Will the Real "natural Trading Partner" Please Stand Up?

Will the Real Author: Maurice W. Schiff
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN:
Category : Commercial policy
Languages : en
Pages : 29

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Book Description
Adherents of the "natural trading partner" hypothesis argue that preferential trade agreements are more likely to improve welfare if participating countries already trade disproportionately with each other. Opponents argue the opposite. Neither side is right. The hypothesis holds up only if two countries are "natural trading partners" in the sense that one country tends to import what the other exports.

Will the Real "natural Trading Partner" Please Stand Up?

Will the Real Author: Maurice W. Schiff
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN:
Category : Commercial policy
Languages : en
Pages : 29

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Book Description
Adherents of the "natural trading partner" hypothesis argue that preferential trade agreements are more likely to improve welfare if participating countries already trade disproportionately with each other. Opponents argue the opposite. Neither side is right. The hypothesis holds up only if two countries are "natural trading partners" in the sense that one country tends to import what the other exports.

Will the Real Natural Trading Partner Please Stand Up?

Will the Real Natural Trading Partner Please Stand Up? PDF Author: Maurice Schiff
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 26

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Book Description
Adherents of the natural trading partner hypothesis argue that preferential trade agreements are more likely to improve welfare if participating countries already trade disproportionately with each other. Opponents argue the opposite. Neither side is right. The hypothesis holds up only if two countries are natural trading partners in the sense that one country tends to import what the other exports.Adherents of the natural trading partner hypothesis argue that preferential trade agreements (PTAs) are more likely to improve welfare if participating countries already trade disproportionately with each other.Opponents of the hypothesis claim that the opposite is true: welfare gains are likely to be greater if participating countries trade less with each other.Schiff shows that neither analysis is correct. The natural trading partner hypothesis can be rescued if it is redefined in terms of complementarity or substitutability in the trade relations of countries, rather than in terms of their volume of trade.Schiff asks not whether a country should form or join a trading bloc but which partner or partners it should select if it does join such a bloc.He shows that the pre-PTA volume of trade is not a useful criterion for selecting a partner. The pre-PTA volume is equal to zero if the partner is an importer of the good sold to the home country and it is indeterminate if the partner is an exporter of that good. Among Schiff's conclusions:The home country is better off with a large partner country. First, a large partner is more likely to satisfy the home country's import demand at the world price. Second, the home country is likely to gain more on its exports to a large partner country, because that partner is likely to continue importing from the world market after formation of the trading bloc. And since the partner charges a tariff on imports from the world market, the home country is more likely to improve its terms of trade by selling to the partner at the higher tariff-inclusive price if the partner is large.The PTA as a whole is likely to be better off if each country imports what the other exports (rather than each country importing what the other imports). Losses are similar but less likely, while gains are both more likely and the same or larger.This paper - a product of Trade, Development Research Group - is part of a larger effort in the group to understand the economics of regional integration. The author may be contacted at [email protected].

North-South Technology Diffusing, Regional Integration, and the Dynamics of the "Natural Trading Partners" Hypothesis

North-South Technology Diffusing, Regional Integration, and the Dynamics of the Author:
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 21

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Book Description


Patterns of regional agri-food trade in Asia

Patterns of regional agri-food trade in Asia PDF Author: Diao, Xinshen
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 53

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Book Description
This paper analyzes the implication of economic structural change and dietary transformation on changing patterns of agri-food trade among 17 Asian development countries. Sub-regional trade in Central, South, and Southeast Asia is the focus of the paper, along with trade with other partners outside the sub-regions. The paper finds that Asian markets for total agri-food exports and exports of nutritious foods are generally more important than the markets outside of Asia and for many of them, the importance of Asian markets increases over time. While net exporters and importers co-exist in each sub-region, with a few exceptions, sub-regional trade is often less important. Many small countries trade only with one or two large neighbors and less so with each other. The dietary transformation impacts trade in nutritious foods in diverse ways. With income growth, increased domestic demand for nutritious foods seem to lead to more imports of these foods. While many South and Southeast Asian countries have a comparative advantage in exports of some nutritious food products, growth in these exports can be negatively affected by rising domestic demand. Although nutritious food exports continue to play important roles in total agri-food exports, export growth of nutritious food is often slower than overall growth of agri-food exports. The dietary transformation also seems to lead to increases in demand for processed foods which many Asian countries meet through imports, often, accounting for a large component of total agri-food imports. On the other hand, processed foods generally account for a small portion of agri-food exports. However, there are a few countries where processed food export growth is rapid. In these cases, the sub-regional market is expanding, but with few exceptions, it is still less important than trade with countries outside the sub-regions. The paper also finds that agri-food exports and imports are highly concentrated, and a small group of commodities dominate most countries export and import portfolios and remain unchanged over time. The main markets for these important commodities are generally not in the sub-regions and this mismatch between demand and supply of agri-food commodities within sub-region is a natural barrier for promoting regional trade. The modified trade complementary index developed in this paper is based on Michaely (1996) and shows that trade complementarity measures are positively correlated with actual bilateral trade. Small countries tend to enjoy higher levels of complementarity with one or two large trading partners than with other small countries in the same sub-region. This implies that small countries could be better off from bilateral trade arrangements with large partners compared to a regional trade agreement within the sub-region. Because the sub-regional market is oftentimes not large enough to meet large countries’ import demand or consume their export supply, regional trade agreements within sub-regions may be less likely to serve their needs for trade expansion than negotiating with large trading partners outside the sub-regions. While many Asian developing countries’ governments have been pushing for trade diversification and want to reduce export dependencies concentrated on one or two large trading partners, this paper shows the challenges to achieve this policy goal. For small countries, focusing on bilateral trade arrangements with their dominant trading partners seems to be a more practical and effective strategy than regional trade agreements within sub-regions. Long-term trade arrangements, consistent trade policies, and various preferential trade arrangements should be pursued by small countries with their larger trading partners to promote agri-food exports.

Regional Intergration and Development in Small States

Regional Intergration and Development in Small States PDF Author: Maurice W. Schiff
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN:
Category : Acuerdos comerciales
Languages : en
Pages : 34

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Book Description
Small states should pursue unilateral and multilateral trade liberalization, and members of the African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) group should expand reciprocal agreements with the European Union (Cotonou Agreement) to the entire OECD. They should also intensify South-South regional cooperation in the area of regional public goods.

Regionalism and Globalization

Regionalism and Globalization PDF Author: Sajal Lahiri
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 113459951X
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 452

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Book Description
This volume brings together articles on three primary elements of globalization: multilateralism, regionalism and unilateralism. Expert contributors investigate the substantive issues of commodity and factor trade, capital movements and monetary and fiscal policies, from both theoretical and empirical perspectives.

Trade Agreements, Investment Protection and Dispute Settlement in Latin America

Trade Agreements, Investment Protection and Dispute Settlement in Latin America PDF Author: Belén Olmos Giupponi
Publisher: Kluwer Law International B.V.
ISBN: 9041186190
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 448

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Book Description
In recent years many Latin American countries have liberalized their trade and investment regimes, opening their markets to free international trade. At the same time, regional economic integration has boomed. This book is the first systematic analysis in any language of these globally significant developments, and the first comprehensive legal study of dispute settlement relating to foreign direct investment and trade in the region. Undertaken by an expert in the field, this study describes the current institutional framework of Latin American trade and investment law as well as specialized legal issues in the region's various economic blocs. Among the many issues and topics raised the following may be mentioned: • questions of compliance and procedure in the context of today's international investment regime; • formalized dispute settlement mechanisms; • alternative dispute resolution channels, including dispute prevention practices; • legitimacy and transparency of the various dispute settlement mechanisms; • inclusion of social clauses in trade and investment agreements; and • avoidance of investment treaty liability. In order to offer a most accurate view of the effectiveness of the protection granted to foreign investors, special attention is given to relevant case law – completely covering the period 1985–2015 – as well as arbitral precedents before international bodies and in jurisdictions across the region. The book concludes with a critical examination of the future prospects of international economic law dispute settlement in the Americas, pinpointing current trends and unveiling future possible avenues for change. As an in-depth explication of how the rules and principles of international economic law are applied in Latin America, this book has no peers. For practitioners drafting business agreements with Latin American companies, or needing to ensure availability of appropriate remedies, this book's detailed insight into international litigation in the region, including case law illustrating the main topics, will prove to be of immeasurable value. Professionals in the arbitral community worldwide, as well as governments, dedicated research centres and officials in international organizations will welcome this book's model for comparative integration studies, systematic guidance on procedure and case law of domestic and international courts and arbitral tribunals, and extensive treatment of dispute settlement mechanisms in trade and investment agreements.

What does regional trade in South Asia reveal about future trade integration? : some empirical evidence

What does regional trade in South Asia reveal about future trade integration? : some empirical evidence PDF Author: Nihal Pitigala
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN:
Category : Asia, South
Languages : en
Pages : 71

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Book Description
The author further demonstrates through additional statistical measures--including revealed comparative advantage indices, trade concentration, and trade competition profiles--that the trade structures that have evolved among the South Asian Countries may not facilitate a rapid increase in intra-regional trade. But there is evidence that previous unilateral trade liberalization efforts in the South Asian countries have already had a positive impact in boosting both intra- and extra-regional trade. Continuing the process of unilateral liberalization, in parallel with regional integration, would aid the South Asian countries to continue to diversify their still narrow export bases and potentially evolve new comparative advantages and complementarities that could facilitate the successful implementation of SAFTA"--Abstract.

Regional Rules in the Global Trading System

Regional Rules in the Global Trading System PDF Author: Antoni Estevadeordal
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 0521760844
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 541

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Book Description
This book describes the rules governing regional trade agreements, providing new insights into the interplay between regional and multilateral trade rules.

Regionalism in Global Trade

Regionalism in Global Trade PDF Author: Dilip K. Das
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
ISBN: 9781845421458
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 244

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Book Description
This comprehensive book addresses one of the most important aspects of international trade, namely, regional trade and regional integration agreements (RIAs). The focus of intense global interest and debate over the last decade, RIAs have become an integr