The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that is to take effect at the beginning of 1994 will create a free trade area between three economies which differ substantially in terms of size and stage of development. What were the reasons that led the unequal partners, the USA, Canada and...

Increasing efforts at "regionalisation" can be observed worldwide, initiated particularly by the successes of the European Union (EU), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and also through the foundation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). What expectations are...

The new regulatory framework in the digital sector in Europe is likely to fall short of expectations. A fragmented digital market with insuffi cient incentives for investment is the probable outcome. European regulators should abandon their approach in favour of a new and more flexible set of...

The use of non-tariff barriers to trade, which began to be important in the 1970s, has continued to increase throughout the 1980s. Notwithstanding the difficulties and limitations it faces, the Uruguay Round probably presents the only present opportunity of coming to grips with many existing...

The European Community has a variety of instruments at its disposal to counter unfair trade practices, but there has long been considerable disagreement within the Community as to when and where they should be applied. To what extent would such measures endanger the benefits of international...

Voluntary export restraints play a substantial part in international trade today. This article compares the effects such restraints have upon certain exporting countries with the effect of sanctions applied under Article XIX of the GATT. It is shown that the microeconomic protectionism analysis...

Against the background of the increasing proliferation of voluntary export restraint arrangements, a proposal put forward by the American economist C. F. Bergsten recommending an alternative system of auction quotas is currently the subject of international discussion. Our article gives a...