Services play a more important role in trade and employment in the United Kingdom than in most other OECD countries. The UK services sector is supported by an open and transparent trade regime, policies that support competition and innovation, and regulatory transparency that facilitates the...

The number of Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) have increased markedly over the last decade, with many addressing market openness and rule-making for services trade. Recent RTAs are breaking down existing barriers: on average, removing between 10% and 40% of services restrictions present in the...

This paper presents improved approaches to measurement of services barriers by using alternative weighting methods and improved econometric specifications; the data include barriers affecting each mode of services supply and additional sector-specific regulatory variables. We provide an...

This paper discusses trade barriers that SMEs are likely to encounter in export markets and available policy tools aimed at their reduction or elimination. Drawing on recent work in the Trade Directorate and elsewhere, key types of barriers are identified based on a review of business surveys...

This paper analyses the relation between time for exports and imports, logistics services and international trade. Time is found not only to reduce trade volumes, but more importantly lengthy procedures for exports and imports reduce the probability that firms will enter export markets for...

This paper uses newly released OECD data on services trade restrictions (STRI) to analyse the relationship between services trade restrictions, cross-border trade in services and trade in downstream manufactured goods. A standard gravity model is enhanced by the STRI indices in a cross-section...

This paper discusses trade barriers that SMEs are likely to encounter in export markets and available policy tools aimed at their reduction or elimination. Drawing on recent work in the Trade Directorate and elsewhere, key types of barriers are identified based on a review of business surveys...

This paper analyses the relation between time for exports and imports, logistics services and international trade. Time is found not only to reduce trade volumes, but more importantly lengthy procedures for exports and imports reduce the probability that firms will enter export markets for...

The WTO Ministerial Meeting in Hong Kong in December 2005 made some progress in advancing the Doha Development Agenda. But much remains to be done, particularly in settling negotiating modalities in agriculture and NAMA and in putting some flesh onto the bones of the GATS. And where progress was...

This study forms part of Russia’s regulatory reform review undertaken under the OECD regulatory reform programme. It describes Russia’s trade environment and its recent trade and foreign investment policy developments with a focus on trade-related regulations and their role in supporting...