Countervailing duties were aimed at Japan and selected countries in the European Union. The provisions of the Act have been and continue to be a topic of heated discussions among the world's leading trade nations. The Effects of Trade Barriers Trade Barriers represent a nation's attempt to protect its domestic industries from foreign competition. The textbook identifies six types of trade barriers in Chapter 2. Exhibit 2.6, Page 42, provides a roster of nontariff trade barriers.
Countries having many types of trade barriers, like Japan, is a protectionist country.
The United States have relatively few trade barriers, as the government encourages free trade practices. Trade barriers are very anti-consumer. very discriminatory, and often used as a weapon in ongoing trade wars. In the US, trade barriers are usually the result of efforts of lobbyists and trade organizations influencing members of Congress. The World Trade Organization. Led by Australia's Mike Moore, the WTO has 135 member nations, and it is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.