This book examines the role of mercantile networks in linking Asian economies to the global economy. It contains fourteen contributions on East, Southeast and South Asia covering the period from 1750 to the present.

In the emerging post-Cold War new world order, the economics and politics of the oil industry will be quite different. New approaches and mechanisms are under way to deal with new challenges and old difficulties, such as environmental imperatives and the uncertainty of prices and availability. This edited volume provides an authoritative and comprehensive view of changing oil markets through informative discussions on global oil reserves, production and consumption trends, futures markets, refining, the political economy, and global environmental concerns. A very useful tool for researchers, scholars, and businesspeople in energy and environmental policy economics, political economics, economics of natural resources, and regional economics.

This timely book examines the quiet revolution that is currently unfolding in Latin America and its likely consequences for U.S. trade and investment with and within that region. Receiving meager coverage by America's media, a virtual sea of change has taken place in Latin America during the past few years. Democratically elected leaders have labored to extricate their economies from the debt-laden stagnation of the lost decade by pursuing far-reaching stabilization and liberalization reform programs. Under President George Bush's proposed Enterprise Initiative for the Americas (EAI) and negotiations toward the formation of a North American Free Trade Area (NAFTA) with Mexico, U.S. economic policy toward Latin America is now in the midst of a dramatic revision that seeks to rectify the neglect of the past and replace it with active encouragement of economic and political change. The authors investigate the forces behind the lost decade in Latin America, the adjustment efforts that have emerged in its wake, and the enhanced potential of Latin economies as trade partners and investment outlets under the EAI and NAFTA. They look at these developments in the light of regionalizing trends afoot in the global economy at large and argue that stronger ties with Latin America are essential to the future well-being of the United States.

After outlining the emergence of global economic regionalism and its likely impact upon the United States and Latin America, the authors trace the origins of the latter's lost decade to the debt crisis of the early 1980s, the inadequacy of past international strategies to manage it, and the adoption of strenuous adjustment programs by Latin nations to deal with both debt repayment and the legacy of misguided development approaches. They show how the EAI is meant to accelerate the movement toward reliance upon free-market forces in Latin America and how the United States is likely to benefit from closer economic ties with the countries of that region. A full account of NAFTA's proposed liberalization of trade between the United States and Mexico follows, as the authors investigate its origins, examine Mexico's adjustment record, and list the gains that both nations are likely to realize under a free-trade accord. They then look at two sets of Latin economies, the first of which is formed by Chile, Venezuela, Bolivia, and Colombia and the second comprised of Brazil, Argentina, and Peru. While the former are prepared for economic integration with the United States, major problems impair the ability of the latter to become full-fledged participants in an economic pact with the United States. The analysis presented in the book should be of substantial value to businessmen, students of world affairs, as well as those with a specific interest in U.S.-Latin relations.

This edited volume moves beyond the traditional examination of the treaty ports of China and Japan as places of cultural interaction. It moves 'beyond the Bund', presenting instead the history of material culture, the everyday life of the residents of the treaty ports beyond the symbology of Shanghai's waterfront. Bringing for the first time together scholars of China and Japan, museum curators, legal, economic and architectural historians, it studies the treaty ports not only as sites of cultural exchange, but also as sites of social contestation, accommodation and mobility, covering topics as varied as day to day life itself, such as family, property and law, health and welfare, travel, visual culture and memory. The call of this volume is to peel the multiple layers of the encounter between East and West in the treaty ports of China and Japan.

This topical and important book identifies the short to medium-term economic, financial and social consequences of Brexit. Containing perspectives from leading thinkers across legal, economic and financial fields, it considers both the general effect of UK withdrawal on the European integration process, and the specific impact on the free movement of capital, goods and people. Addressing the main areas within both the UK and the EU that can and will be affected by Brexit, including the financial sector, immigration, social rights and social security, After Brexit: Consequences for the European Union will make fascinating reading for all those currently engaged in the study and practice of Law, Economics, Finance, Political Science, Philosophy, History and International Affairs.

As decisively as the collapse of the Soviet Union signaled a most definite conclusion to that utopian undertaking gone mad, so has NAFTA ended an economic counterpart in Mexico. The United States and Canada are embarking on a grand experiment, incorporating Mexico into their very own economies, creating the largest trading bloc in the world consisting of more than 360 million consumers in an economy that will surpass seven trillion American dollars. For corporate America, an enormous opportunity lies in the integration of the Mexican nation into the economic and social fabric of North America. International business consultant and economist Louis Nevaer explains what these opportunities are and offers sage advice on how U.S. corporations can capitalize on them.

The implementation of NAFTA heralds the final conclusion of the Mexican Revolution, and Mexico is now embarked on a race against time to make up for lost decades. Ernesto Zedillo, who will deliver Mexico to the 21st century, confronts enormous challenges as the authoritarian hegemony that characterizes the political economy of the Mexican nation-state is dismantled. NAFTA constitutes a blueprint for the systematic surrender of the Mexican economy. There is, however, no blueprint for the transformation of Mexico into a democracy. Herein lies the greatest risks to corporate America, for there is always the danger of self-destruction, as witnessed in some of the republics of the former Soviet Union. The discussion presented in this book examines the present realities of the Mexican nation in the age of free trade. In Part I opportunities and risks for corporate America are analyzed, not only within an economic context, but also within a cultural and historical one, as well. Presented in Part II are the processes that have shaped Mexico over the centuries--Spanish rule, Native American civilizations, the trauma of conquest--which have given rise to the Mexican persona and character. With this understanding as background, the American reader gains a strategic advantage in understanding how the Mexican psyche works and which buttons to push. Finally, Part III presents a practical approach to conducting business in Mexico, which ranges from the legal requirements of opening a subsidiary, to a warning about the prevalence of corruption in Mexican society, as well as the existence of racism in Mexican culture.

This book argues that the trade-distorting effects of advantages associated with SOEs are more severe from an economic perspective, and the behavior of SOEs after receiving advantages is of more concern, compared to private-owned enterprises (POEs). The premise is that the existence of SOEs per se is not the essential problem; rather, the underlying problems are (i) the disproportionate granting of advantages to SOEs (compared to POEs) and (ii) the behavior of SOEs once they receive advantages. The book offers a systematic analysis focusing on the various advantages granted to SOEs and their subsequent behavior. Its detailed analysis reveals the inadequacy of current WTO rules and is complemented by a number of concrete proposals.

Trade, Circulation, and Flow in the Indian Ocean World is a collection which covers a long time span and diverse areas around the ocean. Many of the essays look at the Indian Ocean before Europeans arrived, reminding the reader that there was a cohesive Indian Ocean. This collection includes empirical studies and essays focused on particular area or production. The essays cover various aspects of trade and exchange, the Indian Ocean as a world-system, East African and Chinese connections with the Indian Ocean World, and the movement of people and ideas around the ocean.

This edited collection explores the legal foundations of the single market project in Europe, and examines the legal concepts and constructs which underpin its operation. While an apparently well-trodden area of EU law, such is the rapid evolution of the European Court's case law that confusion persists as to the meaning of core concepts. The approach adopted is a thematic one, with each theme being explored in the context of the different freedoms. The themes covered include discrimination, horizontality, mutual recognition, market access, pre-emption and harmonization, enforcement, mandatory requirements, flexibility, subsidiarity and proportionality. Separate chapters explore the link between competition law and the single market, the rapidly evolving case law on capital, and the external dimension of the single market. Contributors also address the WTO dimension, and its important implications for the single market project in Europe.

Despite its growing significance, the legal scrutiny of RTAs remains an underdeveloped academic field. This book considers how the interplay between multilateral and preferential liberalisation of trade in services increasingly raises concerns, both from the perspective of the beneficiaries of such liberalisation and that of regulators. With the application of a thorough article-by-article analysis, the author shows how these concerns lead to vast underutilisation of, and often prejudice against, the benefits of services liberalisation. The book meticulously analyses and compares the EU's obligations under the GATS and the services chapters of several RTAs to finally assess the merits of the various concerns. This book will be an invaluable resource for students and scholars of law and related subjects. It will also be of interest to government officials looking for a detailed analysis of the topic, and practitioners looking for a framework for analysing RTA provisions.

This work covers trade policy from 1923 to 1995 taking the history of American tariffs from the Prelude to Trade Wars to the present. It begins during the period of high tariffs and discusses the arguments for and against protectionism. Cordell Hull and the Reciprocal Trade Agreements of the 1930s are discussed along with the increase in trade revenue from these agreements. The major changes in trade policy including GATT, the European Community, and many more are discussed in the work. It is part of an on-going debate among economic historians over the supposed movement of the United States toward protectionism since the 1980s.

Cross-border investments and cooperative business ventures are driving the global economy on an unprecedented scale. Business professionals and policy makers must be aware of the potential of trading blocs as a competitive weapon given the rising importance of multinational trade. The coming years promise to be the era of the Trade Pact Wars as Canada's recently announced trade talks with Chile, Germany's push for closer trans-Atlantic ties with the United States, and ASEAN efforts to promote intraregional trade all test the fledgling World Trade Organization in its role as the watchdog of global trade.

Delener examines the rationale for international trading blocs and free trade with a focus on the implications for strategic planning of firms and national industry sectors. He looks at the development and conditions of the major existing regional trading blocs and discusses issues that will impact those who do business within them. NAFTA, the European Union, South American trading blocs, and efforts in Asia and Africa are all examined in detail. Strategic planning, anti-dumping issues, and global standards are also considered. The book provides professionals, researchers, and students with a firm grasp of the issues of central importance to strategic planning in global corporations and multinational trading blocs. Those who fail to grasp the significance of multinational trading blocs will face tough times while those who plan for it will see their nations and businesses thrive and prosper.

Was the 1993 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) designed as a definitive trade agreement, or as a stepping stone? This book reviews NAFTA's performances on trade, investment, intellectual property rights, dispute-settlement, as well as environmental and labor side-agreements within a theoretical construct.

This book critically engages with a long tradition of scholarly work that conceives of the European Union as a peculiar international actor that pursues a value-based, normatively oriented and development-friendly agenda in its relations with international partners. The EU is a pivotal player in international trade relations, holding formidable power in trade but also exercising substantial power through trade. Trade policy therefore represents a strategic field for the EU to shape its image as a healthy economy and a global power. In this field, the EU has declared a twofold ambitious goal, namely that of fostering economic growth in Europe while, at the same time, promoting development and growth abroad, both in developed and developing countries. In other words, the EU aims to increase its competitiveness in world trade while acting as an ethical and normative power. Here, Poletti and Sicurelli explore the tension between these two roles.

This book offers new perspectives through which to observe and interpret mega-events. Using the specific case studies of World's Fairs, Di Vita and Morandi present a report of the Milan Expo 2015 and its trans-scalar legacies. While the event and post-event have been affected by the world crisis, the locations of exhibition areas have greatly expanded, encompassing regional as well as post-metropolitan spaces. The two main aims of comparing Milan to previous expos such as Lisbon 1998, Zaragoza 2008 and Shanghai 2010, were to demonstrate the contribution of the 2015 World's Fair to the urban innovation process and to the debate surrounding a new urban agenda; as well as to examine empirically and theoretically the international discussion regarding the growth of regional and macro-regional scales of contemporary cities in order to offer suggestions for future urban agendas through mega-events. This book will be of great value to students, researchers and policy makers in the area of urban planning and the urban studies more broadly, geography and spatial politics.

This is the most in-depth study of the economic partnership between the European Union and the CARIFORUM countries, a group of fifteen small developing economies in the Caribbean. The CARIFORUM-EU Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) is the first trade agreement of its kind, as it is a new type of WTO-compatible trade agreement between a group of developed countries and a group of developing countries. As a principal negotiator for CARIFORUM, Bernal's qualifications allow him to provide a unique perspective on the increasingly important topic of trade and economic development in the midst of globalization.
"Globalization, Trade, and Economic Development" comprehensively explores the components of the EPA from all angles, explains how the agreement provides opportunities to strengthen and accelerate economic development, and outlines the policies which can allow the CARIFORUM countries to seize these opportunities. Bernal's explanation of the institutional arrangements for the conduct of the negotiations by CARIFORUM is invaluable to governments and regional organizations in developing countries for coordinating groups to advance common and joint positions in international negotiations.

The letter-books of the Royal African Company of England form the most substantial and important source of material on English trade in West Africa in the late seventeenth century. The original texts, covering the period 1681-1699, are being published in full in three or four volumes. This first volume contains the letters for the years 1681-1683.

Trade liberalization policies have changed the assumptions of economic theory because they have changed the core definition of its concepts-imports and exports. When most trade is done in components rather than finished goods, how do we assign nationaility to value added during the production process? Anguelov analyzes foreign direct investment (FDI) as the core tool behind the internationalization of the production function. He tracks the changing nature of incentives in location and diversification of multinational corporations (MNCs), as well as the role governements have in the creation and implementation of trade policies that impact MNC investments.

This innovative book offers help to managers and firms as they deal with cross-cultural issues in their operations. As newly independent nations offer new market opportunities for international firms, cross-cultural issues are presenting new competitive problems. Increasingly, both new and experienced firms are encountering difficulties and often committing costly blunders as they attempt to deal with the cultural issues. In an insightful text that is both theoretical and practical, the author offers an interesting staffing and structural alternative to help firms regain and maintain their competitive edge.

An in-depth look at the cultural environment of the emerging global economy provides insight into the cultural-issue problems facing all businesses. While the problems are crucial for internationally operating business firms, domestically operating firms are also beginning to encounter critical cross-cultural problems. Maddox notes a number of costly blunders made by firms and analyzes the different reasons for these blunders. The critical role of the cultural integration function in organizations in dealing with these problems is explored, along with the inadequacy of continuing or merely increasing past efforts. A new organizational structure response is proposed as an alternative to the old way of dealing with the problem.

The Korea-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (KSFTA) is Korea's first comprehensive FTA involving any ASEAN member country and provides a framework for building a strong strategic and economic partnership between Korea and the ASEAN countries. It is therefore designed to be a building block in the process of community building efforts towards an East Asian Community in the long run as well as towards global free trade. This book analyses and documents the rationale behind the agreement and its impact on the economies of Korea and Singapore, underpinning the growing economic linkages between the two countries that have become stronger since the enforcement of the agreement.

This book investigates the less-explored dimensions of how industries in different Indian subnational spaces or states have responded to the growing phenomenon of internationalization. What factors have influenced firms participating in global business? Have state (both central and provincial) policies acted as catalyst for local firms? Not only does this study delve into these issues; it also painstakingly develops a comprehensive database that remains unique in the absence of reliable official statistics on this subject to date. Efforts have been made to establish a reasonably consistent dataset for the period 1990-2008 derived from the CMIE-PROWESS database. Care has been taken to condense the data and classify it by sector, location, size and ownership. The study delineates export patterns by firm and state and explores factors influencing export decisions according to sector, size and location. A further interesting aspect is the book's critical examination of industrial and trade promotion policies at the state/regional level that might have contributed to or hindered exporting by firms. The states considered for detailed policy discussions are highly diverse and include Gujarat, Odisha and Karnataka. To address the glaring absence of literature on the role of subnational factors in enterprises' export performance, a preliminary state-by-state analysis of the spatial determinants of firms' export activities is also provided.

This book offers an original contribution to the empirical knowledge of the development of Fair Trade that goes beyond the anecdotal accounts to challenge and analyse the trading practices that shaped the Fair Trade model. Fair Trade represented a new approach to global trade, corporate social responsibility and consumer politics.

This contributed volume examines the far-reaching effects of the weakening of OPEC's cohesion and influence in the 1980s, the resulting decline of oil prices, and the accompanying economic reversals. These events resulted in both fortune and misfortune for oil users and producers and dramatically changed energy economics worldwide. Moreover, as revealed in this volume, the decade of the 1980s demonstrated that oil producers and oil importers can prosper in an atmosphere of mutual respect, cooperation, and moderation.

The work examines major oil-related topics such as the experiences of OPEC and non-OPEC oil suppliers in the 1980s, adjustment and response of oil importers to changes in the oil market, the impact of oil price changes on both the developed and developing world, and possible future developments in the global oil market. This volume will be of interest to scholars of energy and international economics, as well as professionals in the area of energy development and markets.

Trade disruption and industrial organization are the subject of this penetrating look at the effects of the new protectionism in international trade. This volume provides five case studies of threats and protection in particular industries as a basis for discussion of the political economy of quota threats. Stockhausen analyzes the effects of quota threats on countries with competition in the export industry, on countries with monopoly in the export industry, and on those with duopoly or oligopoly in the export industry. Consideration is given both to large--and small--country cases under varying cost structures. The effects of relaxing some of the assumptions in the model, especially allowing for consumers and suppliers from third world countries, are also discussed.