Beyond Tariffs

This publication analyses where and why certain non-tariff measures are being applied to traded goods that are covered by multilateral rules and disciplines, and how they continue to represent challenges for exporters and policy makers.

No detailed description available for "Rivals beyond Trade".

This publication analyses where and why certain non-tariff measures are being applied to traded goods that are covered by multilateral rules and disciplines, and how they continue to represent challenges for exporters and policy makers.

The world economy is still far from the textbook model of unfettered trade, of a global market place without barriers. Non-tariff barriers to trade at and behind the border have been lowered significantly in the course of successive trade negotiations, but more can be done. The studies in this volume review concerns that exporters and governments have raised about market access. They analyse where and why certain non-tariff measures are being applied to traded goods that are covered by multilateral rules and disciplines, and how they continue to represent challenges for exporters and policymakers. The specific measures examined are: prohibitions and quotas, non-automatic import licensing schemes, customs fees and charges, and export restrictions.

A review of the development of the WTO dispute resolution procedure and the power and influence it has gained over the practises of the member countries as well as in other international treaties.

The world of trade is changing rapidly, from the 'rise of the South' to the growth of unconventional projects like fair trade and carbon trading. Beyond Free Trade advances alternative ways for understanding these new dynamics, based on historical, political, or sociological methods that go beyond the limitations of conventional trade economics.

There is a growing recognition that for developed economies, like the UK, tariff-free market access is just one of a number of measures that ease cross-border trade flows. Modern trade agreements go beyond tariff reductions by setting rules, such as market access and regulation of foreign service providers. We examine the contribution of deep non-tariff provisions on international trade in goods and services. Using a gravity model, we find that provisions related to services, investment, and competition make up half of the overall impact of economic integration agreements on trade flows. These deep provisions have larger effects for trade in services than for trade in goods, and their relative contribution is highest in sectors that facilitate supply chain activity, such as transportation and storage. We apply our sectoral estimates of deep provisions to examine two counterfactuals of the UK signing bilateral deals with the US and with China and India. We find that negotiating services, investment, and competition provisions in these future deals would boost trade relatively more in professional, scientific, and technical activities in the UK.