All of that is true. But we should not fall into the trap of thinking that new-economy firms cannot fall victim to trade barriers and protectionist regulations. Yes of course the Internet makes it easier to bypass trade barriers and government regulations. Certainly, an Internet start-up can more easily reach a global market than a new steel mill. But even the new economy needs global free-trade rules to prevent governments throwing spanners in the works.
Government regulations can easily hinder the global development of e-commerce.
So can trade barriers. We need to be vigilant. Open up an American PC and you will probably see memory chips from Japan and Korea, a disk drive from a US company in Singapore, and a motherboard from Taiwan. The competitiveness of American computer makers depends on free-trade rules. The WTO provides certainty in an uncertain world.