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Non-tariff trade barriers in international legal regulation are a component of the system of non-tariff restrictions, the attitude to which in science and practice is ambiguous. The importance of regulating the application of such measures is confirmed by the presence of a number of international and national regulatory legal acts. The purpose of this article was to establish the significance of non-tariff barriers for international trade relations and the prospects for their further application in the conditions of the development of international trade. Taking into account the specifics of the scope of application of non-tariff restrictions, their system is multi-level, since the application of barriers is carried out at the international, national and regional levels. The application of non-tariff barriers in the regulation of international trade relations cannot be assessed unambiguously. The negative consequences of their application include the creation of obstacles in the economy of individual countries; the use of non-tariff restrictions as a means of discrimination; a negative impact on imports in individual countries; volatility and uncertainty; a negative impact on the international economy. The positive impact of non-tariff barriers includes: ensuring the safety of products and production processes; ensuring the competitiveness of certain types of goods; increasing the level of national security; ensuring the protection of life and health of people, animals, flora, and the environment; harmonizing national trade with the international system of trade standards. A promising direction of international activity in this area is the development of a Strategy for the implementation of non-tariff regulation of international trade relations at the WTO level, which will contribute to further integration processes in the development of uniform methods and standards in the regulation of international trade and economic relations, will allow unifying and harmonizing the norms of international trade in the field of application of non-tariff barriers. To achieve this goal, the Strategy should include a number of relevant areas of international trade and economic cooperation at all levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Swallow's nest (SBW) is Indonesia's largest food export product in the animal food export category. Indonesia is also the largest SBW producer in the world, and the majority of global SBW production is produced by Indonesia. Both of these provide economic benefits from the trade side and political benefits from the availability side. However, these two things have not been fully realized due to control efforts in the form of non-tariff barriers from China. The aim of this research was to reveal the control techniques used by China to control Indonesia's SBW trade, starting from downstream to upstream so that obstacles to SBW exports could be resolved. Michel Foucault's concept of governmentality will be used to reveal these power techniques. The findings from this research show that there are concepts of technology of power, rationalities of government, and governmentalization of subject in the institutions, mechanisms, and procedures for SBW exports so that Indonesia loses its strategic position as the most important player in the entire global SBW supply chain. In this research, researchers use the word 'door' as a metaphor for how China controls Indonesia's SBW rate. The first door is created by determining the existence of another country as the third path. Then, the second door was created by synergizing China's interests through its export-import regulations with Indonesian national regulations in the form of certification of all aspects of SBW production. From these findings, this research also provides policy recommendations in terms of the techniques that power is exercised. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Geographical indications (GIs) aim to protect the names of specific high‐quality products (food and wine) to preserve and promote the uniqueness linked to their geographical origin and traditional know‐how. EU and extra‐EU countries register domestic products with GIs. This study disentangles the effects of such registrations on the quality of imports using country‐level product import data for the fruit, vegetable, coffee, tea, and spice sectors. Our results show that the registration of domestic products as GIs enhances the quality of imported goods only if the importing country has a lower level of quality of domestic production. The introduction of GIs into high‐quality domestic markets can discourage import quality upgrades. This is because domestic producers may prefer to compete for quality rather than price, and imported goods represent a less expensive alternative to high‐quality national goods for consumers. Conversely, in countries where domestic product quality is lower, the introduction of GIs may enhance import quality upgrading because the diffusion of GIs induces domestic consumers to become more demanding in terms of quality for foreign products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While there is a growing number of studies on the export‐ and firm‐level implications of non‐tariff measures for developing countries, there is little evidence on the trickle‐down effects on the farm level. In this paper, we analyse the recent regulations of the European Union regarding the maximum allowed cadmium (Cd) contents for cocoa‐derived products. We assess the potential economic costs associated with these Cd regulations for smallholder cocoa farmers in Ecuador. We rely on data from a nationwide survey among 1392 cocoa producers and a contingent valuation method to estimate producers' willingness to convert cocoa orchards to other land uses in case cocoa bean Cd levels exceed the limit. We estimate that farmers' economic cost of abandoning cocoa production is, on average, about 4400 US$ per hectare. Combining this value with a Cd distribution map and cocoa production statistics, we estimate that abandoning cocoa cultivation in areas with bean Cd concentrations above the 0.6 mg/kg target comes at a total economic cost of about 750 million US$. We conclude that the potential total economic cost of the EU Cd standard at the producer level in Ecuador could be very large if compliance strategies are not implemented to minimise welfare loss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of the study described in this paper is to evaluate the assertion that the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) is expected to increase economic welfare among its member countries. The paper leverages the cross-sectional variation between least developed countries (LDCs) and non-LDCs to analyse output, trade, and welfare effects of the AfCFTA. The analysis employs a sectoral aggregation geared to detect the most salient features of the manufacturing industries in LDCs. LDCs in Africa face significant structural challenges to long-term development and are susceptible to economic shocks. Even though the World Bank and African Union have taken significant steps in addressing the main LDC challenges, it has not stopped LDC governments from being highly concerned about the rising adjustment costs that the AFCFTA agreement entails. Using data from the Version 10, Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) Data Base as well as macroeconomic projections on real GDP, population, physical capital, and labour force for LDC and non-LDC regional aggregations, the paper compares the African economy in 2035 with and without the AfCFTA in place. To this end, the computable general equilibrium (CGE model was used to simulate three scenarios that represent the AfCFTA: a percentage tariff elimination, a 50% reduction of (non-tariff measures) NTMs, and a combination of 97% tariff elimination and a 50% reduction of NTMs across all member states. The empirical evidence provided shows that the economic effects of the AfCFTA rely largely on trade defence instruments such as eliminating import tariffs, reducing non-tariff measures (NTM), and improving trade facilitation as the source of enhancement to welfare. The findings show that the agreement is expected to create an overall welfare gain of $17.7 billion by 2035. LDCs are expected to shift from a previously predominantly agricultural industry towards a more productive textile industry. Meanwhile, non-LDCs strongly shift towards the manufacturing and processed food industry while moving away from textiles. In LDCs, labour and capital significantly increase in textiles while they decrease in the manufacturing industry. In contrast, labour and capital in the non-LDCs increase in the manufacturing industry while reducing in the textile industry, thus allowing factors to reallocate to more productive sectors. As trade barriers are reduced, the price of imports falls, increasing the number of imports due to domestic demand. The results show that the elimination of tariffs has a slightly higher impact on LDCs, while the reduction of NTMs has a more significant impact on non-LDCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study discussed the background of Indonesia's non-tariff trade barrier implementation against imports of chicken legs from the United States (US) through halal certification. As WTO members, the two countries are bound by the rules and agreements of the WTO, one of which is trade liberalization related to the elimination of various kinds of trade barrier including non-tariff trade barrier such as halal certification. The application of halal certification by Indonesia to imports of chicken legs has prevented imported chicken legs from the US from entering the Indonesian market, even though they have a lower price. This study uses a mercantilism approach in the global political economy, namely the theory of non-tariff trade barrier from Thomas Oatley. The method used by the researcher was a qualitative research method with the type of case study and data collection techniques are carried out through literature study and interviews with related informants. This study concludes that there were two considerations behind the implementation of non-tariff trade barrier by Indonesia to the import of chicken legs from the US through halal certification, namely the consideration of a society-centered approach to protect public confidence, protect producers, and domestic livestock workers and considerations that are state-centered in the context of handling the economic crisis in the livestock sector and saving the state's foreign exchange expenditure.

We present a new Measure of Aggregate Trade Restrictions (MATR) using data from the IMF's Annual Report on Exchange Arrangements and Exchange Restrictions. MATR is strongly correlated with existing measures of trade restrictiveness but more comprehensive in terms of country and time coverage. Our measure is available for an unbalanced sample of up to 157 countries during 1949–2019. We use our new MATR to re-examine how trade restrictiveness varies with the business cycle. Our results confirm that trade restrictions are typically a-cyclical but there is an important difference across income groups: aggregate trade restrictions are a-cyclical in advanced economies but are counter-cyclical in EMDEs, especially in response to increases in unemployment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper delves into the intricate challenges encountered by Tanzania in effectively implementing the East African Community (EAC) Common Market Protocol (CMP) pertaining to the seamless movement of goods to Kenya. The research adopts a case study design, employing qualitative and indepth methods to gather data. The data collection process utilizes a purposeful sampling technique involving 30 participants, and thematic analysis is employed for data analysis. The findings highlight several tariff barriers that hinder the effective implementation of the EAC CMP, including customs duties, quantitative restrictions, measures with equivalent impact to customs duties, and those with equivalent impact to quantitative restrictions. Furthermore, the study uncovers non-tariff barriers (NTBs) that impede the free movement of goods from Tanzania to Kenya, such as political barriers, high transportation costs, food insecurity, discrepancies in standards, limited logistics and trade services, and restricted access to finance. The study concludes that the EAC Partner States bear the responsibility of eliminating existing tariff and non-tariff restrictions that obstruct trade, as well as refraining from imposing new ones. This research significantly contributes to our understanding of the economic integration within the EAC by shedding light on the novel challenges encountered in the implementation of the CMP concerning the free movement of goods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ticarette korumacılık iki kısımdan oluşmaktadır. Birincisi geleneksel korumacılık, ikincisi yeni korumacılıktır. Geleneksel korumacılık, merkantilist iktisattan beri sıklıkla kullanılan bir politika olmuştur. Yeni korumacılık ise 1970'lerden sonra ortaya çıkmıştır. 2008 Krizinden sonra ekonomik milliyetçilik ve korumacılık yeniden yükselmeye başlamıştır. Yükselen korumacılık eğilimi, yeni korumacılığı daha popüler hale getirmiştir. Bu yeni değişiklikten sonra önce kur savaşları başladı. Kur savaşlarının ardından BREXIT gerçekleşti ve İngiltere AB'den ayrıldı. Nihayet 2018 yılında ticaret savaşları başlamıştır. Ticaret ve kur savaşları, küresel ekonominin ve ticaretin büyümesini yavaşlatmıştır. Böylece 2008 Krizinden sonra neoliberalizmden korumacılığa dönüşüm süreci başlamıştır. Bu çalışmada iki yönlü korumacılığın küresel ticari açıklıktaki etkisi incelenmiştir. 1980-2019 dönemi için yıllık veriler kullanılmıştır. Tarifeler, tarife dışı önlemler ve dolar endeksi korumacı uygulamalar olarak kabul edilmiştir. Bu amaçla ARDL sınır testi ve Toda-Yamamoto Granger nedensellik testi yapılmıştır. Analiz sonuçları beklentilerle uyumludur. Analiz sonuçlarına göre tarifeler, tarife dışı önlemler ve dolar endeksi ticaretin açıklığını olumsuz yönde etkilemektedir. GSYİH ise ticari açıklığı olumlu yönde etkilemektedir. Son yıllarda yeni korumacı uygulamalar artsa da tarife uygulamaları küresel ticareti daha fazla etkilemektedir. Sonuç olarak, geleneksel korumacılık ve yeni korumacılık uygulamaları küresel ticari açıklığı etkileyen önemli değişkenlerdir.

This work aims to show key provisions and importance of new-generation trade agreements made by the European Union on the example of the agreement with Vietnam. Empirical research centred around an agreement signed between the EU and Vietnam, which is the third new-generation trade agreement entered into by the EU with an Asian country, following an agreement with the Republic of Korea and Singapore. The agreement with Vietnam introduced liberalisation covering almost the entire mutual trade (goods), also providing for the liberalisation of services and eliminating certain non-tariff barriers. Due to a word limit applicable to this article, the research into the importance of the agreement to the EU-Vietnam trade relations was limited mainly to trade in goods. Having considered the fact that relatively too short period of time has elapsed since the entry into force of the agreement, it is not possible to comprehensively assess its importance to bilateral trade relations, especially in a long-term perspective. Such research should be continued in the future. In particular, this concerns research into the effects of liberalisation of mutual trade after the end of transition periods applicable to the elimination of barriers to trade – seven years for the European Union and ten years for Vietnam respectively. Following more than a year since the signature of the agreement, it can be claimed that the EU’s imports from Vietnam have increased considerably, which not only led to the greater negative balance of mutual trade, but also resulted in greater trade volumes for selected goods, and consequently, this may entail the elimination of certain barriers to mutual trade on the entry into force of the agreement. In this article, a descriptive and comparative method was employed, domestic and foreign literature sources were used and the provisions of the EU-Vietnam agreement and legal acts of the EU secondary legislation in the form of regulations were referred to.

With ever-increasing political tensions between China and Russia on one side and the EU and the US on the other, it only seems a matter of time until protectionist policies cause a decoupling of global value chains. This paper uses a computable general equilibrium trade model calibrated with the latest version of the GTAP database to simulate the effect of such a decoupling–implemented by doubling non-tariff barriers–between the two blocks on trade and welfare. Imposing import barriers almost completely eliminates bilateral imports. In addition, changes in price levels lead to higher imports and lower exports of the imposing country group from and to the rest of the world. The targeted country group increases exports to the rest of the world and reduces imports. Welfare falls in all countries involved, suggesting that governments should strive to cooperate rather than turn away from each other. By imposing a trade war on Russia, the political West could inflict severe damage on the Russian economy because of the latter's smaller relative economic size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The New-generation trade agreements, which include the agreement with Japan, provide wide coverage - not only the liberalisation of trade in goods or services but also the protection of intellectual property rights, the public procurement market, sustainable development and others. This paper aims to demonstrate key provisions and (both ex post and ex ante) opportunities that the agreement creates for EU companies. Research Design & Methods: The research methods include a critical review of existing literature, an analysis of relevant legal and official documents of the European Union, as well as the provisions of the EU-Japan trade agreement. The empirical research focused on Eurostat data. Findings: The provisions of the EU-Japan agreement provide an incentive for European companies to strengthen their position on the Japanese market. The elimination of import duties and other barriers to trade in Japan in relation to certain agricultural products on the entry into force of the agreement contributed to higher exports from the EU for these groups of goods. What might be expected is the additional effect of the liberalisation of bilateral trade on third countries. In fact, standards or rules agreed by Japan and the EU may become even more attractive to third countries, as their adoption would facilitate access to two large markets. Implications & Recommendations: Japan is a relatively important trading partner for the EU and vice versa. One of the biggest achievements of the agreement made between the European Union and Japan includes the wide and deep liberalisation of trade in goods. Despite the fact that the overall level of tariff protection is relatively low, there are still some groups of goods for which the protection in the form of customs duties constitutes an important barrier, as a result of which the conditions for competing on the partner's market deteriorate. It seems that EU entrepreneurs should make more use of the opportunities which are created by the provisions of the free trade agreement with Japan. So far, the trade crisis caused by the pandemic has stood in the way. Contribution & Value Added: Research conducted so far is of an ex ante nature, both regarding the provisions of the agreement (publications written before 2018) and the evaluation of its potential effects on economy, trade, production or selected sectors. The research carried out in this article is of an ex post nature; it covers the period following the entry into force of the agreement and does not present any growth scenarios or forecasts, as was the case in the existing research. The article attempted to juxtapose the provisions of the agreement with Japan with trade conditions applicable to EU companies, as well as with the growth rate, volume and coverage of bilateral trade in goods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article analyzes the country-specific features of the non-tariff regulation and barriers as tools of neoprotectionism in the context of the global crisis, competition and significant restrictions in the use of customs and tariff regulation of foreign economic activity. The essence of neoprotectionism is revealed as a new phenomenon in the world economic relations between countries. It is revealed that the choice between protectionism and free trade as the principles of implementing the economic policy of the state is influenced by the state of world economic processes with their inherent contradictions, the peculiarities of the regionalization and integration processes, as well as the development trends in the world economy. The recognition of protectionism as a demanded international economic policy is shaped by the demand of society, entrepreneurs and the government. At the same time, the variety of subjects of international economic relations exert an exogenous influence on the implementation of the national states' policy (through the signing of trade agreements), thereby limiting the conditions for the implementation of protectionist policies.

Objective: The New-generation trade agreements, which include the agreement with Japan, provide wide coverage – not only the liberalisation of trade in goods or services but also the protection of intellectual property rights, the public procurement market, sustainable development and others. This paper aims to demonstrate key provisions and (both ex post and ex ante) opportunities that the agreement creates for EU companies. Research Design & Methods: The research methods include a critical review of existing literature, an analysis of relevant legal and official documents of the European Union, as well as the provisions of the EU-Japan trade agreement. The empirical research focused on Eurostat data. Findings: The provisions of the EU-Japan agreement provide an incentive for European companies to strengthen their position on the Japanese market. The elimination of import duties and other barriers to trade in Japan in relation to certain agricultural products on the entry into force of the agreement contributed to higher exports from the EU for these groups of goods. What might be expected is the additional effect of the liberalisation of bilateral trade on third countries. In fact, standards or rules agreed by Japan and the EU may become even more attractive to third countries, as their adoption would facilitate access to two large markets. Implications & Recommendations: Japan is a relatively important trading partner for the EU and vice versa. One of the biggest achievements of the agreement made between the European Union and Japan includes the wide and deep liberalisation of trade in goods. Despite the fact that the overall level of tariff protection is relatively low, there are still some groups of goods for which the protection in the form of customs duties constitutes an important barrier, as a result of which the conditions for competing on the partner’s market deteriorate. It seems that EU entrepreneurs should make more use of the opportunities which are created by the provisions of the free trade agreement with Japan. So far, the trade crisis caused by the pandemic has stood in the way. Contribution & Value Added: Research conducted so far is of an ex ante nature, both regarding the provisions of the agreement (publications written before 2018) and the evaluation of its potential effects on economy, trade, production or selected sectors. The research carried out in this article is of an ex post nature; it covers the period following the entry into force of the agreement and does not present any growth scenarios or forecasts, as was the case in the existing research. The article attempted to juxtapose the provisions of the agreement with Japan with trade conditions applicable to EU companies, as well as with the growth rate, volume and coverage of bilateral trade in goods.

As importing countries honor trade agreements to lower tariff rates, traditional tariff barriers may be replaced with non‐tariff barriers. Previous literature has found that the implementation of food safety standards, specifically the use of import notifications and rejections, has acted as a significant barrier to trade in both the EU and the US. This article estimates the relation between a change in tariff rates and the use of non‐tariff barriers, measured by a count of EU seafood import notifications. We find that when trade agreements generate a decrease in tariffs, we observe an increase in the number of import notifications, holding trade volume constant. This effect is strongest for those products that are rejected at the border for less threatening health reasons. Although we see clear evidence that non‐tariff barriers are responding to health risks, they also appear to be correlated with demand for protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article uses newly available state and business records to investigate the effectiveness of Buy British policies when Britain was a member of the EEC between the early 1970s and the mid-1980s – a period of rapid import penetration and deindustrialisation. We show that government pursued a range of overt and covert measures to combat these economic problems. Overt measures sought to encourage domestic consumers to buy British; covert measures, involving nationalised industries and public procurement, attempted to encourage British firms to source domestically. The article contributes to the emerging business history literature on how Member States tried to exploit loopholes in EEC competition and commercial policy, and it provides new evidence on UK consumer preferences for domestic and imported manufactures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Indonesia is a maritime country that has huge potential in fisheries sector. The average of indonesian fisheries production and export volumes always increase every year. This study aims to analyze the effect of exchange rates, government spending, inflation, interest rates, and sanitation policies to Indonesia fishery export to the United States in 1989-2019. Data were obtained from the Indonesian Ministry of Finance, the World Bank, UN COMTRADE, and the Indonesian Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries. This study uses the Error Coerrection Model (ECM) method to examine the effect of the independent variables on the dependent variable in the long term and short term. This study explains that in the long-term, government spending and exchange rate have positive effect, and interest rates have negative effect on export. In short-term, government spending and exchange rate have positive effect on export. Inflation and sanitation policy do not affect export in the long-term or short-term, while interest rates in the short-term do not affect Indonesian fishery exports. Keywords: Exports, Government Spending, Exchange Rates, Non-Tariff Barriers, Error Correction Model. JEL: F10, F13, C32

This article examines the impact of non-tariff barriers (NTBs) reduction on Kazakhstan’s trade due to the creation of the Eurasian Customs Union (ECU) in 2010. The assessment of the effect of NTBs reduction was carried out using a dynamic gravity model and econometric PMG method. The synchronization of the system of phytosanitary norms and the approval of a unified system of customs regulation have reduced the cost of trade. These innovations have reduced NTBs between ECU countries, which should increase trade flows between countries.According to the model’s estimates, the reduction in NTBs increased Kazakhstan’s imports from the ECU countries by 33% but did not have a significant impact on exports to these countries. That is, on average, Kazakhstani producers benefited less from joining the ECU than producers in other CU countries. These results confirm the findings of reports of international organizations that because of the creation of the ECU, non-tariff barriers between countries have significantly decreased. Unfortunately, Kazakh producers have not been able to take full advantage of the benefits of joining the ECU, and although NTBs between countries have decreased, total exports to ECU countries have not increased. At the same time, the reduction of barriers between countries allowed entrepreneurs from other countries to increase their exports to Kazakhstan (Kazakhstan’s imports) by 33 percent.

Purpose. This study aims to demonstrate the variables on which African nations depended to realise their desire to create an area of free trade. It also intends to investigate these countries’ constraints in establishing the area, which may stymie their efforts. Results. After thoroughly examining the Free Trade Area’s opportunities and limitations, the study came to the following findings: (1) the African countries’ long-term economic growth and social progress will be made possible by the African Continental Free Trade Area, whose very ambitious goals are based on Agenda 2063’s objectives; (2) African countries and the African Union aim to create a thriving free trade area based on several vital factors. One key factor is the potential to expand the African market, which could reach up to 1.2 billion people, providing abundant opportunities for intra-trade. Many African countries hope to boost neighbouring economies by reducing barriers and improving growth rates. Additionally, the continent's youthful population and wealth of natural resources can facilitate the development of various industries and the availability of diverse products for the continental market; (3) the countries in the continent have been facing long-standing issues that are not new to them. Firstly, trade constraints are seen as non-tariff barriers and high levels of informal trade, making it challenging to establish transparent, free trade zones. In addition, there are weaknesses in intra-regional trade structures and multiple regional agreements. Secondly, there are structural constraints that impede intra-African trade. A lack of manufacturing capabilities is one of these constraints, as most African countries generate income by exporting raw materials without converting them. Furthermore, the youth’s lack of education and skills makes structural transformation in African countries difficult. Furthermore, due to the size of the debt, the vast majority of revenues are directed towards debt repayment rather than investment. Thirdly, because of the social, political, and security constraints that poverty, food insecurity, and political and security instability represent in many African countries, solving these issues for those nations should take precedence over taking part in the free trade area implementation; (4) to sum up, even though there are several necessary components for creating a thriving trade area, they are not enough to overcome the multitude of obstacles and problems that many African nations face. These barriers will hinder the formation of a prosperous free trade zone that includes all African countries, which is essential for achieving overall continental growth that aligns with the region’s goals and Agenda 2063. Scientific novelty. The study explored the potential success of the African Continental Free Trade Area, examining the resources and strengths African countries possess to achieve their goals, as well as the challenges and risks they face. After weighing these factors, the study concluded that achieving the ambitious goals of the free trade zone will be difficult due to the many obstacles it faces. Practical value. The findings of this study hold immense value for African nations aspiring to forge lucrative commercial alliances under the Free Trade Area Agreement. Armed with the insights presented, these nations’ businesses are empowered to select politically and securely steadfast countries, economically and commercially varied nations, and those least burdened by social challenges, particularly poverty and food insecurity.

This paper analyzes the political economy factors and actors that may have influenced trade instruments in Peru during the liberalization period of 2001-2015 (which started in 1990 under Fujimori’s administration). The evidence supports the hypothesis that Peruvian trade barriers liberalization in period 2000-2015 was led by the powerful “Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF)”, accompanied by traditional and diversified exporters (that consolidated the unilateral trade liberalization) and by import substitution firms that influenced to some degree, and slowed down the rate of liberalization of unilateral trade barriers. In addition, the unilateral trade liberalization was facilitated by the weak role of the formal labor force and liberal-oriented consumer interest groups.

Trade issues lie at the heart of the two biggest constitutional challenges the UK has faced in decades: Brexit and Scottish independence. Brexit has demonstrated the economic importance of borders and led to renewed calls for Scottish independence. While there are a range of possible trading arrangements an independent Scotland could pursue, all of them involve economically significant change. In this paper, we describe Scottish trade patterns and review the range of options that a newly independent Scotland might have for its trading arrangements. We then model the relative economic importance of these different potential trading arrangements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Agreement is one of the covered agreements of the World Trade Organization (WTO), one of the main objectives of which is to harmonize regulations in the area of technical barriers to trade. While under the TBT Agreement, governments can legitimately apply technical regulations and standards for the purpose of protecting public interest, including health and safety, this Agreement, establishes four basic principles including non-discrimination, prohibition of creating unnecessary obstacles to international trade, harmonization and transparency thereby balancing those interest with free flow of cross-border trade. The Purpose of this essay is to evaluates the Iranian regulatory landscape in light of these TBT provisions and the relevant provisions of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement. It demonstrates that Iranian legislator, with some exceptions, has substantially disregarded the concepts and principles of TBT Agreement. The same holds true with respect to the recently adopted law titled "Reinforcement and Development of Standard System Act”, enacted as of October 2017, leading to increase in trade costs and therefore undermining Iran’s export competitiveness.

This paper measures the trends, specifically for exporters, in bilateral trade costs and more specifically for costs associated with policy barriers. The study further examines the effects of different trade cost components on bilateral export flows via the dynamic panel gravity model. Empirical evidence shows that trade costs generally have a declining trend globally, however, in the case of emerging countries, this rate of decline is very low. The costs associated with non-tariff barriers in emerging countries have a greater role in the continuation of higher trade costs, in comparison to tariff barriers' costs. Likewise, the two-steps system GMM model's results suggest that the infrastructure quality, transportation costs, volatility of exchange rate, and uncertainty in time (days) delay are major hurdles in the sustainable growth of exports and indeed have rendered the exports uncompetitive in the world market, those are also sturdily supported by the prediction of the theory.

Integrating the Global Preference Survey (GPS) and its data of unique scope on national preference structures in patience, risk attitude and reciprocity into a gravity framework, this paper is the first to explore a potential influence on international trade outcomes of economic and social preferences in a unified setting. Adding to the evidence on preferences' importance for aggregate outcomes, the authors find marked differences in trade flows and relationships, both on the country-level and between bilateral partners. Their main results suggest that countries differing in their willingness to behave negatively reciprocal tend to trade significantly less amongst each other due to the destabilizing effect of unexpected punishments. On the other hand, countries that are patient or risk-averse tend to shift towards exporting more differentiated goods as opposed to homogeneous goods and vice versa. We propose term and risk transformation considerations as the driving mechanisms for this relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relevance of the research topic is explained by the negative impact of integration agreements, in particular the free trade ones, on the list of instruments that the state can use to implement its economic policy in the field of foreign economic activity, in particular - on the list of customs instruments. There is a steady global increase in international trade, coupled with the tendency to gradually reduce trade barriers by most countries. Strengthening integration processes negatively influence the breadth of influence and the list of customs instruments of economic regulation. Given the socio-economic and environmental risks that arise in the absence or lack of state regulation of economic processes, it is important to ensure the effectiveness of those instruments that may still be used under the terms of integration agreements. Additionally, the attention to the customs instruments is increasing in the context of the «economic patriotism» that is becoming popular in USA, Europe and other countries, together with the criticism of the neoliberalism. The coverage of the issue in the works of domestic and foreign scholars is sporadic in nature and is usually tied to the problem of a particular market or industry in a particular agreement. In the last years before the ratification of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU, as well as in the first years after, T. Ostashko studied the potential effects of that agreement on the instruments of regulation of certain sectors of the economy of Ukraine. From the point of view of generalization of the practice of state regulation of economy in the European integration processes, it is possible to mention V. Olefir and O. Mitchenok which covers the experience of Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, Africa, America and the Middle East. The above studies do not consider separate institutes of state regulation of the economy, in particular customs instruments, at a deeper level, focusing on the direct economic processes and the impact of increasing the freedom of trade turnover on national production. The research objective is to analyse the essence and impact of international economic processes on customs instruments for the implementation of the state economic policy in order to develop proposals for the effective use of these instruments. The theoretical and empirical methods of cognition in their dialectical combination are used in this work. In the analysis of existing integration processes, statistical and economic methods, in particular, comparisons, graphic constructions, as well as methods of descriptive and comparative statistics are used. Comparative methods, methods of analysis, synthesis, generalization, and also the system method are used to determine the ways of efficient use of customs instruments. system method is used. The dynamics of the development of integration processes and the influence of their various types on the customs instruments both in general and in separate branches are revealed in the framework of this research. The international experience of using customs instruments in these conditions is investigated and the most effective ones are highlighted. The results of this research can be applied in the process of formulating the state economic policies, in particular in the context of international economic activities, food security, protection of the national agri-food market and its elements, support of the national manufacturers. The research has demonstrated that in the framework of the WTO effective applied tariffs may be effectively utilized by approximation to the bound tariffs. Within the framework of bilateral and multilateral agreements, the institute of tariff quote is an effective tool, due to flexibility and potential directions of application, Increasing the country's participation in regional and bilateral trade agreements, albeit with the risk of creating a complicated regulatory «stew» and trade intervention, leaves a sufficient number of customs tools for effective implementation of the state regulation of economy.

This study assesses the existing initiatives of the Ukrainian government in the field of regulation of standardization and certification, related to the implementation of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, and the adaptation of Ukrainian legislation to European standards. The study intends to identify the challenges that may create barriers for Ukrainian businesses in this area and to determine the areas and prospects of the politically motivated regulation related to their overcoming. Considering the evolution of regulation in the relevant area in Ukraine, the study gives grounds to assert that in recent years the government has made significant efforts in adapting national standards of a technical regulation to the EU legislation, which are related to simplification of standardization and certification procedures and access to both EU and Ukrainian markets. In practical terms, this study is of interest not only to lawyers but also for all businesses focusing both on European and Ukrainian markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in 2019 expressed interest in joining the East African Community (EAC) regional bloc to tap into the benefits of the regional trade and expanded markets. Using the SMART-WITS Model simulation approach, this study examines the likely trade effects of DRC's membership to the EAC. The results reveal that trade effects are positive among the EAC partner states, more so for Rwanda and Uganda, given that there are the current leading EAC exporters to DRC. Specifically, DRC's membership to the EAC increases exports of Rwanda by USD 81 million, Uganda (USD 60 million), Tanzania (USD 50 million), Kenya (USD 42 million) and Burundi (USD 6 million), Tanzania (USD 50 million), Kenya (USD 42.5 million) and Burundi (USD 6 million). The positive trade effects are attributed to trade creation (due to new exports by EAC to DRC initially sourced from non-EAC countries) rather than trade diversion. In terms of trade growth shares, it is estimated that free trade with DRC increases the current trade with Uganda by 30 percent, 24 percent for Rwanda, 34 percent for Tanzania, 29 percent for Kenya and 33 percent for Burundi. The main economic sectors/industries poised to benefit from DRC membership are agro-processing, metal products (mainly iron and steel) and mineral ores industries. Overall, the potential entry of DRC into the EAC calls for strategic investments in these industries while addressing Non-Trade Barriers (NTBs) such as poor infrastructure and insecurity in DRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For all the economies in the global world the question of trade is becoming more important by the day. But the possibility to export on the global market meets many impediments in the form of non-tariff barriers, rather than tariff these days. CEFTA 2006 regional trade integration is not an exception with more than 100 NTBs introduced during its existence. Our research found that Serbia and Albania are CEFTA 2006 signatories with the most NTBs introduced in the observed period. CEFTA has a very efficient institutional mechanism, Subcommittee on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) and Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs), for the removal of NTBs between signatories. We have researched three case studies of bilateral NTBs in Serbia’s intra-CEFTA 2006 which demonstrate that our trade partner uses policy oriented NTBs. The removal of NTBs at the global, as well as regional levels is crucial for the development of trade flows after the world economic crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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