Do trade agreements activate new links and increase flows? A data-driven analysis of the global cereal market.

Author(s):  
Benedetta Falsetti ◽  
Luca Ridolfi ◽  
Francesco Laio

<p>Given the importance of food imports for food security and the role of exports in income generation, food trade is an indispensable component of most countries’ development strategies. Global and regional agreements set the rules for trade policies between countries. In this context, we investigate the impact of trade agreements on the trade network of agricultural products. We study whether the ratification of agricultural-oriented trade agreements has an influence on the topology of the cereal trade network (link establishment) and the variation of flows through existing links.</p><p>Our analysis differs from previous studies for three main reasons. Firstly, it is a data-driven analysis, based on a dataset that combines the trade agreement structure provided by the World Bank and cereal trade flow data from FAOSTAT. Secondly, the analysis focuses on a global scale, considering data for all countries where information is available. Finally, we carried out the analysis at the level of aggregated cereals, both from a monetary (US$) and diet-based (Kcal) perspective, over the period from 1993 to 2015. This time interval includes the most important recent reforms in the agricultural sector.</p><p>The results show that a new trade agreement between two countries increases the probability of activating a grain trade link by 7.3% in the year after the agreement is ratified. In the case where trade agreements are not considered, the probability of triggering a new link between two countries drops to 1.3%.</p><p>Regarding the volume of flows, we classify variations into three categories: flow decrease (negative variation of the flux), mild increase (<50% increase in the flow intensity), and sharp increase (>50% increase).</p><p>The results obtained, both in economic value (US$) and in quantitative variations (Kcal), show that the entry force of a trade agreement has two main effects: in flows covered by trade agreements, there is a significant increase in the percentage of flows experiencing a sharp increase, and a reduction of the percentage of flows experiencing a negative variation. </p><p>We, therefore, provide here global-scale, data-based evidence. Previous results suggest that trade agreements are facilitators of the connections between different countries and, therefore, facilitators in terms of global food trade accessibility.  This work aims to be a first attempt to investigate the impacts of international agreements simultaneously on the topology of the agricultural product trade network, and on the increase of existing link flows. Our intention is to dedicate further analysis about which trade agreements perform better, increasing the traded volume, to explore the role of trade liberalization at a worldwide level.</p><p> </p>

Author(s):  
David W. Forslund ◽  
David G. Kilman

With the arrival of the “World Wide Web,” we have witnessed a transition toward a truly global perspective with respect to electronic health records. In recent years, much more discussion has focused on the potential for international virtual electronic health records and what is required for them to become a reality in the world today (Kilman & Forslund, 1997). As the Internet becomes more ubiquitous and Web-enabled, we see access to electronic health records using these technologies becoming more commonplace. Even so, these Web-enabled health records still remain technologically isolated from other medical records in the distributed continuum of care; much of the standardization challenge still stands before us. We have witnessed startling technological advances, but we still face considerable obstacles to the goal of having globally standardized electronic health records. In this chapter we describe some of the issues associated with Web-enabled health records, the role of standards in the evolution of Web-enabled health records, and some of the barriers to the development of globally accessible electronic health records. We discuss possible ways to overcome these barriers and the kinds of benefits and opportunities that global health records will help provide. The global scale perspective makes more evident the very real and potentially tragic consequences of prolonged and unnecessary delays in deploying these technologies. Therefore, in an effort to promote a fuller consciousness of health safety, the chapter concludes with a comparative look at the negative impact of impediments in the movement toward global extensible electronic health records.


2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 539-569
Author(s):  
Maria Panezi

Abstract The proliferation of Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs) and Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) has given rise to significant debate on the need to measure, understand and possibly regulate the impact these agreements have on the multilateral trading system under the umbrella of the World Trade Organization (WTO). This article will discuss the two Doha Transparency Mechanisms (legal transparency) regarding regional trade agreements, as they appear in two General Council decisions from 2006 and 2010. I will argue based on a closer look and a consistent interpretation of Paragraph 10 of the Doha Ministerial Declaration that there is another type of transparency that is relevant to the discussion on PTAs/RTAs, namely “internal transparency.” “Internal transparency stricto sensu” highlights the significance of trust in the WTO institutional processes, such as negotiations, decision-making, dispute settlement and trade monitoring that the representatives of developing member states should have in order for the WTO system to function productively. “Internal transparency lato sensu” is introduced in this article as an extension to include any decision-making deficits, exclusionary and asymmetrical outcomes specifically in the area of unchecked Preferential Trade Agreement proliferation. Instead of a conclusion, the article offers some proposals for more a meaningful progress in the WTO with respect to PTAs/RTAs The proposals aim at raising the profile of both legal and internal of transparency and posit that raising the profile of one will inevitably lead in improvements in the other.


2016 ◽  
Vol 61 (05) ◽  
pp. 1550098
Author(s):  
KICHUN KANG ◽  
PHYLLIS KEYS ◽  
YOON S. SHIN

Recent literature on the dynamics of export destinations has argued that firms export their products to new markets that are geographically close and culturally related to their previous export destinations. A modified version of [Melitz, M (2003). The impact of trade on intra-industry reallocations and aggregate industry productivity. Econometrica, 71(6), 1695–1725.] model suggests that a preferential trade agreement may provide inefficient firms with opportunities to export their products to third destination countries. This paper finds that new Korean products have been exported to the Chile market because of reductions in Chilean tariffs and the experience gained from exporting to the Chilean market has increased the likelihood of subsequent export to other countries in South America. The paper provides direct evidence that a free trade agreement (FTA) can serve as a stepping stone to other markets.


2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 20160074 ◽  
Author(s):  
Surender Kumar ◽  
Prerna Prabhakar

This paper analyses the role of Free Trade Agreements in determining export and import efficiency levels in India using stochastic frontier version of gravity model. We estimate the impact of selected FTAs of India (its bilateral FTAs, FTA with ASEAN and South Asian FTA) and regulatory quality on the efficiency of exports and imports over the period of 2000–2014. The results indicate that India’s bilateral FTAs and its FTA with the ASEAN group help in improving the export and import efficiency respectively. However, the South Asian Free Trade Agreement is statistically insignificant for India’s export and import efficiency. The results also highlight importance of trading partners’ regulatory quality for enhancing the India’s trade efficiency and note that the impacts of regulatory quality are non-monotonic.


2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 473-498 ◽  
Author(s):  
Magdalena Frennhoff Larsén

AbstractSince the Lisbon Treaty increased the legal role of the European Parliament (ep) ineutrade policy, there has been a debate about the extent to which these legal competencies have translated into actual influence over the content and outcome ofeutrade negotiations. Using the trade negotiations between theeuand India as a case study, this article argues that the impact of theephas indeed been significant. Through two-level game analysis, which extends its domestic focus to include theepas a domestic constituent, it demonstrates how theephas affected theeuwin-set in ways that have both hindered and facilitated agreement at the international level between theeuand India. It also shows how theephas affected the negotiating dynamics and how theeunegotiators have had their preferences somewhat compromised by theepin their attempt at reaching an agreement with India.


2021 ◽  
pp. 826-834
Author(s):  
Irina Izyumskaya

Introduction: the article is devoted to the historic background of the prison system in the Kuban and features of the prison institutions formation in Yekaterinodar – the center of the Kuban Oblast, formed in 1860. The article, based on the comprehension of historical experience and analysis of archival materials, shows the impact of the 1860– 1870 state-legal reforms on construction of new and enlargement of current prisons and studies the specifics of prisoner detention conditions. It reveals the role of the Yekaterinodar Military Prison Committee “Prisons Custody Society” in enhancement of Yekaterinodar’s penitentiary institutions: organization of places of detention and provision of the necessary detention regime; control over detainee’s welfare; improvement of medical care for prisoners, etc. Purpose: to reflect development features of penitentiary institutions in the Kuban as a whole and Yekaterinodar in particular. The methodological basis of the research consists of philosophical, general scientific and private scientific methods (dialectical, system-structural, historical-genetic, comparative, formal-legal, etc.). Discussion: based on a brief analysis of the works of N.I. Galkina, N.V. Slavinskii, M.K. Batchayeva, S.A. Lobova, etc., devoted to the issues under consideration, as well as the study of materials contained in the funds of the State Archive of Krasnodar Territory, the author presents chronological background of formation and development of the Kuban prison institutions. As a result of the conducted research, the researcher comes to the following conclusion: since Yekaterinodar acquired the status of a civil city in 1867, there was a sharp increase in out-of-town visitors, which led to a rise in the number of crimes and, accordingly, persons serving sentences in the form of imprisonment. It involvedthe expansion of existing prison facilities and construction of new ones, in particular, the Yekaterinodar regional prison in 1876. The establishment of the Yekaterinodar Military Prison ommittee “Prisons Custody Society” in 1867, which was in charge of the entire Kuban penitentiary system, helped achieve some success in prison guardianship within its competence. The development of guardianship in relation to prisoners should be considered one of the mechanisms that solved the problem of improving prisoners’ situation. This activity was financed by state and private charitable funds. The author also notes that the Kuban prisons addressed acute problems, characteristic, however, of the entire penitentiary system, such as insufficient funding of prison facilities, unsuitability of prison facilities, i.e. overcrowding, and harsh detention conditions.


Author(s):  
Raşit Gültekin ◽  
Mustafa Erkan Üyümez

The last period of international trade in goods covers a process carried out with globalization and regionalization efforts. Many countries, on the one hand, take part in arrangements that are executed under the leadership by global actors and aim at removing or reducing conventional obstacles to international trade, on the other hand, participate in various and regional economic integrations to provide a more deep and comprehensive economic cooperation and to cope with the competition and trade restrictions which continually increasing due to political, commercial and economical motives. Trade relations between Turkey and Russian Federation is an important element of the two countries' multidimensional cooperation. The most effective attempt to raise the top level of the volume and quality of existing commercial relationships will be the signing and putting into practice of a comprehensive free trade agreements between the two countries that have not been done previously. The purpose of this study is to determine the potential effects of such a free trade agreements between Turkey and Russian Federation in terms of trade in goods between two countries. To this end, in this study, theoretical aspects of free trade agreements' effects and place within regional integration types will be considered the impact of the possible Turkey-Russia free trade agreement will be examined in a framework of basic provisions with customs duties that set out in free trade agreements, recent trade data and key issues related to these countries.


2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Navneet Gera

Abstract: Global warming is the problem of 21st century for the globe. The root cause of problem is heavy oil consumption, deforestation, CO2 emission due to human and industrial activities and the rising threats of globalization like terrorism etc. This paper will address the impact of global warming on the Industries, human resource and the flora and fauna. The human resource has made a significant change in the current environment with the collective use of industries and the other GHG (Green House Gases) causing disturbance in the environment. In addition, the human resource is thinking on this issue, as it has become a global issue. There have been initiatives taken on Global Scale when Kyoto protocol agreement was signed which is in continuation till 2012. There have been further initiatives when the Ministers from across the global met at Copenhagen but at the end of the end there have been no discrete plans for Global Warming. Though it is a problem but how certainly can we manage this is more important. Global warming solutions can reduce the amount of heat-trapping gases that we emit into the atmosphere. Among the solutions, is a model G2I3 addressed in this paper and the role of every Individual which can make a great impact on the environmental problems.


Author(s):  
Łukasz Klimczak ◽  
Jelena Trivić

The purpose of this paper is to identify factors that had an influence on bilateral trade flows among the CEFTA countries with special emphasize: 1) on the role of CEFTA agreement and its preceding network of bilateral free trade agreements, and 2) on the role of institutions in facilitating intra-regional trade. In order to assess the impact of these variables on trade, we employed an augmented gravity model based on panel data of the CEFTA countries in fifteen years period (2000-2014). The results of the research suggest that there was a positive and statistically significant role of the CEFTA agreement on trade between its parties but the influence of the preceding bilateral free trade agreements was even higher. Results also showed that institutions can play an important role as trade facilitators, but mainly in the importing country while in the exporting country only three of six variables showed to have a positive sign.


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