Foreign Competition and Domestic Innovation: Evidence from U.S. Patents
David Autor with David Dorn, Gordon H. Hanson, Gary Pisano, and Pian Shu.
Manufacturing is the locus of U.S. innovation, accounting for more than three quarters of U.S. corporate patents. The rise of import competition from China has represented a major competitive shock to the sector, which in theory could benefit or stifle innovation. In this paper we empirically examine how rising import competition from China has affected U.S. innovation.