scholarly journals Trade and Investment under Policy Uncertainty: Theory and Firm Evidence

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 189-222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyle Handley ◽  
Nuno Limão
Keyword(s):  
Large Fraction ◽  
Trade Agreements ◽  
Trade Policies ◽  
Policy Uncertainty ◽  
Trade Reform ◽  
Exporting Firms ◽  
If Current ◽  
Trade Policy Uncertainty ◽  
Firm Evidence ◽  
Trade And Investment

In a dynamic model with sunk export costs, a firm's export investment is lower under trade policy uncertainty, and credible preferential trade agreements (PTAs) increase trade even if current tariffs are low. Exploring Portugal's accession to the European Community as a policy uncertainty shock we find that the trade reform accounted for a large fraction of Portuguese exporting firms' entry and sales; the accession removed uncertainty about future EC trade policies; and this uncertainty channel accounted for a large fraction of the predicted growth. Our approach can be applied to other PTAs and sources of policy uncertainty. (JEL D22, F12, F14, F15, G31, L11)

scholarly journals Uncertainty and Trade Agreements

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nuno Limão ◽  
Giovanni Maggi
Keyword(s):  
Trade Policy ◽  
Trade Agreements ◽  
Trade Costs ◽  
Policy Uncertainty ◽  
Income Risk ◽  
Sufficient Statistic ◽  
Export Supply ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Trade Policy Uncertainty ◽  
Statistic Approach

We explore conditions under which trade agreements can provide gains by reducing trade policy uncertainty. Given the degree of income risk aversion, this is more likely when economies are more open, export supply elasticities are lower, and economies more specialized. Governments have stronger incentives to sign trade agreements when the trading environment is more uncertain. As exogenous trade costs decline, the gains from reducing tariff uncertainty become more important relative to reducing average tariff levels. We also develop a simple “sufficient statistic” approach to quantify the gains from managing trade policy uncertainty, and examine the impact of ex ante investments on such gains. (JEL D81, F13)

Intellectual Property and Mega-Regional Trade Agreements

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Cottier
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Property ◽  
Dispute Settlement ◽  
Trade Agreements ◽  
Cooperation Agreement ◽  
Transatlantic Trade ◽  
Wto Dispute Settlement ◽  
Innovation And Technology ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Partnership Agreement ◽  
Trade And Investment

The chapter assesses recent developments in intellectual property protection in the EU–Canadian Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement and the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, and extrapolates results of these negotiations to the pending EU–US negotiations on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). It discusses the likely implications of ever-increasing protection of IPRs on international trade, innovation, and technology transfer. Given the complex interaction of TRIPs and WIPO Agreements with the newly emerging agreements, the chapter finally examines the structure and operation of dispute settlement and how existing fragmentation could be overcome. Intellectual property, it is submitted, offers an important case to extend the jurisdiction of WTO dispute settlement to preferential trade agreements.

scholarly journals Analyzing the impact of trade and investment agreements on pharmaceutical policy: provisions, pathways and potential impacts

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (S1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah Gleeson ◽  
Joel Lexchin ◽  
Ronald Labonté ◽  
Belinda Townsend ◽  
Marc-André Gagnon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Intellectual Property ◽  
Intellectual Property Rights ◽  
Trade Agreements ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Pharmaceutical Policy ◽  
Health And Human Rights ◽  
Policy Objectives ◽  
Investment Agreements ◽  
Trade And Investment

Abstract Background Trade and investment agreements negotiated after the World Trade Organization’s Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) have included increasingly elevated protection of intellectual property rights along with an expanding array of rules impacting many aspects of pharmaceutical policy. Despite the large body of literature on intellectual property and access to affordable medicines, the ways in which other provisions in trade agreements can affect pharmaceutical policy and, in turn, access to medicines have been little studied. There is a need for an analytical framework covering the full range of provisions, pathways, and potential impacts, on which to base future health and human rights impact assessment and research. A framework exploring the ways in which trade and investment agreements may affect pharmaceutical policy was developed, based on an analysis of four recently negotiated regional trade agreements. First a set of core pharmaceutical policy objectives based on international consensus was identified. A systematic comparative analysis of the publicly available legal texts of the four agreements was undertaken, and the potential impacts of the provisions in these agreements on the core pharmaceutical policy objectives were traced through an analysis of possible pathways. Results An analytical framework is presented, linking ten types of provisions in the four trade agreements to potential impacts on four core pharmaceutical policy objectives (access and affordability; safety, efficacy, and quality; rational use of medicines; and local production capacity and health security) via various pathways. Conclusions The analytical framework highlights provisions in trade and investment agreements that need to be examined, pathways that should be explored, and potential impacts that should be taken into consideration with respect to pharmaceutical policy. This may serve as a useful checklist or template for health and human rights impact assessments and research on the implications of trade agreements for pharmaceuticals.

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