One of the Commonly Used Assumptions in Deriving the Heckscher-Ohlin

question 18

Essay

One of the commonly used assumptions in deriving the Heckscher-Ohlin model is that tastes are homothetic, or that if the per capita incomes were the same in two countries, the proportions of their expenditures allocated to each product would be the same as it is in the other country. Imagine that this assumption is false, and that in fact, the tastes in each country are strongly biased in favor of the product in which it has a comparative advantage. How would this affect the relationship between relative factor abundance between the two countries, and the nature (factor-intensity) of the product each exports?
What if the taste bias favored the imported good?

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Definitions:

Financial Statements

Formal records that outline the financial activities and conditions of a business, entity, or individual, including the balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement.

Retained Earnings

Funds that are not distributed as dividends but are reserved by the company to reinvest in its business, pay off debt, or save for future use.

Deficit

The amount by which expenses exceed income or liabilities exceed assets.