The growing importance of Japan on the world market has brought with it changes in the international division of labour and a shift in the focus of the expansion in world trade away from the EC and the USA. What factors determine the shares of the EC, the USA and Japan in international trade?...

The sudden shock of the fivefold increase of the price of oil in the autumn of 1973 has been reflected since in the world trade by structural changes in its composition by categories of goods and its regional distribution. How has the international trade coped with this shock, and which more...

The Uruguay Round negotiations are currently passing through a critical phase after four years of strenuous bargaining. The ultimate success of the negotiations largely depends on the attitudes of the USA, the EC and Japan. What are the main contentious issues between these three and how are...

The distinct trends towards regionalisation in the world economy that could be observed in recent years should not be interpreted merely as the formation of economic blocs or "fortresses". This would amount to adopting a biased, backward-looking approach that sees only the sombre experiences of...

International trade in services has not been governed by the GATT in the past. Opinion is divided over whether there is a real need for any separate agreement on services. The following article asks to what extent flows of goods and services can be properly separated in the first place, and...

International economic relations today show a rather pessimistic picture, with high non-tariff barriers, international trade frictions and a serious crisis in the GATT. The following article analyses present tendencies towards the creation of regional economic blocs and the threats to the world...

The grouping together of neighbouring countries to form free trade areas or economic and monetary unions currently constitutes a phenomenon occurring in all regions around the world. How far has the bloc-building process progressed? How will the development of world trade be affected by this...

The traditional boundaries between trade policy and competition policy are becoming fuzzier and less valid because firms increasingly compete at the same time in many different markets and in different ways. The following article examines a number of policy areas in which trade policy has...