Between the 1970`s and the 1980`s, the market of derivatives flourished. Forwards, futures and options began to be regularly traded. According to information gathered by The Bank of International Settlements, between January and April 1998, the value of over-the-counter (OTC) positions outstanding was over US$72 thousand billion, while the value of positions outstanding in organized
This paper quantitatively tests the «new trade theory» based on product differen-tiation, increasing returns, and imperfect competition. We employ a standard model, which allows both changes in the distribution of income among industrialized coun-tries, emphasized by Helpman and Krugman (1985), and nonhomothetic preferences, emphasized by Markusen (1986), to effect trade directions and volumes. In addition,