bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Financing Development in Africa: Trends, Issues, and Challenges in the Context of the Aid for Trade Initiative
Authors: Osakwe Patrick N. , Hammouda Hakim Ben
Published: April 2022

In the context of the Aid for Trade initiative, the mobilization of domestic and external finance is critical to the success in obtaining resources to finance the investment needed to meet the laudable objectives in the Millennium Declaration. This article presents the new trends in financing development in Africa and aims to discuss the challenges facing the continent in this area. The challenges arising from the increase of resources are important but not insurmountable. The countries need to allocate these resources to the productive sectors in order to improve their competitiveness and better integrate the international economy.
Anti-dumping Negotiations under the WTO and FANs
Authors: Kazeki Jun
Published: April 2022

This article provides an overview of the history of the anti-dumping negotiations under the Doha Development Agenda (DDA) from the broader perspective of the multilateral negotiations under the World Trade Organization (WTO). It also provides an analysis of the evolution of an informal group of fifteen WTO Members, the so-called ‘Friends of Anti-Dumping Negotiations’ (FANs). The article thereby emphasizes the importance of the rule-making function of the WTO by demonstrating the dynamism of the long history of the negotiations as it coincides with the changes in the economic situation, the development of dispute settlement jurisprudence, and the proliferation of regional trade agreements.
Job Losses and Perceptions of Globalization
Authors: Hoffman Michael E.S.
Published: April 2022

The focus of much recent economic anxiety has been on the relationship between job losses and a limited number of hot-button issues, in particular (offshore) outsourcing and immigration. I use the variation over time (from a consistent Gallup poll administered from 1992 to 2009) and in the cross section (from the German Marshall Fund’s 2007 survey ‘Perspectives on Trade and Poverty Reduction’) to explore potential causes of recent aversion to globalization. I demonstrate that up until recently views on foreign trade were highly correlated with the national unemployment rate. Views on free trade are also strongly related to opinions of how the economy is doing. I further assess predictors of opinions on outsourcing and immigration, as they relate to the causes of job losses. Education, occupation, work experience, and political party are important predictors of views on the economy, free trade, and job losses. In contrast to prior research, more education predicts greater support for trade intervention in the form of limits on outsourcing, which may explain recent fluctuations in aggregate public opinion.
New Indicators of How Much Agricultural Policies Restrict Global Trade
Authors: Anderson Kym , Croser Johanna
Published: April 2022

Despite recent reforms, world agricultural markets remain highly distorted by government policies. Traditional indicators of agricultural and food price distortions such as producer and consumer support estimates (PSEs and CSEs) can be poor guides to the policies’ trade effects. Two recent studies provide much better indicators of trade (and welfare)-reducing effects of farm price and trade policies, but they provide somewhat differing numbers. This article explains why those estimates differ and how they might be improved for use in ongoing annual monitoring of the trade restrictiveness of agricultural policies in both high-income and developing countries.
The MERCOSUR Trade and Environment Linkage Debate: The Disputes over Trade in Retreaded Tires
Authors: Morosini Fabio
Published: April 2022

Brazil is currently immersed in the project of building a new common market, known as MERCOSUR, with its neighbours Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay. That project is largely based on the assumption that increased regional trade and harmonization of environmental standards will be beneficial for the environment. However, these assumptions have been challenged after recent Brazilian efforts to regulate the environmental and health risks associated with retreaded tire imports. Despite the protests of environmentalists, MERCOSUR tribunals have now issued two separate decisions finding that the Brazilian measures violate international trade rules. This article examines the MERCOSUR framework on the relationship between trade liberalization and environmental protection and examines how this framework was applied by MERCOSUR tribunals with respect to the two disputes concerning trade in retreaded tires.
The ‘Culture and Trade Debate’ Continues: The UNESCO Convention in Light of the WTO Reports in China – Publications and Audiovisual Products: Between Amnesia or Déjá Vu?
Authors: Neuwirth Rostam J.
Published: April 2022

This article looks at the present state of the ‘culture and trade debate’ by tracing the developments that have taken place since the adoption and entry into force of the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions on 18 March 2007. It examines whether actual progress has been made in the regulatory field addressing the issues of trade liberalization, on the one hand, and cultural diversity, on the other. Against a strong sentiment of a déjá vu, the evaluation is based on scholarly writings on the expected legal impact of the Convention as well as novel regulatory problems in the field of the cultural industries. It also briefly looks at the work of the bodies established under the UNESCO Convention and, last but not least, reviews it in light of the recent Appellate Body Report in China – Measures Affecting Trading Rights and Distribution Services for Certain Publications and Audiovisual Entertainment Products.
The GATS Notion of Public Services as an Instance of Intergovernmental Agnosticism: Comparative Insights from EU Supranational Dialectic
Authors: Arena Amedeo
Published: April 2022

Against the background of the debate about the impact of World Trade Organization (WTO) law on the provision of public services at the national level, this article seeks to establish whether a notion of public services has emerged under the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). After outlining the role of that concept in the context of economic integration agreements in general, this article surveys GATS exemptions and regulatory provisions and argues that the GATS has, in fact, failed to develop an autonomous notion of public services. Such an 'agnostic' approach is contrasted with the 'dialectic' characterizing the European Union (EU), which, in constant dialogue with its Member States, has developed a sophisticated theoretical and regulatory framework for 'Services of General Interest (SGI)'. It is concluded that the institutional features that differentiate WTO intergovernmentalism from EU supranationalism largely account for such a conceptual cleavage.
Reconciling RTAs with the WTO Multilateral Trading System: Case for a New Sunset Requirement on RTAs and Development Facilitation
Authors: Lee Yong-Shik
Published: April 2022

The proliferation of regional trade agreements (RTAs) in the recent decades threatens the future of the multilateral trading system (MTS) because the exclusive trade preferences of RTAs, although approved under the provisions of Article XXIV General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), are fundamentally inconsistent with a core principle of the MTS, the most favoured nation (MFN) principle, and causes discriminatory trade practices and fragmentations of trade disciplines. This paper argues that an ultimate solution will be reconciling the terms of RTAs with the core principle of the MTS by requiring extension of exclusive RTA preferences to the entire World Trade Organization (WTO) membership on an MFN basis after a certain period of time. The article also attempts to demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed solution with an application of the game theory. The article also analyses the impact of the proposed extension on the WTO system and discusses special and differential treatment (SDT) in favour of developing countries, particularly least developed countries (LDCs), in the context of the proposed solution.
Chinas New-Found Love: The GMS
Authors: Banik Nilanjan
Published: April 2022

The objective of this article is to understand why the Chinese firms are investing outside China and how China stands to gain from this decision. For our analysis, we consider the case of China's trade and investment relation in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS). We find that a reason for the Chinese firms to invest in the GMS has to do with higher domestic input cost as well as to evade protectionist measures in the United States and the European Union (EU). As to how China stands to gain, it is largely explained through elements of complementarities in trading and investment relationship.
The Interpretation of the GATS Footnotes: Between a Rock (Form) and a Hard Place (Substance)
Authors: Munin Nellie
Published: April 2022

This article looks at the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) footnotes as a separate sequence, in terms of both form and substance. In terms of form, the current interpretative approach towards these footnotes, which overlooks their separation from the relevant GATS Articles, is questioned. In terms of substance, interpretative patterns that may be anticipated to appear in future GATS cases are illustrated, based on the analysis of current jurisprudence.
More Efficient Policies to Combat Trade Distortions: How Quality Management Programmes Can Help Rationalize the Use of Trade Defence Instruments
Authors: Depypere Stefaan
Published: April 2022

The existence and the use of Trade  Defence Instruments (TDIs) are controversial. In the present article, we will argue that the present set of rules has advantages and deficiencies. We will argue that a better set of rules can be worked out for an ideal world but that we are not ready for an ideal world. In the meantime, we need to work with the rules as they exist.

Even for the implementation of the existing rules, we can think of a radically different manner to proceed, for instance, by organizing the policy implementation at central level, in the WTO. Here again, we may be in dreamland for the years to come.

When we then move to the real world, we will argue that the way forward lies in increasing the quality of the work by all the authorities that implement TDI and by increasing the communication and cooperation between those authorities. This may lead to reducing trade friction caused by cases.

We will describe a major effort undertaken by the European Union to implement a quality management programme and we will discuss the possibilities for the authorities of EU's trading partners to cooperate in this effort and to benefit from it.
Unravelling Harmony: How Distorted Trade Imperils the Sino-European Partnership
Authors: Holslag Jonathan
Published: April 2022

One of the main drivers of Sino-European cooperation has been the prospect of a mutually beneficial division of labour. In the best classic liberalist tradition, it was the Chinese government that nurtured a sense of economic harmony. This paper shows that a mutually beneficial partnership has not emerged. Departing from a detailed six-digit commodity export dataset, it demonstrates that the division of labour has blurred. Furthermore, Europe's growing deficits on the current account balance were not offset by inflows on the financial account. All these are symptomatic for the twin distortions that have developed in China and Europe, twin distortions that now require difficult twin adjustments. However, while both sides preach the need for rebalancing, they tend to persist in unsustainable policies, which will still most likely lead to panic and protectionism. In that regard, the Sino-European relations reveal compellingly that politically induced imbalances cause havoc in international trade relations, even if there were no initial intentions to harm other countries' economic interests, and that the optimist narratives of harmony of economic interests cannot be trusted, as long as they are not matched by free markets.
Protectionism and Multilateral Accountability during the Great Recession: Drawing Inferences from Dogs Not Barking
Authors: Wolfe Robert
Published: April 2022

Economic stress is often thought to be a source of protectionism, which motivated Leaders of the new G-20 to promise repeatedly that they would refrain from trade restrictions in response to the global financial crisis that became apparent in 2008.They also promised to hold themselves accountable for this commitment using a novel transparency mechanism based in the World Trade Organization. At the same time a civil society organization, the Global Trade Alert, set itself up as an alternative accountability mechanism. The WTO and the GTA reached different conclusions both about how loudly the protectionist dog barked, and about whether G-20 governments kept their promises. I conclude from a detailed comparison of GTA and WTO data and interpretations using the notion of an 'accountability regime' that the protectionist dog did not bark, allowing inferences to be drawn from this curious incident about how transparency can help to close the gap between commitment and action, thereby contributing to accountable global governance.
Financial Innovation and Prudential Regulation: The New Basel III Rules
Authors: Delimatsis Panagiotis
Published: April 2022

With the benefit of hindsight, financial markets and institutions proved to be much more fragile to shocks than regulators and supervisors expected. Financial innovation was accused of having played a decisive role in the recent financial turmoil. In the wake of the crisis and after the adoption of generous rescue packages and liquidity facilities by several governments, a coordinated effort is being made to revise prudential standards, both at the micro- and the macro-prudential level. In these efforts, governments appear to follow the rules promulgated within the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS). After an examination of the interaction between prudential regulation and financial innovation, the paper critically reviews the new prudential standards adopted within the BCBS known as 'Basel III', in particular those relating to regulatory capital and liquidity. One of the essential lessons of the crisis is that such requirements can no longer be limited to banks, in view of the contribution of the shadow banking system to the crisis. Furthermore, relevant national initiatives in the EU and the US are discussed and potential conflicts with the Basel III framework are pinpointed. In addition, the relevance of the prudential carve-out within the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) is examined. As rule creation outside the GATS grows, rule outsourcing in the area of financial services becomes well-established, thereby increasingly pointing to the limited role of the GATS in this area.
Analysis of Chinas Accession Commitments in the WTO: New Taxonomy of More and Less Stringent Commitments, and the Struggle for Mitigation by China
Authors: Yamaoka Tokio
Published: April 2022

This article presents the analysis on taxonomy of various commitments agreed upon in the course of China's accession to the WTO from a new perspective; not only more stringent obligations to China but also less stringent obligations both to China and Members, and to analyse to what extent the commitments deviate from the WTO Agreement. The article sheds light on the struggle by China, especially focusing on the negotiations after the bilateral agreement with the US in 1999, not to accept what was demanded, but rather to reject, amend or make counterproposals to mitigate the obligations departing from the WTO Agreement. Finally, various commitments by China and incumbent Members have been weighed in order to give an overall picture of the WTO accession of China.
Mysteries of the TBT Agreement Resolved? Lessons to Learn for Climate Policies and Developing Country Exporters from Recent TBT Disputes
Authors: Norpoth Johannes
Published: April 2022

In 2012, the Appellate Body delivered its reports on three disputes dealing with yet unresolved issues of the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade, such as its applicability to non-product related processes and production methods and the interpretation of its non-discrimination clause and its so-called necessity requirement. The reports in US - Clove Cigarettes, US - Tuna II and US - COOL inform future policies pursued to achieve non-trade objectives. On a broader picture, they contribute to the debate on preserving policy space for non-trade concerns. The paper outlines conclusions to be drawn from these reports for climate policy-makers and their consequences to exporting interests of developing countries. Particular focus is put on the interpretation given to the non-discrimination clause.
Trade in Air Transport: Have We Lost Our Way?
Authors: Abeyratne Ruwantissa
Published: April 2022

Generally, with the exception of air transport within Europe, flag carriers are effectively protected by a regulatory process driven by a network of bilateral agreements based on reciprocity of operations. This practice, sustained throughout the past sixty-eight years by the Member States of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), justifies a provision in the Convention on International Civil Aviation that scheduled air transport services are prohibited unless permitted by the grantor State, and has upended the meaning and purpose of aviation. In many countries, this practice precludes a more rational assessment of air services, one which should transcend narrow sectoral interests of an air carrier and provides the optimum overall benefits from tourism, trade and investment for the economy, protection of consumer interests and enhancement of competition.
The EUs New FTA Adventures and Their Implications for China
Authors: Xiaoyan Yang , Ping Zhang
Published: April 2022

With the EU having an adventure in FTA negotiations after the serious setback from the Doha Round trade negotiations, China becomes increasingly concerned about the potential trade diversion effects and the possible G2 domination by the EU and the US in terms of rule-making power in world trade. This article offers both a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the potential impact on China from the EU's two major FTA negotiations - one with the US and the other with Japan. Chinese intellectuals who are paying attention to these two FTAs, however, have very mixed opinions, which can be characterized as positive, negative or what can be termed as 'marginal impact'. On the basis of the analysis of the mixed opinions, the authors make further predictions about the possible responses of the Chinese government towards new FTA strategy of the EU, and suggest that the EU's FTAs need to exhibit sign of greater amicability and accepting of differing opinions and most importantly, they should form building blocks, instead of stumbling blocks, for the multilateral trading system.
Technical Regulations to Prevent Deceptive Practices: Can WTO Members Protect Consumers from [un] Fair-Trade Coffee and [Less-Than] Free-Range Chicken?
Authors: Lowe Erik R.
Published: April 2022

International trade law is built around the cornerstone obligation of maintaining equal competitive opportunities for imported products. WTO dispute settlement has defined the lines for this obligation as it regards discrimination through 'tangible' product attributes. Yet as consumer preferences expand to include 'intangible' product attributes, such as 'free-range' chicken, 'sustainably' produced furniture, 'fair trade' coffee or even 'dolphin safe' tuna, the stage is set for a renewed debate over how far a WTO Member can regulate in pursuit of domestic policy goals.

This article examines recent WTO jurisprudence on the use of technical regulations, and attempts to construct a generally applicable doctrine governing the prevention of deceptive practices through regulating intangible product claims. Using traditional methods of treaty interpretation, in light of economic efficiency and comparative legal analysis, it also identifies potential inconsistencies in the application of the TBT Agreement. Finally, this article offers considerations for future WTO tribunals when deciding how to more effectively balance the right to regulate intangible product attributes for the prevention of deceptive practices with the obligations and goals expressed by the TBT Agreement.
Finding Non-notified Trade Agreements to the WTO: Preliminary Investigation in Asia-Pacific
Authors: Hamanaka Shintaro
Published: April 2022

'Cast light and evil will go away.' This is the basic idea of the transparency exercise of regional trade agreements (RTAs) at the World Trade Organization (WTO). Information sharing on RTAs is critically important because monitoring is impossible without it. In order for us to see not only good but also evil RTAs, a light called 'notification requirement' should reach them. In reality, however, it is too optimistic to assume that the light reaches all RTAs. There seem to be many ghosts living in the dark; no information on ghosts can be shared and none can confirm if they are really ghosts. This paper attempts to reveal those RTAs upon which the light of the transparency exercise has not reached. While many studies have pointed out that there are many non-notified RTAs as a reservation in conducting analysis of RTAs, this is the first scholarly attempt to identify the comprehensive picture of non-notified RTAs, with an emphasis on the Asia-Pacific. Because information on all RTAs notified to the WTO is included in the WTO RTA Database, gathering information on non-notified trade agreements is the key to understanding the universe of trade agreements.
Regulating New Services through Litigation? Electronic Commerce as a Case Study on the Evaluation of Judicial Activism in the WTO
Authors: Peng Shin-yi
Published: April 2022

This article engages in the exercise of developing criteria with which to measure the panel and Appellate Body reports of the WTO for the extent of their judicial activism. Pursuant to Article 3.2, judicial activism at the World Trade Organization (WTO) should be identified not only by behavioural patterns but also by the results the DSB produced. The development of the electronic commerce provides an interesting case study on WTO's judicial decision-making. Should DSB be permitted to 'modernize' agreements to cope with the 'new' services? After methodologically analysing all e-commerce cases under the WTO, this article concludes that activism was extreme in US-Gambling because the panel and Appellate Body invented limitations on the sovereign rights of members to regulate, which has no foundation in the treaty text and no general basis in international law. Different from the 'activist ruling' in US-Gambling, the Appellate Body in China-Audiovisual Services has demonstrated some activism in its interpretation of the 'object and purpose' of the GATS. Similarly, the panel of China-Payment Card has shown certain activism in its interpretation of provisions on the objective of progressive liberalization contained in the Preamble to the GATS.
Regionalism versus Multilateralism: The Case of the European Union Trade Policy
Authors: Salvatici Luca , Antimiani Alessandro
Published: April 2022

In this article, we use a Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model to assess the effects of possible agreements between the European Union (EU) and different partners, namely India, Mercado Común del Sur (MERCOSUR), and the United States of America (USA).We evaluate the impact of the Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) by themselves, assess their mutual compatibility, and compare them with a scenario including all bilateral agreements as well as a benchmark global free trade scenario.

In 2006, the EU decided to abandon its moratorium on negotiating new FTAs. Since then, numerous negotiations have been started. In particular, the EU joined the scramble for preferential market access by launching bilateral negotiations with both individual countries and regional sub-groupings. The discriminatory character of these agreements is controversial in economics, not simply because of the classic 'Vinerian' view that they can divert rather than create trade, but also because of the unresolved disagreements on when a regional trade agreement is likely to precede, rather than preclude, more global agreements. In this article, we use a CGE model to assess the effects of possible agreements between the EU and different partners, namely India, Mercado Común del Sur (MERCOSUR), and the USA. We evaluate the impact of the FTAs by themselves, assess their mutual compatibility, and compare them with a scenario including all bilateral agreements as well as a benchmark global free trade scenario. This allows us to provide a quantitative comparison of the most important arguments asserting that bilateral agreements advance or hinder multilateral trade relations.
Contemporary Problems with the GATS and Internet Gambling
Authors: Holder Ruth , Turksen Umut
Published: April 2022

This article focuses on the issue of enforcement of the WTO rules on international cross-border trade in services. It is argued that the examination of the GATS jurisprudence and state practice reveal that the GATS does not address the needs of the developing countries in general and the prospects of internet gambling services in the Caribbean Community in particular. First, the article discusses the extent of service-producing activities within the GATS provisions and outlines the main principles of WTO. It stresses that 'services' include gambling and games provided online. It also asserts that cross-border trade in services via Information and Communication Technologies presents several challenges for policy makers including enforcement, control and accountability. Second, the article critically analyses the United States (US) domestic legal instruments, which led to the complaint by Antigua and Barbuda. Subsequently, the focus is shifted to the critique of the judgments by WTO dispute settlement bodies. Third, the article evaluates the effectiveness of the DSU from a legal redress and compliance point of view, particularly in instances where weaker economies as complainants challenge leading economies of the world.
Ex Ore Tuo Te Iudico: The Value of the WTO Ministerial Decision on Preferential RoO for LDCs
Authors: Inama Stefano
Published: April 2022

This article discusses one of the outcome of the Bali package for the Least Developed Countries (LDCs), namely the Decision on preferential rules of origin (RoO) for LDCs, the prior proposals and discussions as well as its aftermath and prospects. Preferential RoO are a no man’s land in the multilateral trading system that has so far failed to regulate this important customs law, differently from customs valuation and customs classification. This is one reason why the ink of the Decision on preferential RoO for LDCs (The Decision) was not even dry when practitioners and commentators started to wonder about the value of the Decision. Most observers looked at the ‘big picture’ and rapidly relegated the value of the Decision to the realm of the ‘best endeavours scenario’. This is certainly true since the legal nature of the Decision and its wording do not provide clear guidelines or obligations. However, the real value of the Decision has to be contrasted with the existing background of multilateral disciplines and practices on preferential RoO. This paper argues that when measured against such background, the true value of the Decision may be reviewed under a new light, especially taking into account the possible work that could be carried out in the context of the Decision. In fact, the Decision contains a number of novelties and guidelines on drafting RoO. This holds especially true when the content of the Decision is contrasted with the annexes dealing with RoO contained in Kyoto Conventions of 1974 and 1999, and the ‘Common Declaration with regard to preferential rules of origin’ of the WTO Agreement on Rules of Origin (ARO).The Decision contains a number of interesting recommendations, albeit with a series of limitations, and sets preferential RoO for LDCs as an agenda item of the Committee on Rules of Origin (CRO). Much of the Decision’s value will thus depend on the will and the ability of WTO members, especially of the preference giving countries and LDCs, to build up a meaningful way forward in the context of the CRO to make further progress on suitable RoO for LDC that could benefit the multilateral trading system as a whole in the field of preferential RoO.
Black Cat, White Cat: The Identity of the WTO Judges
Authors: Mavroidis Petros C. , Johannesson Louise
Published: April 2022

World Trade Organization (WTO) judges are proposed by the WTO Secretariat and elected to act as ‘judges’ if either approved by the parties to a dispute, or, by the WTO Director-General in case no agreement between the parties has been possible. They are typically ‘Geneva crowd’, that is, they are either current or former delegates representing their country before the WTO. This observation holds for both first as well as second instance WTO judges (e.g., Panellists and members of the Appellate Body). In that, the WTO evidences an attitude strikingly similar to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). Whereas the legal regime has been heavily ‘legalized’, the people called to enforce it remain the same.
International Trade Law Challenges by Subsidies for Renewable Energy
Authors: Koch Rika , Weber Rolf H.
Published: April 2022

Although it is widely acknowledged that the replacement of conventional ‘grey’ energy with renewable ‘green’ energy is an important pillar of climate change mitigation, the question of how governments can support this development remains highly contested. In Canada – Renewable Energy, a domestic support measure for renewable energy generation has been subject of dispute settlement proceedings before the World Trade Organization (WTO) for the first time. In this ruling, the concept of ‘relevant market’ which forms part of the subsidy analysis proved to be highly controversial. By looking at the delineation of the relevant market and the conditions justifying subsidies, this article takes up this debate and examines the degree of policy space that is conferred to WTO Members in supporting their renewable energy sector. It discusses possible solutions to overcome the legal insecurity emanating from the blurry concept of ‘relevant market’ by arguing that a comparison between the WTO law and antitrust law can yield valuable insights to establish a more consistent approach for assessing the relevant market.
For Whom the Bell Tolls: The EU ETS in Aviation under the TBT Agreement
Authors: Sánchez-Tabernero Soledad R.
Published: April 2022

This article outlines the non-product-related process and production method (NPR-PPM) controversy, focusing on the current interpretation by the WTO Appellate Body and panels as background for an analysis of the EU ETS in aviation. In order to assess the possible application of the TBT Agreement to the EU ETS in aviation, the measures laid down in Directive 2008/101/EC, as well as in the recently adopted amending Regulation, are qualified as measures affecting trade in goods.

Such a finding leads us to consider whether they fall under the definition of ‘technical regulation’ laid down in Annex 1.1 of the TBT Agreement. To that effect, the three-tier test in EC-Asbestos and EC-Sardines is applied in light of the recent findings in EU-Seals. Finally, practical implications can be drawn in both senses. Should it be deemed inapplicable, GATT would continue to apply. Should it be considered to come within the scope of the TBT Agreement by virtue of Annex 1.1, an assessment of compatibility with Articles 2.1 and 2.2 of the TBT Agreement would be required.
The Economic Sanctions over the Ukraine Conflict and the WTO: Catch-XXI and the Revival of the Debate on Security Exceptions
Authors: Neuwirth Rostam J. , Svetlicinii Alexandr
Published: April 2022

The international conflict over the events in Ukraine led to the application of unilateral restrictive measures by the parties involved – the European Union, the United States and the Russian Federation – all of which are World Trade Organization (WTO) members and permanent members of the UN Security Council. It has been alleged by all sides that specified restrictions on trade in goods and services may constitute a violation of WTO obligations. The possibility of a challenge of the restrictive measures using the WTO dispute settlement mechanism revived the debate on the invocation of security exceptions allowing WTO members to apply otherwise inconsistent measures justified by their ‘essential security interests’. The present article aims at providing a critical analysis of the restrictive measures adopted by the parties and the perspectives for invoking the security exception in case of eventual WTO dispute settlement. The article highlights the ambiguity in the interpretation of the security exceptions and questions the suitability of the WTO dispute settlement mechanism for the resolution of the current Ukraine crisis.
Positioning on the Global Value Chain Map: Where Do You Want to Be?
Authors: van der Marel Erik
Published: April 2022

This article aims to understand which policy disciplines are associated with the positioning of countries in the Global Value Chain (GVC). In today’s world production and trade takes place among multiple stages of a supply chain stretching many country participants around the world. This induces countries to specialize in a so-called ‘slice’ of the GVC which can be at the beginning (upstream), middle or end (downstream) of the chain. Yet, it is unclear how countries and industries specialize along these slices, and what type of policies are determining where countries and industries are placed on the GVC map. Hence, this paper first makes an attempt to examine where countries along the various GVC dimensions are positioned regarding production and trade based on recently developed measures. In a second step, it investigates what type of policies are significantly linked to the GVC position of these countries by including a battery of various policy disciplines in the analysis. This paper finds that depending on where countries specialize, many domestic economic policy barriers are correlated with a country’s position on the GVC map. It therefore states that trade nowadays is interconnected with many other policy fields beyond traditional trade disciplines. Finally, the findings of this paper are applied to specific industries by developing three case studies.
The Economic Impacts of Regulatory Delays on Trade and Innovation
Authors: Kruse John , Kalaitzandonakes Nicholas , Zahringer Kenneth A.
Published: April 2022

A nation’s regulatory apparatus and decisions can have effects that reach far beyond its borders. We examine how regulatory decisions and their timing, as transmitted through trade relationships, can affect innovation. By changing the temporal path of biotechnology innovations and their adoption, regulatory asynchronies can have profound effects on social welfare. We use a global partial equilibrium model of world agricultural markets to examine the trade and welfare effects of delayed adoption of new biotech crop varieties due to the timing of regulatory decisions. We find that a three-year delay in the adoption of new biotech crop varieties significantly decreases overall welfare in agricultural markets and also results in a substantial redistribution of economic surplus from consumers to producers. We additionally find that consumers in major importing countries, where the regulatory decisions in question characteristically originate, pay a particularly high price in terms of foregone benefits.
An International Regulatory Framework for National Employment Policies
Authors: Häberli Christian
Published: April 2022

Employment-related policies are sensitive by any standard, and they remain basically national despite international labour standards (ILS) being even older than the United Nations. Globalization is changing this situation where countries may have to choose between ‘more’ or ‘better’ jobs. The multilateral framework of the World Trade Organization (WTO) can only have an indirect impact. But Regional Trade Agreements (RTA) and International Investment Agreements (IIA) are emerging as a new way of gradually enhancing the impact of certain labour standards. In addition, unilateral measures both by governments and importers driven by social and environmental consumer preferences and pressure groups increasingly shape the international regulatory framework for national employment policies. Even small, locally operating enterprises risk marginalization and market exclusion by ignoring these developments. The long-term influence of this new ‘network approach’ on employment-related policies, including job location, gender issues, social coherence and migration remains to be seen. Nonetheless, the still flimsy evidence gathered here seems to indicate that this new, international framework might increase sustainable employment where and when supporting measures, including through unilateral preferences and even sanctions, form a ‘cocktail’ which export-oriented industries and their suppliers will find palatable.
International Institutions and Interest Mobilization: The WTO and Lobbying in EU and US Trade Policy
Authors: Beyers Jan , De Bièvre Dirk , Poletti Arlo , Hanegraaff Marcel
Published: April 2022

What affects lobbying patterns in trade policymaking? Existing explanations focus mainly on economic determinants, like the rise of intra-industry trade. We argue that the international trade institutions of the World Trade Organization (WTO) themselves are also key for understanding which type of interest mobilization is likely to arise. We contend that the institutional setting of issue-linkage based trade negotiations creates incentives for firms to work through broad sector-wide lobbying organizations, while judicial adjudication and enforcement in WTO dispute settlement stimulates de-linkage, leading to product-specific interest mobilization. We illustrate how these two arguments can explain the coexistence of both sector-wide and product-specific lobbying in the contemporary international trade regime. We provide evidence on interest mobilization for United States (US) and European Union (EU) initiated WTO disputes, and on EU and US domestic interest organizations that mobilize during multilateral trade rounds or are present at WTO ministerial conferences.
Russia and Energy Issues under the WTO System
Authors: Shadikhodjaev Sherzod
Published: April 2022

Russia spent almost two decades to complete the process of its entry into the World Trade Organization. In addition to commitments on market opening and numerous other ‘general’ trade issues, it assumed specific obligations on the energy sector with respect to export duties, State-owned enterprises, transit of goods, pricing policy, and services. This is not surprising as Russia is one of the largest resource-holding countries in the world, and its economy is highly dependent on the fuel and energy complex. As of 1 October 2015, Russia participated in four disputes as a complainant and five disputes as a respondent. All complaining cases deal with certain energy-related issues, namely an anti-dumping methodology of cost adjustment and the European Union's energy market reforms. It is expected that, with the Russian accession, energy regulation will play a greater role in the multilateral trading system.
Mapping the Aftermath of Accession: Which Is Chinas Applicable World Trade Organization Anti-Subsidy Law for the Use of Alternative Benchmarks?
Authors: Mueller Sophia
Published: April 2022

The integration of the Protocol of Accession of China into the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement and its annexes is subject to great debate. The area of anti-subsidy law is, however, largely exempt from scientific discussion. With respect to the use of alternative benchmark methodologies in the process of calculating the amount of subsidy, the relationship between general and China-specific legislation – Article 14 ASCM and Section 15 (b) CAP – is deemed satisfactorily provided for in China’s Accession Protocol. But recent WTO Appellate Body jurisprudence allowing alternative benchmarking in general WTO anti-subsidy law has upset this relationship enormously – and then abandoned it. The expected surge of countervailing duties prompted by the 2016 expiry of alternative methodologies in Chinese WTO antidumping law will rather sooner than later confront WTO judiciary with the question: which is China’s applicable anti-subsidy law on price comparability of today?

This article contributes to answering this question by bringing together Section 15 (b) CAP and Article 14 ASCM and tracing the applicable legal framework. Comparing both provisions in their present shapes also touches upon another issue: is the reluctance to invoke Section 15 (b) CAP still justified?
Aid for Trade and the Trade Facilitation Agreement: What They Can Do for LDCs
Authors: de Melo Jaime , Wagner Laurent
Published: April 2022

The Aid for Trade (AFT) initiative, launched in 2005 to help developing and especially the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) integrate the rules of the World Trade System adopted in the Uruguay Round turned out to be more about mobilizing support for the stalled Doha Round negotiations. A decade later, a broadened AFT agenda has eluded effective evaluation. The recently concluded Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) provides an ideal opportunity to narrow the scope of AFT activities to heed the call for ‘Managing for Development Results’ (MfDR). The article reviews the evidence on trade costs distinguishing between LDCs and Landlocked LDCS (LLDCs). The article also includes new estimates of time in transit for international parcel data that is measured relatively accurately. New estimates provide support for allocating a greater share of AFT funds towards LDCs and particularly towards LLDCs, both groups showing higher trade costs than comparators and less progress in reducing trade costs since 1995. On average, time in customs for imports and exports are also significantly higher for both groups than for their respective comparators. LDCs and LLDCs have systematically lower scores for the components in the new Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Trade Facilitation Indicator (TFI). These new estimates suggest that a successful implementation of the TFA, defined as moving halfway towards the frontier value of the TFI for the respective country grouping could reduce trade costs for imports of LDCs by 2.5% and by 4.5% for LLDCs. Even though there is more to trade costs than customs management, monitoring implementation of the TFA would be part of the Istanbul Program of Action (IPoA) and a stepping stone towards the concrete trade performance targets that have lacked in AFT activities so far.
Regionalism and WTO Multilateralism: The Case for an African Continental Free Trade Area
Authors: Owoeye Olasupo
Published: April 2022

This article highlights the importance of regional integration to economic development in Africa and how it can be a way of enhancing trade expansion in the continent. It provides a critique of the current move of the African Union to establish a continent-wide free trade area in the continent by 2017 whilst identifying some of the challenges that may be associated with the pursuit of that goal. The article examines the relevant provisions of the Treaty Establishing the African Economic Community (Abuja Treaty) that may be helpful in promoting socio-economic development through regionalism in Africa. It links the formation of regional trade areas to economic development and argues that regionalism can play a key role in addressing many of the challenges inhibiting economic development in Africa.
Chinas Liberalization of Legal Services Under the ChAFTA: Market Access or Lack of Market Access for Australian Legal Practices
Authors: Xi Junfang , Zhou Weihuan
Published: April 2022

This article explores China’s commitments to liberalizing legal services under the recently concluded China – Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA). While China’s ChAFTA commitments extend beyond its commitments on legal services under the World Trade Organization and under most of China’s other Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), we argue that the degree of liberalization under the ChAFTA has been over-stated. The ChAFTA does not create additional market access for Australian legal practices as it merely recognizes the existing practice in the Chinese market and the same market access granted to Australia has been extended to all other foreign legal practices by initiatives launched in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone. Further, the ChAFTA fails to lift the major regulatory barriers to foreign legal practices in China. Consequently, Australian law firms will continue to compete with other foreign law firms in the same regulatory environment. China is likely to continue to unilaterally liberalize its legal services market via the free trade zones; but such liberalization is likely to be applied to all foreign legal practices. Towards this end, the benefits that the ChAFTA would bring to Australian legal practices are likely to be two-fold: (1) increased business opportunities in cross-border transactions, and (2) strengthened confidence in doing business in China.
Toward a More Rounded Strategy to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products
Authors: Lin Ching-Fu
Published: April 2022

The tobacco epidemic poses one of the gravest public health threats to both developed and developing countries. The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), while aiming to address the issue through various regulatory measures, has created many friction points with other treaty regimes – international trade, intellectual property, and investment. In particular, the tension between the FCTC and the World Trade Organization (WTO) has received much scholar attention. However, the existing literature focuses largely on reconciling public health measures and WTO rules applicable to legal trade in tobacco products. An equally important issue has been left out – illicit trade. Illegally manufactured, distributed, and sold tobacco amounts to 650 billion cigarettes annually – over 12% of the global total. Illicit tobacco trade has exacerbated the tobacco epidemic and undermined the effectiveness of price and tax measures. The Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products (Protocol) was adopted under the FCTC to strengthen supply chain controls, establish legal liabilities, and facilitate international cooperation. However, issues such as supply chain complexity, surreptitious nature, and industry involvement have been overlooked in the negotiation stage. This article therefore examines such factors in depth and identifies two missing governance tools – a notification system and a whistleblower mechanism – to close the loophole, facilitate implementation, and strengthen the global regulatory strategy.