the role of technological achievement and industrial competitiveness in trade efficiency: evidence from iran’s industrial trade with vision document countries

This study evaluates the effects of the industrial competitiveness index and technological achievements on industrial trade efficiency in iran and vision document countries. this article calculated industrial trade value using the grubel-lloyd index and data from 24 vision document countries. the data were categorized by four-digit hs codes from 2002 to 2023 and sourced from the world bank and international trade development organization. the rank of trade and technical efficiency were measured using a data envelopment analysis (dea) method. the ultimate models, including technical and trade efficiency equations, were estimated utilizing the two-step system generalized method of moments (sys-gmm) model. the findings reveal that most variables influence trade efficiency significantly in the expected direction. while a one-unit increase in technological achievements resulted in a 0.057-unit enhancement in the trade efficiency index, iran’s industrial competitiveness with the vision document countries had a trivial effect. oil sanctions exerted a more pronounced negative effect, reducing the trade efficiency index by 0.225 units. in contrast, technical efficiency positively contributed to a 0.186-unit increase. these results advise policymakers to enhance industrial competitiveness through technological infrastructure and human capital investment. furthermore, fostering technological advancements through increased investments in research and development (r&d) in iran’s domestic industries and transferring advanced technologies from prosperous countries like the united arab emirates and turkey is crucial for improving and sustaining iran’s industrial trade efficiency.