International Trade Network

This paper studies the topological properties of the International Trade Network (ITN) among world countries using a network analysis. We explore the distribu- tions of the most important network statistics measuring connectivity, assortativ- ity and clustering. We show that the topological properties of the weighted rep- resentation of the ITN are very different from those obtained by a binary network approach. In particular, we find that: (i) the majority of countries are character- ized by weak trade relationships, (ii) well connected countries tend to trade with poorly connected partners and (iii) countries holding more intense trade relation- ships are more clustered. Finally, we display that all structural properties of the ITN have remained remarkably stable over time