotiation and global supply chain. EXIM Bank of India (2016) highlighted that Intra-BRICS Trade relation in his paper “Intra-BRICS Trade: An Indian Perspective”. The suggestions of the study to enhance the cooperation in BRICS trade were by improving transparency, of trade; creating favorable conditions for development of multilateral trade and FDI in BRICS nations; by streamlining and increasing efficiency of secretarial procedures to facilitate and accelerate multilateral trade and investment and by enhancing information on trade policies. EXIM Bank of India (2020) in association with FICCI in its study, “Promoting Trade, Investment and Business Cooperation in BRICS nations” emphasized that the basic principle under which the BRICS as a formal association was forged was to primarily become a more constructive and progressive union in the developing world. Amidst heterogeneity amongst the member economies, the countries have continued to look forward towards having worked together in multiple areas, such as domestic institutions, social programs, infrastructure, governance, domestic institutions, social programs, investment and trade and amongst many others that can gradually put them at an advantageous position as compared to developed countries. The five nations collective hold less than fifteen percent voting rights in both the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), yet cumulatively, these economies are predicted to beat the cumulative size of G7 economies by 2032.

Research Methodology

The Data on concerned variables of the studyhas been collected from United Nations Conference on Trade and Development statistic data for the period 1996-2020 (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, 2021). Also, the study used secondary data from WITS, UNCTARD BRICS website etc. during 2001-02 to 2020-21. The study describes the intra and inter trade competitiveness of the BRICS Nations. It has used percentage, export concentration index, export diversification index and import concentration index, Import diversification index.
The following indices, computed by United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (2021), have been used to evaluate the level of foreign trade diversification of a country and its similarity to the world trade structure:
Concentration index, also named Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI), is a measure of the de­gree of product concentration. Normalized HHI obtains values between 0 and 1 (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, 2021):


Where:
Hj= Country or Country group index;
Xij= Value of export for country j and product i;
n = number of products;
Xj=

An index value closer to 1 indicates that a country’s exports or imports are highly concentrated on a few sectors/products. On the contrary, values closer to 0 reflect exports or imports are more homo­geneously distributed among a series of products/ sectors(United Nations Conference on Trade and De­velopment, 2021).
Diversification index (modified Finger-Kreinin measure of similarity in trade) is computed by measuring the absolute deviation of the trade structure of a country from the world structure (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, 2021):


Where: hij- share of product I in total exports or imports of country or country group j

               hi- share of product I in total world exports or imports.

The diversification index takes values between 0 and 1. A value closer to 1 indicates greater di­vergence from the world pattern (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, 2021).

Result and Discussion

The discussion of the present study is divided in three sections. The first section of the study focuses over intra-regional trade and trade with rest of the world. In second section trade potential is shown with the help of Export/ Imports diversification and export/ imports concentration index. In third section the study determines the Export potential by analyzing actual trade with each other and how much they can increase their trade with each other by making changes in their respective trade policies.

Section I: Analysis of Intra Regional Trade and Trade with rest of the World

Table: 5.1 Intra-Regional Trade among BRICS (in Percentage term)

Export

Import

Year

Intra- BRICS

Rest of the World

Intra- BRICS

Rest of the World

2001

4.27

95.73

8.34

91.66

2002

4.72

95.28

9.72

90.28

2003

5.13

94.87

10.93

89.07

2004

5.22

94.78

11.90

88.10

2005

5.69

94.31

13.64

86.36

2006

5.87

94.13

14.12

85.88

2007

6.62

93.38

14.88

85.12

2008

7.18

92.82

15.21

84.79

2009

7.65

92.35

15.82

84.18

2010

8.50

91.50

15.75

84.25

2011

8.92

91.08

16.14

83.86

2012

8.78

91.22

16.67

83.33

2013

8.69

91.31

16.69

83.31

2014

8.50

91.50

16.57

83.43

2015

7.71

92.29

17.61

82.39

2016

7.48

92.52

14.77

85.23

2017

8.34

91.66

14.75

85.25

2018

8.93

91.07

14.89

85.11

2019

9.06

90.94

14.88

85.12

2020

8.87

91.13

14.97

85.03

2021

9.29

90.71

15.13

84.87

Source: Calculation based on UNTAD

Figure 5.1.1 Exports of Intra BRICS (in Percentage term)


Source: Compiled by researcher using data in table 5.1

Figure 5.1.2 Exports of BRICS to Rest of the world (in Percentage term) 


Source: Compiled by researcher using data in table 5.1 

Figure 5.1.3 Imports of Intra BRICS (in Percentage term)


Source: Compiled by researcher using data in table 5.1 

Figure 5.1.4 Imports of BRICS to Rest of the world (in Percentage term)


Source: Compiled by researcher using data in table 5.1 

Table 5.1, figures 5.1.1, 5.1.2, 5.1.3 and 5.1.4 show that the Intra regional Trade and trade with rest of the world of BRICS Nations from 2001 to 2021. It can be observed that the trade of BRICS Nations with rest of the world is much more than among themselves. Presently, they don’t have any free trade agreement among themselves while FTA offers trade potential for all the BRICS Nations. In 2001 intra-BRICS exports were 4.27 % while with rest of the world were 95.73 %. It rose continuously in the consecutive years but not at the appealing rate. In 2005, 2010, 2015 and 2021 it was 5.69, 8.50, 9.29 respectively while with rest of the world exports in these years were 94.31, 91.50, 92.29, 90.71. Similarly, Intra BRICS imports in 2001 were 8.34 and with rest of the world were 91.66. The import among BRICS Nations also shows an upward trend which were 13.64, 15.75, 17.61 and 15.13 in 2005, 2010, 2015 and 2021 respectively while with rest of the world were 85.88, 83.86, 82.39 and 84.87 in 2005, 2010, 2015 and 2021. Therefore, the results describe that the intra trade among the BRICS nations is very low as compared with rest of the world. It is clearly stated that with change in their trade policies they may increase their intra trade potential by reducing trade with rest of the world.

Section-II: Analysis of Trade Potential using Export/Import Concentration and Diversification Index

Table 5.2 Export Diversification Index and Export Concentration Index


Source: UNCTAD, **EDI is the Export Diversification Index and *ECI is the Export Concentration Index.

Figure 5.2.1 Export Diversification Index of BRICS


Source: Compiled by researcher using data in table 5.2     

Figure 5.2.2 Export Concentration Index of BRICS


Source: Compiled by researcher using data in table 5.2 
Table 5.2 and Figure 5.2.1 show that the Export Diversification Index and Export Concentration Index of the BRICS nations. Export Diversification Index of Russia is highest among the BRICS nations. The value closure to 1 indicates more differences in the structure of country’s export with that of world’s average. Higher the value of export diversification reveals that the country has diversified basket of products to be exported and country is towards on the path of competitiveness. Brazil showed an increasing trend in EDI from 0.481 in 2001 to 0.507 in 2010 and 0.550 in 2015 to 0.62 to in 2020. In China it was 0.454 in 2001 which became 0.460, 0.453 and 0.420 in 2005, 2010 and 2015 respectively and declining trend from 2016 to 2021. India also showed a decreasing trend. In India EDI was 0.563 in 2001 which declined to 0.542, 0.502, 0.436 and 0.44, 0.45 in 2005, 2010, 2015, 2020 and 2021 respectively. In Russia EDI was 0.656 n 2001which rose to 0.663 in 2005. It further declined to 0.655 in 2010 and 0.645 in 2015 and 0.61 in 2020 and 0.60 in 2021. In South Africa the EDI values showed slight variations. In 2001and 2005 EDI was 0.566 which declined to 0.541 and 0.502 in 2010 and 2015 respectively and increased from 0.54 in 2019, to 0.71 in 2021.

The higher value of Export Concentration Index reveals that country relies on limited products for its export basket. Basically, developed countries deal in variety of products. It can be seen from table 5.2 and figure 5.2.2 that in Brazil ECI in 2001 was 0.089 which decreased to 0.087 in 2005. It reached to 0.153 in 2010 and 0.128 in 2015. Then with increasing trend finally it reached to 0.20. In 2001 China’s ECI was lowest as compared to other BRICS nations. It rose from 0.80 in 2001 to 0.110 in 2005. It reduced to 0.107 and 0.104 and 0.093 in 2010, 2015 and 2021 respectively. In 2001 India’s ECI was 0.563 which reduced to 0.542, 0.502, 0.436 and 0.12 in 2005, 2010 and 2015 and in 2021 respectively. It reveals that Indian exports are moving ahead for diversified export basket. In Russia ECI was 0.293 in 2001 which reached to 0.352, 0.366, 0.316 and 0.295 in 2005, 2010 2015 and 2021 respectively. In South Africa ECI was 0.142 in 2001 which reached to 0.138, 0.136, 0.12, 0.16 and 0.20 in 2005, 2010, 2015, 2020 and 2021 respectively. In all the BRICS nations the trend of ECI is low which automatically implies their tendency towards the diversity of export products in the world market. Overall, the highest trend of Russian EDI with least fluctuations followed by south Africa, Brazil, India and China implies that relatively Russian basket of exports has more exportable products than its counterparts. Therefore, like Russia, other counterparts should focus on variety of products to enhance their importance in BRICS group particularly and competitiveness in general world trade.
Table 5.3 Import Diversification Index and Import Concentration Index


Source: UNCTAD, **IDI is the Import Diversification Index and *ICI is the Import Concentration Index.
Figure 5.3.1 Import Diversification Index of BRICS
 

Source: Compiled by researcher using data in table 5.3


Figure 5.3.2 Import Concentration Index of BRICS

Source: Compiled by researcher using data in table 5.3

Table 5.3 and Figure 5.3.1 show the Import Diversification Index and Import Concentration Index of the BRICS nations. Import Diversification Index of Brazil is declining from 2002 to 2006 i.e., from 0.32 to 0.24.  It shows the stable trend from 2007 to 2014. Since 2015 trend of Brazilian’s import concentration index is rising. The value closure to 1 indicates more differences in the structure of country’s import with that of world’s average. Higher the value of import diversification reveals that the country has diversified basket of products to be imported. This helps understand the dependence of the country.  In dragon economy it shows stable trend during 2001 to 2021 around average of 0.37. In India, it shows stable trend close to average of 0.43 but more among BRICS group. In Russia IDI the trend is around average value i.e., 0.31 from 2001 to 2021 except from 2015 to 2020. In South Africa the IDI values showed low and stable trend during 2001 to 2021 around 0.25. Therefore, the countries like India and China with highest values of IDI should focus import substitution and trade creation strategy.  

The Import Concentration Index reveals that country relies on limited products for its import basket. The higher value of ICI closure to 1 show that country rely on less imported items. It can be seen from table 5.3 and figure 5.3.2 that the India’s ICI is highest among BRICS nations followed by China and South Africa. Therefore, it is evident that countries like India and China have focused on import substitution and trade creation in variety of products through their policies. The Russian federation and Brazil have relatively very low value of ICI. The ICI value in case of China shows stable upward trend but less then India. Also, countries like Russia, Brazil and South Africa should focus on the same strategy since the trend of ICI value is declining in these countries with low fluctuations during the study period.

Section-III Policy Implications in relation to Export Potential

Table 5.4 Export Potential Matrix (in US Dollars)

 

 

Market

 

 

Brazil

Russia

India

China

South Africa

Exporters

Brazil

-

$2.3 billion

$3.8 billion

$57 billion

$1.2 billion

Russia

$2.7 billion

-

$5 billion

$24 billion

$432 million

India

$5.9 billion

$4.7 billion

-

$33 billion

$4.5 billion

China

$47 billion

$65 billion

$131 billion

-

$21 billion

South Africa

$452million

$562 million

$2.2 billion

$9.4 billion

-

 Source: Compiled by Researcher using data from UNCTAD & WITS

Figure: 5.4.1 Export Potential Matrix (in US Dollars)


Source: Compiled by researcher using data in table 5.4

 Figure: 5.4.2 Export Potential Mapping of BRICS (in US Dollars)




Table 3, Figure 3.1, 3.2 show the export potential among the BRICS Nations. Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa have export potential in China i.e., 57 billion, 24 billion, 33 billion and 9.4 billion respectively. Among BRICS countries China has larger trade potential than other countries. To reap more benefits China should liberalize its tariff policy regarding trade with BRICS group and with rest of the world.

Conclusion
On the basis of above analysis of EDI, ECI, IDI and ICI it can be concluded that with the changes in tariff policies BRICS nations can improve their trade potential among them because this group with 17 per cent share in world trade provides a great potential for each other. These countries have scope to improve their performance of manufacturing sector to facilitate the production of manufacturing products like developed countries rather than to export more of agricultural and allied products.
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