The Asia Pacific Trade Agreement

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The Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement

Author : Joong-Wan Cho
Publisher : UN
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 570 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (31 download)

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Book Synopsis The Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement by : Joong-Wan Cho

Download or read book The Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement written by Joong-Wan Cho and published by UN. This book was released on 2016 with total page 570 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: International trade and investment have enabled many countries in the Asia-Pacific region to boost economic growth and have lifted millions out of poverty. As the Asia-Pacific region continues to thrive economically, trade and investment barriers are being dissolved and eliminated. As countries begin to depend on each other more, trade policy is gradually becoming a useful measure to achieve inclusive and sustainable development. Trade and investment are linked to the environment and social issues; hence, their impacts are also multi-dimensional. It has now been recognized that sustainable production and consumption are essential for sustainable development. Countries realize that they are not able to approach global and regional problems on their own and require cooperation, both at the level of government and business. As a result, the region has been active in concluding regional cooperation frameworks which routinely are centered on trade and investment. In the meantime, business has forged regional integration through the formation of regional value chains and production networks while governments have paved the way for the expansion of such production networks through the formation of regional trade agreements and economic partnerships. Thus, the Asia Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA), which is the oldest preferential trade agreement in the region with a large consumer base, can play an important role in filling this gap. Given a slow progress in the multilateral negotiations in the WTO, especially when the members have started questioning the utility of the negotiations after 15 years, and a lack of consensus on how to move forward, the regional trade agreements can play a vital role. Even if they pose a challenge to the multilateralism, selected liberalisation of trade and economy in present time can become a building block for future multilateral negotiations. One of the reasons for the surge in these preferential trade agreements is to make binding commitments on WTO-plus and WTO-beyond issues. While there are many agreements that exist in Asia and the Pacific, there is no such attempt to consolidate them in one umbrella framework. Understanding the benefits of the consolidation, one such initiative was started by ESCAP a few years back. The RECI initiate for market integration could well be facilitated by APTA; however, it cannot deliver unless it transforms itself in a new generation agreement. Regional integration and cooperation are also important to meet the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. Instead of wasting resources in discussing a new institutional framework, it would be more effective to use the existing framework and for the Asia-Pacific economies, the APTA provides an existing institutional platform. The cases discussed in this book prepare a ground for the future, and it is expected that all the stakeholders, member States of ESCAP, private sector as well as researchers would benefit from this publication on APTA: South-South Regional Integration and Sustainable Development.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership and Asia-Pacific Integration

Author : Peter A. Petri
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9780881326642
Total Pages : 143 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (266 download)

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Book Synopsis The Trans-Pacific Partnership and Asia-Pacific Integration by : Peter A. Petri

Download or read book The Trans-Pacific Partnership and Asia-Pacific Integration written by Peter A. Petri and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 143 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement

Author :
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (124 download)

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Book Synopsis Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement by :

Download or read book Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement written by and published by . This book was released on with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

New Free Trade Agreements in the Asia-Pacific

Author : C. Dent
Publisher : Springer
ISBN 13 : 0230627919
Total Pages : 330 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (36 download)

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Book Synopsis New Free Trade Agreements in the Asia-Pacific by : C. Dent

Download or read book New Free Trade Agreements in the Asia-Pacific written by C. Dent and published by Springer. This book was released on 2006-07-11 with total page 330 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book studies the main causes, consequences and nature of the Asia-Pacific's new free trade agreement (FTA) trend, and its implications for the global economy. It explores the FTA policies of the region's trade powers and offers conceptual and theoretical perspectives on the relationship between economic bilateralism and regionalism.

The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership

Author : Cassey Lee
Publisher : ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute
ISBN 13 : 9814818887
Total Pages : 333 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (148 download)

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Book Synopsis The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership by : Cassey Lee

Download or read book The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership written by Cassey Lee and published by ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute. This book was released on 2021-01-15 with total page 333 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) is a free trade agreement involving major countries across the Asia Pacific region. The trade pact, which entered into force on 30 December 2018, is considered by many to be the “gold standard”, given its ambitious scope and depth. This volume offers multi-dimensional insights into the CPTPP and its impact on Southeast Asia. It begins with broad analyses covering the historical, economic and geopolitical aspects of the CPTPP. Subsequent chapters focus on the nature and implications of three key path-breaking provisions in the trade agreement, namely investor-state dispute settlement, intellectual property rights and state-owned enterprises. The effect of the CPTPP on Southeast Asia in terms of regional production networks is also examined from the perspective of Japanese multinational enterprises. The potential economic impact of the agreement is analysed for member countries (Vietnam and Malaysia) as well as countries that aspire to join the CPTPP in the future (Indonesia and Thailand). The world trading system is in disarray: the World Trade Organization has been weakened, perhaps terminally; the world’s two economic superpowers are locked in deep, politicized disputes; the forces of populism and nationalism are everywhere complicating the return to a more liberal, rules-based order. These trends are challenging one of the building blocks of ASEAN economic development, namely these countries’ outward-looking trade and investment policies. With impeccable timing this important volume by a group of eminent authors assesses these issues with reference to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. The CPTPP excludes the three largest traders—China, the EU and the US—but it is a welcome second-best initiative that may have broader, positive ripple effects. This is the volume to read to gain a deeper understanding of the many complex issues at play." -- Hal Hill, H.W. Arndt Professor Emeritus of Southeast Asian Economies, College of Asia & the Pacific, Australian National University

The Trans-Pacific Partnership

Author : C. L. Lim
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1107028663
Total Pages : 357 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (7 download)

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Book Synopsis The Trans-Pacific Partnership by : C. L. Lim

Download or read book The Trans-Pacific Partnership written by C. L. Lim and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2012-09-20 with total page 357 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks attempt to link together at least nine countries in three continents to create a 'high-quality, twenty-first century agreement'. Such an agreement is intended to open markets to competition between the partners more than ever before in sectors ranging from goods and services to investment, and includes rigorous rules in the fields of intellectual property, labour protection and environmental conservation. The TPP also aims to improve regulatory coherence, enhance production supply chains and help boost small and medium-sized enterprises. It could transform relations with regions such as Latin America, paving the way to an eventual Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific, or see innovations translated into the global trade regulatory system operating under the WTO. However, given the tensions between strategic and economic concerns, the final deal could still collapse into something closer to a standard, 'twentieth-century' trade agreement.

Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement

Author : Ian F. Fergusson
Publisher : DIANE Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1437936962
Total Pages : 19 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (379 download)

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Book Synopsis Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement by : Ian F. Fergusson

Download or read book Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement written by Ian F. Fergusson and published by DIANE Publishing. This book was released on 2010-11 with total page 19 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) is a free trade agreement that includes nations on both sides of the Pacific. The existing TPP, which originally came into effect in 2006, consists of Brunei, Chile, New Zealand, and Singapore. The U.S., Peru, Australia, and Vietnam have committed themselves to joining and expanding this group. Contents of this report: (1) Origins; (2) Existing and Potential Membership; (3) Congressional Reactions to the TPP; (4) U.S. Objectives and Interests; (5) Context with Other Regional Architectures; (6) U.S. Trade with Current Trans-Pacific Partner Countries; (7) Controversies: Agr. Products; Dairy; Beef; Intellectual Property Rights; Environ. and Labor; Pharmaceuticals; Gov¿t. Procurement; Trade Promotion Authority.

Trade Policy in the Asia-Pacific

Author : Vinod K. Aggarwal
Publisher : Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN 13 : 1441968334
Total Pages : 167 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (419 download)

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Book Synopsis Trade Policy in the Asia-Pacific by : Vinod K. Aggarwal

Download or read book Trade Policy in the Asia-Pacific written by Vinod K. Aggarwal and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2010-11-03 with total page 167 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: East Asian countries are now pursuing greater formal economic institutionalization, weaving a web of bilateral and minilateral preferential trade agreements. Scholarly analysis of “formal” East Asian regionalism focuses on international political and economic factors such as the end of the Cold War, the Asian financial crisis, or the rising Sino-Japanese rivalry. Yet this work pays inadequate attention to the strategies of individual government agencies, business groups, labor unions, and NGOs across the region. Moreover, most studies also fail to adequately characterize different types of trade arrangements, often lumping together bilateral accords with minilateral ones, and transregional agreements with those within the region. To fully understand this cross-national variance, this book argues that researchers must give greater attention to the domestic politics within East Asian countries and the U.S., involving the interplay of these subnational players. With contributions from leading country and regional trade specialists, this book examines East Asian and American trade strategies through the lens of a domestic bargaining game approach with a focus on the interplay of interests, ideas, and domestic institutions within the context of broader international shifts. With respect to domestic politics, the chapters show how subnational actors engage in lobbying, both of their own governments and through their links to others in the region. They also trace the evolution of interests and ideas over time, helping us to generate a better understanding of historical trends in the region. In addition to scholars of East Asian and comparative regionalism, this book will be of interest to policy-makers concerned with international trade and U.S.-Asia relations, and those interested in understanding the rich trade institutional landscape that we see emerging in the Asia-Pacific.

Free Trade Agreements in the Asia Pacific

Author : Christopher Charles Findlay
Publisher : World Scientific
ISBN 13 : 981427139X
Total Pages : 332 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (142 download)

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Book Synopsis Free Trade Agreements in the Asia Pacific by : Christopher Charles Findlay

Download or read book Free Trade Agreements in the Asia Pacific written by Christopher Charles Findlay and published by World Scientific. This book was released on 2010 with total page 332 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) have proliferated in East Asia as regional economies rush to catch up with the rest of the world OCo but what difference do they make? This book answers that question by providing an up-to-date assessment of the quality and impact of FTAs in the region. Featuring a collection of papers originally written for the prestigious Research Institute for Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI) in Tokyo, it presents contemporary analysis and insights into the evolution of recent FTAs. The book is suitable for use by trade policy negotiators, policy analysts, and people developing business strategies in organizations, as well as graduate students and researchers in the field. Sample Chapter(s). Chapter 1: Rules of Origin and Agricultural Trade Liberalisation in Major Free Trade Agreements (249 KB). Contents: Rules of Origin and Agricultural Trade Liberalisation in Major Free Trade Agreements (I Cheong & J Cho); Services in Free Trade Agreements (R Ochiai et al.); Analysis of the Restrictions on Foreign Direct Investment in Free Trade Agreements (S Urata & J Sasuya); A Comparison of the Safeguard Mechanisms of Free Trade Agreements (A Kotera & T Kitamura); Assessing the Economic Impacts of Free Trade Agreements: A Computable Equilibrium Model Approach (K Abe); The Impacts of Free Trade Agreements on Trade Flows: An Application of the Gravity Model Approach (S Urata & M Okabe); On the Use of Free Trade Agreements by Japanese Firms (K Takahashi & S Urata); Impacts of Japanese FTAs/EPAs: Preliminary Post Evaluation (M Ando). Readership: Graduate students and researchers in international trade; trade policy negotiators; policy analysts; business strategy developers."

Intellectual Property and Free Trade Agreements in the Asia-Pacific Region

Author : Christoph Antons
Publisher : Springer
ISBN 13 : 3642308880
Total Pages : 433 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (423 download)

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Book Synopsis Intellectual Property and Free Trade Agreements in the Asia-Pacific Region by : Christoph Antons

Download or read book Intellectual Property and Free Trade Agreements in the Asia-Pacific Region written by Christoph Antons and published by Springer. This book was released on 2014-12-05 with total page 433 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is highly topical. The shift from the multilateral WTO negotiations to bilateral and regional Free Trade Agreements has been going on for some time, but it is bound to accelerate after the WTO Doha round of negotiations is now widely regarded as a failure. However, there is a particular regional angle to this topic as well. After concluding that further progress in the Doha round was unlikely, Pacific Rim nations recently have progressed with the negotiations of a greatly expanded Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement that includes industrialised economies and developed countries such as the United States, Japan, Australia and New Zealand, recently emerged economies such as Singapore, but also several developing countries in Asia and Latin America such as Malaysia and Vietnam. US and EU led efforts to conclude FTAs with Asia-Pacific nations are also bound to accelerate again, after a temporary slowdown in the negotiations following the change of government in the United States and the expiry of the US President’s fast-track negotiation authority. The book will provide an assessment of these dynamics in the world’s fastest growing region. It will look at the IP chapters from a legal perspective, but also put the developments into a socio-economic and political context. Many agreements in fact are concluded because of this context rather than for purely economic reasons or to achieve progress in fields like IP law. The structure of the book follows an outline that groups countries into interest alliances according to their respective IP priorities. This ranges from the driving forces of the EU, US and Japan, via Asia-Pacific resource-rich but IP poor economies such as Australia and New Zealand, recently emerged economies with strong IP systems such as Singapore and Korea to leading developing countries such as China and India and ‘second tier industrializing economies’ such as Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia.

Trade Regionalism in the Asia-Pacific

Author : Sanchita Basu Das
Publisher : ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute
ISBN 13 : 9814695440
Total Pages : 383 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (146 download)

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Book Synopsis Trade Regionalism in the Asia-Pacific by : Sanchita Basu Das

Download or read book Trade Regionalism in the Asia-Pacific written by Sanchita Basu Das and published by ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute. This book was released on 2016-04-11 with total page 383 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Asia has witnessed a proliferation of free trade agreements (FTAs) since the turn of the millennium. The first regional agreement — the ASEAN FTA — was transformed into the ASEAN Economic Community at the end of 2015. In the meantime, ASEAN forged five ASEAN+1 FTAs and began to negotiate a sixteen-member Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement. In parallel, the U.S.-led Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), supporting U.S. foreign policy of “Pivot to Asia”, was broadly agreed in October 2015. The RCEP and the TPP are accompanied by other mega-regional integration processes developing elsewhere in the world, including the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership for the European Union and the United States, and the Pacific Alliance among four Latin American member states. Meanwhile, APEC is also striving to meet its Bogor Goal targets and create a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific. Each of these mega-regionals aims to achieve greater trade and investment liberalization and facilitation and more harmonized trade and investment rules so that all member economies can participate in the global value chain of production. Instead of undermining, these regional exercises can be building blocks for a more liberal global trading system supported by the World Trade Organization. This book ruminates on these regional agreements, their economic and strategic rationales and challenges during negotiations and afterwards. The book brings together eminent scholars and experts to deepen our understanding of the complex nature of the mega-regional trade agreements and their implications. It is useful both for the academic and research community and for policymakers who focus on trade and economic cooperation issues.

The U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement

Author : Eul-Soo Pang
Publisher : Institute of Southeast Asian Studies
ISBN 13 : 9814311995
Total Pages : 328 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (143 download)

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Book Synopsis The U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement by : Eul-Soo Pang

Download or read book The U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement written by Eul-Soo Pang and published by Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. This book was released on 2011 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Free trade has become the mantra of development strategy for many countries in the world, especially those in the Asia Pacific. This book delves into the American side of the story. It is about how Singapore and the United States came to sign the agreement in 2003 (taking effect from 1 January 2004). The United States - Singapore Free Trade Agreement (USSFTA) is the first FTA that America signed with an Asian country and the second such agreement with a fully developed country, after Canada. The city-state has used a free trade agreement as both a national survival and a growth strategy, first forging such FTA ties with its major trading partners and then expanding its strategic link to such extra-regional great powers as the United States, Japan, Australia, China, India, and the European Union. Both Singapore and the United States saw in FTAs something more than just merchandise trade.

Bilateral Trade Agreements in the Asia-Pacific

Author : Vinod Aggarwal
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1136633383
Total Pages : 328 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (366 download)

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Book Synopsis Bilateral Trade Agreements in the Asia-Pacific by : Vinod Aggarwal

Download or read book Bilateral Trade Agreements in the Asia-Pacific written by Vinod Aggarwal and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-06-17 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Asia-Pacific region has witnessed a rapid rise in bilateral preferential trade agreements at the beginning of the twenty-first century. This trend could have potentially dramatic effects on the trading patterns of countries in the transpacific region and beyond. Some argue that these accords will spur multilateral negotiations, while others believe that they will irreparably damage the trading system. Bilateral Trade Agreements in the Asia-Pacific examines the underlying political and economic factors driving these accords, based on a novel theoretical framework. Experts then provide overviews of political and economic trends in the region as well as detailed analysis of the trade strategies of Japan, China, Singapore, South Korea, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States and Mexico. By systematically evaluating and assessing the driving forces underlying the turn to bilateral trade agreements in the Asia-Pacific, this book provides the first comprehensive analysis of this crucial phenomenon. Growing numbers of countries both in the region and elsewhere in the world are now considering further negotiation of bilateral trade accords. Understanding how these arrangements will fit or conflict with existing institutions in the Asia-Pacific and the WTO makes this book imperative reading for policy-makers and scholars.

Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement Handbook

Author : International Business Publications, Inc.
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781577511625
Total Pages : 300 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (116 download)

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Book Synopsis Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement Handbook by : International Business Publications, Inc.

Download or read book Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement Handbook written by International Business Publications, Inc. and published by . This book was released on 2013-07-01 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement Handbook

The Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Path to Free Trade in the Asia-Pacific

Author : Peter C.Y. Chow
Publisher : Edward Elgar Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1785360043
Total Pages : 316 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (853 download)

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Book Synopsis The Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Path to Free Trade in the Asia-Pacific by : Peter C.Y. Chow

Download or read book The Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Path to Free Trade in the Asia-Pacific written by Peter C.Y. Chow and published by Edward Elgar Publishing. This book was released on 2016-08-26 with total page 316 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mega-regionalism in the Asia Pacific has led to the formation of several emerging trade blocs, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership. This book, in addition to the examination of trade policies in the region, offers a comprehensive analysis of ongoing developments such as the impact of new members on the incumbent TPP-12 and its spillover to third parties, as well an objective study of the crucial issues of liberalization of agriculture, pharmaceuticals, and intellectual property rights.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership and Asia-Pacific Integration

Author : Peter A. Petri
Publisher : Peterson Institute
ISBN 13 : 088132664X
Total Pages : 195 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (813 download)

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Book Synopsis The Trans-Pacific Partnership and Asia-Pacific Integration by : Peter A. Petri

Download or read book The Trans-Pacific Partnership and Asia-Pacific Integration written by Peter A. Petri and published by Peterson Institute . This book was released on 2012-12-01 with total page 195 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "While global trade negotiations remain stalled, two tracks of trade negotiations in the Asia-Pacific--the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement and a parallel Asian track--could generate momentum for renewed liberalization and provide pathways to region-wide free trade. We estimate that world income would rise by $295 billion per year on the TPP track, by $766 billion if both tracks are successful, and by $1.9 trillion if the tracks ultimately combine to yield region-wide free trade. The tracks are competitive initially but their strategic implications appear to be constructive: they generate incentives for enlargement and mutual progress and, over time, for region-wide consolidation. The "21st century" template of the TPP would be especially productive because it is likely to offer opportunities for the leading sectors of both emerging-market and advanced economies. An ambitious TPP template would generate greater gains from integration than less demanding alternatives, but it will be harder to sell to China and other key regional partners as the TPP evolves toward wider agreements. The crucial importance of Asia-Pacific integration argues for an early conclusion of the TPP negotiations, but without jeopardizing the prospects for region-wide or even global agreements based on it in the future"--Provided by publisher.

Asia's Free Trade Agreements

Author : Masahiro Kawai
Publisher : Edward Elgar Publishing
ISBN 13 : 0857930419
Total Pages : 305 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (579 download)

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Book Synopsis Asia's Free Trade Agreements by : Masahiro Kawai

Download or read book Asia's Free Trade Agreements written by Masahiro Kawai and published by Edward Elgar Publishing. This book was released on 2011 with total page 305 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: East Asia is the region of the world that is changing fastest in terms of trade arrangements. Dozens of free-trade agreements are signed every year, turning a complex situation into the East Asian noodle bowl of FTAs. This book addresses the crucial question posed by these new agreements how do they affect business? While many studies have focused on government-to-government issues, this book gets to the heart of the matter, studying what it means for the firms actually doing the trade and investment. I recommend this book to any serious student of trade, particularly those interested in understanding the rapidly evolving landscape in this most dynamic part of the world. Richard Baldwin, Professor of International Economics, Graduate Institute, Geneva, Switzerland The pursuit of more than one hundred Free Trade Agreements in East Asia is quietly producing a fundamental change in the global economic architecture. This path-breaking new volume provides an indispensable guide to the practical effect of such agreements on commercial transactions in the region. It is a must-read for businessmen and policymakers who seek to both understand the impact of FTAs in the real world and expand their contributions to economic growth and development. C. Fred Bergsten, Director, Peterson Institute for International Economics, US [East Asia] needs to think about appropriate measures to overcome the Asian FTA noodle bowl in the future. In this vein, the study suggests several practical measures including encouraging rationalization and flexibility of rules of origin, upgrading origin administration, improving business participation in FTA consultations, and strengthening institutional support systems for SMEs. . . It is hoped that this study will contribute to strengthening regional trade policies in Asia and compatibilities with global trade rules. Haruhiko Kuroda, President, Asian Development Bank This is a valuable contribution in a crowded field. Kawai and Wignaraja have gone beyond familiar arguments about the relative merits of regionalism and multilateralism to ask businesses what it all means to them. Policymakers should take note. Patrick Low, Chief Economist, WTO For policymakers in the region, the debate is no longer between regionalism and multilateralism. The real question is how we should create the model for regionalism that will become the building blocks to a multilateral trading system and avoid raising costs of doing business from the noodle bowl effect. Therefore the comparative and micro-level research found in this book provides valuable insights on the impact of FTAs on businesses. These insights will be relevant input as policymakers forge ahead in implementing regional FTAs, thinking of ways to amend and improve on them and, most importantly, harmonize or consolidate between existing regional FTAs in East Asia. Mari Pangestu, Minister of Trade, Indonesia The spread of Asia s free trade agreements (FTAs) has sparked an important debate on the impact of such agreements on business activity. This pioneering study uses new evidence from surveys of East Asian exporters including Japan, the People s Republic of China, the Republic of Korea and three ASEAN economies of the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand to shed light on the FTA debate. Critics are concerned that FTAs erode the multilateral trading process and foster an alarming noodle bowl of overlapping regulations and rules of origin requirements which may be costly to business. Asia s Free Trade Agreements makes key recommendations for improving business use of FTA preferences, reducing costs of FTAs and creating a region-wide FTA. This well-researched and documented book will appeal to undergraduate and postgraduate students in international business, international economics, economic development, public administration and public policy. Academics, researchers and members of think-tanks around the world will also benefit from this book as will trad