| Abstract: | We analyze regional demographic responses to increased competition from Chinese imports. Treating the opening up of the Chinese economy in recent decades as an exogenous shock to the degree of trade exposure faced by U.S. regions, we find that demographic characteristics such as education level, population growth, immigrant share, and age structure, are not significantly impacted by increased Chinese trade exposure. We also discuss possible mechanisms that may explain this finding and explain why our results may differ in direction from previous studies. Specifically, our finding is consistent with a story where moving costs hamper labor mobility and significant demographic shifts do not occur even after employment falls due to trade exposure. |
