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This study explores how income inequality among individuals in each country and trade costs depicting geographic distance between countries impact economic welfare and regime choice under representative democracy, comparing three trading regimes: most favored nation, customs union, and free trade agreement. We examine two cases: one in which trade costs are incurred symmetrically among all countries, and the other in which no trade costs are incurred among the potential member countries, but only between them and nonmembers. In each case, we identify the political feasibility of each regime as well as the impact on the average welfare levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This study explores the relationship between market integration—specifically a reduction in trade costs—and the sustainability of tariff cooperation, using a repeated game approach. We explore the property of noncooperative and cooperative tariffs about trade costs and the size of the domestic industry. We find that market integration does not induce the tariff rates to be lowered bilaterally in the noncooperative policy regime. By contrast, the cooperative regime brings about a bilateral tariff reduction when the market becomes integrated. Furthermore, by using the repeated game approach, we demonstrate that market integration facilitates cooperation between asymmetric countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the effects of globalization-specifically, a reduction in trade costs-on trade policies implemented under unilateral and cooperative policy regimes. The results demonstrate opposite responses to the advancement of globalization under the two regimes: (i) the unilateral policy regime induces governments to raise tariff rates with the progress of globalization, while (ii) the cooperative policy regime allows governments to reduce tariffs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]