Abstract:
The growth in the market value of output remains a major backbone for economic advancement. Therefore,
factors determining economic growth remain vital for realizing a country’s economic expansion. Global trade has been touted as a tool to catapult growth. However, the bearing of trade on economic performance remains debatable where selected studies back the claim that international trade impacts positively on output expansion, opposers contend that the influence of international traderemains uncertain. This deviating opinions raise the importance for continued studies based on regional perspectives. The study therefore intended to investigate international trade and economic performance in Kenya. A correlation design was employed based on regional analysis for the period 1961 to 2014. Results showed that trade involving Sub Sahara and Arab nation’s impacts positively on economic performance. International trade involving South Asia (SA), Middle East and Northern Africa (MN) is impact less while trading with High Income (HI) nations diminishes performance in Kenya. In respect to the findings, it is imperative that Kenya ought to engage more in trade involving Arab and Sub Saharan Africa nations in contrast to the advanced nations to improve performance.
