Daniel Trefler

Daniel Trefler is a Professor at the Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto, specializing in international economics, economic development, and technology-driven productivity. He holds a Ph.D. from UCLA (1989). His research explores the impacts of trade policy, globalization, and institutional change on economic outcomes, as seen in his seminal work on medieval Venice's response to globalization and Canada-US free trade agreements.

Key honors include the Bank of Canada Fellowship Award (2016) and the Killam Prize in Social Sciences (2016). He has served on the Ontario Task Force on Competitiveness and holds the Canada Research Chair in Competitiveness and Prosperity.

Research highlights include analyzing trade liberalization effects, productivity gains from market access, and AI's role in modern trade dynamics. His work bridges historical case studies with contemporary policy challenges, emphasizing empirical rigor.

Publications span top journals like the Quarterly Journal of Economics and American Economic Review. He actively contributes to policy debates on globalization, offshoring, and FDI policies.