The paper discusses the costs and benefits to be expected by least-developed and low-income ("vulnerable") economies if they accede to the WTO, the impact of current debates about WTO reform on vulnerable economies, and measures to make it easier for vulnerable economies to accede to and...

The paper discusses similarities and differences between past EU binding internal liberalization "across the board" in the industrial sector and present so-called voluntary sectoral liberalization of member states of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). While both approaches are...

This paper analyses the prospects and problems of a Transatlantic Free Trade Area (TAFTA) between the European Union and the United States. Possible economic reasons for the proposal of TAFTA such as the intensity of bilateral trade and a strong interdependence in investment flows and the...

For many applicant countries, accession to the WTO has been, and still is, a frustratingly slow process. In this paper, we discuss the substantial, contentious issues that are slowing down rogress in accession negotiations. We contrast these with the benefits of WTO accession not only to the...