This paper studies the under-explored yet critical role of WTO's regular bodies, particularly focusing on the discussions of "trade concerns" within the Goods Council, its subsidiary bodies, as well as the General Council. These discussions are pivotal for the governance of international trade...

This paper picks up an argument that I developed in an earlier contribution (2007) in which I introduced the concept of ‘deliberative trade policy'. This approach analyzes the entire set of trade policy institutions and measures as means and media of communicating about preferences of...

The Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), as amended by the Protocol of Amendment signed December 10, 2019, represents a major overhaul of the now-dated 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). However, it is unusual in that it has little traditional tariff liberalization,...

In the last ten years, there has been a sea change in trade and related policies in emerging markets. This results from autonomous reforms undertaken in conjunction with macroeconomic stabilization programmes. Many non-tariff measures have been eliminated and tariffs, now the principal trade...

The Belt and Road Initiative, recently embarked on by China, aims to improve cross-border infrastructure in order to reduce transportation costs across a massive geographical area between China and Europe. We estimate how much trade might be created among Belt and Road countries as a consequence...

The paper is the final chapter of a textbook on WTO Law published by Law Press, Beijing, in 2012. The textbook contains multiple chapters on more basic aspects of WTO Law in Chinese. Some of the more advanced chapters are reproduced in English and Chinese. Finally, the present chapter appears...

This article addresses the relationship between the GATT, the European Community and other RTAs as and when trade in services and other 'new areas' are incorporated into the GATT framework. The article first discusses the conceptual justifications for RTAs (as an alternative to utopian global...

This paper evaluates the impact of China's WTO entry and the establishment of a free-trade agreement between China and ASEAN on the ASEAN-5 (Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand). We examine the trade competition between the two regions using a market-share model and assess...

The use of international technical standards and conformity assessment systems are conventionally deemed as facilitating international trade and improving efficiency of production worldwide. However, many national, regional as well as international technical standards often incorporate...

Brazil is currently immersed in the project of building a new common market, known as MERCOSUR, with its neighbors Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay. It has largely been assumed that this project will produce economic growth and therefore be beneficial for the environment. However, this assumption...