This paper investigates how customs union members select the common external tariff (CET) to levy on imports from nonmembers. A perfectly competitive, pure exchange, general-equilibrium model of world trade is simulated. Contrary to most previous work, countries have the freedom to share...

Trade Theory, Analytical Models and Development, comprises 11 essays offering new contributions on the following topics: trade and wages; factor endowments, factor mobility and political economy of trade; optimality of tariffs; measurement of welfare; customs union theory; endogenous mergers and...

Customs unions constitute agreements to engage in free intra-union trade and to levy common external tariffs on trade with nonmembers. Existing theoretical models do not agree on how the common external tariffs are chosen. In this paper, a model of customs union formation is developed in which...

We raise the possibility that at least some of the free trade areas observed in practice are customs unions in disguise. We distinguish between generalized and standard customs unions. While members of the former can choose different external tariff rates, members of the latter levy a common...

This paper analyzes how uncertainty and the timing of its resolution influence the formation and design of regional trade agreements. Two sources of uncertainty ? in demand and costs ? are considered. We compare the case in which uncertainty is resolved "early" (before tariffs are chosen), with...

A key characteristic of any trade bloc is its “flexibility” – the extent to which it can be modified or augmented by existing members. This paper investigates how prospective trade bloc members value the flexibility of proposed trade agreements in a changing trading environment. We...