scholarly journals The FTAA as a Three-level Bargaining Game

2009 ◽  
Vol 34 (133) ◽  
Author(s):  
ANIL HIRA
Keyword(s):  
Latin American ◽  
Bargaining Power ◽  
Bilateral Trade ◽  
Free Trade Area ◽  
Trade Agreements ◽  
The United States ◽  
Trade Area ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Latin American Countries ◽  
Dynamic Shape

This paper applies Putnam’s (1993) seminal work on negotiations as a two level game, to the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) negotiations process. The paper compares the domestic ratification processes with the existing web of regional and bilateral trade agreements for insights into the relative bargaining strength and key issues for the most important economies in the hemisphere: the United States, Canada, Brazil, and Mexico. This paper delivers important insights into how the existing international and domestic legal and political context will affect the dynamic shape of FTAA negotiations, with the aim of finding strategies by which Latin American countries (LACs) can maximize their bargaining power.

Geo-Economic Competition in Latin America: Brazil, Venezuela, and Regional Integration in the 21st Century

2018 ◽  
Vol 33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guilherme Casarões
Keyword(s):  
Latin American ◽  
Regional Integration ◽  
Free Trade Area ◽  
The United States ◽  
Economic Competition ◽  
Integration Model ◽  
Trade Area ◽  
Complex Processes ◽  
The Us ◽  
New Institutions

The institutional framework of Latin American integration saw a period of intense transformation in the 2000s, with the death of the ambitious project of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), spearheaded by the United States, and the birth of two new institutions, the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC). This article offers a historical reconstruction of regional integration structures in the 2000s, with emphasis on the fault lines between Brazil, Venezuela and the US, and how they have shaped the institutional order across the hemisphere. We argue that the shaping of UNASUR and CELAC, launched respectively in 2007 and 2010, is the outcome of three complex processes: (1) Brazil’s struggle to strengthen Mercosur by acting more decisively as a regional paymaster; (2) Washington’s selective engagement with some key regional players, notably Colombia, and (3) Venezuela’s construction of an alternative integration model through the Bolivarian Alliance (ALBA) and oil diplomacy. If UNASUR corresponded to Brazil’s strategy to neutralize the growing role of Caracas in South America and to break apart the emerging alliance between Venezuela, Argentina, and Bolivia, CELAC was at the same time a means to keep the US away from regional decisions, and to weaken the Caracas-Havana axis that sustained ALBA.

scholarly journals Eliminating ‘Thick’ Borders: Analysing the Legal Framework on Non-Tariff Barriers in the Africa Continental Free Trade Area Agreement

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 167-194
Author(s):  
Catherine Penda
Keyword(s):  
Free Trade ◽  
Regional Integration ◽  
Bargaining Power ◽  
Free Trade Area ◽  
Trade Agreements ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Growth Potential ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Global Marketplace ◽  
Trade Area

African countries have long recognised that regional integration is vital if Africa is to optimise its growth potential and boost its bargaining power in the global marketplace. This explains the proliferation of several Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) across the continent culminating in the conclusion of the landmark African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). However, despite the concerted efforts to boost intra-trade among African countries, African borders remain ‘thick’ because of the continued existence of Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) that reverse gains made from initiatives of trade liberalisation. Accordingly, if the landmark Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is to be successful, it must strive to address and eliminate Africa’s NTBs. It is argued in this paper that while the AfCFTA makes some important strides in reducing NTBs in intra-African trade, there are still some significant gaps in the AfCFTA’s provisions on NTBs that need to be addressed. Some of these gaps include: the lack of a comprehensive legal framework that adequately addresses all the categories of NTBs and the lack of clear guidelines on how to promote harmonisation among conflicting measures among RTAs. This article singles out and analyses provisions on NTBs under the AfCFTA with the aim of determining whether the AfCFTA addresses the challenges currently facing other RTAs in tackling NTBs. The author will identify shortcomings in the legal framework of the AfCFTA with the aim of making proposals to address them.

Do Trade Agreements Contribute to the Decline in Labor Share? Evidence from Latin American Countries

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martín González Rozada ◽  
Hernán Ruffo
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Trade Agreements ◽  
The United States ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Donor Pool ◽  
Labor Share ◽  
Percentage Points ◽  
Latin American Countries

In this paper, we explore the role of trade in the evolution of labor share in Latin American countries. We use trade agreements with large economies (the United States, the European Union, and China) to capture the effect of sharp changes in trade. In the last two decades, labor share has displayed a negative trend among those countries that signed trade agreements, while in other countries labor share increased, widening the gap by 7 percentage points. We apply synthetic control methods to estimate the average causal impact of trade agreements on labor share. While effects are heterogeneous in our eight case studies, the average impact is negative between 2 to 4 percentage points of GDP four years after the entry into force of the trade agreements. This result is robust to the specification used and to the set of countries in the donor pool. We also find that, after trade agreements, exports of manufactured goods and the share of industry in GDP increase on average, most notably in the case studies where negative effects on labor share are significant. A decomposition shows that all the reduction in labor share is explained by a negative impact on real wages.

scholarly journals The Development of the Free Trade Area of the Americas: A Guide For Legal Research

2005 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle S. Viegas
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Free Trade ◽  
Free Trade Agreement ◽  
Free Trade Area ◽  
Trade Agreement ◽  
Trade Agreements ◽  
The United States ◽  
Common Market ◽  
Trade Area ◽  
The World

At the 1994 Summit of the Americas, leaders of democratic nations in the Western Hemisphere committed to establishing a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) by January 2005. The Declaration of Principles resulting from that Summit called for building on “existing sub-regional and bilateral arrangements in order to broaden and deepen hemispheric economic integration and to bring the agreements together.” Although ambitious, this endeavor was undertaken during a decade marked by an unprecedented proliferation of trade agreements. In 1991, Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay agreed to initiate the formation of a common market now known as the MERCOSUR. Then in 1994, Canada, Mexico and the United States signed the North American Free Trade Agreement which replaced the United States-Canada Free Trade Agreement. Later that year, nations around the world formalized the existing General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, creating the World Trade Organization. In 1997, the Andean Community of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela formalized its plans to establish a common market. Members of the Caribbean Community and Common Market also agreed in several protocols to further their economic and social integration. During the 1990's, numerous other trade agreements were negotiated, and their development continues at the same rapid pace today.

scholarly journals U.S. Power and the Politics of Economic Governance in the Americas

2005 ◽  
Vol 47 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicola Phillips
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Free Trade Area ◽  
Trade Agreements ◽  
The United States ◽  
Economic Governance ◽  
Bilateral Negotiation ◽  
Regional Economic ◽  
Trade Area ◽  
Economic Regime ◽  
The U.S

AbstractThis article examines the nature of the emerging regional economic regime in the Americas and argues that the dominant approach to economic governance is one defined by the assertion of U.S. power in the region and oriented toward distinctively U.S. interests and preferences. This has been clearly evident in the evolution of the Free Trade Area of the Americas but also, with the deceleration and fragmentation of that process during 2002 and 2003, in the growing prioritization of bilateralism. The leverage afforded by the bilateral negotiation of trade agreements acts to situate primary influence in shaping the rules that constitute the regional economic regime, and the primary functions associated with governing in this context, firmly within the agencies of the U.S. state. This essay therefore explores how the hegemonic power of the United States manifests itself in the substance of the hemispheric project and the shape of the economic regime associated with it.

scholarly journals Da ALCA à CELAC: o Brasil e os desafios da integração continental / CELAC the FTAA: Brazil and the challenges of continental integration

2013 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 424-447
Author(s):  
André Luiz Reis da Silva ◽  
Isadora Loreto da Silveira
Keyword(s):  
Latin American ◽  
Free Trade Area ◽  
Negotiation Process ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Trade Area ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
America Latina ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Latin American Countries ◽  
The U.S

 Este trabalho procura, primeiramente, analisar o processo de negociações da Área de Livre Comércio das Américas (Alca), que reuniria 34 países do continente americano, ou seja, todos que o compõem, à exceção de Cuba. Busca-se também examinar os desdobramentos diretos e indiretos das negociações, pois se infere que o impacto desse projeto sobre as relações entre os EUA e os países da América Latina e Caribe, e entre os próprios países latino-americanos, foi muito significativo. A proposta foi lançada na I Cúpula das Américas, em 1994, por iniciativa dos EUA, e tinha o encerramento de suas negociações previsto para 2005. Embora não tenha sido implementada, a negociação da Alca produziu efeitos, contrabalançando processos de integração latino-americanos. A corroboração do fracasso da proposta da Alca, em 2005, em Mar del Plata, sublinhou a importância dos processos próprios de integração e concertação política sul e latino-americanos. Esse acontecimento é relevante, pois tais processos se configuram como vias para o desenvolvimento e a defesa dos interesses nacionais dos países da região. A análise deste artigo parte das negociações da Alca durante o governo de Fernando Henrique Cardoso, examina a proposta de "Alca light" do governo Lula, e culmina na derrocada do projeto da Alca, nas iniciativas latino-americanas autônomas - como a CALC e a CELAC - e na nova estratégia dos EUA para a região.   Abstract: Firstly, this paper seeks to analyze the Free Trade Area of ??the Americas (FTAA) negotiation process, which would bring together 34 countries in the Americas, that is, all who compose it, except for Cuba. We also examine the direct and indirect consequences of negotiations, because the impact of this project on relations between the U.S. and Latin America and the Caribbean, and also among Latin American countries, was very significant. The proposal was launched at the 1st Summit of the Americas in 1994, as a U.S. initiative, and the closure of negotiations was scheduled for 2005. Although it has not been implemented, the FTAA has produced effects, counterbalancing processes of Latin American integration. The corroboration of the failure of the proposed FTAA, in 2005, in Mar del Plata, stressed the importance of the development of Latin and South America's own processes of integration and political coordination. This event is relevant, since such processes constitute ways for the development and defense of national interests of the countries in the region. This paper's analysis departs from the negotiations during the Cardoso government, examines the Lula administration proposal of a "light FTAA", and culminates with the collapse of the FTAA project, with autonomous Latin American initiatives - such as CALC and CELAC - and with the new U.S. strategy for the region. 

scholarly journals VENEZUELA EN EL PROCESO DE INCORPORACIÓN AL MERCOSUR

2012 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-129
Author(s):  
Dani José Villalobos Soto ◽  
Enio Enrique Ortiz Valenzuela
Keyword(s):  
Latin American ◽  
Free Trade Area ◽  
Integration Scheme ◽  
Full Member ◽  
Trade Area ◽  
Potential Benefits ◽  
Common Interests ◽  
América Del Sur ◽  
Benefits And Costs ◽  
Latin American Countries

Diversos han sido los esquemas de integración que han experimentado en sus prácticas los países de Latinoamérica, en su lucha por lograr una concentración de esfuerzos frentes a las vicisitudes en aras de alcanzar intereses comunes para la región. Esta investigación enfoca al MERCOSUR como un proceso de integración que busca la conformación de un mercado común por medio de la eliminación de barreras arancelarias y para arancelarias. En ese sentido el presente estudio considera la participación de la República Bolivariana de Venezuela como posible miembro pleno del bloque, también se analiza el escenario asimétrico que caracteriza a Venezuela para su ingreso al MERCOSUR, donde se destacan las asimetrías de Venezuela para con los países miembros del bloque sureño, considerando de esta forma los potenciales beneficios y costos que tendrá para Venezuela la inclusión real al conglomerado de países que integran el MERCOSUR. Se ha basado en un trabajo de tipo documental, donde se realiza un análisis sobre la inclusión de Venezuela al esquema integracionista. Como conclusión es importante destacar que el objetivo de MERCOSUR se basa en crear una zona de libre comercio para beneficio de los países que integran América del Sur. SUMMARY Various scheme of integration have been experienced in practices of Latin American countries in their struggle to achieve a concentration of efforts against the vicissitudes in order to accomplish common interests for the region. This research focuses on MERCOSUR as an integration process that seeks the creation of a common market through the elimination of tariff wall and nontariff. In this sense, the present study considers the participation of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela as a full member of the bloc; it also analyzes the asymmetric scenario that characterizes Venezuela for its entry into MERCOSUR, highlighting Venezuela’s asymmetries with members of the southern bloc, thus considering the potential benefits and costs that it represent for Venezuela the real inclusion to the group of countries that are part of MERCOSUR. The present study is based on a documentary work, making an analysis on the inclusion of Venezuela to the integration scheme. In conclusion it is important to note that the goal of MERCOSUR is based on creating a free trade area for the benefit of the countries of South America.

China’s trade policy towards Latin America: an analysis of free trade agreements policy

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dorotea Lopez ◽  
Felipe Munoz
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Bilateral Trade ◽  
Free Trade Agreements ◽  
Trade Agreements ◽  
Trade Flows ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Economic Relations ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Latin American Countries

PurposeThe emergence of China in the international trading system has shifted its gravity center, as the country has become one of the mayor actors in international economic relations. Through the subscription of preferential agreements, China is building a network of strategic partnerships worldwide, including Latin America. The purpose of this paper is to answer the questions: Do free trade agreements (FTAs) between China and Latin American countries contribute to expand trade flows and enhance products diversification?Design/methodology/approachThree countries have an FTA with China, Chile (2005), Peru (2009) and Costa Rica (2010). Through an econometric estimation based on a gravity model, the authors expect to determine the impact of these agreements over both trade flows and products.FindingsThe study shows that FTAs have a positive impact on both bilateral trade flows and on the number of exchanged products. Nevertheless, this impact is positive but diminishes in time. The authors confirm that these agreements allowed for a substantive expansion of trade between Latin American economies and China, becoming relevant for policymakers regarding the bi-regional relation.Originality/valueThe study contributes to the understanding of the bilateral trade relations between China and Latin American countries, giving evidence of the magnitude of the impact of FTAs. Through new data, at a six-digit level of detail, this study improves current knowledge regarding bilateral economic relations.

New Regionalism in East Asia and its Relationship with the WTO and APEC

2002 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 87-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hyun-Hoon Lee ◽  
Peter J. Lloyd ◽  
Chung-Mo Koo
Keyword(s):  
East Asia ◽  
Free Trade ◽  
Bilateral Trade ◽  
Free Trade Area ◽  
Trade Agreements ◽  
Regional Trade Agreements ◽  
New Regionalism ◽  
Regional Trade ◽  
Future Evolution ◽  
Trade Area

Since the 1997–98 financial crisis, the countries of East Asia have been giving more attention to ways of expanding intra regional trade that include: the establishment of regional trade agreements (RTAs) such as ASEAN+3; plans to establish a free trade area involving the economies of ASEAN and China; as well as moves towards bilateral trade agreements. The trend towards this new regionalism, the reasons for it, its impact upon the region, its future evolution and prospects are of profound regional, and indeed global, significance This paper reviews the new regionalism in East Asia in recent years, and discusses how it relates with the WTO and APEC.

scholarly journals China – Tariff Rate Quotas for Certain Agricultural Products: Against the Grain: Can the WTO Open Chinese Markets? A Contaminated Experiment

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
Joseph Glauber ◽  
Simon Lester
Keyword(s):  
Bilateral Trade ◽  
The United States ◽  
Legal Aspects ◽  
Tariff Rate ◽  
Economic Interests ◽  
Trade Relations ◽  
Tariff Rate Quotas ◽  
International Obligations ◽  
Trade Relationship ◽  
Key Issues

Abstract The US complaint about Chinese tariff-rate quotas (TRQs) on certain grain products helps illustrate several key issues in US–China trade relations and the effectiveness of WTO disputes. First, do international obligations based on transparency and fairness work in relation to an authoritarian country not known for the rule of law domestically? Second, can there be a disconnect between the legal aspects of a dispute and the underlying economic interests, with a DSB ruling sometimes not leading to improved trade flows? And third, given the bilateral trade war and ‘phase one’ trade deal between the United States and China, has the WTO been superseded in this trade relationship? This paper summarizes the facts and law of the China–TRQs dispute, and examines each of these questions in that context.

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