A network analysis of global cephalopod trade

The global trade in cephalopods is a multi-billion dollar business involving the fishing and production of more than ten commercially valuable species. It also contributes, in whole or in part, to the subsistence and economic livelihoods of thousands of coastal communities around the world. The importance of cephalopods as a major cultural, social, economic, and ecological resource has been widely recognised, but research efforts to describe the extent and scope of the global cephalopod trade are limited. So far, there are no specific regulatory and monitoring systems in place to analyse the traceability of the global trade in cephalopods at the international level. To understand who are the main global players in cephalopod seafood markets, this paper provides, for the first time, a global overview of the legal trade in cephalopods. Twenty years of records compiled in the UN COMTRADE database were analysed. The database contained 115,108 records for squid and cuttlefish and 71,659 records for octopus, including commodity flows between traders (territories or countries) weighted by monetary value (USD) and volume (kg). A theoretical network analysis was used to identify the emergent properties of this large trade network by analysing centrality measures that revealed key insights into the role of traders. The results illustrate that three countries (China, Spain, and Japan) led the majority of global market movements between 2000 and 2019. Based on volume and value, as well as the number of transactions, 11 groups of traders were identified. The leading cluster consisted of only eight traders, who dominated the cephalopod market in Asia (China, India, South Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam), Europe (the Netherlands, and Spain), and the USA. This paper identifies the countries and territories that acted as major importers or exporters, the best-connected traders, the hubs or accumulators, the modulators, the main flow routes, and the weak points of the global cephalopod trade network over the last 20 years. This knowledge of the network is crucial to move towards an environmentally sustainable, transparent, and food-secure global cephalopod trade.

Between Two “Consumer Revolutions”: Groceries and Other Foodstuff Purchases at Lower Canadian Country Stores, 1809–67

An analysis of the account books of five different Lower Canadian country general stores between 1809 and 1867 shows that ordinary households had access, and purchased, an increasingly wide range of groceries and other foodstuffs over the period. As in Upper Canada, grocery purchases were “routine – part of many families’ culture,” and some commodities may even have been mass consumed. Foodstuffs supplied by global trade networks coexisted with products of domestic manufactures. Foodstuff consumption also displayed characteristics associated with the “consumer revolution” of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries as well as others usually deemed to have been part of the “mass consumption societies” of the twentieth century.

Artificial Intelligence as an Emerging Technology in Global Trade

With Industry 4.0 and now 5.0 technologies, the entire globe is embracing these changes. Artificial intelligence-powered systems have immense potential to eliminate international geographical barriers and prove to influence global trade worldwide. The present study highlights how AI increases productivity, economic development, and provides international trade with new horizons. The global value chains, prediction of future trends like changes in consumer demand, risk management, supply chain links are some of the key applications of AI in the sector. AI empowers international trade negotiations to analyze economic trajectories of negotiating partners, adjustments of trade barriers at different rates and scenarios. The chapter will cover the support of AI to access global trade data, its response to diverse challenges, international expansions through digital platforms, support in translations, mechanism of demand prediction, automation of administration with increased efficiency and utility, smart manufacturing, barriers, and influences.

The Vulnerability and Resilience of the Global Container Shipping Industry

Intermodal shipping containers, standardized and capable of being carried on trucks, trains, barges, or ships, have transformed the global economy since they were introduced in 1959. By allowing previously separated segments of regional and global transport systems to interact, they have vastly expanded global trade and facilitated supply chains that stretch around the world. But vulnerabilities in the system became apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic. Problems at key bottlenecks in the system, compounded by an unexpected six-day shutdown of the vital Suez Canal, precipitated global disruptions leading to shortages of goods and soaring prices around the world. As the global shipping industry recovers, it will have an opportunity to transition toward a system that is more resilient.

Globalization and Trade in the Post-Covid World

The COVID-19 pandemic brought an extraordinary disturbance regarding the worldwide economy and global trade, as creation and utilization downsized. Perhaps the best methodology for addressing this type of emergency is convenient, unspoiled information. An informed public is better established to use wise judgment including on cases recognized for trade. This is the situation, and a devoted page at WTO site has been created. This will provide present data related with trade information. The chapter discusses rising protectionism in course of the last half period, unexpected monetary crises created by the pandemic, disturbances regarding production network movement, and shocks related to market interest. Reporters worldwide have trumpeted the 'finish' of globalization.

The New Face of Global Trade in a Post-Pandemic World

The COVID-19 pandemic has raised serious questions about the applicability of international trade theories. International trade has now changed its shape due to this novel coronavirus. It is a fact that no country in the world follows one trade theory. They use multiple theories for their goods and services and will continue to do so. The future of international trade theories is suspected as to which theory will be employed or any new theory of international trade will emerge. Empirical evidence illustrates the emergence of regionalization as compared to globalization. In this context, trade theories will also adjust their forms and assumptions. Therefore, this chapter reconciles international trade theories with actual data, most notably COVID-19.

African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement and the Mega-Regional Trade Agreements (MRTAs): what are the underlying challenges and prospects for Africa-South-South trade?

This study examines the possible challenges and prospects of the recent signing of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement on South-South trade. The recent ratification of the agreement by the African Union (AU) Heads of Government and the establishment of the mega-regional trade agreements (MRTAs) by the major global trading economies are the biggest since the establishment of the WTO. One of these regional and continental agreements' principal objectives is to further strengthen trade terms and balance of trade statistics between member nations. Whereas almost all the regional and continental blocs have to a large extent, achieved the purpose of their trade agreements, Africa stands out as the only region whose intra-trade value still constitutes less than 15% of global trade share. Many reasons have been adduced to be responsible for the weak trade performance, one of which is weak regional integration. This study, therefore, concludes that for Africa to achieve significant improvement in global trade, the region needs to encourage regional trade, which will act as a catalyst for transforming the domestic economies and lay a robust foundation for healthy regional competition and integration