Designed as a primer for policymakers and students, this volume focuses on two critical problems the United States faces as we move into the 1990s: the unprecedented size of U.S. trade deficits and the nation's declining international competitiveness. The author uses contemporary data to identify and explain the linkages among trade deficits, budget deficits, international competitiveness, the future of manufacturing in the United States, the U.S. debtor position, foreign direct investment, and other related economic and political problems. Particular attention is given to the critical role of the manufacturing sector in determining the nation's international competitiveness and to the effects on the manufacturing sector of tax and fiscal policies that alter international capital flows. The author's central unifying theme is that U.S. trade deficits and the nation's international competitiveness are related but different problems requiring separate policy consideration and sometimes different policy prescriptions. In fact, the author demonstrates, some policies that could improve U.S. trade balances would actually reduce our international competitiveness.

Divided into four parts, the book begins by defining international competitiveness, separating it from the trade deficit problems, and identifying its major determinants. Part II deals with the decline of U.S. trade performance in the 1980s and traces the growth of the deficit, its causes, the effect of remedial policy actions, and the implications for U.S. manufacturing. The resulting escalation in U.S. international debt is also discussed and analyzed. In the third section, the author examines the difficult adjustments that both the United States and its major trading partners must make to narrow unsustainable U.S. deficits and the complementary surpluses of some trading partners. The final section explores the key policy alternatives for dealing with the trade and competitiveness issues in the 1990s and provides a broad agenda of actions to deal with both problems. A separate chapter describes flaws in the organization of the U.S. government which hinder the conduct of U.S. policy and U.S. international economic leadership. Written in nontechnical language, "Beyond Blue Economic HorizonS" is both an invaluable assessment of U.S. trade and competitive prospects for students of international finance and a call to action for policymakers charged with developing sound economic and trade policies for the 1990s.

Globalization and increasing international trade are becoming a fact of life, bringing increasing tensions and conflicts over their impacts on societies, livelihoods and the environment. The impacts are felt in industrialized countries but are often most harsh in developing economies. The growing debate involves not only professional economists and lawyers, but a broad range of academic disciplines as well as civil society and citizens' groups around the world. This text presents the most important contributions to the debate, and to the understanding of how sustainable international trade could be achieved. It should provide a useful sourcebook and guide to academics, practitioners and activists involved with these issues.

Series Information:
Harwood Fundamentals of Pure & Applied Economics

Trade, Environment and Sustainable Development explores the linkages between the objectives of liberalised international trade, protection of the environment and sustainable development. It is an anthology of essays by leading experts, key government officials and political leaders from the South Asian region, supported by officials of the OECD, UNCTAD and non-governmental organisations. Trade, Environment and Sustainable Development outlines the concerns of the developing nations of the South Asian region about the impacts on their trade and development from the environmental policies of the North. A range of country case and sector studies are presented, along with analysis of key regional issues.

This book provides a careful account of the leading propositions about the welfare gains associated with international trade and investment under differing institutional arrangements and policy choices.

Modern biotechnology - the controversial manipulation of genes in living organisms - has far-reaching implications for agriculture, human health, trade and the environment. Against the odds, an international treaty governing biosafety and trade in biotechnology was adopted in 2000. The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety of the Convention on Biological Diversity deals with one of the most important and challenging issues thrown up by developments in biotechnology. This volume is a comprehensive review of the protocol and the process that led to its adoption. It includes contributions from many of the key players involved and analyses the commercial and political interests at stake, the operations and implications of the protocol, and prospects for the future.

Presenting new material and a fresh perspective, Technology, Trade and Growth in OECD Countries, provides a unifying framework for the exploration of the role played by specialisation in economic growth and international competitiveness.

This book provides institutional information and uses analytical tools to explains why governments should intervene in economies affected by globalization. With analysis of current country experiences and issues, this book is an essential read for all interested in the demands on economic policy in globalized age.

This book asks anew whether there really was European integration before 1914. By focussing on quantitative (economic indicators) and qualitative data (the international regulation of patents, communication networks, social policy and plant protection), the authors re-evaluate European integration of the time and address the politics of seemingly apolitical cooperation. The authors show that European integration was multifaceted and cooperation less the result of intent, than of incentives. National polities and international regimes co-shaped each other. The result is a book that achieves two things: offer stand-alone chapters that shed light on specific developments and - these read altogether - develop a bigger picture. It will be of interest to researchers and students of economic history, as well as those interested in the history of internationalism and globalisation.

Learn the ins and outs of the export-import business!Export-Import Theory, Practices, and Procedures is a comprehensive and in-depth analysis of international trade theories and techniques. International trade professionals, researchers, students, and members of chambers of commerce will benefit from concepts and theories that explain international trade operations and give clearly defined goals and procedures for your business. This excellent text offers chapter summaries, references, World Wide Web addresses, and features learning aids such as figures, tables, vignettes, and other illustrations to help you compete in the global marketplace and better educate students in the field.With this informative text, you will explore trade agreements such as the GATT/WTO, NAFTA, and the European Economic Community (EEC), and how they affect trade. For example, you will read about the investment and intellectual property policies, as well as rules on government procurements, safeguards, and services of NAFTA. Export-Import Theory, Practices, and Procedures examines export-import marketing and strategy concepts from setting up businesses to solving typical international logistics and transportation questions. Other areas you will examine include: documentation, risks, and different forms of insurance price setting in international trade export sales contracts documenting export-import trade the risks of foreign trade exchange rates and international trade methods of payment for exporting and importing goods the benefits and theories of countertrade the entry process for imports import relief to domestic industryExport-Import Theory, Practices, and Procedures covers everything you need to know to start and run an export-import business. With over 100 tables and figures and a plethora of Web sites and Internet addresses to visit, this excellent text assists you in understanding the theories, practices, and procedures of exporting and importing to help you make informed and profitable business decisions.

Contents:
1: The Changing Structure of World Output and Trade 2: Basic Theories of International Trade 3: Intra-Industry Trade and Specialisation 4: Multinational Companies and World Trade 5: More Recent Forms of International Economic Involvement 6: Japan and the World Economy 7: The Emergence of the Newly Industrialising Countries 8: Free Trade versus Protectionism 9: Multilateralism versus Regionalism 10: Trade in Services.

Sir Roy Harrod was one of the foremost economists of the twentieth century who made pioneering contributions in several branches of economics including: trade cycle theory; growth theory; trade theory; monetary economics; imperfect competition theory, and methodology. This volume arises out of a conference to celebrate the sixtieth anniversary of the publication of his book The Trade Cycle in 1936. After an introductory essay by Walter Eltis, a student of Harrod, this volume contains important essays on the interpretation of Harrod's work in the field of economic dynamics by Danial Besomi and Maurizio Pugno, and in the field of trade and growth by Tony Thirlwall, John McCombie and Luca Bendictis. Finally, Warren Young, in the process of writing Harrod's biography, uses correspondence between Harrod and Haberler to elucidate Harrod's views on trade theory, international monetary reform and inflation.

In an era of accelerating change in the world economy, services are assuming greater importance for the economies of both developed and developing countries. As technological developments allow increasing tradeability of services, huge global firms are offering services across national boundaries. This book explores the global impact of this economic phenomenon from both empirical and theoretical perspectives. A range of international authors, including both academics and representatives of major international organisations, offer contributions in two key areas: case studies covering a wide range of service industries, from consumer services, such as hotels and airlines, to professional business-to-business services; and theories and paradigms of economic behaviour. The book questions whether traditional models developed with manufacturing industries in mind are applicable to the service sector, and suggests new directions for economic theory. Globalization of Services therefore offers economists both a wealth of new source material and a fresh perspective on the modern global economy.

Fulfilling the Export Potential of Small and Medium Firms addresses the question, How can economic policy contribute to a strong export performance by small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in developing countries?' In today's increasingly integrated world economy, such a performance can make a significant difference to the growth, employment creation and income distribution of many developing countries. The study uses information from specifically designed surveys of SME exporters in Japan, Indonesia, Korea and Colombia, together with a range of evidence from other sources, to ascertain what types of support within the areas of technology, marketing and finance are most useful to SME exporters and how such support can best be provided to them. The quality of the support systems is found to vary widely among the four countries. Finally, a number of policy conclusions are put forward.

Has America always been the champion of free trade? Debates about free trade and protection are one of the dominant features of 19th century economic discourse. The writings of the British classical economists, in particular, have been the subject of extensive secondary literature. In contrast, the writings of their American counterparts have often been overlooked. This collection seeks to help rectify this, by giving access to an extensive range of 19th-century American writings on trade issues. Many of the pieces selected are unavailable, even in America. Each has been carefully retypeset. Early American economics is often criticized for lacking the theoretical sophistication of European economics. The picture which emerges from these texts is more complex. It seems that far from being of universal application, the ideas of the English classical economists did not fit neatly in the context of 19th-century America, and it is much harder to draw a sharp doctrinal divide between protectionists and free-traders. The texts reproduced discuss: "the American system" of protection for infant industries; the North/South divide in the US, made manifest by the slavery question and the civil

This book postulates the proposition that small economies exhibit a higher degree of outward orientation and structural adaptability, compared to their larger counterparts within the context of the European Union and two case studies (i.e. Catalonia and New Zealand).
The number of nations has doubled in the last half of the century to around 200 independent economic units. Moreover, the break-up of the former Soviet bloc into a large number of small independent nations in Central and Eastern Europe, and the continued threat of separatist groups (i.e. Canada, Spain, and Sri Lanka) have sparked economists' interest to focus on the size of nations once again. This book offers a more comprehensive measurement of smallness than the conventional one for the analysis of the globalization strategies and flexibility of countries to overcome smallness.
Small independent economic units, when economically successful, tend to be more export focused in manufacturing, likely to specialize in differentiated manufactures, more actively involved with direct overseas businesses, more sensitive in strategically managing exchange rates, likely to be in a better position to achieve price stability, more actively involved in international trade through varying degrees of economic integration, likely to have a higher degree of flexibility, more actively involved to forge a complementary government-firm relationship, and likely to have a higher degree of corporatism.

This work examines Japans economic activities in Singapore from 1870 to 1965. Drawing upon a range of published and unpublished sources, the authors shed light on issues such as: prostitution; foreign trade by Kobe's overseas Chinese; fishermen in the inter-war period; Japanese economic activities during the Pacific War; Japanese involvement in Singapore's post-war industrialization plan; the Lee Kuan Yew regime's policy towards Japan; and the 1960s Japanese investment boom. The book challenges commonly-held views on Japan's economic advance into Southeast Asia in general, and Singapore in particular.

This is the first comprehensive and updated study of the Arab economic boycott of Israel to be published since it started to disintegrate in the aftermath of the Madrid Conference of 1991. Gil Feiler explains the evolution and development of the boycott, which was first formally imposed by the Arab League in 1946, even before the State of Israel formally came into existence, and examines all aspects - including the theory, practice and legality - of the longest-lasting example of economic sanctions in the twentieth century, as seen from the American, Arab, European and Israeli perspectives. He also looks into the prospects of the slowly developing reality of economic relations and cooperation between Israel and its neighbours which has accompanied the Middle East peacemaking process.
As well as its broad horizons, one particular value of this study is that it is based in part on Arab archival material and recent documents, as well as on interviews with a wide range of personalities who were involved with the various aspects of the boycott over the years. As an academic who specializes in Middle East economics, as well as the director of a firm that deals both with Middle East market research and actual economic contacts in the region, Dr Feiler is well equipped to present and analyze the phenomenon of the boycott and its significance. All students of the Middle East conflict, economic sanctions and contemporary history will find this book invaluable.

China is under close scrutiny both as a market that could provide massive returns to investors and because of its potential to become the most powerful economy in Asia. This new study examines the economic relationship between China and Europe, its importance and how it is likely to evolve.
The book considers the flow of trade, direct investment and technology transfer and contains case studies of manufacturing industries (automobiles, toys, watches, telecommunications) banking and insurance. The trade relationship between Europe and China is being re-evaluated by both sides and this is a valuable contribution to that process.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203074009

P.J. Lloyd and Hyun-Hoon Lee have assembled an international cast of contributors to offer a selection of models examining the nature of intra-industry trade in several new areas of trade theory, in addition to empirical studies and analysis of much new data in trade patterns. This volume provides an authoritative new treatment of the theory, measurement and testing of the subject of intra-industry trade.

The East India Company played a major part in the growth of Britain's empire. Its functions went beyond those of a trading concern and merged military force, government and colonization with economic expansion. This six-volume work covers the history of the Company from its origins in 1599-1600 to its abolition in the wake of the Indian Mutiny of 1857. This comprehensive collection contains reprinted first-hand sources, scholarly surveys, and thematically arranged collections of recent journal articles, offering scholarly coverage of the Company's history, and presenting recent interpretations of its development.

This volume is a product of the Interstratos project which brought together research teams from across Europe to study the strategic behaviour of small and medium-sized industrial firms, the determinants of their behaviour, and the impact on performance. The book uses information from annual surveys of companies in Europe during the period spanning the formation of a single European market. It addresses issues affecting small businesses such as marketing, entrepreneurship, export strategies and the single market, on an international basis. The book also contains detailed case studies of individual countries including The Netherlands, Finland, Switzerland and the UK.

The Politics of Global Supply Chains analyses the changing politics of power and distribution within contemporary global supply chains. Drawing on over 300 interviews with farmers, workers, activists, businesses and government officials in garment and coffee sector supply chains, the book shows how the increased involvement of non-state actors in supply chain governance is re-shaping established patterns of global political power, responsibility and accountability. These emerging supply chain governance systems are shown to be multi-layered and politically contested, as transnational governance schemes interact with traditional state governance arrangements in both complementary and conflicting ways. The book s analysis of changes to the relationship between state and non-state actors within transnational governance processes will be of particular interest to scholars and students of globalisation, global governance and regulation. The Politics of Global Supply Chains also suggests some practical ways by which the effectiveness and accountability of supply chain governance could be strengthened, which will interest both scholars and practitioners in fields of global business regulation and corporate social responsibility. Conclusions are relevant to the business and civil society actors who participate directly in non-state governance schemes, and to state regulators whose distinctive governance capacities could play a much greater role than at present in supporting transnational, non-state governance processes.

The International Trade Manual is the definitive book about export, import and freightforwarding for business people and students of further and higher education. It is vital reading for anyone involved in international commerce and is the leading textbook for students taking International Trade and Services (ITAS) S/NVQ Levels 3 (supervisors) and 4 (managers) in international trade. This comprehensive guide details exactly what you need to know if you want your business to profit from foreign trade. Endorsed by the British Chambers of Commerce and The Institute of Export, its contents include everything from customs documentation to credit risk.Professionals working in international commerce will also find the reference sections invaluable. These contain checklists, forms, relevant legislation, regulations and a directory of further information sources. Trainers, lecturers, students, managers and supervisors will all benefit from using this highly effective training resource.

The World Trade Organization grew out of the post-war General agreement on Tariff and Trade (GATT) through a series of negotiated enhancements to GATT. Recently, the WTO has attracted controversy, accused of perpetuating the economic subservience of the Third World. This text explores the main issues.