Free Trade in Medicines and Supplies is the Healthiest Approach
The WTO zero-for-zero tariff agreement on trade in health-related products needs to be expanded. Free trade will help promote recovery after COVID-19.
Erasing the Global Gains from the WTO Government Procurement Agreement?
The WTO Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) covers $1.7 trillion in global government procurement trade across 48 countries, including the United States. But the Trump Administration may pull out of the GPA to support “Buy American” – a move that will come with unintended consequences for U.S. businesses.
Is It Just a Phase? Redesigning Trade Deals in the Age of Trump
The U.S. and China signed a trade deal on Jan 15. Attempting to rewire China’s economic system cannot be achieved in one pass – an agreement this ambitious would have to be built in phases. What does that mean for the future of trade deals?
Laboring for Trade
Labor provisions are an increasingly important feature in trade agreements. But do they work? Despite the attention paid to labor provisions in trade deals like USMCA, domestic policy, not trade agreements, might be the most direct – and most effective – way to improve workers’ lot, especially in advanced countries like the United States.
Comparative Advantage Revealed: What the U.S. Could Gain from an FTA with Brazil
President Trump and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro announced their desire to “build a new partnership” after meeting in August, potentially through a bilateral free trade agreement. Beyond any political merits or challenges, the potential commercial benefits of a U.S.-Brazil FTA can be shown through textbook economics.
Japan Mini-Deal A Victory for U.S. Agriculture?
Many American farmers and ranchers breathed a sigh of relief when the United States and Japan formally signed a U.S.-Japan Trade Agreement in September. However, U.S. agricultural producers are not completely out of the woods.
Life After Brexit for the EU and UK
In 2016 the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union (EU). The three years of negotiation that ensued have thus far been about the terms of a “withdrawal agreement” which provides for a transition trade agreement. The longer-term trade arrangements between the EU and the UK are still up for negotiation.
Should Women Have Their Own Provisions in Free Trade Agreements?
As rallying calls of “Trade for All” and economic inclusion reverberate throughout national trade agendas, international forums, and across trade negotiation tables, here’s a closer look at trade and gender issues, how trade agreements of the past have addressed them, and how a new generation of trade and gender chapters aim to change the narrative.
APEC: Trade Accelerator in the Asia-Pacific & Beyond
The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is an incubator of trade policy ideas and a pragmatic driver of initiatives in emerging areas of trade that matter not only to the Asia-Pacific region, but also globally. Digital trade is one case study that shows how APEC serves as a building block in the iterative process of co-creating norms for trade.
Child Labor Still a Scourge in Commonly Traded Goods
An estimated 152 million children in the world today are in child labor. Provisions on labor issues have proliferated in trade agreements since NAFTA was implemented. But child labor is a complex problem requiring complex and situational solutions. Only concerted action in local communities and throughout global supply chains will make widespread and demonstrable improvements to lives of the millions of children who are mainly not included in the scope of a trade agreement.