A political economy critique of the ricardian comparative advantage theory

Abstract

Comparative advantage theory remains one of the most controversial theories in economics. Given its increasing importance, it is rather peculiar that Marxist writers have not paid much attention to international trade theory. This paper assesses the work of two classical Marxist political economists - Shaikh and Hudson - on international trade theory and contributes to this very limited literature by providing an alternative approach. The findings of this paper are consistent with the classical Marxist perspectives, in that, exploitation takes place in the production process but not in exchange. This, however, does not mean that countries do not lose from free trade and specialization based on comparative advantage.

Citation

Subasat, T. (2002), "A political economy critique of the ricardian comparative advantage theory", Zarembka, P. (Ed.) Confronting 9-11, Ideologies of Race, and Eminent Economists (Research in Political Economy, Vol. 20), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 255-292. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0161-7230(02)20008-5