World trade volume is in retreat for the first time in more than two decades and the contraction is on a scale not seen … trade with the rest of the world. Moreover, US imports that avail of preferential tariff treatment are also contracting more … to strangle world trade. The failure of bilateral free trade agreements to act as a shock absorber suggests that a new …

uneven across countries and between subregions. East Asia - particularly the People's Republic of China (PRC) - outperformed … largest number of the world's poor. In 2008, around 63% of the poor worldwide lived in the region. …