Robert C. Feenstra holds the C. Bryan Cameron Distinguished Chair in International Economics at the University of California, Davis, and he directs the International Trade and Investment Program at the National Bureau of Economic Research. Shang-Jin Wei is the N. T. Wang Professor of Chinese Business and Economy at Columbia University, and he directs the NBER Working Group on the Chinese Economy.

In less than three decades, China has grown from playing a negligible role in world trade to being one of the world's largest exporters, a substantial importer of raw materials, intermediate outputs, and other goods, and both a recipient and source of foreign investment. Not surprisingly, China's economic dynamism has generated considerable attention and concern in the United States and beyond. While some analysts have warned of the potential pitfalls of China's rise - the loss of jobs, for example - others have highlighted the benefits of less expensive goods and services purchased by U.S. consumers along with new market and investment opportunities for U.S. firms. Bringing together an expert group of contributors, "China's Growing Role in World Trade" undertakes an empirical investigation of the effects of China's new status. The essays collected here provide detailed analyses of the microstructure of trade, the macroeconomic implications, sector-level issues, and foreign direct investment. This volume's careful examination of micro data in light of established economic theories eliminates a number of misconceptions, overturns some conventional wisdom, and documents data patterns that enhance our understanding of issues related to China's trade.