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This paper aims to investigate how selected regional trade agreements (RTAs) affect trade efficiency in East Asia, which is measured by the ratio of actual exports to their maximum potential export value. To achieve this, we use a stochastic frontier gravity model and bilateral trade data of 16 countries from 1990 to 2018. Our results indicate that RTAs generally improve trade efficiency between member countries. Moreover, we distinguish between intra-bloc and extra-bloc trade, and found that export diversion due to RTAs is rare in East Asia. On the other hand, our result shows that the imports of ASEAN countries tend to divert away from non-members. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the influence of trade dependence, encompassing both export and import dependence, and economic dependence on cultural distance within the context of China and ASEAN countries from 1995 to 2020. Employing random‐effects models and, we investigate the impact of these dependencies on cultural distance and explore the moderating effects of humanistic exchange. Our findings reveal that trade dependence, export dependence, import dependence, and economic dependence exert negative effects on cultural distance between China and ASEAN countries. These findings are supported by the robustness test. We further analyze the moderating effects of humanistic exchange on the relationship between trade dependence, economic dependence, and cultural distance, confirming significant moderating effects specifically for trade dependence. Additionally, we observe that regional trade agreements and cultural exchange programs have heterogeneous effects on the relationship between trade and economic dependence and cultural distance, particularly among China and ASEAN countries with established agreements and programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Import and export controls ensure plant pests and diseases harmful to food production, the plants across our landscape, and ecosystem services, are not moved during trade. The 'International Plant Protection Convention' (IPPC) provides the framework for applying preventive measures where they are technically justified, and stipulates controls are not to be used as arbitrary restrictions on international trade. This article examines the aims of the Brexit trade agreements and reviews their alignment with the IPPC and other World Trade Organisation agreements. It argues that unjustified controls have been applied under the guise of protective requirements (contributing to EU-GB trade disruption) and identifies a divergence at the point of regulatory implementation of these laws and treaties by official bodies on both sides. The article reviews the position of Northern Ireland, which, to avoid a 'hard border' on the island of Ireland, remains under the European Union (EU)'s plant health (phytosanitary) regime. Reflecting on legislative options available to bring the application of plant health regulations into alignment with the IPPC (such as dispute resolution), these options remain unused. However, the possibility of utilising 'import authorisations' would leave neither Great Britain nor EU Member States exposed to any greater environmental risk than that under the single market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From the understanding that the mass public knows little about the benefits of international trade agreements but nonetheless opposes them with opposition representing a problem for domestic ratification, this research note explores if and what messages about the Trans-Pacific Partnership might increase popular support. The experimental results show that providing more background information alone does not increase support, but adding an economic message about how this agreement could lower prices or a security message about how it would help the United States counter China increases support. The economic message also encourages respondents to write a statement to their Senators urging them to vote for ratification. These positive effects appear even within groups that are more opposed, namely less educated citizens and Republicans. Our results address important questions about the formation of trade policy preferences, showing they can be shifted in directions contrary to one's egocentric interests and partisan predispositions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"The Ties that Bind: Immigration and the Global Political Economy" by David Leblang and Benjamin Helms challenges the widely held belief that migration for work or education is the main driver of people moving to other countries. The authors argue that political participation, such as voting and qualifying for citizenship, is the primary motivation for migration. They also discuss the role of co-ethnic networks and political institutions in facilitating investment in home countries. The book explores how governments can encourage migrants to contribute to their home communities and promote democratic ideals through remittances and dual citizenship. While the book primarily focuses on the American political environment, it offers valuable insights applicable to migration patterns globally. [Extracted from the article]

The political linkages between trade and environmental policy have rapidly increased since 1990. In this paper, I suggest a novel mechanism behind this phenomenon – 'defensive issue linkage.' As the scope of trade law expanded, it increasingly touched upon domestic and international environmental policies. As a result, environmental groups mobilized to seek carve-outs that preserve their traditional policy space. However, their opposition also led to the increased inclusion of proactive clauses that further the linkage between trade and the environment as policymakers strove to bolster ratifying coalitions. Using qualitative evidence from the US, EU, and Malaysia, I show that environmental groups mobilize in reaction to the expanding scope of trade policies and explore how this influences trade agreement content. A quantitative analysis of preferential trade agreements concluded between 1989 and 2016 then shows that general patterns of environmental clause inclusion are consistent with the channel of 'defensive issue linkage.' [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent Canadian preferential trade agreements (PTAs) include increased market access for imports of supply‐managed products (dairy and poultry). Such agreements are typically expected to create trade flows and increase supply of relatively low‐priced products in Canada. Industry groups representing Canadian producers and processors of supply‐managed products negotiated to receive approximately C$5 billion in payments from the federal government as compensation for the prospects of facing more international competition and reduced domestic sales. We discuss partial‐equilibrium simulation models that are commonly used by academics and governments to project market effects of new trade agreements, and conceptually illustrate how different assumptions about import supply conditions generate different projected market outcomes. We focus on the quota fill rates of new access commitments—most studies, including those used to inform government policies on compensation payments, assume imports increase in an amount equal to new commitments. This is often not the case, including with recent Canadian trade agreements. We apply a conceptual framework to Canada's supply‐management industry by re‐simulating a quantitative model of the Canadian dairy industry with updated information on implementation and quota fill rates. Projected market effects of trade agreements under the assumption of full import quotas are markedly different from projections that account for unfilled quotas. We discuss the political economy and welfare implications of compensation payments in light of our analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2016, the United Kingdom voted to exit the European Union, which was surrounded by political and social uncertainty. The United Kingdom now negotiates its own trade agreements, and in March 2023, it agreed to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans‐Pacific Partnership Agreement (CPTPP). A health impact assessment (HIA) was undertaken in 2022–23 to predict the potential impact of the CPTPP on the health and well‐being of the Welsh Population. This paper explores the HIA findings and highlights the value of the approach in engaging with stakeholders and informing policymakers. This HIA followed a standard five‐step approach which involved a literature review to identify potential health impacts, qualitative interviews with cross‐sectoral stakeholders and the development of a community health profile. The HIA identified potential impacts across the wider determinants of health and specific vulnerable population groups. Investor state dispute settlement mechanisms, economic uncertainty and loss of regulatory policy space were identified as key pathways for health impacts. The findings have been beneficial in informing decision‐makers to prepare for the CPTPP in Wales using an evidence‐informed approach. This work has demonstrated the value of a HIA approach that uses a transparent process to mobilise a wide range of evidence, resulting in transferrable learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gravity equations are an important tool in empirical international trade research. We study to what extent sector-level parameters can be recovered from aggregate gravity equations estimated via Poisson pseudo maximum likelihood. We show that in the leading case where trade cost regressors do not vary at the sector level, estimates obtained with aggregate data have a clear interpretation as a weighted average of sectoral elasticities. Otherwise the estimates are biased, but researchers may possibly infer the direction of the bias. We illustrate our results by revisiting Baier and Bergstrand's (2007) influential study of the effects of free trade agreements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study assesses the likely economic impact of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) on Saskatchewan's (a Canadian province) economy in 2030 by building a subnational computable general equilibrium (CGE) model. The approach was based on splitting Canada into two regions: Saskatchewan and the Rest of Canada (RoC). Saskatchewan was treated as a separate trading entity with interprovincial and international trade flows. Saskatchewan exports were estimated to increase by 0.81% but imports to increase by 1.75% under the CPTPP. The analysis showed evidence that trade agreements may have different impacts on regions within a country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine how non‐tariff measures (NTMs) affect the formation of free trade agreements (FTAs), using data from 114 countries over the period 1986–2019 and applying binary response models. Splitting NTMs into eight categories, some tend to be restrictive, some promotive and some neutral, in terms of their effects on FTA formation. Technical measures tend to encourage, while non‐technical measures tend to discourage, country‐pairs to join FTAs. Aggregating all NTMs into one variable would give rise to weak conclusions. Our results for the 12 control variables are largely in line with those of previous studies on international trade flows or on FTAs but without considering NTMs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After the 1990s, global trade has seen a sudden proliferation of regional trade agreements (RTAs). Existing empirical literature argues about the differential impact of these trade agreements on high-income and lower-middle income countries' trade. Further, economic and political arguments have developed to justify the proliferation of such trade negotiations. In this article, we have tried to build an argument taking economic and non-economic rationales of the formation of trade agreements as a complement to each other. Unlike the majority of existing literature in this field, our empirical analysis is an establishment of this debate which provides a platform to consider RTA formation to be an endogenous rather than exogeneous decision. Further, RTAs of varying nature are related differently to the unobservable which impede or facilitate trade. These unobservable also create endogeneity bias in the traditional estimation of RTAs' impact on the trade flows of a country. In this study, we have attempted to investigate the endogeneity in the context of RTA engagements using the Heckman control function approach. This study ensures the endogeneity of RTAs with their positive and significant impact on trade flows. This results do not significantly differ from similar kinds of empirical studies available on international platforms. JEL Classification: F1, F12, F14 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to examine the relationship between customs policy and the economic blocs of which Egypt is a member, with a focus on the theory of New Regionalism and modern trends in customs policies. Egypt joined numerous economic blocs following its accession to the world trade organization (WTO) in 1995, yet this membership has not yielded significant positive impacts on the performance of Egyptian exports or the trade balance. The study utilized panel data analysis of Egypt's international trade from 2001 to 2023. The results indicate that, despite Egypt's limited success in reaping the benefits of most economic blocs, largely due to the concentration of Egyptian exports in primary and agricultural products and the low tariff rates, factors such as customs clearance processes, tariff barriers, non-tariff barriers, regional trade agreements, and technology adoption still play a crucial role in influencing trade volume among member countries. The findings highlight the significance of effective customs procedures and the reduction of trade barriers in boosting trade volumes within regional trade agreements. The study proposes a strategy for Egypt's customs policy to maximize benefits from economic blocs, focusing on four key areas: aligning customs policy planning with targeted export sectors to realize trade creation and trade diversion effects; fully implementing trade facilitation programs and liberalizing customs policy procedures; adopting a national strategy to stimulate high value-added export industries as a long-term solution; and adopting regional trade agreements that support cumulative origin as a short-term solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impact of exchange rate (ER) movements on the trade balance has been extensively debated in the literature, with conflicting views on the nature and magnitude of this effect. This paper investigates the relationship between ER movements and trade balance in developing economies, with a specific focus on bilateral analysis involving Pakistan. Employing the Nonlinear Autoregressive Distributed Lag (NARDL) model, our results reveal a symmetric relationship between positive and negative ER changes and the trade balance, showing significant long-term and short-term effects across the panel of developing economies. However, country-specific asymmetries are observed, especially in the cases of India and China, and are more pronounced in each bilateral analysis, whether in the short run or long run. The study findings highlight the critical importance of maintaining a stable exchange rate policy, which can provide policymakers with precise insights into the money market and the broader economy while preventing high volatility and continuous depreciation of domestic currencies. Such measures can mitigate the long-term adverse effects of ER movements on trade agreements. The study offers valuable insights for policymakers and investors in developing economies, aiding them in making informed decisions about exchange rate policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bangladesh will graduate from the LDC list by 2026. Currently, Bangladesh's exports of readymade garments (RMG) benefit from international support measures which allow preferential trade in major export destinations, such as the EU. After graduation, Bangladesh's exports, particularly RMG, will face competition from mega trading blocs, such as RCEP and CPTPP. This article employs the GTAP model to estimate the impact of Bangladesh's graduation from the LDC category and how mega FTAs are likely to affect Bangladesh's exports and potential welfare. The model also considers the scenarios of either United States or the UK or both joining the CPTPP. The model results show that Bangladesh's graduation will lead to a fall in GDP and RMG exports by 1.53% and 11.8%, respectively. The negative impact is magnified when we factor in the mega-trading blocs. Further negative impacts are observed when either United States or the UK or both join the CPTPP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies of domestic political actors' influence on the design of preferential trade agreements (PTAs) have focused on veto players as obstacles to policy change, assuming their roles as access points or channels for economic interests. Access point and veto player theories predict that multiple access points lead to a protectionist bias and that numerous veto players have a constraining influence over PTAs. This study argues that after the veto player and access point theories are combined, the effect of variation in the number of veto players and access points on the institutional features of PTAs depends on the types of exporters (endowment-based or intra-industry exporters) with whom said political actors interact. Quantitative tests show that as the value of intra-industry exports rises, veto players and access points have a less constraining effect on the scope and autonomy of PTAs. This study employed a novel dataset to approximate the values of intra-industry and endowment-based exports of 256 Standard International Trade Classification (SITC) products manufactured by 500 trading partners. The findings highlight the importance of considering the broader influence of political actors and economic interests on PTA design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study applies multilevel modelling to the analysis of trade flows. This methodology can complement the use of the standard gravity equation in addressing the influence of geographical distance on the impact of trade agreements on bilateral trade (the natural-partner hypothesis). The analysis suggests that the simplest, most obvious, and best way to nest country pairs with international trade data is by distance. To this end, a sample of 69 countries with data on domestic flows over the period 1986–2016 was used. This sample accounts for around 85% of world trade data. The estimations suggest that the pro-trade effects of preferential trade agreements decrease with distance to trade partners, while this does not occur with the multilateral trading system. What is more interesting is that the former result only holds for the preferential trade agreements involving goods, which supports the natural-trading partner hypothesis, but not for those that include services. In the latter case, the impact increases with distance. This suggests that deeper preferential trade agreements reduce the cost of distance as a barrier to trade, which probably reflects cultural (regulation) distance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Preferential trade agreements (PTAs) between trading partners are known to have positive impact on the expanding and deepening of global value chain integration due to lower trade and investment barriers. Less is known, however, is if other PTAs of PTA partners have any impact on the value‐added trade linkages of the direct PTA partners concerned. Based on compositive indicators measuring the breadth and depth of PTAs from 2007 to 2018 and using Multiregional Input–Output Table database covering 62 countries and 35 sectors and the Content of Deep Trade Agreements database, this paper estimates the multiplicative form of the constant‐elasticity augmented gravity equation model by a Poisson Pseudo Maximum Likelihood (PPML) estimator. This study shows that indirect impact of the deepening of trade agreements of a country's PTA partner exerts positive, significant impact on value‐added exports of a country. Both backward and forward linkages of a country measured by various decomposition of valued added exports indicate this indirect channel of value chain deepening effect even outweighs the direct impact from the deepening of PTAs between direct trading partners with significant policy implications in formulating PTA strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modern Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) include, among other chapters, ones concerning sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures and technical barriers to trade (TBT). Drawing on recent literature highlighting the relationship between "deep" RTAs and the global organisation of production, this paper empirically investigates whether these SPS and TBT provisions affect multinational production in the food, beverages and tobacco industry. To this end, we combine two different databases to estimate, in a panel gravity framework, both the intensive and extensive margins of multinational production. Because the extensive margin of multinational production may be persistent, a dynamic probit specification is used. Our results show that legally enforceable SPS sections in RTAs, in particular, influence multinational production, though with a rather differentiated pattern in terms of intensive and extensive margins; further, the impact changes depending on the country of origin and destination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research note delineates the conflict of hotel rate parity and key clauses of competition laws in both Europe and the U.S. We trace the origin of hotel rate parity to the principle of most favored nation (MFN) in international trade agreements. We show that rate parity challenges two pillars of competition law. Under rate parity agreements, it is travel intermediaries—not hotels—that demand rate parity, which comes down to the dominance of travel intermediaries over small and independent hotels. The courts view MFN status as a hindrance to competition and therefore in violation of competition law. The trend and message in Europe are clear: the clause is most likely to be judged as not complying with EU competition law and its national equivalents. In the U.S. though, a lack of case decisions precludes us from reaching any conclusion about the fate of the MFN clause. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses the impact of the 'depth' of new-age preferential trade agreements (PTAs) signed by nations on value-added trade as well as trade in final and intermediate goods carried out between them. This objective of this article goes beyond the black-boxing of a PTA through a dummy and aims to focus on the 'depth' of a PTA as measured by its provisions and content. For this purpose, we construct an intensive panel data set. The data set spans across 6 years (3-year intervals across 2000–2015) and is constructed on a dyadic (country pair) level for 61 countries and 110 PTAs across the world, using the Trade in Valued Added (TiVA) Database from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and Content of Deep Trade Agreements database from World Bank. Further, we construct two indices for measuring the 'depth' of the PTAs based on their content. Our study uses augmented gravity equation with three-way fixed effects, namely country pair, exporter time and importer time, for estimating the results. Our results indicate that the 'depth' of a PTA significantly affects trade in final goods, intermediate goods and value-added trade, and the impact is highest for trade in value added. We also observe that PTA with greater number of provisions has a higher impact on trade in final goods, intermediate goods as well as trade in value added. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bilateral trade relationships between countries vary across products. Such heterogeneity poses challenges when assessing the economic impacts of trade agreements. This paper estimates bilateral trade elasticities at the product level and explores these impacts using a hypothetical no‐deal Brexit as an example. Our findings indicate that the European Union's demand for the United Kingdom products is often less elastic compared to products from other trading partners. We also observed substantial heterogeneity in the elasticities across products and a negative correlation between these elasticities and tariffs. These factors mitigate extent of trade welfare losses compared to a scenario using homogeneous elasticities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides direct empirical evidence that preferential trade agreements (PTAs) are consistent with the terms‐of‐trade theory. Using PTAs that occur between 2001 and 2015, we first show a PTA is associated with being more likely if countries have greater importer market power over one another. Second, using recently available tariff data for 39 bilateral PTAs, we show high levels of importer market power lead to tariff cuts that are larger in magnitude when PTAs enter into force. These results provide a rationale for why PTAs are permitted by the World Trade Organization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines spatial spillovers in the formation of preferential trade agreements (PTAs) through a new channel of institutional proximity. Our dependent variable is the status of PTAs between country attributes within a country‐pair. The explanatory variable of interest is the status of PTAs in neighbouring country‐pairs that share proximity in institutional development. We consider democracy and economic freedom as the main aspects of institutions, and use both as the fundamental components of institutional distance between country‐pairs. Employing a spatial econometric method, we find strong evidence of the institutional interdependence of PTAs: country‐pairs tend to influence each other's decision on the formation and the chosen type of PTAs (i.e., deep or shallow), such a neighbourhood effect increases with institutional proximity and is more prominent for the decisions on the type of PTAs. The institutional spatial channel is robust to various robustness checks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Free trade is important in the development of good economic institutions. One issue, in particular, is whether free trade agreements (FTA) can reduce corruption. Liberalizing trade while reducing corruption can reinforce moral behavior. We examine FTA between the United States and its Latin American trading partners. Free trade may provide incentives that could possibly result in countries becoming less corrupt over time. However, since 2004 the United States has included explicit anti-corruption clauses in its agreements. Using a difference-in-difference framework and a panel of 16 Latin American countries between 1991 and 2018, we test if trade agreements with the U.S. have any effect on corruption. We find that there is an increase in general corruption in countries after signing these trade agreements in comparison to countries that never signed one. These findings suggest that letting countries determine their own rules for reducing corruption might be better than dictating them through an agreement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What factors affect trade preferences? This article focuses on current‐account balances, which despite being de‐emphasized by mainstream economic theory, play an outsized role in political rhetoric regarding the costs and benefits of free trade. This article shows that individual preferences over trade openness reflect the mercantilist belief that when a country is running a current‐account deficit, trade reduces that country's aggregate employment prospects and diminishes its status on the world stage. This article shows that current‐account balances are an important driver of individual trade preferences. The theory's predictions are borne out by hierarchical analysis of cross‐national observational survey data, and further supported by the results of an original survey priming experiment in the United States. These results contribute to a growing literature emphasizing the effect of macroeconomic factors on preferences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study employs the stochastic frontier gravity model (SFGM) to objectively assess the determinants of India’s rice exports from 2001 to 2019 across 22 major export destinations, highlighting untapped export potential and providing actionable policy recommendations for enhancing competitiveness in global rice markets. Results show that India's economic growth (GDP) and the GDP of importing nations positively impact rice exports. Conversely, geographical distances (representing transportation costs) and higher import tariffs act as deterrents. The devaluation of the Indian rupee positively influences export revenues. Common language benefits exports, while regional trade agreements show minimal impact. The study estimates significant untapped export potential between India and its partners, emphasizing the need for improved trade facilitation, logistics, and agreements.To maximize India's rice export potential, policymakers should prioritize quality compliance, streamline regulations, and invest in infrastructure and R&D for rice cultivars. Negotiating favorable trade agreements and implementing existing export policies like the New Agricultural Export Policy will aid market access and competitiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academic literature on the trade-labour linkage has tended to operate within a methodological nationalism that reifies the nation-state as the unit of analysis and treats labour rights as universally applicable. This paper instead starts from the premise that the linkage spotlights certain types of work and worker, resulting in geographically differentiated modes of labour governance. Focusing on the post-Brexit reconstitution of trade policy in the UK and its party political discourse, the paper details how labour provisions were written into free trade agreements, export finance arrangements, supply chain reporting requirements and unilateral preference schemes. Its argument is that these were constructed and contested through distinctions made between leading and laggard states; acceptable and unacceptable exploitation; and desirable and undesirable exploitation – each of which had a spatial politics in shaping where and how labour ought to be governed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Judicial enforcement of U.S. international agreements has long puzzled courts and scholars. By building upon the Supreme Court's 2008 Medellin opinion, the 4th Restatement of Foreign Relations Law's Sections 310 and 311 adopted in 2018 make a significant advance in further distinguishing and clarifying how to determine whether a treaty is self-executing, whether it creates a private right of action, and the ramifications for judicial enforcement of those determinations. However, an examination of modern major international trade and investment agreements reveals that there are additional refinements and more to say on the topic than covered by the 4th Restatement. First, the 4th Restatement only addresses these topics in the context of treaties, not all international agreements. Second, the 4th Restatement generalizes the ways in which a private party can use a self-executing agreement in U.S. courts, and does not necessarily account for situations in which the political branches have elaborated different (narrower) contours for self-execution. Third, the 4th Restatement should list the various domestic documents surrounding international agreements that might be examined in order to glean U.S. political branch intent on the issue of self-execution. Fourth, the 4th Restatement should make clear that it is U.S. political branch (international agreement-maker) intent that governs not only self-execution but also private rights of action. Fifth, the 4th Restatement should make clear that in addition to precision and the obligatory nature of a treaty provision, courts should also look at whether the agreement's text reveals an alternative enforcement mechanism at the international level, and whether other nations are giving the provision direct effect (so-called "reciprocity" factor) to glean U.S. political branch intent on the issues of self-execution and private right of action. Sixth, the 4th Restatement might consider provisions on Executive Branch enforcement of treaties, including the possibility of the United States having an inherent right of action to invalidate state laws inconsistent with international agreements, although there are complexities and conflicting signals on this possibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The EU has concluded many international agreements with third states. Since the EU is not a state, it cannot act as a party before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), either as an applicant or as a defendant, which means that the enforcement of these agreements must be regulated through Dispute Settlement provisions in the agreements themselves (though, depending on the subject of the dispute, a procedure within the framework of the WTO is also possible). However, the Court of Justice might have opened the door for a new enforcement possibility in its Venezuela v. Council judgment, where it ruled that Venezuela -- a third state -- could have legal standing before the Court on the basis of the fourth paragraph of Article 263 TFEU. This article will analyse whether third states could have access to the Court, in order to seek annulment of an EU legal act that potentially violates a provision of an international agreement that the third state had previously concluded with the EU. It will do so by looking at the ratio decidendi of the Court in Venezuela v. Council, and by analysing the conditions of direct and individual concern, the potential exclusionary effects of Dispute Settlement provisions in international agreements, and the need for direct effect of these agreements. For a variety of reasons, the article will mostly focus on Free Trade Agreements (FTAs). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses articles in the issue on topics including the innovative governance for cross-sector linkages, the concept of green regionalism in trade agreements, and the normative conflicts between international investment treaties and climate action.

The current state of trade relations and economic engagement in the Asia-Pacific region is highly problematical. The disruption facing commercial operators today is on a scale, both generally and in complexity, not known since the world wars of last century. The situation has been described as a 'polycrisis', meaning a cluster of inter-connected systemic risks. In these unpropitious circumstances, it is essential for New Zealand and Japan to remain firm supporters of modern, high-quality trade agreements, to help ensure their scope and content evolve over time in response to the way the dynamics of the international marketplace itself are forever changing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study deals with changes in European Union's (EU's) trade potential in Machinery (HS 84–85) and Transportation (HS86-89) products. Design/methodology/approach: The study uses a Structural Gravity model, Poisson Pseudo Maximum Likelihood (PPML) estimation together with panel data for the years 2002–2018 and a two-step procedure that employs predicted values of bilateral trade to compare potential to actual trade. Findings: Results for Machinery products suggest a potential to expand trade with existing Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) in the American continent, and countries of the IGAD region in Africa. In Transportation, a high trade potential with RTAs is found in the Americas, Africa and the Middle East. Policy suggestions concentrate on opportunities for enhancing trade relations through trade liberalization and agreement proliferation. Originality/value: There are no studies to date, that examine "collective" measure of EU trade potential, that treats the EU as a single country. Changes in existing opportunities to expand trade, common for EU members, are of special interest for policy formulation, especially after the recent turmoil presented by the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) and the Greek Economic Crisis (GEC). Treating the EU as a single entity, is necessary for the formulation of an effective, common, EU trade policy. This study concentrates on the manufacturing sector to examine existing opportunities for the EU to expand trade, after the GFC and the GEC. This article deals with Machinery (HS 84 and 85) and Transportation (HS 86 through 89) products as they comprise a significant part of total EU exports, reaching 41% of total exports in 2016. Finally, this study offers a unique illustration of results through trade potential heat maps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study employs dynamic system GMM estimations to investigate factors influencing tourist travel choices from within Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Key determinants include GDP per capita, exchange rates, relative prices, and transportation costs. Globalization, border policies, and regional trade agreements also impact tourism patterns in SSA. Technology development, specifically internet accessibility, plays a pivotal role in destination selection. Surprisingly, results indicate a preference for less urbanized areas among international intra-SSA tourists. The study suggests that motivations for traveling from within SSA are largely similar to those for international tourists. This research provides valuable insights for stakeholders in the tourism industry and lays the foundation for further exploration of this dynamic sector in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For more than five decades, 'Watchdog Journalism' has been taught as the yardstick for a free media. With the so-called 'mainstream' media becoming increasingly commercialised--both in a global scale and domestically--and with the media being primarily owned by business conglomerates, the 'watchdog' model has created a journalism culture that is too adversarial and creates conflicts rather than helping to solve today's problems/conflicts. A new paradigm of watchdog journalism is needed where the media is able to hold powerful players to account for facilitating the development/livelihood needs of communities, especially those in the margins of society. This new paradigm of journalism needs to focus on 'development rights' rather than 'human rights' taking into account many aspects of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs should be looked at in terms of a new definition of human rights where the journalist could play a similar role to that prescribed in 'watchdog' journalism theory, but looking for solutions rather conflicts, and include a larger field of stakeholders which need to be made accountable such as governments, big business and particularly conglomerates--even NGOs and faith-based organisations. This watchdog role needs to be applied to trade agreements and other treaties, including those addressing climate change. To develop a new journalism culture to address these issues, media training programmes in the Pacific need to rethink their strategies and examine how to promote independent social media models that are economically and sustainably viable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the USA and the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement with Canada have elicited considerable domestic contestation in Europe, several other agreements have been negotiated into public and media indifference. What explains this difference? In this article, I put forward a number of arguments on the structural causes of the politicization of European Union (EU) trade policy over the past 30 years and test them against a newly collected dataset covering 19 preferential trade agreements. The qualitative comparative analysis suggests that the politicization of EU trade negotiations is determined by the co-occurrence of several, well-defined conditions. More specifically, it tells us that: (1) the Lisbon Treaty's reform of EU trade policymaking is the main driver of politicization, (2) the level of public support for the EU is of particular relevance when it comes to 'deep and comprehensive' agreements that touch on sensitive domestic issues, and that (3) high adjustment costs expected from trade liberalization can lead to the politicization of trade negotiations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Our paper builds a novel panel data sourced from the Regional Trade Agreements Database and Database on International Trade in Services Statistics (ITSS) to explore the heterogeneous effects of service trade agreements on services trade. Then we employ a gravity model with the Poisson pseudo‐maximum likelihood (PPML) estimation and obtain the following findings: First, both general service trade agreements and deep service trade agreements promote services trade. Yet, deep trade agreements have a higher trade‐expansion effect (roughly 21.53%) on services trade compared to general ones (16.9%). Next, based on the content of trade‐related provisions, we find provisions of rights of non‐establishment and natural person movement largely increase the services trade, while review provisions do not have a significant impact on services trade. Surprisingly, provisions with MFN status even exhibit a negative relationship with services trade. Third, with whom you sign the agreements matters. Deep trade agreements exert a positive and significant impact on services trade between high‐income countries (NN), low‐income countries (SS) and high‐ to low‐income countries (NS), but are insignificant between low‐ to high‐income countries (SN). Four, emerging regions, including China, may benefit more from deep trade agreements. As indicated by propensity score matching, deep trade agreements reduce service trade costs and improve the business environment more effectively than GTAs. Our empirical results are robust after controlling for the endogeneity of DTAs and GTAs. Our findings provide direct evidence for the role of deep service trade agreements in fostering international economic integration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Tarih İncelemeleri Dergisi is the property of Tarih Incelemeleri Dergisi and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article discusses the importance of maintaining a balance between free trade and security perspectives in the global trade framework. It highlights the conflict between the United States and the WTO panel regarding the authority to make decisions on security exceptions. The article also emphasizes the need to restore the WTO's dispute settlement and rule-making functions. It mentions the growing trend of developing trade policies based on security, particularly in the context of the US-China confrontation. The article suggests utilizing the monitoring function of the WTO and establishing a committee to address security-related measures. It also discusses the dispute resolution functions of the WTO and the conflict surrounding the right to decide on security exceptions. The text calls for strategic utilization and dissemination of the trade framework to contribute to the maintenance and expansion of free trade. [Extracted from the article]

In international trade, State interventions often challenge the efficacy of traditional antidumping and countervailing measures under the World Trade Organization (WTO) framework. This article examines the limitations of the Anti-Dumping Agreement and the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM Agreement) in addressing State interventions, such as export taxes, export bans on raw materials, and non-commercial activities by Stateowned enterprises. These interventions pose significant legal and economic challenges in global trade. The article advocates for the potential of preferential trade agreements (PTAs) as practical tools to address these challenges, surpassing traditional legal pathways under the Anti-Dumping Agreement. An analysis of recent WTO disputes demonstrates how PTAs provide targeted disciplines against State interventions that cause market distortions and unfair trade practices. PTAs offer a more rational and equitable approach to managing trade conflicts, avoiding conventional trade remedies' economic irrationalities and protectionist tendencies. The article proposes a strategic shift towards PTAs to fill gaps left by traditional WTO agreements. It highlights the need for a dynamic, adaptable legal framework in international trade that responds to sophisticated State interventions in the global economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]