We have been overlooking the relationship between immigration and international trade in services

The volume of international trade in services has grown rapidly over recent decades and, in fact, has outpaced growth in goods trade. Over the same period many developed countries experienced rapid growth in immigration. Gianmarco Ottaviano, Giovanni Peri and Greg Wright argue that while many studies have analysed the link between immigrants and trade in goods, the link between immigrants and trade in services is almost unexplored. Due to the customer-specific information required for the provision of services, this link may be particularly important.