Benefits of key Asia-Pacific trade pact will be uneven

Significance RCEP, which involves the ten ASEAN states and five of the bloc’s Asia-Pacific partners, will be the world’s largest free trade agreement (FTA), covering more than half its exports and almost one-third of its GDP. Impacts RCEP should help drive economic recovery in South-east Asia in the short term as the region tries to manage a COVID-19 resurgence. Western states will benefit from RCEP commitments to maintaining open markets and supporting the global trading regime. A failure by members to formulate a unified response to climate change could lead to punitive trade measures from external players.

Impact of the COVID-19 on Global Supply Chain

As the coronavirus pandemic engulfed the globe, it has disrupted economic activities, including supply chain networks in consequent to the existing interconnected trade networks making more countries to be more susceptible and major traders affected. This Chapter aims to analyse the COVID-19 effect on the global and sectoral supply chain and the structural policy and economic measures taken by governments and business organisations to recover and stay resilient during this challenging period. Systematic literature review approach focusing on challenges and policy and economic and business responses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Online databases utilising Scopus and ISI Web of Science (WoS) for studies published from 2019-2021. 28 journal articles were selected for the final review. There is compelling evidence that COVID-19 has made profound impact that governments and companies seek to strengthen operations and business resilience, underscore the importance of supply chain resilience and risk management is more critical than ever. Prolong COVID-19 trade measures such as borders closure, export embargo and import sanction are a threat to supply value chain and total lockdown should be implemented with caution. Currently, many companies have begun to move from a “recovery mode” to more “sustainable and resilient mode” and have started longer term planning. The implication of the study is that policymakers and business leaders should pay attention to more proactive and flexible policy, economic and structural business reform. This review will help policymakers and business leaders to enforce policy and economic as well as business reform that build upon resilient supply chain to mitigating economic risks in bad times to reduce the effect of COVID-19 on global supply chain.

Protection of the Marine Environment

The general obligation to protect and preserve the marine environment is contained in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Increasingly, marine issues are addressed in regional or multilateral trade agreements, including the covered agreements of the World Trade Organization (WTO). This article examines selected legal developments, such as provisions in regional trade agreements on marine capture fisheries, marine litter and waste management infrastructure. Rules on the use of trade measures to eliminate harmful fishing practices, and the prohibition of certain subsidies, are also explored. The article calls for attention to the impact of these developments on dispute settlement between states under UNCLOS, support for marine protected areas, and the capacity for regime interaction between relevant bodies. These issues have relevance for the conservation of marine living resources as well as other issues relating to the protection of the marine environment, including marine plastics and climate change.

Trade and the Environment: Greening of the WTO

<p>The World Trade Organisation has often been demonised for its negative effect on the environment. Environmentalists have chastised the WTO for a failure to protect the environment against the impact of globalised trade. In December 1999 activists marched the Ministerial Conference in Seattle to protest what they saw as the WTO’s preference for free trade at the expense of the environment. They blocked the entrances to the WTO meeting and prevented delegates from attending discussions, ultimately killing the Round of negotiations. Still today the WTO is notorious in environmental circles and has ‘become a watchword for injustice and environmental ignorance.’ One of the, if not the, main reason for this opposition to the WTO is the WTO’s, and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade’s, past treatment of tradeenvironment cases. The Tuna-Dolphin and Shrimp-Turtle cases drew the attention of environmental activists around the world, who saw the decisions of the dispute settlement bodies, which ruled against environmental trade measures, as evidence that the WTO and GATT desire ever-liberalised trade at any cost. The purpose of this paper is to reveal how the WTO has in fact greened over time, and that those who continue to condemn the WTO without reservation have failed to recognise changes in the WTO which signal that the door has been opened to environmental trade measures. This paper does not purport to claim that the GATT has always been an environmentally friendly institution, but rather that significant changes have occurred which warrant a shift in public attitude. The purpose of encouraging that change in public perception is not simply to relieve the WTO of criticism. Rather, the goal of this paper rests on the idea that only once the international community has acknowledged the greening of the WTO, will Member states truly be able to implement trade-related environmental measures that do not contravene the GATT and therefore are left un-contested and free to achieve their environmental aims. If better attention is given to the current jurisprudence, Member states could follow carefully laid out criteria to create effective and acceptable trade-related environmental measures. Part II of this paper provides important background information about the environment-trade debate, the WTO, trade-liberalisation and the significant relationship between trade and the environment. Part III then sets the scene by describing some of the predictions that were made about the potential treatment of the environment by the WTO. Part IV will then describe the key trading principles of the GATT and the environmental exceptions to those principles. Part V highlights several institutional and organization developments which have occurred and which signify a greening of the GATT/WTO arena. Most importantly, Part VI outlines several significant developments in WTO jurisprudence to demonstrate its new sophistication and the resultant greening of the dispute settlement process. Finally Part VII discusses the greening of the WTO in the setting of an environmentally conscious world.</p>

Trade and the Environment: Greening of the WTO

<p>The World Trade Organisation has often been demonised for its negative effect on the environment. Environmentalists have chastised the WTO for a failure to protect the environment against the impact of globalised trade. In December 1999 activists marched the Ministerial Conference in Seattle to protest what they saw as the WTO’s preference for free trade at the expense of the environment. They blocked the entrances to the WTO meeting and prevented delegates from attending discussions, ultimately killing the Round of negotiations. Still today the WTO is notorious in environmental circles and has ‘become a watchword for injustice and environmental ignorance.’ One of the, if not the, main reason for this opposition to the WTO is the WTO’s, and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade’s, past treatment of tradeenvironment cases. The Tuna-Dolphin and Shrimp-Turtle cases drew the attention of environmental activists around the world, who saw the decisions of the dispute settlement bodies, which ruled against environmental trade measures, as evidence that the WTO and GATT desire ever-liberalised trade at any cost. The purpose of this paper is to reveal how the WTO has in fact greened over time, and that those who continue to condemn the WTO without reservation have failed to recognise changes in the WTO which signal that the door has been opened to environmental trade measures. This paper does not purport to claim that the GATT has always been an environmentally friendly institution, but rather that significant changes have occurred which warrant a shift in public attitude. The purpose of encouraging that change in public perception is not simply to relieve the WTO of criticism. Rather, the goal of this paper rests on the idea that only once the international community has acknowledged the greening of the WTO, will Member states truly be able to implement trade-related environmental measures that do not contravene the GATT and therefore are left un-contested and free to achieve their environmental aims. If better attention is given to the current jurisprudence, Member states could follow carefully laid out criteria to create effective and acceptable trade-related environmental measures. Part II of this paper provides important background information about the environment-trade debate, the WTO, trade-liberalisation and the significant relationship between trade and the environment. Part III then sets the scene by describing some of the predictions that were made about the potential treatment of the environment by the WTO. Part IV will then describe the key trading principles of the GATT and the environmental exceptions to those principles. Part V highlights several institutional and organization developments which have occurred and which signify a greening of the GATT/WTO arena. Most importantly, Part VI outlines several significant developments in WTO jurisprudence to demonstrate its new sophistication and the resultant greening of the dispute settlement process. Finally Part VII discusses the greening of the WTO in the setting of an environmentally conscious world.</p>

Drawing the line between sustainable and unsustainable fish: product differentiation that supports sustainable development through trade measures

Background Unsustainable production practices and increased demand for fish have aggravated negative social, ecological, and environmental impacts in fisheries and aquaculture. Measures to correct bad practices have mainly been introduced by private actors. However, there is increased demand for state intervention, particularly regarding trade regulations for fish and other agricultural products. Building on discussions about product differentiation through trade measures that favour sustainable products, this study looked at how sustainable and unsustainable fish has been distinguished in Switzerland. In interviewing experts in the fish trade and sales business in Switzerland, the research aimed at understanding the actors and forces that shape the concept of sustainable fish in the country. Results Three ways of product differentiation for sustainable fish by private actors were identified in Switzerland: ecolabels, “Swiss produce”, and recommendations in the form of a “consumer guide for fish”. Currently, price is the main constraint on consumption of sustainable products in the country. Defining “sustainable fish” is challenging and subject to interpretation. All existing measures to differentiate sustainable from unsustainable fish products in Switzerland have shortcomings, particularly in terms of discrimination and inclusiveness. Fish ecolabels play a key role in product differentiation, but experts believe that they fail to accommodate all aspects of sustainability. Conclusion Our findings imply that the Swiss state should play a more important role if it aims to fulfil the promise of article 104a of the Swiss Constitution, which seeks to foster sustainable production and cross-border trade relations that contribute towards this goal. Preferred trade treatment for sustainable fish products is a potential option to increase the production and consumption of sustainable fish. When designing measures for product differentiation, a careful choice is paramount to address sustainability in a holistic, inclusive, and transparent way and in order not to violate existing trade obligations. Due to similarities between the Swiss and other fish markets, we assume that governments in general and members of the European Union in particular must play an active role in shaping the definition and trade of sustainable fish products if they seek to comply with their sustainability commitments.

Drawing the line between sustainable and unsustainable fish: Product differentiation that supports sustainable development through trade measures

Background Unsustainable production practices and increased demand for fish have aggravated negative social, ecological, and environmental impacts in fisheries and aquaculture. Measures to correct bad practices have mainly been introduced by private actors. However, there is increased demand for state intervention, particularly regarding trade regulations concerning fish and other agricultural products. Building on discussions regarding product differentiation through trade measures that favor sustainable products, this study looked at how sustainable and unsustainable fish has been distinguished in Switzerland. In interviewing experts in the fish trade and sales business in Switzerland, the research aimed at understanding the actors and forces that shape the concept of sustainable fish in the country. Results Three ways of product differentiation for sustainable fish by private actors were identified: ecolabels, “Swiss produce,” and recommendations in the form of a “consumer guide for fish”. Consumption of sustainable products is currently constrained mainly due to price. Defining “sustainable fish” is challenging and subject to interpretation. All existing measures to differentiate sustainable from unsustainable fish products in Switzerland have shortcomings, particularly in terms of discrimination and inclusiveness. Fish ecolabels play a key role in product differentiation, but experts believe that they fail to accomodate all aspects of sustainability. Conclusion Our findings imply that the Swiss state should play a more important role if it targets to fulfill the promise of article 104a of the Swiss Constitution, which seeks to foster sustainable production and cross-border trade relations that contribute toward this goal. Due to similarities between the Swiss and other European fish markets, we assume that governments in general must have an active role in shaping the definition and trade of sustainable fish products. Preferred trade treatment for sustainable fish products is a potential option to increase the production and consumption of sustainable fish. When designing measures for product differentiation, a careful choice is paramount so as not to violate existing trade obligations.