This paper obtains a versatile measure of non-price competitiveness factors (NPCF) based on a simple international trade model. Trade frictions are reinterpreted as the NPCF conditions (inferior product quality, suboptimal geographical and industry specialisation of exports and any other limitations of the production and exporting channels) that inhibit trade. The set-up is applied to the five largest euro area economies for the period 2000–2018. Over this period, NPCF have improved significantly in the Netherlands and Spain, mildly in Italy and Germany and mildly worsened in France. In all countries, the improvement in NPCF has been more intense and sustained in the first half of the period and more unstable in the second half. The set-up is also applied at the product level, considering four types of products depending on the stage of processing, rendering results which are similar across product types and aligned with those for the whole economy. The results suggest that the conventional North–South divide in the euro area might not be entirely applicable regarding NPCF.

中文翻译：

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非价格竞争力因素——对五个最大的欧元区国家的简单衡量和影响

本文基于简单的国际贸易模型获得了非价格竞争力因素 (NPCF) 的通用度量。贸易摩擦被重新解释为抑制贸易的 NPCF 条件（劣质产品质量、次优的出口地理和行业专业化以及生产和出口渠道的任何其他限制）。该设置适用于 2000 年至 2018 年期间的五个最大的欧元区经济体。在此期间，NPCF 在荷兰和西班牙显着改善，在意大利和德国温和改善，在法国温和恶化。在所有国家，NPCF的改善在上半年更加强烈和持续，而下半年更加不稳定。该设置也适用于产品级别，根据加工阶段考虑四种类型的产品，渲染结果在不同产品类型之间相似，并且与整个经济体的结果一致。结果表明，欧元区传统的南北分歧可能并不完全适用于 NPCF。