Download or read book Termites in the Trading System written by Jagdish Bhagwati and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2008-07-14 with total page 160 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Jagdish Bhagwati, the internationally renowned economist who uniquely combines a reputation as the leading scholar of international trade with a substantial presence in public policy on the important issues of the day, shines here a critical light on Preferential Trade Agreements, revealing how the rapid spread of PTAs endangers the world trading system. Numbering by now well over 300, and rapidly increasing, these preferential trade agreements, many taking the form of Free Trade Agreements, have re-created the unhappy situation of the 1930s, when world trade was undermined by discriminatory practices. Whereas this was the result of protectionism in those days, ironically it is a result of misdirected pursuit of free trade via PTAs today. The world trading system is at risk again, the author argues, and the danger is palpable. Writing with his customary wit, panache and elegance, Bhagwati documents the growth of these PTAs, the reasons for their proliferation, and their deplorable consequences which include the near-destruction of the non-discrimination which was at the heart of the postwar trade architecture and its replacement by what he has called the spaghetti bowl of a maze of preferences. Bhagwati also documents how PTAs have undermined the prospects for multilateral freeing of trade, serving as stumbling blocks, instead of building blocks, for the objective of reaching multilateral free trade. In short, Bhagwati cogently demonstrates why PTAs are Termites in the Trading System.
Download or read book Chances and Risks of Free Trade Policies written by Philipp Rothe and published by GRIN Verlag. This book was released on 2020-08-13 with total page 4 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Academic Paper from the year 2020 in the subject Economics - Foreign Trade Theory, Trade Policy, , language: English, abstract: This paper examines the definition, history and status of free trade in the world today. In history a lot of countries acted in accordance with protectionist trade policies which means they had a lot of barriers, tariffs, and limits towards the trade with other countries. The aim was to protect their own economy. However, in today's world there is much more free trade which means "the buying and selling of goods, without limits on the amount of goods that one country can sell to another and without special taxes on the goods bought from a foreign country". The theory of free trade was first invented in 1776 by Adam Smith. And although it goes back to colonial times, free trade remained a theory for centuries. Ever since Adam Smith's concept of free trade, merchants tried to remove trade barriers between countries again and again. But especially during the industrialization period the countries used trade barriers to boost their economy. As late as after the second world war, the US for example started to lower import tariffs. The idea of lowering tariffs is that more trade takes place, countries can specialize economically in what they do best and afterwards exchange these products for goods that they don't produce most efficiently or that they don't have easily available. That in turn means the people are freer to choose their position in the economy, the worlds resources are used more efficient and the wealth of nations is growing. In a nutshell it means a country can compete in the global market by specializing to its fundamental economic strengths and by doing this increase economic growth. Some international institutions such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and the World Trade Organization (WTO) were founded to promote free trade in place of protectionism and so helped to build the world how it is today in terms of trading.
Download or read book The Dangers of free Trade written by John Mathew Culbertson and published by . This book was released on 1985 with total page 56 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book New Frontiers in Free Trade written by Razeen Sally and published by Cato Institute. This book was released on 2008-09-09 with total page 170 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Razeen Sally argues that international trade policy has lost its way. Trade policy has become disconnected from 21st century business and consumer realities. The World Trade Organization and free trade agreements have outdated negotiating models and yield diminishing returns. The world’s fastest growing economies are those in Asia that have embraced freer trade and global integration unilaterally, without waiting for trade negotiations. Hence, the priority should be bottom-up unilateral liberalization, with China’s opening to the world economy leading the way and setting the example for others in Asia and beyond. Liberalization should now focus more on domestic regulatory barriers. The post-Doha WTO will still be important, but more as a forum for strengthening trade rules than for driving further liberalization. The biggest danger, though, is complacency and “reform fatigue,” which threatens to halt globalization’s advance. Sally makes a vigorous case for the benefits of free trade and provides a penetrating analysis of the dangers confronting the world trading system. Inspired by the precepts of Adam Smith and David Hume, he sets out practical prescriptions for getting trade policy back on the rails as part of a refreshed agenda for freer trade and freer markets that is relevant to the rise of Asia and 21st century globalization. Informative; well-argued; and, above all, highly readable, this book is a stimulating contribution to the emerging debate on where trade policy should go in the post-Doha world.
Download or read book Free Trade Today written by Jagdish N. Bhagwati and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2021-06-08 with total page 143 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Free trade, indeed economic globalization generally, is under siege. The conventional arguments for protectionism have been discredited but not banished. And free trade faces strong new challenges from a variety of groups, including environmentalists and human rights activists as well as traditional lobbies who wrap their agendas in the language of justice and rights. These groups, claiming a general interest and denouncing free trade as a special interest of corporations and other capitalist forces, have organized large and vocal protests in Seattle, Prague, and elsewhere. Based on his acclaimed Stockholm lectures and picking up where his widely influential Protectionism left off, Jagdish Bhagwati applies critical insights from revolutionary developments in commercial policy theory--many his own--to show how the pursuit of social and environmental agendas can be creatively reconciled with the pursuit of free trade. Indeed, he argues that free trade, by raising living standards, can serve these agendas far better than can a descent into trade sanctions and restrictions. After settling the score in favor of free trade, Professor Bhagwati considers alternative ways in which it can be pursued. Chiefly, he argues in support of multilateralism and advances a withering critique of recent bilateral and regional free trade agreements (including NAFTA) as preferential arrangements that introduce growing chaos into the world trading system. He also makes a strong case for "going it alone" on the road to trade liberalization and endorses the reemergence of unilateral liberalization at points around the globe. Forcefully, elegantly, and clearly written for the public by one of the foremost economic thinkers of our day, this volume is not merely accessible but essential reading for anyone interested in economic policy or in the world economy.
Download or read book Open written by Kimberly Clausing and published by . This book was released on 2019-03-04 with total page 361 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With the winds of trade war blowing as they have not done in decades, and Left and Right flirting with protectionism, a leading economist forcefully shows how a free and open economy is still the best way to advance the interests of working Americans. Globalization has a bad name. Critics on the Left have long attacked it for exploiting the poor and undermining labor. Today, the Right challenges globalization for tilting the field against advanced economies. Kimberly Clausing faces down the critics from both sides, demonstrating in this vivid and compelling account that open economies are a force for good, not least in helping the most vulnerable. A leading authority on corporate taxation and an advocate of a more equal economy, Clausing agrees that Americans, especially those with middle and lower incomes, face stark economic challenges. But these problems do not require us to retreat from the global economy. On the contrary, she shows, an open economy overwhelmingly helps. International trade makes countries richer, raises living standards, benefits consumers, and brings nations together. Global capital mobility helps both borrowers and lenders. International business improves efficiency and fosters innovation. And immigration remains one of America's greatest strengths, as newcomers play an essential role in economic growth, innovation, and entrepreneurship. Closing the door to the benefits of an open economy would cause untold damage. Instead, Clausing outlines a progressive agenda to manage globalization more effectively, presenting strategies to equip workers for a modern economy, improve tax policy, and establish a better partnership between labor and the business community. Accessible, rigorous, and passionate, Open is the book we need to help us navigate the debates currently convulsing national and international economics and politics.
Download or read book Handbook of International Trade Agreements written by Robert E. Looney and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2018-10-03 with total page 462 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: International trade has, for decades, been central to economic growth and improved standards of living for nations and regions worldwide. For most of the advanced countries, trade has raised standards of living, while for most emerging economies, growth did not begin until their integration into the global economy. The economic explanation is simple: international trade facilitates specialization, increased efficiency and improved productivity to an extent impossible in closed economies. However, recent years have seen a significant slowdown in global trade, and the global system has increasingly come under attack from politicians on the right and on the left. The benefits of open markets, the continuation of international co-operation, and the usefulness of multilateral institutions such as the World Trade Organization (WTO), the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank have all been called into question. While globalization has had a broadly positive effect on overall global welfare, it has also been perceived by the public as damaging communities and social classes in the industrialized world, spawning, for example, Brexit and the US exit from the Trans-Pacific Partnership. The purpose of this volume is to examine international and regional preferential trade agreements (PTAs), which offer like-minded countries a possible means to continue receiving the benefits of economic liberalization and expanded trade. What are the strengths and weaknesses of such agreements, and how can they sustain growth and prosperity for their members in an ever-challenging global economic environment? The Handbook is divided into two parts. The first, Global Themes, offers analysis of issues including the WTO, trade agreements and economic development, intellectual property rights, security and environmental issues, and PTAs and developing countries. The second part examines regional and country-specific agreements and issues, including NAFTA, CARICOM, CETA, the Pacific Alliance, the European Union, EFTA, ECOWAS, SADC, TTIP, RCEP and the TPP (now the CPTPP), as well as the policies of countries such as Japan and Australia.
Download or read book The Case Against Free Trade written by William Cunningham and published by . This book was released on 1911 with total page 166 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Kicking Away the Ladder written by Ha-Joon Chang and published by Anthem Press. This book was released on 2002-07-01 with total page 196 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How did the rich countries really become rich? In this provocative study, Ha-Joon Chang examines the great pressure on developing countries from the developed world to adopt certain 'good policies' and 'good institutions', seen today as necessary for economic development. His conclusions are compelling and disturbing: that developed countries are attempting to 'kick away the ladder' with which they have climbed to the top, thereby preventing developing countries from adopting policies and institutions that they themselves have used.
Download or read book New Frontiers in Free Trade written by Razeen Sally and published by Cato Institute. This book was released on 2008 with total page 169 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Razeen Sally argues that international trade policy has lost its way. Trade policy has become disconnected from 21st century business and consumer realities. The World Trade Organization and free trade agreements have outdated negotiating models and yield diminishing returns." "Sally makes a case for the benefits of free trade and provides a penetrating analysis of the dangers confronting the world trading system."--BOOK JACKET.
Download or read book Methodology for Impact Assessment of Free Trade Agreements written by Michael G. Plummer and published by Asian Development Bank. This book was released on 2011-02-01 with total page 194 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This publication displays the menu for choice of available methods to evaluate the impact of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs). It caters mainly to policy makers from developing countries and aims to equip them with some economic knowledge and techniques that will enable them to conduct their own economic evaluation studies on existing or future FTAs, or to critically re-examine the results of impact assessment studies conducted by others, at the very least.
Download or read book North American Free Trade written by Nora Claudia Lustig and published by Brookings Institution Press. This book was released on 2010-12-01 with total page 287 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The proposed North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) represents a historic change in relations among Canada, Mexico, and the United States. The effect of the agreement on the three economies has generated controversy and some degree of alarm within each country. In this book, noted trade and development experts review the available literature on the effects of NAFTA on the three member countries and the world trading system. They evaluate how NAFTA will affect areas such as economic growth, employment, income distribution, industry, and agriculture in Canada, Mexico, and the United States; and consider the significance the trade agreement holds for the rest of the world. Drusill K. Brown begins the discussion by providing an overview and comparison of the general results from recent studies. Raúl Hinojosa-Ojeda and Sherman Robinson explore in greater detail the potential effects of NAFTA on wages and employment in Mexico and the United States. Sidney Wintrab reviews industry-specific effects of NAFTA, in particular, the environment, the social agenda, and human rights and democracy. Finally, Carlos Alberto Primo Braga considers the implications of NAFTA on the rest of the world. Following each of these chapters, international scholars assess the alternatives and provide recommendations for future research.
Download or read book Risking Free Trade written by Michael Lusztig and published by University of Pittsburgh Press. This book was released on 2010-11-23 with total page 193 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There are few issues as politically explosive as the liberalization of trade, as recent controversies in the United States, Canada, and Mexico have shown. While loosening trade restrictions may make sense for a nation's economy as a whole, it typically alienates powerful vested interests. Those interests can exact severe political costs for the government that enacts change. So why accept the risk?Michael Lusztig contructs a model to determine why and under what conditions governments will take the free trade gamble. Lusztig uses his model to explain shifts to free trade in four cases: Britain's repeal of the Corn Laws; the United States' enactment of the Reciprocal Trade Agreements Act (1934); Canada's decision to initiate continental free trade with the United States in 1985; and Mexico's decision to pursue the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1990.
Download or read book The World Trading System at Risk written by Jagdish N. Bhagwati and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2014-07-14 with total page 165 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Jagdish Bhagwati, one of the world's leading economists, offers a fascinating overview of the perils and promise facing the world trading system. That system is now being subjected to powerful centrifugal forces. Concerns with unfair trade are rampant, managed trade is increasingly popular, and regionalism is spreading. The United States, the traditional bulwark of multilateralism, has recently resorted to aggressive, unilateral tactics in trade policy. To a consideration of these developments, Bhagwati brings a unique blend of economic theory, historical scholarship, and familiarity with the institutions of world trade. Bhagwati refutes facile but fashionable criticisms of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). Warning of the dangers of flouting the GATT's provisions, he shows that its underlying conception of trading by rules will be undermined if we extend accusations of "unfair trade" practices to areas as diverse as retail distribution systems, infrastructure spending, saving rates, and workers' rights. He challenges the economic and cultural stereotypes of Japan that fuel the sentiments supporting managed trade and aggressive unilateralism. In addition, he provides novel suggestions for rebuilding the GATT and with it the world trading system itself--suggestions that should prove useful at the Uruguay Round and beyond. Originally published in 1991. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.
Download or read book Free Trade Doesn t Work What Should Replace It and Why 2011 Edition written by Barrister and Professor of International Commercial Law Ian Fletcher and published by . This book was released on 2011-03-01 with total page 348 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Are you wondering how Americans can compete with nations like China? Are you wondering how, if they can offshore call centers, computer programming, and accounting, there will be any good jobs left they can't offshore? Are you wondering how America can keep importing and running up debt without going bankrupt? Are you wondering how America can be a powerful nation without an industrial base? Are you wondering why the politicians keep denying all of these problems? Are you wondering whether the economics you learned in school and hear on TV is really valid? Are you wondering who you can trust? This very readable book is aimed at both ordinary concerned citizens and people with a bit of sophistication about economics. It is a systematic examination of why free trade is slowly bleeding America's economy to death and what can be done about it. It explains in detail why the standard economic arguments free traders use all the time are false, and what kind of economic ideas - well within the grasp of the average American - justify protectionism instead. It examines the history and politics of free trade and explains how America came to adopt its present disastrous free trade policy. It looks at the breakdown of specific industries and how we can rebuild them and bring millions of high-paying jobs back to this country. It examines what's wrong with NAFTA, CAFTA, the WTO, and the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership. It is sharply critical of the current establishment, but from a bipartisan point of view, so it should satisfy progressives, conservatives, and everyone in between. Unlike many past critiques of free trade, it is economically-literate; it also explains New Trade Theory, the hot new area of economics that critiques free trade.
Download or read book Global Trade and Conflicting National Interests written by Ralph E. Gomory and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2022-06-07 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ralph Gomory and William Baumol adapt classical trade models to the modern world economy. In this book Ralph Gomory and William Baumol adapt classical trade models to the modern world economy. Trade today is dominated by manufactured goods, rapidly moving technology, and huge firms that benefit from economies of scale. This is very different from the largely agricultural world in which the classical theories originated. Gomory and Baumol show that the new and significant conflicts resulting from international trade are inherent in modern economies.Today improvement in one country's productive capabilities is often attainable only at the expense of another country's general welfare. The authors describe why and when this is so and why, in a modern free-trade environment, a country might have a vital stake in the competitive strength of its industries.
Download or read book Myths of Free Trade written by Sherrod Brown and published by . This book was released on 2006 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "U.S. Representative Sherrod Brown - a leading progressive voice in Congress - takes apart free-trade dogma, myth by myth." "Ten years after NAFTA, free-trade policies have not brought prosperity to Mexican workers, and more than one million American jobs have been lost as a result of the agreement. Do free-trade pacts foster democracy? Brown examines the facts. Are fast-track agreements necessary to fight the war on terrorism? Brown dissects the arguments and the evidence."--BOOK JACKET.
