Migration, ethnic concentration and international trade growth: the case of Italians in Australia

Much attention and research has been devoted to the correlation between migration and socio-economic development. International organisations, such as the World Bank, now regard migration as 'the engine for global development' and 'an important way of fighting poverty'. A new, global discourse 'in the whole area of the relationship between migration and economic and social change' is now burgeoning in the literature. Case studies supporting the argument of positive socio-economic development generated by international migration flows are abundant, especially from a developing country's perspective. Conversely, developed countries, such as Australia, have high expectations of migration in terms of being able to foster or create trade links between migrant sending and migrant receiving countries, and beyond. Yet scholars have speculated as to whether migration stimulates trade growth. Are migrants likely to boost trade between their host country and their country of origin? Do they play a role as trade mediators? No attempt seems to have been made by scholars to assess the extent to which similar skills (language and cultural skills, personal contacts, knowledge and familiarity with business ethics and practices) exist-and have been used to boost international trade-by immigrants in Australia coming from Southern European countries such as Italy or Greece. Italian migrants and their descendants have constituted, for instance, the largest non-English-speaking-background ethnic community in Australia. Is there evidence to suggest that large scale migration from Italy to Australia during the postwar period might have stimulated, or even decisively impacted on, trade growth between Italy and Australia? Further, are Italian ethnic concentrations within Australian states and Territories in a position to influence the bilateral trade relationship between Italy and Australia?