What's different about exporters? Evidence from Colombian manufacturing

Using a large panel of Colombian manufacturing plants, this article finds t hat exporters are significantly larger, more capital-intensive, have higher labour productivity, and pay higher wages than non-exporters three years b efore exporting for the first time. The differential in performance increas es in the years leading to entry in the export market. After entry, sales, employment, and the Proportion of skilled workers in the labour force keep growing significantly faster for exporters, but the growth of labour produc tivity and capital intensity is indistinguishable for exporters and non-exp orters.