Merchandise trade and trade in commercial services: Merchandise trade

2016 ◽  
pp. 30-33 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Merchandise Trade

What's at Stake for the LDCs, Now that the Uruguay Round Talks have been Suspended? (The Distinguishedl Lecture)

1991 ◽  
Vol 30 (4I) ◽  
pp. 579-599
Author(s):  
Robert E. Baldwin
Keyword(s):  
Multinational Firms ◽  
Uruguay Round ◽  
National Policy ◽  
Trade In Services ◽  
Trade Negotiation ◽  
Multilateral Trade Negotiation ◽  
Industrial Countries ◽  
Goods And Services ◽  
Foreign Affiliates ◽  
Merchandise Trade

Until negotiations collapsed in early December, the Uruguay Round gave promise of being the most significant multilateral trade negotiation since 1947, when the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GA TI) was implemented and tariffs levels of the industrial countries were sharply cut. There are at least three reasons for this conclusion. First, by agreeing at the outset to bring both agriculture and textiles under GATT discipline, the participants created the opportunity for both rich and poor agricultural exporting nations and relatively low-wage, newly industrializing LDCs to benefit significantly from GATT-sponsored trade negotiations. Prior to the Uruguay Round, the benefits to these countries of such negotiations had been limited, since these two sectors were excluded from any significant liberalization. Second, by agreeing to formulate new rules relating to trade in services, trade-related aspects of· intellectual property rights, and trade-related investment issues, members took an important step in modernizing the GATT. As economic globalization has accelerated, there is a growing realization that arms-length merchandise transactions, the traditional concern of the GATT, are only one aspect of the real-side economic relations of current concern to national policy-makers and the economic interests they represent Now international commercial activities also involve merchandise trade among multinational firms and their foreign affiliates, international trade in services among independent agents as well as among affiliated enterprises, foreign direct investment activities, production nf goods and services in foreign affiliates for sale either abroad or at home, international flows of technology, and temporary movements of labour across borders. Although the so-called new issues in the Uruguay Round do not cover all of these matters, they go a considerable way in making the GATT more relevant for dealing with the problems of increasing internationalization.

A Decade of the World Trade Organization and the Trade Performance of Muslim Countries

2010 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 23-44
Author(s):  
Ruzita Mohd. Amin
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
World Trade Organization ◽  
World Trade ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Playing Field ◽  
Muslim Countries ◽  
The World ◽  
The Developed Countries ◽  
Merchandise Trade ◽  
Wto Agreements

The World Trade Organization (WTO), established on 1 January 1995 as a successor to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), has played an important role in promoting global free trade. The implementation of its agreements, however, has not been smooth and easy. In fact this has been particularly difficult for developing countries, since they are expected to be on a level playing field with the developed countries. After more than a decade of existence, it is worth looking at the WTO’s impact on developing countries, particularly Muslim countries. This paper focuses mainly on the performance of merchandise trade of Muslim countries after they joined the WTO. I first analyze their participation in world merchandise trade and highlight their trade characteristics in general. This is then followed by a short discussion on the implications of WTO agreements on Muslim countries and some recommendations on how to face this challenge.

Infrastructure and Trade: An Empirical Study Based on China and Selected Asian Economies

SAGE Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 215824402110360
Author(s):  
Imran Ur Rahman ◽  
Mohsin Shafi ◽  
Liu Junrong ◽  
Enitilina Tatiani M.K. Fetuu ◽  
Shah Fahad ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Positive Impact ◽  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
Trade Flows ◽  
Transport Infrastructure ◽  
Sea Transport ◽  
Asian Economies ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
Ict Infrastructure ◽  
High Standards ◽  
Merchandise Trade

We empirically determine the role of different forms of infrastructure on a country’s trade. We use an augmented gravity model that incorporates infrastructure in the estimation of merchandise trade flows. We take panel data, including China and 21 selected Asian economies, from 1999 to 2018. We find that the panel ordinary least squares (OLS) and poisson pseudo maximum likelihood (PPML) model estimations prove to be significant. Proxies for Transport Infrastructure including roads, railways, and sea transport, and Proxies for information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure consisting of mobile, electricity, and internet connections show a strong and positive impact on trade while air transport and landline phone connection have an unexpected negative effect on trade. The positive estimates for quality of infrastructure signify that high standards of Transport and ICT infrastructures lead to increased trade flows of the exporting and importing countries. Results also show that cultural similarity leads to increased trade flows between China and its trading partners in Asia.

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