AbstractThis paper uses computational techniques to assess whether or not various propositions that have been advanced as plausible in the literature on regional trade agreements may actually hold. The idea is to make probabilistic statements as to whether propositions of interest might hold,...

AbstractIn this paper we develop a three-country-three-good model of customs unions. The main result is that a sufficient condition for two countries to benefit from forming a customs union is that they are similar in the sense that their mutual trade is small. This result is obtained by...

AbstractThis paper investigates the design of trade policies in an uncertain world. Governments in each of two countries select between direct quantity controls and subsidies in an attempt to shift profits in favour of domestic, imperfectly competitive firms. The equilibrium of this bilateral...

AbstractWe construct a model of customs unions in. which countries charge optimal tariffs. Customs unions internalize the externality that exists whenever two countries import the same good. Also, customs unions make several countries into one large unit with more market power. Big customs...

AbstractThis paper reports the first experiments designed to explore the behavior of economies with prominent features of international finance. Two "countries," each with its own currency, were created. International trade could take place only through the operation of markets for currency. The...

AbstractWe analyze voter preferences for tariffs and production subsidies. The distribution of tax revenues argument shows that voters with high direct tax burdens prefer tariffs to subsidies. The uncertainty argument demonstrates that if actual tariff and subsidy rates are chosen from the set...

AbstractThis paper examines the role of external shocks in explaining macroeconomic fluctuations in African countries. We construct a quantitative, stochastic, dynamic, multi-sector equilibrium model of a small open economy calibrated to represent a "typical" African country. External shocks...

AbstractChanges in trade policy affect a nation's economic welfare through terms-of-trade and volume-of-trade effects. A move to global free trade would imply higher world economic welfare equal to the sum of all nations' volume-of-trade, or efficiency, effects. Since the sum of the...

AbstractIt is well known that large countries can manipulate the terms of trade to their advantage by using tariffs. It is widely believed, however, that this invites retaliation, and that the post-retaliation equilibrium leaves all countries worse off than they would be at free trade. We...

<i>Economics and Politics of Trade Policy</i> brings together a set of 16 papers that focus primarily on the political economy of international trade. What sets these papers apart is the recurrent theme of developing and extending political economic analysis beyond details commonly considered when the...