Determinants for China’s agricultural imports from Sub-Saharan African countries : a gravity model approach

Abstract: A Gravity approach has been undertaken to investigate the determinants of China’s agricultural imports from Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries using panel data covering the period 1995-2014. China’s agricultural import has increased significantly during the period and the agricultural export for the SSA countries is vital for their development. The empirical results show that the GDP of China, the GDP of the SSA country and the infrastructure, the institutional quality and the natural resource endowments within the SSA country and trade arrangements are significantly and positively impacting China’s agricultural imports from SSA. The transportation cost is a weakening factor.