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Author(s)
Joann Peterson
This article examines the factors motivating customs reform in various countries. In particular, it describes how certain customs practices have recently evolved in response to the globalization of manufacturing, just-in-time production processes, and the growth in e-commerce. Countries have undertaken several types of customs reform, including the use of online single window systems to streamline customs paperwork and improve transparency; the adoption of “trusted trader” programs and risk assessment tools to speed customs clearance at border checkpoints; and efforts at harmonizing customs processing among regional trading partners. Guiding principles to improve customs efficiency were also agreed upon under the World Customs Organization’s Kyoto Convention and the World Trade Organization’s Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA). This article outlines these developments and reviews work by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the World Bank, and the World Economic Forum to benchmark countries’ progress in achieving customs reform, including implementing policy recommendations under the TFA.
Author(s)
Jeremy E. J. Streatfeild
Can changes in trade volumes explain improvements in the capacity of African states to collect revenue and to provide public services? Applying European trade literature, this paper analyzes whether Ghana’s state capacity is stronger than it would have otherwise been, due to its recent trade growth. This research represents a departure from most economics literature on trade, which typically focuses on improvements to economic performance. Instead, this paper addresses a frequently overlooked aspect of trade—its impact on a state’s political economy. Identifying the roots of stronger African state capacity is an important objective, in light of the concern expressed by Thies (2009) that African states, in their current form, may just limp along, hampered by their endowment of inhospitable geography. Improvements in a state’s capacity for governance mean it can better provide public goods, combat corruption, and attract private investment. The findings presented in this paper not only are consistent with the hypothesis that trade growth has had a measurable impact on Ghana’s state capacity, but—using a synthetic control—also demonstrate the rate of change. Although the weakness of African states has received much attention, the findings in this paper suggest that capacity levels can be directly bolstered through trade-promotion policies.
Author(s)
Brian Daigle, Samantha DeCarlo, Gregory LaRocca
The proliferation of bilateral and plurilateral trade agreements has been discussed extensively in academic literature, where the primary focus has been on the economic impact of the resulting reduction of trade barriers. However, few resources offer an aggregated discussion of situations in which countries opt to suspend or end their participation in trade agreements, or are suspended from them. With the United Kingdom’s recent decision to leave the European Union, the withdrawal of countries from trade agreements has taken on increasing interest. To begin this discussion, this paper outlines over 150 instances of a country or group of countries leaving, being suspended from, or ending a trade agreement. Using data principally from the World Trade Organization and the Design of Trade Agreements Project, and ranging in time from 1950 (when China withdrew from the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) to 2019, the authors have found 163 instances of suspension or cancellation of trade agreement participation. This paper explores two trends noted in these cases: (1) the high number of countries dropping participation in agreements in favor of pursuing “replacements”—deeper bilateral trading relationships, or trading relationships with more partners (82 percent of cases, confirming the literature that finds a global trend towards trade liberalization); and (2) the rise in the number of countries that have ended or suspended their participation in agreements without a subsequent replacement (about 18 percent of cases). Six case studies in this paper illustrate the geographic and situational diversity of countries’ suspension or withdrawal from trade agreements.
Author(s)
Caitlyn Carrico
The roundtable on quantifying the economic effects of trade agreements hosted by the U.S. International Trade Commission brought together professionals representing a variety of ideas, perspectives, and expertise. The discussion presented in this summary represents major topics that were covered by speakers at the roundtable. Overarching themes throughout the discussion included the need to ensure that both analytical methods and results are accessible to policymakers and the public as well as the necessity of expanding economic analysis beyond tariffs to incorporate investment and services.
Author(s)
Katherine Linton
This article discusses the importance of trade secrets to small and large firms in many industry sectors. It also highlights their centrality in domestic and international policymaking. Given the practical and policy importance of trade secrets, the article describes gaps in the literature on the effects of trade secret protection on innovation, trade, and investment that warrant research attention.
Author(s)
Wen Jin "Jean" Yuan, Yasnanhia Cabral, Anton C. Yang
The U.S. International Trade Commission moderated a trade facilitation roundtable on October 15, 2015, focusing on the implementation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) that was signed in Bali in December 2013. Participants included representatives from government, industry, trade associations, think tanks, and academia. The discussion centered around five areas: (1) individual country/regional experiences in trade facilitation reform; (2) international organizations' trade facilitation programs; (3) the benefits and challenges of implementing the TFA; (4) public-private partnership in trade facilitation reforms; and (5) the TFA Single Window provision. This article summarizes discussions held during the roundtable’s two sessions. The first session concerned country and regional experiences in trade facilitation reform and the effectiveness of public-private partnership in implementing such reforms, while the second focused on international organizations' trade facilitation programs and on the United States’ progress on implementing the Single Window provision.
Author(s)
Joann Peterson
On February 22, 2017, the World Trade Organization (WTO) Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) entered into force following ratification by a required two-thirds majority (or 110) of the WTO’s 164 members. By September 2020, 93.3 percent, or 153 WTO members, had ratified specific provisions in the TFA, setting the stage for full implementation of the agreement. The agreement has three main objectives: to expedite the release of goods that cross international borders; to improve cooperation among customs authorities; and to provide technical assistance and capacity building (TACB) on customs and trade facilitation matters to developing countries and least-developed countries (LDCs). Once implemented, the TFA is anticipated to expand the depth and scope of global trade, especially among developing countries and LDCs. This article provides an overview of the TFA, reviews its implementation status by country and by category, and examines next steps for full implementation of the agreement by TFA members, including progress towards capacity building.
Author(s)
Brian Daigle
As the 55 African countries of the African Union (AU) move towards greater integration of trade policies through the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), one area of noted trade policy divergence is the governance of digital trade. In particular, African nations’ rules governing the protection of personal data are a patchwork, with some countries offering little to no protection policy while others have extensive digital governance frameworks. Given that internet connectivity, broadband access, and digital trade have coincided with broader economic development, the extent to which African nations form policies governing the digital landscape can also shape development across the whole continent. This paper explores how personal data are currently governed among AU member states, noting common trends and areas of divergence. It also takes a closer look at the data protection policies of Egypt, Kenya, Botswana, Ghana, and Rwanda.
Author(s)
Michael Anderson, Jacob Mohs
The Information Technology Agreement (ITA), a multilateral agreement emerging from the Uruguay Round, eliminates tariffs on specific technology and telecommunications products for member countries. Primary goals of the ITA are increased trade and competition through trade liberalization for information technology (IT) products, and the global diffusion of information technology. The ITA went into effect in 1997 with 29 WTO member countries and now includes 72 WTO members. It covers over 95 percent of total world trade in IT products, currently estimated at $4 trillion annually. The emergence of complex global supply chains for IT products, rapid deployment of new technologies, and technology convergence since the ITA’s inception, shine new light on the role of the ITA in global trade. This paper provides an overview of the ITA, describes the level of tariff liberalization associated with membership, and discusses the changing composition of ITA membership. The paper further examines ITA trade between 1996 and 2008, highlighting the changing composition of trade by leading exporting and importing nations and profiles ITA trade by product segment, focusing on computers, semiconductors, and telecommunications equipment. The paper finds a significant shift in ITA trade to Asia, particularly China, and to a lesser extent to Eastern Europe. Significant developments in global ITA trade include, increasing diversification of ITA members’ trade and economic profiles and expanding trade participation by developing countries.
Author(s)
Robert A. Rogowsky, Eric Chyn
This journal article is a primer of the new labor legislation. It catalogs the standards set out in each agreement and any new pre- or post-FTA labor legislation initiated by U.S. trading partner countries. The article cites evidence for progress towards the rights of the labor force, new mechanisms for dialogue, and an emerging greater transparency in the enforcement of labor law worldwide.