The Domestic Politics of Preferential Trade Agreements in Hard Times
نویسندگان
چکیده
We present a theory of why some countries negotiate trade agreements during economic downturns. We argue that political leaders can gain from such agreements because of the signals they send to their publics. Publics are less likely to blame leaders for bad economic conditions when they have implemented sound economic policies, such as signing and implementing agreements designed to liberalize and expand trade. Leaders have particular reason to seek this type of insurance if they compete for office in a competitive political environment. The more democratic their political system is, the more they can gain from implementing trade agreements. We evaluate this argument by analyzing all preferential trade agreements (PTAs) ratified by countries since 1951. We find that democratic countries are especially likely to ratify PTAs during hard economic times.
منابع مشابه
International Institutions and Domestic Politics: Can Preferential Trading Agreements Help Leaders Promote Economic Reform?
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