Tag Archives | trade
Globalization and Economic Stability, Industry and trade

Preparing for LDC Graduation: Sustaining Development and Integration amid Changing Trade Schemes

Preparing for LDC Graduation Sustaining Development and Integration amid Changing Trade Schemes_featured image
Asian countries moving out of low-income status are planning reforms to keep growing despite reduced trade benefits.

Industry and trade, Information and Communications Technology, Private sector development

Expanding trade opportunities for SMEs in Asia and the Pacific

Expanding trade opportunities for SMEs in Asia and the Pacific
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of the Asian economy. They already account for over 95% of all businesses in Asia and employ an estimated 60% of the region’s workforce (Mastercard and the Economist Intelligence Unit 2019). Hence, helping SMEs grow can translate directly into economic and workforce expansion.

Economics, Industry and trade

Productivity spillovers from services firms in low- and middle-income countries: What is the role of firm characteristics and services liberalization?

Productivity spillovers from services firms in low- and middle-income countries: What is the role of firm characteristics and services liberalization?
It has been widely acknowledged that services play an important role for other industries, in particular manufacturing. A study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) finds that services represent at least 30% of the value added in manufacturing exports (OECD 2014). Another study by the World Bank suggests that countries with a higher services content in their downstream economies are also those producing more complex goods (Saez et al. 2015).

Economics, Environment, Industry and trade

How does trade openness affect the environmental Kuznets curve?

How does trade openness affect the environmental Kuznets curve?
The People’s Republic of China (PRC) has reformed and opened up its economy for 4 decades. However, accompanying the country’s fast-growing gross domestic product (GDP) and trade sector, environmental degradation, such as deteriorating water quality, land deforestation, pollution, and frequent haze plagues, has attracted a great deal of attention.

Finance sector development, Industry and trade, Infrastructure, Regional cooperation and integration

Next generation of quality development and investment in the new Pacific trade pact

Next generation of quality development and investment in the new Pacific trade pact
Earlier this month, the Pacific trade pact was reborn in Santiago as the 11-nation Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. While the headlines have been dominated by the absence of the United States and the level of trade gains each nation hopes to enjoy, let’s focus here on three less-remarked-upon sections of this revised treaty among Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Viet Nam (the TPP11).

Video Blog

VIDEO BLOG: Remove trade barriers to improve health systems and lower patients’ costs

Cheaper, Faster, Better Meds
Trade in health products has been flourishing as more and more people demand better health. But countries around the world still apply tariffs and nontariff measures that jack up prices and curb the entry of pharmaceuticals, vaccines, and medical equipment.

Economics, Finance sector development, Industry and trade

How does exchange rate volatility affect value added and gross trade?

How does exchange rate volatility affect value added and gross trade?
The rise of Donald Trump has reignited the debate on the link between exchange rates and trade. The Trump administration has blamed the exchange rate policies of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Japan, and Germany for the current account deficit in the United States (US), and the president’s Twitter posts have put many major currencies on a roller coaster ride. Now, policy makers around the globe are concerned about the negative impact of exchange rate volatility on world trade.

Industry and trade

Exploring the trade–urbanization nexus in developing economies: evidence and implications

Exploring the Trade–Urbanization Nexus in Developing Economies: Evidence and Implications
Modern humans have been increasingly concentrated in cities. The United Nations forecasts that 60% of the world’s population will live in urban areas by 2030. Regional multilateral institutions such as the Development Bank of Latin America and the Asian Development Bank have stepped up their efforts to support the urban sector and to collaborate on comparative studies of urbanization.

Industry and trade, Regional cooperation and integration

RCEP – a life raft for trade liberalization in Asia

RCEP - a life raft for trade liberalization in Asia
There seems to be a pushback against trade agreements in the post global financial crisis era. The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was signed in early 2016, but US presidential candidates have spared no effort criticizing it so near-term ratification is highly uncertain. The WTO Doha Round is in the deep freeze after 14 years of negotiations. Unilateral trade liberalization has virtually come to a standstill.

Industry and trade

What Africa can learn from Asian supply chains

What Africa can learn from Asian supply chains
At this week’s 10th World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Conference in Nairobi, Kenya, trade ministers are trying to advance 15 years of Doha Development Agenda talks to reduce trade barriers. The real issue, however, is whether African economies can follow East Asia's success in global supply chains amid “new normal" growth and rising inequality.