Protection and customs revenue in Argentina (1862-1905). A computational linguistic approach

SABATE SORT, MARCELA; CÁMARA, NOELIA; RAYES, AGUSTINA

París

Congreso; XIX World Economic History Congress; 2022

As in other Latin American countries, Argentina relied strongly on foreign trade revenues to finance the nation-state building process (Coatsworth & Williamson, 2004). If in the 1860s they represented approximately 90% of the total collection, at the beginning of the twentieth century they still were more than half (Rayes, 2021). In this sense, the tariff policy during the period we will study had a fiscal profile. However, we argue that this orientation coexisted with free trade and protectionist tendencies. Those multiple faces were reflected not only in the customs laws but also in the debates held annually in the National Congress. Indeed, fiscal reasons supported the maintenance of export duties and their abolition, as well as increases and reductions in import taxes, and changes in administrative regulations (Sánchez Román, 2012). Naturally, in many cases, it is not simple to distinguish between fiscal or industrialist intentions behind the changes in customs laws (Díaz Alejandro, 1970; Rocchi, 2006; Llach, 2007; Hora, 2009); nonetheless, to contribute to previous literature, we propose to analyze the speeches on the subject given by legislators.ReferencesCoatsworth, J., & Williamson, J. (2004). Always Protectionist? Latin American Tariffs from Independence to Great Depression. Journal of Latin American Studies , 36 (2), 205-232.Díaz Alejandro, C. (1970). Essays on the Economic History of the Argentine Republic. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.Hora, R. (2009). La política económica del proteccionismo, 1870-1914. Investigaciones y Ensayos (58), 237-283.Llach, L. (2007). The Wealth of the Provinces: The Rise and Fall of the Interior in the Political Economy of Argentiba, 1880-1910. Cambridge: Harvard University.Rayes, A. (2021). Una Hidra de Lerna. La política arancelaria argentina, c. 1863-1923. Desarrollo Económico , 61 (234), 125-150.Rocchi, F. (2006). Chimneys in the Desert. Industrialization in Argentina during the Export Boom Years, 1870-1930. Stanford: Stanford University Press.Sánchez Román, J. A. (2012). Taxation and Society in Twentieth Century Argentina. London: Palgrave/Macmillan.