The Value of Face-to-Face: Travel and the Information Costs of Trade

Abstract

Distance between buyers and sellers can create information problems that pose a barrier to trade. By collecting new data on a sample of Nigerian importers, and connecting transaction details to trade process variables (such as whether the trader travelled), the researchers show that frequent, costly travel by Nigerian traders to meet with suppliers abroad is symptomatic of underlying information problems. This research was funded under the Private Enterprise Development in Low-Income Countries (PEDL) Programme