LAUSR

Abstract Although the literature underlines the importance of finance in international trade, no prior study has examined the causal links between market power in banking and export performance. Using a world sample over the 1997-2010 period, and accounting for both observed and unobserved country heterogeneity, we find a positive effect of bank market power on exports, especially in high-income countries. We also document that this export-enhancing effect is more potent in informationally opaque markets. Our findings accord with information hypothesis which suggests that market power in banking induces stronger bank-firm relationships which can generate benefits for both borrowers and lenders. Policy interventions should, therefore, promote the supply of relationship lending as a means to mitigate informational asymmetries in the export market.