"Product standards, regulations, and conformity assessment
procedures are important and necessary, but they also, at times,
threaten the free flow of goods in international markets and the
competitive positions of many exporters, including those in the
United States. The barriers to trade that may result form product
standards and regulations may be inadvertent or deliberate. The
problem cuts across a wide array of industries, from motor vehicles
to computers to televisions to food and beverages. This book, part
of the Brookings Integrating National Economies series, is the
first to blend careful economic and legal analysis of technical
barriers. Alan O. Sykes illustrates how standards and regulations
create trade barriers, explores the extent of the problem, and
considers the possible policy responses. The effects of technical
barriers are hard to measure. They are often hidden in the costs of
modifying a product to meet a standard or regulation, in the costs
of testing and certification procedures, and in the ways that
noncompliance with a standard may affect consumer purchasing
decisions. Sykes identifies why heterogeneity in standards and
regulations may arise across jurisdictions and assesses the
desirability of eliminating it in various settings. Sykes also
presents an extensive and insightful overview of current
international efforts to police technical barriers in the WTO/GATT
system, in the European Union, in the U.S. federal system, and
NAFTA. He shows how least-restrictive means principles and their
corollaries can do much to reduce technical barriers, while
stopping short of impinging on the legitimate exercise of national
sovereignty. Efforts to harmonize internatioal policies and set
common standards and regulations have been under way for decades.
Sykes evaluates the harmonization activities of institutions such
as the International Organization for Standardization, the Codex
Alimentarius, and the European Commission. The final chapter
assesses the adequacy of existing efforts to address technical
barriers, suggesting where further progress might be made, and
discusses the special problems of developing countries. A volume of
Brookings' Integrating National Economies Series "
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
