We argue that the global spread of ideas contributes to trade liberalization. Building on insights from a rich case-based literature, we suggest an explicit mechanism of trade policy diffusion: US-trained Ph.D. economists, who share a common belief in the benefits of free trade, and who operate with varying degrees of political influence around the world. We offer the first cross-national test ...

In the middle of two crises, the first one in 1982 and a second one in 1986, Mexico initiated a new economic strategy, inaugurated with two important reforms: trade liberalization, and financial liberalization and deregulation. With the first reform the economic wanted to reposition Mexico in the international division of labor. With the second one they aimed at attracting capital inflows and m...

A Negative Binomial Regression Model is used to investigate the sustainability of China–Mexico trade liberalization by testing the tariff lines underpinning Mexico’s successful antidumping (AD) measures against Chinese imports from 1991 to 2011. Evidence shows import tariff cutting and consumption growth have a positive impact on consumer goods but a negative impact on intermediaries. This resu...

This paper provides new evidence on the impacts of trade reforms on wages. We first introduce a model of trade that combines a non-competitive wage setting mechanism due to unions with a factor abundance hypothesis. The predictions of the model are then econometrically investigated using Argentine data. Instead of achieving identification by comparing industrial wages before and after one episo...

Agriculture is the focus of much contention in free trade negotiations. The Japanese government is against liberalizing the rice trade on the grounds that it would threaten “national food security” in the events of such shocks as crop failure, war, and embargo. Trade liberalization is expected to make Japan more dependent upon food imports and to make the Japanese economy more susceptible to th...

This paper uses the methodology developed in Kehoe and Ruhl (2013) to measure the change in the extensive, or new goods, margin of trade between Japan and China after China’s entry into the World Trade Organization in 2001. The new goods account for 15.9% of Japanese exports to China and 22% of Chinese exports to Japan after trade liberalization. For the case of Chinese exports to Japan, a time...

The main purpose of this study is to illustrate, with simple trade theory, the relationship between competing industrial standards and trade liberalization. We assume that there are two competing industrial standards in an international context, each of which consists of di¤erentiated products. A product can be used only in combination with other products based on the same industrial standard. ...

Background Addressing diet-related non-communicable diseases (NCDs) will require a multisectoral policy approach that includes the food supply and trade, but implementing effective policies has proved challenging. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) has experienced significant trade and economic liberalization over the past decade; at the same time, the nutrition transition has pr...

Paragraph 31(iii) of the Doha Ministerial Declaration mandates to the liberalization of environmental goods and services. This mandate offers a good opportunity to put climate-friendly goods and services on a fast track to liberalization. Agreement on this paragraph should represent one immediate contribution that the WTO can make to fight against climate change. This paper presents the key iss...

The environmental impact of a regional trade agreement towards liberalization is an empirical question. The paper estimates the economic and environmental impacts of alternative trade policies of liberalization between six East Asian countries using Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) framework. The finding reveals that Japan will be in a winwin situation followed by Republic of Korea after ta...