We develop a model to study the behavior of firms in a Free Trade Area with Rules of Origin and the consequences of this behavior on the market equilibrium and outcome. We show that firms will choose to specialize, and that an FTA with strict ROOs on the intermediate good raises imports and...

In contrast to existing work which takes an ex-ante approach and looks for policy prescriptions which yield welfare improvements, we take an ex-post approach. We ask whether there are indicators which show whether welfare has risen or not in the wake of a reform. That is, we look for evidence of...

The market access and welfare effects of Free Trade Areas (FTAs) without Rules of Origin (ROOs) are studied. We consider both the final and intermediate goods markets and their interlinkage. The FTA weakly reduces all tariffs and prices within the FTA. This raises quantity demanded and reduces...