Download or read book U S Contingent Protection Against Honey Imports written by Julio J. Nogués and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2003 with total page 48 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On December 2001, the US Department of Commerce (DOC) announced the imposition of steep antidumping duties against honey imports from Argentina and China ranging from 32.6% to 183.8%, and a countervailing duty against Argentina of 5.9%. A previous AD investigation was concluded in 1995 with a spension "agreement" that curtailed US imports from China by around 30%. This sequential pattern of increasing and widening protectionism to include successful exporters under contingent protection measures, sends a clear message that other countries should think twice before investing in expanding honey exports to the US. Thousands of poor people around the world live from honey production, and contingent protection measures destabilize their incomes and make their lives and futures more uncertain. In addition to looking into the trade effects of these measures, this paper concludes that under the regulatory arrangements of the DOC, poor beekeepers don't have a chance of defending themselves. For example, responding to lengthy and sophisticated questionnaires that sought to determine cost of production, went beyond their capacities and in the absence of this information, the DOC resorted to the evidence presented by the Petitioners which was riddled with errors. This suggests the urgent need to introduce reforms into the WTO antidumping and subsidy agreements. At the minimum what is required is a consensus that all Respondents be given the same opportunity by the international trade rules.

Download or read book Safeguards and Antidumping in Latin American Trade Liberalization written by J. Michael Finger and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2005-12-05 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Until the 1990s, the main users of safeguards and antidumping laws were Australia, Canada, the European Union, and the United States. Since then, many countries have implemented such laws, leading to a proliferation in antidumping and safeguard activity across the world. This timely book documents the political economy surrounding the implementation of these laws in seven Latin American countries and provides details on the institutions created, implementation of the laws, and subsequent activity. It finds that, in the larger political context, antidumping and safeguards are a necessary quid pro quo to certain important sectors to obtain much more liberalized trade policies for the general economy.

Download or read book More Favorable and Differential Treatment of Developing Countries written by Bernard M. Hoekman and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2003 with total page 36 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The authors discuss optio ...

Download or read book The Cotonou Agreement and Its Implications for the Regional Trade Agenda in Eastern and Southern Africa written by Manuel De la Rocha and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2003 with total page 32 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Subregional trade arrangements (RTAs) in Eastern and Southern Africa have proliferated in the past 10 to 15 years. The small size of most of the countries in the region, some of which are landlocked, and the security needs in the post independence period largely explain the rapid expansion. These arrangements are characterized by multiple and overlapping memberships, complex structures, and eventually, conflicting and confusing commitments. The influence of RTAs has been limited to assisting the region in increasing trade, attracting foreign direct investment, enhancing growth, and achieving convergence among member countries. But despite their limitations, RTAs have the potential, if properly designed and effectively implemented, to be an important instrument in integrating member countries into global markets. In 1998 most of the Southern African countries, as members of the Africa Caribbean Pacific group (ACP), signed the Cotonou Agreement with the European Union, which includes the negotiation of economic partnership agreements (EPAs) between the EU and the ACP. The Cotonou Agreement explicitly leaves to the ACP countries to decide the level and procedures of the EPA trade negotiations, taking into account the regional integration process. This raises the question of how to decide on the groupings in the context of conflicting regional trade agendas. The author argues that the Cotonou Agreement and EPA negotiations could become the external driving force that will push the regional organizations to rationalize and harmonize their regional trade arrangements, thus strengthening the integration process and economies of the region, and assisting the Eastern and Southern Africa region in becoming a more active partner in the global economy.

Download or read book International Trade and Wage Discrimination written by Yana van der Meulen Rodgers and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2003 with total page 44 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study explores the impact of competition from international trade on wage discrimination by sex in two highly open economies. If discrimination is costly, as posited in neoclassical theory based on Becker (1959), then increased industry competitiveness from international trade reduces the incentive for employers to discriminate against women. Alternatively, increased international trade may contribute to employment segregation and reduced bargaining power for women to achieve wage gains. The approach centers on comparing the impact of international trade on wage discrimination in concentrated and nonconcentrated sectors. The effect of international trade competition is expected to be more pronounced in concentrated sectors, where employers can use excess profits in the absence of trade to cover the costs of discrimination. Wage discrimination is proxied by the portion of the wage gap that cannot be explained by observable skill differences between men and women. The empirical model is estimated using a rich panel data set of residual wage gaps, trade ratios, and alternative measures of domestic concentration for Taiwan (China) and the Republic of Korea during the 1980s and 1990s. Results indicate that in contrast to the implications of neoclassical theory, competition from foreign trade in concentrated industries is positively associated with wage discrimination. These results imply that concerted efforts to enforce equal pay legislation and apply effective equal opportunity legislation are crucial for ensuring that women's pay gains will match those of men in a competitive environment. This paper--a product of the Gender Division, Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Network--is part of a larger effort in the network to understand the impact of trade on labor markets.

Download or read book Creating Partnerships for Capacity Building in Developing Countries written by F. Desmond McCarthy and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2003 with total page 36 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: McCarthy, Bader, and Pleskovic discuss a variety of experiences in a number of transition and developing countries to build institutional capacity for economics education. A flexible approach met with some success. The approach uses partnerships that combine the often different needs of a number of private donors with the World Bank on the supply side. Much of the success was due to adopting each effort to the individual country situation. The authors also provide a brief summary of five academic institutions and four research networks in Europe, Africa, Asia, and Latin America. This paper--a product of Partnerships, Capacity Building, and Outreach, Development Economics--is part of a larger effort in the Bank to build capacity for economic education.

Download or read book The Emerging Project Bond Market written by Mansoor Dailami and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2003 with total page 44 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The emergence in the 1990s of a nascent project bond market to fund long-term infrastructure projects in developing countries merits attention. The authors compile detailed information on a sample of 105 bonds issued between January 1993 and March 2002 for financing infrastructure projects in developing countries, document their contractual covenants, and analyze their pricing determinants. They find that on average, project bonds are issued at approximately 300 basis points above U.S. Treasury securities, have a surprisingly high issue size of US$278 million, a maturity of slightly under 12 years, and are rated slightly below investment grade. In terms of geographic origin, projects in Asia and Latin America have issued more bonds than those located in other regions. Much of the recent work relating to the role of contractual covenants to the determination of bond prices has focused on the U.S. corporate bond market with its unique bankruptcy code - Chapter 11 - and well developed legal framework, recognizing the bond contract as the sole instrument of defining the rights and duties of various parties. In circumstances in which the underpinning legal and institutional frameworks governing contract formation and enforcement are not well developed, the link between bond pricing and legal framework becomes important. This finding is confirmed by the authors' econometric analysis of project bond pricing model. So, investors take into account the quality of the host country's legal framework and reward projects located in countries that adhere to the rule of law with tighter credit spreads and lower funding costs.

Download or read book The Dynamics of Foreign Bank Ownership written by Giovanni Majnoni and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2003 with total page 36 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The early start of the process of bank restructuring and privatization in Hungary provides a longer and richer amount of evidence than that available for any other transition economy. The authors analyze the dynamics of bank restructuring in Hungary with a focus on the role played by foreign ownership. They explore the performance over time of foreign-owned Hungarian banks and study the extent to which efficiency gains are affected by the chosen acquisition strategy-strategic acquisition in contrast with investment in a newly established bank (greenfield investment)-or by the management style adopted after the acquisition. The authors supplement previous results on the effects of foreign bank ownership in three ways. First, they explicitly consider the time span required for the change of ownership to affect bank performance. Second, the authors explore how important the chosen acquisition strategy is for the success of an acquisition. And third, they study how relevant the adopted management style is to this end, as proxied by the degree of reliance on foreign management.

Download or read book Governance of Communicable Disease Control Services written by Monica Das Gupta and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2003 with total page 44 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Das Gupta, Khaleghian, and Sarwal study the impact of governance and administrative factors on communicable disease prevention in the Indian state of Karnataka using survey data from administrators, frontline workers, and elected local representatives. They identify a number of key constraints to the effective management of disease control in India, in misaligned incentives, and the institutional arrangements for service delivery. The authors discuss these under five headings: administrative issues; human resource management; horizontal coordination; decentralization, community involvement, and public accountability; and implementation of public health laws and regulations. They find that India's public health system is configured to be highly effective at top-down reactive work, such as bringing disease outbreaks under control, but not for the more routine collaborations required for proactive disease prevention. The authors conclude with policy recommendations that take into account the complexity of India's system of public administration and the need for simple reforms that can be easily implemented. This paper--a product of Public Services, Development Research Group--was prepared as background for the World Development Report 2004: Making Services Work for Poor People.

Download or read book Measuring Up written by Educational Resources Information Center (U.S.) and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on with total page 48 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Political Economy of Antidumping and Safeguards in Argentina written by Julio J. Nogués and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2005 with total page 41 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Abstract: "Beginning in the late 1980s, Argentina implemented a series of reforms that were revolutionary in speed and scope, including trade liberalization. After the implementation of these policies, a record number of antidumping petitions came forward. Under a situation of high inflation, the government reinforced its fiscal and monetary policies by announcing that it would minimize the use of such measures. The flexible disciplines of the existing domestic antidumping regulations facilitated this objective. Later, when the GATT/WTO-sanctioned trade remedies were implemented, the government made a serious attempt to establish discipline by including liberal regulations and creating special institutional arrangements. A presumption built into the construction of the new mechanisms was that adhering to WTO requirements would strengthen the resistance against protection. This presumption turned out to be false. Changing circumstances, including severe peso overvaluation, had significant effects on the number and outcome of antidumping investigations. Regarding safeguards, the government followed the letter and the spirit of the WTO agreement. In relation to the number of petitions, few measures have been implemented. Rejections were based on a concern for consumer costs and on failure of the industry seeking protection to provide a convincing modernization plan. This, plus the fact that some cases were brought to the WTO Dispute Settlement Body, have made safeguards a less attractive instrument for protection-seekers than antidumping. An important positive side of the story is that unlike previous balance of payments adjustments, in spite of the major crisis that followed the recent devaluation, the hard-won liberalization has been maintained."--World Bank web site.

Download or read book Investing in Infrastructure written by Marianne Fay and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2003 with total page 26 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The authors estimate demand for infrastructure services over the first decade of the new millennium based on a model that relates demand for infrastructure with the structural change and growth in income the world is expected to undergo between now and 2010. It should be noted that predictions are based on estimated demand rather than on any absolute measure of "need" such as those developed in the Millenium Development Goals. The authors also provide estimates of associated investment and maintenance expenditures and predict total required resource flows to satisfy new demand while maintaining service for existing infrastructure.

Download or read book Further Evidence on the Link Between Finance and Growth written by Allen N. Berger and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2003 with total page 44 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Dollarization of the Banking System written by Patrick Honohan and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2003 with total page 52 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: De Nicolo, Honohan, and Ize assess the benefits and risks associated with dollarization of the banking system. The authors provide novel empirical evidence on the determinants of dollarization, its role in promoting financial development, and on whether dollarization is associated with financial instability. They find that: The credibility of macroeconomic policy and the quality of institutions are both key determinants of cross-country variations in dollarization. Dollarization is likely to promote financial deepening only in a high inflation environment. Financial instability is likely higher in dollarized economies. The authors discuss the implications of these findings for financial sector and monetary policies.

Download or read book International Survey of Integrated Financial Sector Supervision written by Jose de Luna-Martinez and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2003 with total page 52 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Despite the intense debate on the advantages and disadvantages of adopting integrated supervision that has taken place in recent years, little is known about the experiences of countries that have adopted it and the obstacles and challenges they have faced to implement it. In an attempt to shed light on this area, the authors present the results of a survey conducted in a group of 15 countries that have adopted integrated supervision. After a brief review of the literature on integrated supervision, the authors examine four topics: 1) The reasons cited by this group of countries for establishing an integrated supervisory agency. 2) The scope of regulatory and supervisory powers of these agencies. 3) The progress of these agencies in harmonizing their regulatory and supervisory practices across the intermediaries they supervise. 4) The practical problems faced by policymakers in adopting integrated supervision. The survey revealed that the group of integrated supervisory agencies is not as homogeneous as it seems. Important differences arise with regard to the scope of regulatory and supervisory powers the agencies have been given. In fact, contrary to popular belief, less than 50 percent of the agencies can be categorized as mega-supervisors. Another finding is that in most countries progress toward the harmonization of prudential regulation and supervision across financial intermediaries remains limited. Interestingly, the survey revealed that practically all countries believe they have achieved a higher degree of harmonization in the regulation and supervision of banks and securities companies than between banks and insurance firms. The survey also identified some practical problems faced by this group of countries in establishing their unified supervisory agencies. The authors discuss these problems, along with the practical lessons and recommendations provided by the 15 agencies to other countries considering integrated supervision, in the final section of the paper.

Download or read book United States Congressional Serial Set Catalog written by and published by . This book was released on 1988 with total page 688 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Monthly Catalogue United States Public Documents written by and published by . This book was released on 1994 with total page 1064 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: